I Know Lucy (A Fugitive #1)(21)
“Yeah.” Marlin mussed her hair as he sat down beside her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
An owl hooted in the distance, making Lucy flinch.
“You seem jittery tonight.”
Lucy rested her head on his shoulder, thinking about the police. “I just sometimes wonder if this will all catch up with us. What if we’re caught one day?” She nibbled her bottom lip, that familiar fear building inside her.
The law terrified her, not only because she was a crook, but because the law was crooked. She’d seen for herself how the law didn’t guarantee any kind of safety. Those pale green eyes still haunted her dreams.
“Are we gonna die, Marlin?” Her voice shook as she asked the same question she always did when thinking about her parents’ murders.
Marlin kissed the top of her head and replied with the same answer every time. “One day, but of nothing more than natural causes.” He rested his hollow cheek on her head. “I ain’t gonna let anybody hurt you, Cyan. You can count on that.”
Chapter 11
ZACH
April 2014
“Would you drop it, Elliot.” I flung my hands out. With them still inside my jacket pockets, I looked like I had wings. I walked towards the center of Danville, keeping an eye out for my parents. Since I was in San Fran all day tomorrow, they wanted to have a family lunch today to discuss the pending summer. They were nervous about leaving me for six weeks to travel around Europe. It would be another session of me assuring them that I really didn’t want to come as that would defeat the purpose of their second honeymoon.
I promised I’d meet them at our favorite little cafe on Hartz Ave.
“No, I won’t drop it.” Elliot sounded pissy. “She was lying last night and you know it.”
I rolled my eyes, trying to act as though Dani’s deception didn’t bother me. “Look, she’s obviously a private person. Is it really our right to start an inquest on the poor girl?”
“I knew you liked her.” Elliot snapped his fingers and I suddenly wished I hadn’t agreed to spend the morning playing Halo 2 at his place. Thankfully the discussion had been minimal while we were shooting the crap out of each other, but now that he was walking me into town…it was a different matter.
I cleared my throat, ignoring his last comment.
“If you didn’t like her, you’d be hounding her like a dog, wanting to know every secret. I’d have to listen to your endless hypothesis, but you’re all quiet and nonplussed. You don’t want to screw this up with her, so you’re just going with it. It’s not like Zach Schultz. What the hell, man?”
He gave my arm a back hand slap, which actually kinda hurt. I rubbed my bicep and shot him a droll look.
“Okay, fine. It’s not that I’m not interested in why she’s being hedgy, but I don’t know. I don’t want to push my luck. She’s gonna take time to figure out. What if she wasn’t lying? What if she’s just a really private person and your suspicious nature and my need to constantly question everything is just projecting this stuff on her. Maybe she doesn’t want us to meet her dad. Maybe he’s really strict and won’t let her have a cellphone, but she’s too embarrassed to admit that. We don’t know…and that’s the truth.”
Elliot stopped and yanked on my shirt, pulling me to a halt. His cynical brown eyes were on fire, in spite of his deadpan expression. “Is it? Or is it just the truth you want to believe?”
I pushed my tongue over my bottom teeth and looked away from my friend.
“Zach, you want her, and you want to find out all about her so that if she’s in some kind of trouble you can play hero.”
“So?” I shrugged, annoyed that he could read me so well.
“So, don’t get caught in something that we all have to rescue you from. I’m not saying this to be an *. You’re my friend. But this girl is different. The way you look at her, it’s more intense. I don’t care if it’s just intrigue, or something more. I want you to be careful, man.”
My irritation whistled away as I gazed at my genuine friend. My mouth tipped to the side in a grin as I slapped his shoulder.
“I won’t go too far. Yeah, I like her more than I want to. She fascinates me. I mean what kind of girl swims because she’s afraid of the water. She’s focused, she’s determined. It’s like she’s not afraid of anything, but she seems so vulnerable at the same time.” My forehead wrinkled as I shook my head. “I want to find out everything I can about her, but I also just like hanging out with her. What if my need to investigate screws up something really cool with her.”
“Or what if your instincts to investigate are warning bells to stay away?”
I sighed and kicked at the grass on the edge of the curb. “I don’t want to do that.”
“I know, you stubborn ass.” Elliot lightly punched my shoulder. “Which is why I’m here to be that annoying friend who gets in your face. I’m not gonna shut up about it. Find out what you need to know, but don’t get in too deep.”
And that’s why I loved my friends.
I pursed my lips and finally gave Elliot a nod. “I promise, if she gets too weird, I’ll back away.”