“I’m not a fucking lawyer, Marcus. What fucking conflict?”
“You haven’t figured it out yet?” He sighs, running his hand through his hair.
“Figured what out?” I bite out, wishing he’d get to the point.
“You saw the same feed I did. For all intents and purposes, she did nothing wrong. That cop smashed out her taillight, and he did it with the intent of pulling the rest of the shit he did afterward.”
“And? You’re not telling me anything I don’t already know.”
“Yeah? Tell me why? Why would the rookie do that? As far as I know, he’s not cornered anyone else here in Tempest. Wordgets around, so we’d know if he had. All I’ve heard is that he’s a brown-nosing simp.”
“You’re saying this is personal?” My mind wizzes over how these two might know each other because he moved to Tempest long after Sorrow left.
“I’m saying it’s personal.” He nods. “But not personal to him. Someone put him up to this. Maybe not this specific incident, but along these lines.”
It takes me a second to get what he’s talking about. “You think this has something to do with Alec?”
He stands up and walks over to Sorrow’s van, pointing at the damage. “Alec is dead.” I flinch at his words, not needing a fucking reminder. “For all his faults, he had nothing to do with this. This is on someone else.”
I start pacing, agitated now. “You can’t expect people not to be angry over what she did.”
“I don’t care how people feel, Banner. I care about how they act. We have a cop acting like he’s above the law. What’s next? What happens if someone thinks Sorrow needs an even rougher lesson about where she went wrong? Do you think she doesn’t know what she did? Doesn’t live with what happened day in and day out? She was seventeen years old. Alec wasn’t the only life ruined. But she served her time. The last thing we want or need is the locals lining up to dish out their version of vigilante justice.”
“You feel sorry for her?” I ask incredulously.
“You don’t?”
“No, I’m pissed this happened to her. That was some fucking bullshit, and I’ll make sure people know exactly where I stand on it. But feel sorry for her? How can you even ask me that? If it weren’t for Sorrow, Alec would still be here.”
“She made a mistake?—”
“She made a choice,” I snarl. “One that, like you said, ruined more than just Alec’s life. My parents, Katy, and I all have to live in the aftermath of her decisions. We never asked for any of this, so why shouldn’t she have to deal with the consequences?”
I storm away, ignoring Marcus’ cursing until he calls my name.
“What?” I whirl around.
“If it were Katy?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Katy is the same age Sorrow was when this all went down. What if you go home later, and the police turn up at your door because of an accident, and Katy was driving? What would you do if the passenger died, if they were a beloved citizen like Wade or Old Man Jenkins? You gonna shrug your shoulders and tell her that’s the consequence?”
When I say nothing, trying to figure out how to answer that, he laughs. “Yeah, I’d avoid throwing stones for a little while, Banner, at least until you have your own glasshouse in order.”
“What are you implying?”
“Funny how this happens the same day you tell your parents Sorrow is back in town.”
He turns his back on me as I stand there, stunned at his accusations. The problem is, I can’t brush them off as unfounded. Maybe it’s a gut instinct, maybe it’s something else. But something is telling me to be wary of tugging this string because once I unravel it, nothing will be quite the same.
Chapter Nine
SORROW
I sit on the bench and keep my head down, avoiding eye contact with everyone. The cell they had me in is located toward the back of the jail, but it’s still part of the main room. There are desks lined up in front of me to the left and right, with a clear walkway in between. I have to assume there are additional cells in the back because this one is small, even for a town the size of Tempest. Not to mention, you couldn’t realistically lock a man and woman up here together, even in front of everyone, and expect her to be safe. I’ve been in a real prison. I know exactly how easy it is to do something right in front of someone when they’re not paying attention. Aside from that, given how my morning has just unfolded, I’m not sure anyone is that concerned about my safety.
No, my guess is I’m sitting here so it ups my humiliation. I’m on display for everyone to look at. However, judging from some of the looks I received when I was dragged in bleeding, not everyone is on board with what’s happening. None of that matters, though, when nobody stood up in my defense.
