The events at the diner are still fuzzy, but I’ve tried my best to go over them. I came in. Damien was choking Luca. He said he was going to kill him. I stopped him.
I didn’t have a choice. There was no way in hell I was going to let him hurt Luca more than he already had.
A chill races down my spine. What if I hadn’t made that deal with him that I’d take him to and from work? He’d be deadright now. He’d be fucking dead.
A sob works its way up my throat, but I choke it back. I can’t break down here. I can’t.
There’s a knock on the door, and I snap my head up. Hunter pushes the door open and peeks inside. “He’s okay.”
Thank fucking God. “What’s going on? What are his injuries? He’s… is he?”
Hunter shakes his head. “I don’t know the full extent. I know that he’s sore, but when I left, he was alert and talkative. Pissed as hell too.” His lips tilt up into a smirk.
Fuck. “Thank you.”
Hunter tips his hat with a smile, then leaves the room.
They took my phone when I got here, and I’m dying to talk to Luca.Dyingto talk to him. I just want to hear his voice. I just want to tell him I love him.
Someone needs to call my mom and dad. Hell, Ma doesn’t even know her diner is a fucking crime scene.
I don’t know how long I sit alone, but after a while there’s a knock on the door. I’m expecting another deputy coming to ask me the same damn questions again, but instead, it’s Jasper.
“How’s Luca?” are the first words out of my mouth.
Jasper sits down across from me. “He’s okay. Two broken ribs and a concussion. Arlo’s with him. He’s okay enough to be mad at me for leaving you alone up here.”
That gets a small laugh out of me, even though nothing about it is funny. “Can you call my mom? They took my phone.”
“Yeah, I will in a minute.” Jasper sits back, crossing an ankle over the other. “Areyouokay?”
I look down at my hands, expecting to see bloody knuckles. I don’t, of course, since they’re wrapped in gauze, but they hurt like abitch. “Yeah, I think so.” Locking eyes with Jasper, I shake my head. “I barely even remember it… Or the after. It was like… one minute I was walking in the back door of the diner, and the next, I’m sitting here with gauze on my hands.”
Jasper nods solemnly. “You were probably in shock.”
“Yeah.” I swallow hard. God, I just wanna get back to Luca. “I can remember flashes, but that’s about it. Why did they let you back here?” I didn’t even think about how weird it was that they did.
His eyebrows shoot up. “They’re not arresting you, Austin.”
“Then why the fuck am I still here?”
“They’re just holding you for questioning.”
I growl, frustrated beyond belief. “They’ve questioned me a thousand fucking times.”
We’re interrupted by the door swinging open. Hunter walks in with a grimace. “Hey, the sheriff will be in here in a minute, but I just wanted to give you the heads-up… Damien died.”
Fuck.
God fucking dammit.
I look down at my hands again as everything goes numb. I fucking murdered a man. I’m a killer. I beat him to death. Luca’s never going to forgive me. He’s going to be afraid of me.
What the fuck did I do? God, what did I do? What did I do?
Jasper snaps his fingers in front of my face. His lips are moving, but I don’t hear him.
“Nowthey’re gonna arrest me. I fucking murdered someone,” I hiss, my voice choked and warbled even to my own ears.
