“The people I couldn’t save.” It came out on a rasp. A secret he’d never told anyone. That heart on his bicep. A reminder that he could make himself stronger and strong and stronger.
But it’d never save those girls in the gang he hadn’t been able to get out.
“Do you have a tattoo for all the ones you did save?” she asked in that same gentle tone. But she knew.
He didn’t know how, but he knew she did.
He couldn’t speak. Even if he’d had any words, his throat was locked shut. This was…too much, too big, and he had to get her to the police station. He had to…
“I’ll never be able to imagine what you’ve been through, Royal. I would… I would be more than happy to listen if you ever wanted to talk about it. But nothing you could say is going to change what I’ve seen, what I know. Anything you did to survive the horror you grew up in was brave. Anything you feel like you failed at wasn’tyourfailure.”
He knew that. Brooke had tried to impress that upon him over the years. And he blamed everything on the evil men who’d hurt him and all the people around him. But it didn’t bring back the people who’d been lost.
Nothing did. If he’d been stronger though…
“You chose this,” she said, tapping his uniform. So earnest. So sure. “You worked for it. You earned that badge and now you wear it with pride. So you can stand there and tell me a lot of things—you can tell me I’ll never understand, you can tell me youfeellike you failed, but you cannot tell me you aren’t good or brave, because that is theheartof who you are. Period.”
Everything in his chesthurt. Like he was being cracked open. Worse, that her eyes were shiny like she might cry. Like she meant all this and it meant something to her.
He meant something to her.
“We should go,” he managed to grind out, sounding gruff and pained to his own ears.
She sighed, blinked a few times, then nodded.
Chapter Eighteen
When he moved for the door, Franny followed, not trusting her voice. She didn’t know what to do with that entire conversation. It was so deep, so profound, and yet…
She hadn’t gotten through to him. Did that makehera failure?
She did everything she needed to do to secure her apartment, and hoped it was the last time she had to go through that rigmarole.
She climbed into his police cruiser. She didn’t dare look at him, because she wasn’t going to lose the battle with tears. She wasn’t going to look desperate. Not when she wasright.
They hadn’t driven far when Royal’s phone rang through the car’s Bluetooth system. Since it was connected, she could see the caller ID pop up on the screen of the car. Zach Simmons. “Why is Mr. Simmons calling you?” Franny wondered aloud.
Royal didn’t say anything at first. When he spoke, it was very…detached. And she didn’t think it wasallto do with their conversation at her apartment. “I’ll call him back.”
Which wasn’t ananswer. It was an evasion.
But then her own phone chimed, a text from Audra in the family group chat about Copeland saying Albennie was saved and demanding to know why Franny hadn’t told them.
So Franny had to craft a quick, breezy text about her allergy pill knocking her out the night before and how she was on her way to the sheriff’s department to get an update now. Once shewas satisfied and hit Send, she realized the car had come to a stop.
She looked up at the police station. Then over at Royal. He was already getting out of the car, so she followed suit. He didn’t offer anything as they walked up to the building. No words of support. No encouragements.
Because she’d had to open her big mouth and tell him he was brave and good. Well, she wasn’t going to feel bad about that. Sherefused.
When they stepped inside, Copeland was waiting there, which had a little pit of worry forming in her gut. He didn’t look happy or relieved. He had that detective stoicism going on.
“Is everything okay?”
Copeland looked from her to Royal. “Let’s go hear what the sheriff has to say and find out.”
THIS WAS THElast place Royal wanted to be right now. He needed to talk to Simmons about the information Zeke had given him, and what that meant for…everything, but he supposed Albennie being found would trump his own investigation.
Unless…
