As the detective took his cuffs from his waist, I erupted, “What the fuck is going on? Damar, tell them you didn’t do this.”
My mouth dropped watching Damar surrender without a word or fight. He turned, allowing the detective to put his arms behind his back and cuff him.
“Damar,” I screamed, stepping toward him, but the female detective softly grabbed my arm, stopping me.
As the detective began to lead Damar away, he walked with them willingly, and my confusion turned to rage. “Why are yougoing with them?” I shouted, disbelief flooding my voice. “You didn’t do this. You couldn’t have done this.”
Panic rose, causing my breath to come in sharp gasps. The female detective stepped in front of me and placed her hands firmly on my arms. “Calm down, ma’am. We need you to step back.”
“Get your hands off me,” I screamed, struggling against her grip. “You don’t understand! That’s Jeremy’s father. He wouldn’t kill his own son.”
“Well, he did.”
I guess the female detective felt sorry for me. She introduced herself as Detective Randall and offered to escort me into the house to explain everything. As she followed me, I could sense her genuine concern.
“Aviana, I need to ask you some questions,” Detective Randall said gently, guiding me toward the living room. “We need to talk about Mia and Damar’s connection.”
“Wh–What connection?” I stuttered. “They were friends because she was my best friend since high school.”
“Why would he have her phone?”
I shook my head, bewildered. “I don’t know,” I spat as I plopped down on the couch, holding my face with my hands. “I have no idea why he would have it. Mia has been missing for a while—”
“We know.” Detective Randall sat carefully next to me. “When she came up in our investigation of Jeremy’s murder, we did some digging.”
My expression balled up with utter confusion. “How is any of this related to why Damar was arrested for Jeremy’s murder?”
Detective Randall’s expression hardened slightly, but her tone remained calm. “While investigating Jeremy’s death, we went through his phone and found a recording made the day he was killed. In the recording, Jeremy questions his father about why he has Mia’s phone, and then there’s a scuffle followed by gunshots.”
The world around me spun as her words sank in, each one cutting deeper than the last. My stomach churned violently, and I felt the blood drain from my face. A wave of nausea crashed over me as the realization hit—this wasn’t just a simple misunderstanding. Damar was entangled in something far darker than I could have ever imagined.
“Oh my God…” I gasped, and my breath hitched in my throat. I sprang to my feet, causing Detective Randall’s eyes to bulge. I then stumbled toward the guest bathroom as panic set in. The walls closed in around me, and suddenly, it felt like I was being smothered. I barely made it to the toilet before I bent over and retched, the contents of my stomach spilling out in violent waves.
The shock and dismay crashed over me like a tidal wave. Each heave brought with it a fresh wave of despair. I felt as if the ground had been ripped from beneath me, leaving me grasping for something—anything—to hold on to. As the sobs erupted from my chest, I couldn’t shake the images of Jeremy, Damar, and Detective Randall’s horrifying allegations. It was all too much, and I felt utterly lost in the chaos.
CHAPTER 15
DAMAR SCOTT
STARING INTO THEcold, judgmental eyes of Detective Harris, I sat back in the old metal chair in the interrogation room. The metal of the handcuffs bit into my wrists, reminding me how low my life had reached.
Detective Harris leaned against the table, his eyes narrowing as he studied me like I was a puzzle he was determined to solve.
“Where’s Mia?” he asked.
My stomach knotted up at the mention of her name. I had spent so long trying to distance myself from the chaos of my double life, but I had now found myself caught in the web of my own making.
“I thought this was about Jeremy.”
Detective Harris smiled with one side of his mouth. “I don’t have many questions about Jeremy. Like I told you, your son was smart enough to record you all’s altercation. I heard everything, how you choked him to death, then killed your own son—your own flesh and blood.”
My nostrils flared as I stared at the wall behind him. Jeremy was still defiant beyond the grave. When the detective told meabout the recording, I couldn’t fucking believe it. I wanted to think that the detective was lying, but the way that he acted as if Jeremy’s case was open and shut, I knew in my gut it was true. Jeremy had recorded his own murder.
“I do want to know how a man can kill his own child. What level of desperation caused a man to wrap his hands around his son’s throat and squeeze until he couldn’t breathe anymore? And it’s obvious that that desperation has something to do with Mia. So…tell me, Damar. Where is Mia?”
My tone sounded innocent, even as my heart raced. “I don’t know where she is.”
Detective Harris leaned in closer with his scowl locked on me. “We’ve got her phone records, Damar. We know you were sleeping with her. Did she threaten to tell your wife?”
