“What do you mean?”
“Can’t say. I’m still working on it.”
“Working on what?”
He pulls off the road to a gravel path with trees on both sides. The path seems barely wide enough for his Range Rover.
“What are you doing?” I ask, holding on as he drives fast on the bumpy road.
“Going someplace people won’t find us.”
An uneasy feeling comes over me, my mind going back to Andrea. There’s no way Jackson did it, but if, for some crazy reason, he did, I don’t want to be out here alone with him.
“Let’s turn around,” I say.
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“I don’t like it out here. It’s freaking me out.”
“You don’t have to be scared. You’re with me.”
I don’t respond.
He slows down, then comes to a stop. “Rumor, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I just want to go back.”
“Why? Are you scared of being out here?” He pauses. “Or scared ofme?” When I don’t answer, he says, “I didn’t do it. I promise you I didn’t.”
“I’m not really big on promises,” I say, gazing out the side window. “Axl promised me forever and, well, you know how that turned out.”
“I’m not Axl. And I’m telling you I didn’t do it. If you don’t believe me, then—” He lets out a breath. “We shouldn’t keep doing this.”
Turning to him, I see him looking the other way.
“Jackson.” I wait for him to turn to me. “I want to believe you. And for the most part I do, but sometimes I just wonder.”
“Wonder what?”
“Why you do things. Things that make me question you.”
“Like what?”
“Hanging out with Kristen. Everyone seems to hate her, me included, so why are you friends with her? What do you see in her that other people don’t?”
“I’ve already explained this. I’m helping her. That’s it.”
“Helping her with what?”
“Family stuff. I’ve already told you this.”
“And I don’t understand. So she hates her mom. Big deal.”
“It’s not just about her mom.”
“She hates her stepdad? Who cares? Her mom will probably divorce him soon and he’ll be out of her life.”
“We’re not here to talk about Kristen. We’re here to talk about the case. It sounds like the investigators need more time to go over the new evidence. My lawyer said they wouldn’t tell him what it is until they’ve verified it’s legit.”
