Page 123 of My Turn

“And three quarters.”

I breathed a laugh. “Yeah, exactly. You were scared and I know that you didn’t want either of us to get hurt.”

A little sob shook her shoulders. “I didn’t want anyone to get hurt. Not after… mom… and Jake. But now Alana-”

I shushed her. “You’ve already lost a lot. Let’s not add guilt to your list of issues to deal with, okay?” Straightening, I nodded toward the door. “You need to go home before your grandparents start freaking out.”

“Can I stay? I want to learn.”

“Learn what?”

She looked at the vessel. “How to immortalize someone. Then, if I lose anybody else, I can do the same thing.”

Hm. This was… fucked up. Alicia knew that I killed Jake and Mike already and she was witness to me composting the love of my life. If she wasn’t running for the hills and screaming already, maybe she could handle it. I shouldn’t let her do this, but it seemed less twisted than everything else.

Was I going to teach my niece how to biodegrade a body? Yeah, because why not? Hiding who I was ruined Alana. There was no hiding or lying to this kid now. Maybe it was better if I kept her close and made sure she didn’t break after what she’d been through. Hopefully it didn’t turn her into a sociopath or something. I wouldn’t deny that after I did this to Jake, I wanted to do it again. It was interesting to me and shit, it was good for my plants.

“Alright,” I decided. “Go grab a stool from upstairs. I’ll show you how it works. And pick a flower from the backyard so you can add your own. What’s your favorite color?”

“Green.”

“Get one of the hydrangeas near the shed.”

She flashed me a smile before she took off. It looked like I’d be imparting all of my knowledge to her. Well, not the murder part.

One day, she could do this to me. It was an oddly comforting thought. Rather than being put in the ground and going to waste, I’d become like Alana. Maybe Alicia would make wine out of us both and set us together on a shelf. I liked that idea.

Well, this was my fucked up legacy. In a way, I guess I had my brother to thank for it. He’d started this whole mess and he’d brought Alicia into the world.

I looked at the final bottle of Jake wine on a shelf. “Well, here’s to you, brother. Looks like your daughter is gonna be a lot more like her uncle than her father. You couldn’t take care of either of them. I hope you burn in hell for eternity because all of this,” I gestured toward Alana, “is on you.”

Chapter 46

Jayce

A groan behind me made my lips curve. “Well, it’s about damn fucking time.”

“Where?” he croaked.

I turned around and took in his groggy and terrified expression. He moved his hands, then looked down at them with wide eyes when he realized they were cuffed to the sides of the bed. As if there was any hope for him, he yanked on them harder.

“Do you remember me?” I asked.

His brow furrowed. “No.”

“Hm.” I moved closer, trailing my fingers over the bedrails. He was breathing heavily as I approached. I imagined that with every step, his mind was clearing further. “We go way back, Officer Burkley.”

“Look, if I arrested your dad or something, I get that you’re mad. This is gonna get you in major trouble, though.”

“My dad? Nah, he’s just fine. Right now, he’s on vacation with my moms and their friends. Yeah, they met some people while they were on the west coast and now, they take annual trips to Switzerland. Cool, huh?”

He shook his head. “Who are you?”

“You’re so impatient. I’ll give you a hint.” Shifting my t-shirt to show him my shoulder, I tapped on the scar. “Still don’t remember? I guess the people you kill don’t stick with you. Do they not matter, Burkley?”

After blinking a few times, he looked around the basement. When his eyes landed on the fake door, which was currently open, his lips parted.

“You… The girl with the gun.”