Page 2 of The Fragile Truth
She could feel animosity radiating off him like a nuclear spill as he clasped his hands together, pinning her with a hard look. “Why did you do it?”
So, he wanted to play rough. She could do that. “Do what?” she asked innocently.
“All of it,” he growled. “You disappeared for over a year and let everyone think you were dead.” His eyes blazed. “I mourned your death.” His voice caught. “I blamed Talon Chasing for your death. He was innocent.” His features tightened. “You paid Nova money to start a fire in the hotel to hurt Effie Romeo.” He shook his head. “You broke into Talon’s home and tried to kill Effie.”
“Stop it!” she snapped, hating the way he was looking at her … like she was a monster. “Effie took Talon away from me,” she sniffed. It didn’t matter what Ian thought of her. She had to be ruthless to survive.
He gave her an incredulous look. “Is that what you tell yourself to help you sleep at night? You and Talon were divorced.” His eyes lasered into hers. “Why did he divorce you? Was it because you had an affair with Wesley Laramie?”
Her words rushed out as she spewed saliva. “How did you know about that?”
He smirked. “I didn’t know for sure … until now.” A thin smile spread over his lips. “I thought that might be the case when Talon and Wesley got into a fight at the hotel party. Onlookers heard Wesley say something to the effect of him wanting to share Effie like they’d shared you.” His voice went low and hoarse. “I don’t know why I ever fell for you.” Weariness overtook his features. “What happened to Brent Allen?” His eyes held hers. “The truth.”
“Someone was blackmailing me. I asked Brent for help. He met me at the lighthouse. Shots were fired. Brent went down. I ran through the marsh and escaped. End of story.”
“Who was blackmailing you?”
She threw her hands into the air. “Heck if I know!” She was telling the truth about that. She still had no idea who sent those incriminating pictures to Talon and his parents, or who sent the text asking her to meet at the lighthouse, or who paid her bail, for that matter. So many unanswered questions!
Speculation simmered in his eyes. “There’s more to the story,” he surmised. “Something you’re not telling.”
Ian was right, of course. There was more. But she wasn’t about to divulge everything to the police.
“You said you have information on someone higher up. You wanted to use it to bargain for a lighter sentence.”
Hope mingled in her breast. “Is that why you’re here? To bargain?”
He grunted. “Not on your life.” His words sliced through the still air. “Did Brent know about your information? Is that why he was killed?”
There’s a certain kind of power that comes from holding all the cards. She just sat, looking at him as he fumed.
A haunted expression shadowed his features. “Brent was a good man. A good friend,” he added quietly. “He didn’t deserve to die.”
Why was it always about someone else? “And I didn’t deserve to have my marriage ripped apart by incriminating pictures. I didn’t deserve to get blackmailed. Or to have some other woman steal my man.”
A humorless laugh left his throat. “You really are something. It’s all about you.” He stopped, tipping his head. “What incriminating pictures?”
She blinked.Oops. She’d let that one slip. She moistened her tongue, her thoughts spinning a mile a minute. Then again, that part didn’t matter. What could it hurt to tell Ian about it? He already knew about her affair with Wesley. “Someone sent pictures of Wesley and me to Talon. And to Banks and Madeline Chasing.” Fire burned a hot inferno through her veins. She spat out her words through clenched teeth. “Those pictures wrecked my marriage.”
A hard amusement flashed in his eyes. “If there hadn’t been an affair, there would be no pictures.”
She shifted in her seat, adopting a coquettish expression. “Why’re we wasting our time talking about nonsense?” she asked in a silky tone. “Think of all the fun we used to have together.” She made a point of looking at his lips. A dalliance with Ian would take her mind off the monotony. It was fun to watch his expression go cherry red. A spurt of power zinged through her, bringing home the delicious knowledge that Ian was still carrying a torch for her. Having the sheriff in her pocket was a bonus she hadn’t counted on. He’d driven the hour and a half from Summerhaven to Wilmington. He must’ve been desperate to see her. “I—I’m sorry.” She forced a tremble into her voice as she clasped her hands and looked down. “You’re right. I’ve done some terrible things.” She made a point of hamming up the remorse. Her lower lip quivered as she looked back up at him with what she hoped was a tremulous expression. “Help me.” She gave him a beseeching look.
“Help you what?” he asked flatly.
“I don’t want to go to prison.” This time, the terror clawing at her was real. Her chest squeezed. “Maybe if you could talk to the judge, explain my situation.” His cynical laughter cut her off short. She narrowed her eyes. “What?”
“It won’t work, Lina.”
“I—I don’t understand,” she stammered in a wounded tone.
He shook his head, loathing weighing heavily on his features. “Your manipulation and lies.”
She straightened her spine, leveling him with a look that she hoped would convey all the disdain she felt for him and every other law enforcement officer. “Why did you come here?”
He pursed his lips together as several emotions she couldn’t read zipped over his features. He took in a deep breath as he pushed a hand through his hair. “I dunno,” he mumbled. “Maybe a part of me was hoping that you would tell me the truth about what happened to Brent.”
“I am telling you the truth,” she cut in.