Shit! I didn’t mean to say that!
I pressed my lips together, knowing I’d just jumped onto a very dangerous path. Uncle Alex would delve, that’s what he did. He figured stuff out…maybe that was a good thing.
I closed my eyes against the unbidden thought. A thought that was growing rapidly within me.
He could help.
“What’d she say?” Uncle Alex was surprised, I could tell by the way his voice tipped.
“Um.” I winced. “I kind of promised her I wouldn’t tell anyone.” My voice rose at the end of the sentence, making it completely obvious that I wanted to tell him. I let out a sigh. It wouldn’t hurt, would it? I mean if anyone could help, Uncle Alex could. He was a legend and justice was his main purpose for living. He might be able to work out who this killer cop was. Together we might be able to save others.
Justice.
The word was a sweet smelling strawberry in my head. I wanted it for Dani. If we could find this cop and bring him down, then she wouldn’t need to run anymore, right? I held my breath then let out a sigh. “Can we keep this between us?”
“You know we can. Whatever you say is off the record. You have my word.”
I licked my bottom lip, hesitating before I plunged in.
I shouldn’t be doing this, I had promised Dani.
But I had to. Logical argument said so.
“Her parents were murdered by a dirty cop. She saw it and has been on the run ever since.”
Uncle Alex whistled. “Man, that’s huge. Does she know who did it?”
“She’s pretty edgy about the whole thing. I think she’s still scared he might come after her. But it happened like five years ago. Do you think he still would?”
“If he knows she’s a witness he might.” Uncle Alex clucked. “So she’s been living under the radar for five years. I’m guessing the conning was a way to earn some cash.”
“Yeah, it’s kept her alive so far. I don’t think she’s telling me everything though. She didn’t mention her brother once. It’s like she’s trying to hide him from me. Do you think he’s controlling her somehow, like in the background…or someone else is forcing her? She was pretty nervous telling me this stuff. Nervous and guilty.”
“Was she conning you?”
“She wanted to.” I smiled. “But she couldn’t bring herself to do it.”
“And you’re sure she’s not just saying that?”
It was a good question, one I’d been trying to fob off all day. I squeezed my eyes shut. “I’ve got to believe she was telling me the truth. You didn’t see her face, those eyes. She doesn’t want to run anymore. She wants out and I want to give it to her.”
“And how are you planning on doing that?”
I tipped my head back. “I have no freaking idea.”
Uncle Alex was quiet for a minute. I let him think, not knowing how to fill the space anyway. My fingers gripped the phone as I waited. “You know maybe we can end this. Maybe we can find this guy and expose him. What’s her real name?”
“She won’t tell me. She’s petrified of the guy.”
“Something must have happened since her parents’ murder to make her so scared. Did you see her brother or anyone matching the lunatic description?”
“Nah, it looks like she lives alone, but like I said…what if someone’s controlling her, like out of sight. I didn’t check the rest of the building.”
“What building?”
“She lives in an abandoned apartment on the outskirts of town. It looks like an old hostel or something, you know with the kitchenettes and the communal bathroom down the hall.”
“Abandoned? Creepy.”
“Totally creepy.” I sighed. “Do you think someone else might be living there with her… like in another room?”
“Possibly.” Uncle Alex cleared his throat. “Although would she have spilled the beans and even had you there if she was afraid someone lived down the hall?”
“Good point.” I scratched my head, feeling tired and edgy.
“You need to find out more. Anything about her past is useful. The more information the better.”
“I’ll try, but I don’t want to push her. She’s a serious flight risk at the moment.”
“Okay, well I’ll start quietly looking into things from this end. Find out where she used to live and I’ll see if I can hunt down murder cases from five years ago. Maybe something will pop.”
“Be careful. She’s convinced that anyone who finds out who she really is will be in danger.”
“I’ll watch my back. Hey, don’t worry bro, we’ll end this for her. Justice always prevails.”
He hung up after saying the line he so wants to believe.
But I know justice doesn’t always prevail. Plenty of innocents pay a high price for other people’s crimes. Dani was case in point. But not anymore. She would have her justice.
One day Dani would be free and maybe then she’d tell me her real name.
Chapter 28
ZACH
May 2014
Much to my relief, Dani was at the pool the next morning. She’d already started laps by the time I got there. I dove into the pool and captured her ankle.
Her body jerked, splashing in the water and kicking me off her.