Black Promises (Blackwoods College)

Jarrod pulled over and gave me his characteristic grin as I climbed into the truck.

“Hello, stranger,” he said, and leaned over to kiss me.

I launched myself at him like a maniac.

I couldn’t help myself. A week away had been too long. I spent every night dreaming about his touch and thinking about our time together in the trailer, dissecting each and every moment, and the more I thought about it, the more I saw the way he looked at me, like I was some sort of promise fulfilled.

He was a monster and a demon, but he was my monster, my demon.

My killer.

“I take it you missed me too,” he said softly, running his fingers through my hair.

I grinned at him and bit his lip hard. “Don’t make me regret being nice to you. I’m not contractually bound to give you what you want anymore.”

“And yet I have a feeling you’ll do it anyway,” he said, pulling my hair hard.

I gasped, grinning, and laughed.

He put the truck into gear and pulled out. We drove back to his house, and he refused to explain what was happening on the way. As we got closer, flashing lights made me lean forward and squint in surprise.

Police cruisers were parked out front of Robyn’s house. She stood in the street with a big jacket on, her arms wrapped around herself. She looked over as Jarrod parked a few houses down.

“What’s going on?” I asked him.

“You’ll see.”

I hopped out and went to Robyn. She wasn’t crying, but she looked pale and lost. She turned to me and cocked her head.

“They’re taking him away.”

“Taking who away?” I looked back at Jarrod then to Robyn. “What’s happening?”

“The police showed up ten minutes ago. They barged inside and started yelling about a search warrant. They handcuffed my dad and put him in the back of a police car.”

My eyes went wide and I stared at the house.

Uniformed officers came and went. Some carried objects—a laptop, a stack of files, some picture albums—and others simply looked like they were keeping themselves busy. Robyn’s mom stood near a car, tears streaming down her face, and I could just barely make out the silhouette of a man sitting in the back.

Her father. Jarrod’s uncle.

Jarrod stood next to me and put an arm across my shoulders. We watched in silence as the cops went through their house, carrying out more tagged and bagged objects, stacking the stuff in the back of a van.

Detective Bates came out about a half hour into the search. She wore blue gloves and scowled around at everyone—neighbors had gathered nearby to watch—before her gaze landed on me and Jarrod.

She came over, looking absolutely livid.

I tensed, but Jarrod hugged me tighter. It was protective, like he wanted to shield me from the detective’s fury.

But there wasn’t much he could do about that.

“You two did something.” Detective Bates stood with her hands on her hips and glared bloody death at Jarrod and me. “I don’t know what and I don’t know how, but you did something.”

“I’m not sure what you mean, Detective,” Jarrod said, sounding almost surprised. “We’re as shocked as you are.”

She snorted and looked at Robyn. “You gonna stand there and let these two pin that crime on your daddy? You really think he had anything to do with Dr. Silver’s death?”

Robyn looked at Jarrod. He gazed back.

She shook her head.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Robyn said. “If my father needs a lawyer, I can get one for him.”

Detective Bates let out a disgusted noise. She ignored Robyn then, turning her attention back to Jarrod.

“The leash was a good trick. I don’t know how you planted it, but that was good. The paper trail was even better. Masterful, actually. When I ask your uncle about his connection to Dr. Silver, is he going to deny everything?”

“Most likely, but can you really trust a murderer?” Jarrod’s grin was boyish and charming and I almost laughed.

What a monster. What a gorgeous, perfect monster.

“I’m not done with you,” Detective Bates said. “You made a mistake somewhere. When I find it—”

“You should stop obsessing over us,” I said suddenly, unable to stop myself. “You found your killer. It’s a little unprofessional for you to fixate on Jarrod.”

She glanced at me and made a disgusted face. “You I can understand, but he’s not a victim. You change your mind about doing the right thing?” I said nothing. Detective Bates snorted. “Thought so. Better hope your boyfriend did a good job, or else I’ll be seeing you again shortly.” She nodded at me, glared at Jarrod, then walked back the swarm of cops.

We fell into silence. Jarrod smiled after the detective then hugged me tighter against him.

“That was awkward,” he said.

Robyn laughed. It was giddy and stupid, but it made me laugh, and soon all three of us were cracking up. People stared in openmouthed horror, but it felt so good to laugh, so damn good, especially since I thought I was never going to see the outside world again, and yet somehow Jarrod managed to make this happen.