I Promise You (Dare 2)

“It’s done,” Bennett announces, entering her room and my thoughts. Shelby started letting our friends come back into her room yesterday. As long as we stay quiet and don’t cause any problems, we won’t get kicked out during the day.

I look over at him. “All of them?”

He nods. “The original recordings have been erased, but you know if some pervert saved them to his phone and uploads them later, I can’t help that.” My eyes narrow on him. “But I’ll keep my eyes open. Have you watched the news?” He changes the subject.

I shake my head. I refuse to turn the TV on.

He walks over, picks up the remote to the bed, and hits the button for the TV that hangs on the wall. “The news broke an hour ago.”

I look up at it to see multiple officers leading Bruce out of his office downtown with his wrists cuffed behind his back. He’s dressed in one of his ten thousand-dollar suits and walking with his head down. I’d like to see him buy his way out of this one. Officers and cop cars swarm the streets along with the media.

“Why did you kill those kids?” one reporter asks, shoving a microphone into his face. “Did you know that Cole Reynolds was in that car?” another asks.

Of course, he did. It was my car we were in.

“Did you know that your wife was having an affair with the underage boy?” another asks. “He still hasn’t been found. Did you kill him too?”

The reporters have run with this story in all different directions. It’s worked more in our favor than we had hoped.

“And what about your business partners? Jeff and Jerrold?”

The town knows Jerrold is dead. They said his death was accidental. But they’ll never find Jeff’s body. Austin took care of that for us. The town just speculates that Jeff’s embezzlement of JJ’s Properties has caused him to run off.

Still sitting in the windowsill, I bow my head and run my hands through my hair. I’m exhausted. You don’t get any sleep in hospitals. Austin still hasn’t woken up, and Shelby quit giving me updates. They come and wheel her out for tests periodically, but no matter how many questions I ask, she just responds with, “These things take time.”

“Have you been to see your daughter?” one reporter asks Bruce as the officer places a hand on his head and puts him in the back of a police car. “I hear the cops want to question her …”

“Turn it off,” I order roughly, and then silence comes over the room.

I look up when the door opens, and I shoot to my feet when my father enters her room. His shoulders are pulled back, and his nose is in the air. Shelby follows behind him.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” I demand. He hasn’t tried to contact me once since he pulled me out of the interrogation room. And neither have the police.

He straightens his tie. He wears his usual expensive Armani suit and a scowl on his face. They go hand in hand.

“Cole, I’m sorry—”

“For what?” I interrupt Shelby and ask again. “What the fuck are you doing?” Why is he here? He doesn’t care about Austin. Hell, he doesn’t even care about me.

He looks over at Austin lying in her bed still hooked up to the machines that help her stay alive. “I just wanted to check on her …”

“Bullshit!” I snap, making my way over to the end of her bed and blocking his view of her.

He reaches into his suit jacket and pulls out a folded piece of paper and hands it to Shelby. She swallows nervously. My heart begins to beat rapidly.

“Since Bruce Lowes has been arrested, he has made me power of attorney over Austin.”

My heart stops completely at his words. “That’s illegal.” It has to be. “She’s over eighteen and not a relative of yours.” I’m not an attorney, but I know enough to know he’s a lying piece of shit. “And he’s in jail, not dead.” If anything, the doctors would decide her care. Not her father’s best friend.

He smirks and rips the paper from her hands. “Leave us,” he orders, and Shelby all but runs out of the room. Bennett stays, waiting for my instructions. I nod to him, and he follows, leaving us alone.

“What are you doing?” I demand.

He calmly walks over to the only chair that was once by her bed but has been moved up against the wall. He sits down in it and places his right ankle on his left knee. “I spoke to Bruce earlier before he was arrested. He informed me that she may not make it.”

“You expect me to believe that he cares enough about her health to call up here and check on her status?” I don’t let him answer. “And he’s wrong. She’s going to be fine.” I lie because I need it to be true. More than anything in this world.