Clara and I both startle, our attention darting to the front door where the knocks came from.
“Aves, it’s me,” Ellis says from the other side of the door. “Open up, please.”
I rush to the front door, unlock the lock, and open it up. Ellis is standing on the porch, his forehead smeared with dirt and he has a cut on his cheek. He also has leaves in his hair and a panicked look in his eyes.
His gaze is fastened on the field behind us, but when I open the door, the creak of the hinges shifts his focus to me.
“Hey,” he says breathlessly as I step back and let him inside.
I shut the door and spin around. “What happened?”
“They got away.” Shaking his head, he slips his gun back into his waist holster. “I was running after them for a while, and I could see them in the moonlight, but then they just vanished.” He rakes his fingers through his hair. “I’m pretty sure I heard a car engine start up, so I’m assuming they took off in a vehicle, but I never saw it.” He lowers his hand to his side and releases a gradual exhale. “I’m pretty sure it was a woman… Did you see the person at all?” he asks me.
“For a brief second.” A pause of hesitation ripples through, an old habit I want to shatter. “I think it was my aunt Marissa,” I say, and he doesn’t appear surprised, so he’s probably arrived at the same conclusion. I hand him the photo. “When Bailey came back, this was tucked in his collar.”
Ellis takes the photo from me. When he looks at it, he doesn’t seem as surprised by that either.
“That’s my father,” I explain. Does he not recognize him?
“I know.” His gaze lifts to mine.
That’s when I see it…
I step back from him. “Did you already know about this?”
He hesitates. “I wasn’t certain, but I had a suspicion after you mentioned that Clover wrote in her diary that she was dating an older man who was part of the group. We knew more than likely that this group of people hurting these girls was your family. And we knew Clover was looking into the death of Zoey. I wondered if this other guy she was with was your father or your uncle.”
I line my palm to my chest as breathing becomes complicated. But I refuse to have another panic attack. So I breathe in and out a few times until the motion of my lungs feels more stable. I picture clouds and sunlight, grass below me, warmth on my cheeks, and the smell of daisies…
“Ava, did you hear me?” Ellis’s voice reaches through the tranquility and wrenches me back to reality.
“No,” I answer, not even bothering to lie.
He rubs his lips together. “I said I’m sorry. I know I probably should’ve told you when I first started to wonder this, but I also didn’t want you to have to deal with it until I found out for sure.”
Old Ava would’ve let it slide, but this version is too damn tired.
I cross my arms. “How do I know you’re not lying about anything else?”
He considers my question, then sticks his pinkie out to me. “Because I pinkie swear I’m not.”
We haven’t pinkie swore in forever, but whenever we did, we never broke the promise.
“I pinkie swear I’ll cover for you.”
“I pinkie swear I’ll keep an eye on you tonight.”
“I pinkie swear I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
Ellis always kept his pinkie promises.
I hitch my pinkie with his. “All right, I believe you.”
“Good.” Visible relief washes over his features. “From now on, I’ll tell you everything I’m thinking. Well, when it’s about this case.”
“Thanks.”
“Don’t thank me. I should’ve done it to begin with.”
