Page 30 of Watch Me Burn
“Think she’s cooked more than we’ll all be able to eat,” I joked, eyeing the dozens of dishes our mom prepared for today.
Flicking his eyes in his daughter’s direction, Nathan teased, “I think Heather would be able to munch all of this by herself, ten times over!” We both clutched our stomachs in laughter.
Grinning, I welcomed Heather and Karina when they jumped into my arms and also exchanged a few quips with Valley as well. I had a bad feeling about this dinner at first, but my mood was starting to lighten for the better. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. Family could be what I needed to get my senses back on track.
I was the first one to get full at the dinner table. Heather was still stuffing her mouth with shortbread cookies, to which her mother watchfully kept an eye on, reminding her, “This one will be your last one.” Heather banged her fists on the table irritably in response, wailing over the fact she’d have to give up her sweet tooth when there were at least ten more desserts to enjoy.
Rustling his daughter’s hair, Nathan chirped, “How about we watch a princess movie together?” Suddenly, Heather was wobbling in her seat out of excitement.
Valley sighed. “I don’t know how you do it.”
He passed her a subtle wink before tapping on the back of my chair.
“Care to join me, Anna?” he asked. Our mom was strung into picking out a princess movie on Netflix that would sparkle enough to Karina and Heather’s tastes—their standards were brutal.
“Sure,” I said.
We began climbing up the stairwell side by side. Nathan started unpacking Heather’s weekend luggage in the same room we used to host Ethan when he stayed over sometimes. Its walls were repainted a blinding white, polka dots speckling every way you could look.
Glancing at the pink case filled with toys, a sigh slipped my lips. Nathan noticed.
“So, how are things going with Ethan?”
I didn’t answer.
“Is everything okay? I notice you’ve been really quiet about the investigation,” he said. His gaze was soft, but I perceived a glint of calculation in his words—like he was angling toward something, although I couldn’t understand what. What stake did he have in our short-lived partnership to even desire an update on how it wound up? Then I remembered that he too lost a dad and had the right to know what’s up.
Rubbing my arm, I murmured, “I decided to end it.” I mustered the courage to look directly at Nathan and continued, “Ethan wasn’t totally upfront with me about how he got out of prison. It turns out he didn’t get out because he made a convincing case for his innocence. He admitted guilt, and he beat the shit out of a lawyer the last time we met up. He could have killed him.”
Nathan’s lips curled into a frown. “That’s rough.”
Rethinking what happened again, anger boiled inside of me. “It wasn’t just rough, it was stupid. I feel stupid. Because the whole frickin’ jury thought he wasn’t worth letting out unless he admitted to being a monster, and there I was at my condo, welcoming him into my arms because of some sob story he broke into my home with!” Digging my hands into my brown hair, I whimpered, “I feel like a fucking idiot. I should’ve never trusted him so easily.”
With a look of concern, Nathan patted my back. “So you think he did it, then? Killed Dad?”
That was the worst part about it.
“No. Thinking about it, it’s not a surprise to hear that Ethan, someone who was painted as the perfect perpetrator, had no choice but to play to their narrative to get out.”
Nathan nodded. “Makes sense.” Withdrawing his hand, Nathan asked at a quieter volume, “So what happened with that lawyer? It seems like that’s what it’s all about here if you don’t think Ethan killed Dad.”
My eyes widened in shock. He was right. It wasn’t about Dad, it was about the way Ethan almost killed Will and then didn’t even call me back after that. He just disappeared on me like I was nothing.
“T-the lawyer?” Despite my bitterness, I couldn’t help but stutter at the question. My body didn’t act in agreement to logic; guilt wrenched my insides, like I’d done the wrong thing by hating on Ethan since the incident happened.
Nathan plopped down on the room’s pink sofa, patting a space for me to do the same. “So what happened that night at the diner?”
My lips quivered as I sat down beside him. “It was pretty bad. There was blood everywhere.” I grew silent again.
Nathan cocked an eyebrow. “You know, I called him recently.”
My eyes darted in Nathan’s direction. “Really? Did he tell you about the diner?”
Shaking his head, Nathan faintly smiled. “Nope. He had your back as always. Said I needed to talk to you if I wanted to know what happened. You two have always ganged up on me.”
I felt like an asshole all the sudden. Ethan had my back still, even after everything that had happened. Why didn’t I call him? He might be worried out of his mind that the cops were to kick his door in at any moment. Maybe he even avoided me to protect me?
“Shit,” I mumbled. “There was this lawyer guy who tried to force himself on me—”
