Page 37 of Watch Me Burn
“Florida,” I blurted, pointing at the messy trip dates. “He went to a hotel in Florida. That’s the only beach trip in here.”
Suddenly, the memory of my dad gifting me a shell necklace around the time of that trip came rushing back. I needed to verify the inscription, but I was fairly sure it read “Florida.”
“Did you not check in with the girls and ask what was wrong?” Ethan accused Mr. Lautner, who frowned in response.
“I asked John about the beach trip and he brushed it off as a getaway with your mom.”
At the corner of my eye, I could see Ethan knitting his eyebrows.
“Something is very strange about all this.”
I gulped. My dad wasn’t the type of person to hide secrets from us unless there was a good reason. If he was going to Florida on a personal trip, not work related, he’d say so. But here it was right in front of me. A shit ton of trips dates and a man who swore that none of them were work related.
“Well,” Mr. Lautner announced, rising to his feet. “I have to go now.”
Ethan blocked his way and shot me a glance. “Is there anything else you want to ask?”
I could detect the tinge of uncertainty in his voice. What the hell was going on? Was my dad in some sort of trouble? But then, what did I know about Mr. Lautner? We could’ve been asking my father’s literal murderer to corroborate the case we were building against him. Or, Ethan and I could’ve walked into another possibility. One that made more sense at this point.
My dad was hiding something big.
“Something is not right, Anna,” Ethan whispered, finishing my thoughts.
My hands trembled underneath the table. I gripped the notebook tightly and stood.
“Thank you for your time, Mr. Lautner.” I said without looking at him.
He replied, “Sure, but don’t contact me again.”
I’d worked with hundreds of clients in law before, and he didn’t speak with the waver a liar had. He seemed genuinely thrown off by the story we came to him with.
We needed to inspect that necklace, which meant a quick visit to my old room at my mom’s place to grab it. Maybe there were more clues hidden on it.
The thought of my gentle-hearted dad being blackmailed or caught in some trouble turned my stomach. Anxiety brewed, as cherished memories of camping trips with him tangled with grim imaginings of threats to his family, or some unknown extortion. My dad would have done anything for us, even if it meant getting involved in illegal drug dealings to ensure our financial stability. It didn’t seem that crazy at this point, especially considering my mom’s cancer battle right after my birth, and the medical bills that had burdened my family all my life.
I don’t know what happened to you, Dad, but I swear I’ll find out.
Chapter 17
Ethan
I glanced at Anna as she dragged her feet back to my car in a hunched-over posture. “Don’t let this drag you down too much. We have a clue and that’s a good thing,” I reassured her as we got closer to the park’s parking lot.
She shook her head and snorted. “Lautner knew more. I swear he did.” I gazed up at the thick brush of trees that shadowed us, taking her hand in mine. It was meant as a supportive gesture but instantly made me crave her touch.
“What about your brother,” I pointed out. “Nathan . . . Wasn’t he in your dad’s class the year of his death? If students cried about Florida, maybe someone knew something and was worried about your dad. Rumors can carry truths.”
Nathan, almost two years my senior, had always been a source of envy. I remembered how I’d longed to join John’s class the following year as Nathan gloated about early finishes and the cool movies they watched.
Anna straightened her back. I loved when she looked hopeful. “He was, which means they had a ton of chances to cross each other in the halls, get an idea of each other’s schedules. I have asked him about Dad’s time at the school many times before, but never anything specific like Florida.” She abruptly crashed into my body for a bear hug.
“You’re a genius, Ethan!”
Her sweet scent tingled my nostrils as I almost pulled her behind that bush to kiss her and take her right there and then. I wanted to lick her between her legs like a wild animal right before I would fill her up with a huge load from my large cock.
But I held myself back, resigning to pat her brunette mane instead.
“Ex-con,” I joked. “A real keeper.”
