Page 49 of Save Me

Pressing my lips together, I turn to Logan. He just raises an eyebrow.

“He’s my emotional support animal. He can be here.”

Dakota rubs the back of his neck.

Logan sighs. “Why are we here, Micah?”

I straighten, trying to find that angry confidence I felt earlier. As soon as I think of Maddox’s face when he thought I’d trapped him, it comes flooding back.

“Someone hurt my…” I pause. What is Maddox to me? I know what I want him to be. There’s an awkward silence, then I say, “Friend. And got away with it.”

Logan just raises an unimpressed eyebrow.

“Arthur Jeffries. He was charged with domestic violence, and the case was dropped.” As soon as the words are out, a rush of vulnerable anger fills me. This feels so intimate in a weird kind of way, like a secret that wasn’t meant to be spoken.

Logan just stares at me. Dakota pulls out his phone and starts texting, and for a second, I stare at him. Then my anger flares. Is Maddox’s story not enough to keep him entertained, even for a little while?

“And what do you want?”

“To hurt him back.” I don’t even have to think about the words; they just come out. Arthur is living a life free of consequence, and that’s not fair.

“Who do you think we are, exactly?” Logan’s gaze goes up and down my body.

“I…” I stare at him. Murderers? Is that what I really think of them? I have no proof. Maybe Logan is just…angry. Even if I did, am I just gonna come out and say it to their faces?

Holy fudge, this is all going wrong.

“Wait, can he eat that?” Ronan’s voice comes from across the store. I turn to see that Princess is chewing on the power cord to the front register.

Adrenaline floods my system. “Princess!” He doesn’t even flinch at my tone, just starts chewing faster. Before I can get there, Ronan swoops down and scoops Princess up. “Power cord chewing gum! I never thought of that before; you might be onto something.”

I move to rescue Princess from Ronan’s clutches, but Princess just makes a snort of protest and then lies there, letting Ronan carry him. Ronan takes him to a chair and cuddles him like he’s holding a baby. “Who’s the cutest little stinky in the world?” Princess–the traitor that he is–soaks it up, reaching for Ronan’s hoodie string to chew.

I stare at them. Ronan glances up at me, winks, then goes back to Princess.

Princess is a good judge of character. Slowly, I swallow my fear that Ronan will do something to him, then turn back to Logan.

“Dakota’s a cop.” Logan has crossed his arms now. “We only do above-the-board things. I’m not sure why you’re coming to us for these issues.”

I stare at Logan, mouth wanting to drop open. Did he forget beating a guy to a pulp right here in this very room?

He watches me with dead eyes that say he does, in fact, remember; he’s just testing if I remember. And then I realize that I’m not supposed to remember. I’ve failed the test.

Now I’m a liability.

My chest tightens, and I take a step back, Logan tracking me with his gaze. Dakota continues to text, but tension fills the room.

“Sorry, I uh…” I glance at Princess, who is now attempting a hand-over-hand method to extract Ronan’s hoodie string. “I’ll just go.”

For a beat, everyone is silent. Then, Dakota turns his phone screen to the room. “Found him. Arthur Jeffries-s-s-s. Cop forgot to read him his Miranda rights.”

Logan’s face changes incrementally.

“Attempted strangulation. Victim Maddox McAllister.” He scrolls. “A history of calls to their address for disturbances.”

Strangulation? My stomach drops into my toes, and my entire body goes cold. He tried to kill Maddox? Quiet, kind Maddox? That can’t be true. Why would anyone try to hurt him? For a second, I’m not sure what to feel. I feel nothing except a turning in my stomach.

Then Logan’s voice drops an octave. “Apex?”