The Marked

Chapter Twenty-One

Lily is sat waiting on the bench when Casey's taxi pulls up, Lily notices a gleaming look she has in her eye like she's desperate to tell her something.

Casey walks over to Lily, who stands up off the bench and the two make their way into the park, "you are not gonna believe who I saw at the mall." Casey states.

"Wouldn't it be easier just to tell me?" Lily asks.

"Rhett." Casey beams, "I saw Rhett in one of the stores I was in just as I was leaving."

"You sure?" Lily questions, "The cops couldn't find him anywhere and now he's back, just like that?"

"Maybe he never left." Casey points out.

"Maybe not," Lily says her brain going into overdrive again, if he hadn't actually left town then how come Mason couldn't find him? What made him come out now? The investigations still going. Nothing is making sense.

"So," Casey pulls Lily out of her thought, "Rhett aside, how's things between you and Zion? Did he like your room?"

"I don't exactly know, we had fun, but-" Lily starts.

"I bet you did." Casey interrupts.

"What are you? 10?" Lily jokes.

"Far from 10 with what I was suggesting," Casey smiles looking at Lily, "sorry... but what?"

"He's not answering me..." Lily explains, "I've texted, I've called, I even went to his house. Nothing."

They arrive at a table in the park taking a seat on the same side so they can look over the area, "So everything was fine last night, then this morning things were different, did you actually-" Casey says.

"No," Lily cuts her off, "I don't think I scared him off, but what does it usually mean when a guy isn't answering?"

"Sounds like he's avoiding you, which is a shame because I thought you looked good together." Casey shrugs.

"I think he was using me." Lily tells Casey.

"What for? All you did was hang out together, nothing happened right?" Casey questions.

"No..." Lily says remembering how he held her hand and asked for her number, why do all that if he was just gonna ignore me from now on? "I'm over it, I'll try and contact him another time, see if he's ready to give me answers."

Before Casey has a chance to respond they hear police sirens getting closer until she sees her brother dart out of his car, he approaches someone in the park and as Lily looks closer she sees that it's Rhett. Mason handcuffs Rhett and takes him back to his car before driving off.

"Did Rhett just get arrested?" Casey asks in shock.

"That's what we both just saw." Lily replies taking out her phone to text Ryder.

***

Ryder receives a text from Lily, 'Just saw Rhett get arrested by my brother'.

"Lily texted me," Ryder looks up from his phone, "she saw Rhett get arrested..." Tristan looks shocked but doesn't say anything, Ryder phones Lily.

"I got your text, what's going on, I didn't even think he was in town."

"Obviously he was today, Casey saw him at the mall then my brother just arrrested him, probably to question him."

"To talk about the night he disappeared?"

"Guessing so, he was a suspect of the murder of Poppy."

"I thought he loved her? They seemed happy enough around school."

"They'll probably realise that, I doubt he did it."