IGNITE

17

Ch 17

"Make yourself at home" Rhett told me as we walked in the door. He had been saying the same thing for weeks. Kind of like he was reassuring me that he was trying to make me comfortable. I sat down on his couch and this time, after three weeks of doing it, I laid back and just relaxed.

I was annoyed and frustrated. Axel had been working long shifts and then forcing me to spend as much time with Rhett as I possibly could. Alexis was even becoming overbearing, talking about her fiancees wife or ex wife or whatever she was. Everyone was on edge, we weren't getting anywhere.

Corrine had been bugging us more often. That slight hiccup just wouldn't go away. So on top of the feeling of his traitorous ways, even though he wasn't really being traitorous. He wasn't sleeping with me. He barely made it past the couch on a good night.

So, naturally, I was thinking something was wrong. It had to be more, bit less than nailing the 4 psychopaths that wanted me dead.

"Here baby," Rhett said as he came in with a beer and sat down in the couch next to me. I accepted it, twisted the top off and took a long drink. Rhett was still staring at me as I put the drink down.

"What?" I asked. I was still very self conscious about my face. It was still badly burned, I had gone through a few skin grafts and had a few more to go before I could even look into plastics. "I'm so sorry that I did that to you. Ill never be able to forgive myself," he said sorrowfully.

I hadn't expected that one. "Why did you do it?" I asked. This was the perfect intro to a confession, something I could use in court. He looked at me, tears forming in his eyes. "They told me too," he said letting the tears fall. "I never ever wanted to hurt you Lenna!" He cried. "They...they had stuff on me, things that I didn't want getting out, and they twisted my arm to get me to do those things. To burn your first house down. To stalk you. They gave me..me.." He started to tremble. "I had to act like I hated you, like I wanted you dead, and god I was so scared," I looked at him. Everything made no sense.

"Valerie told me the amount of arsenic it would take to kill you, I lessened the dosage and made sure I texted Axel soon enough so he could make it on time to get you out of the house, please Lenna you have to believe me! They have so much dirt on me, Dominic...he could....he made me...he said he could destroy me!" Rhett said stammering.

"What is it that they know Rhett?" I asked, my heart beating erratically. Rhett wiped the tears from his eyes. "Rhett what does Dominic have against you!" I snapped. Rhett set his gaze on me. "I'm the illegitimate child of Sheridan. My mother was warned never to announce the information or he would find a way to shut her up. Dom told me that if I didn't follow through....he would leak the information....and Lenny I can't let anything happen to my mom!" He cried, completely breaking down.

Holy shit.

...........

When I left Elgin, promising Rhett I would keep my mouth shut and that I would see him later the next day, I drove straight to the police station where I knew Axel and Alexis were. I walked in, ignoring the cat calls I got and went straight to the first desk I saw. Happened to be Axels but damn, I was full of luck today.