Beautiful Mess (Book II)

Chapter twelve

"Even in a bad situation, there's always a positive side. Even if you can't see it yet."

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•Rae•

I feel like my heart stops functioning for a moment. It doesn't take me a second to recognize the man as Kyle's father. I saw this exact picture yesterday in the church, but even if I hadn't seen it then I'd still be able to tell the man's related to Kyle just by looking at this one.

I notice that my hands are shaking slightly as I hand the picture to Kyle. Detective Ericson is saying something but I can't concentrate on his words. I'm too busy staring at Kyle to see what his reaction would be.

Maybe this is all an ugly nightmare or my mind playing tricks on me. This can't be real. It just can't.

But the look on Kyle's face confirms to me that I really did see what I just saw. His face doesn't give anything away, no. So the detective probably isn't suspicious. But I know what Kyle's blank and emotionless face means.

"Do you recognize the man?" Detective Ericson asks probably for the third or fourth time.

Kyle doesn't even look up at either of us as he asks quietly, "This is the man you told us about last time we were here?"

"Yes," Detective Ericson says. "His name is Jim Davis. He was the owner of a Laundromat and was currently living with his wife." He narrows his eyes as he observes me closely. "But I have a feeling you knew that already."

Kyle glances up at me and I instantly know that he doesn't want me to tell the truth. But this is a detective we're sitting in front of, is lying really the best strategy? Wouldn't they find out eventually when they dig further into Jim's life?

"No, I don't recognize him." I find myself saying.

Ericson's dark eyes seem to look straight into my soul, making me feel like a murderer denying her crimes. Why do we have to lie? This is so uncomfortable. I try to communicate with Kyle through my eyes. These are the kinda moments that make me wish we had telepathic abilities.

"Are you sure?" Detective Ericson asks, making me glance at him once again. "The look on your face said otherwise. And you shouldn't hide anything from us. Remember that we're only trying to solve your parents case."

My parents.

I snap my eyes to Kyle's, trying to tell him that if whatever information he can provide is going to help the case then he should do it. But he gives me a look that clearly states 'I got this'.

Okay, Kyle. I trust you.

"I know, Detective," I start as confidently as I can. "All I want is for you to solve the case as soon as you can. But I really don't know this man. I was just shocked because you said he died and, surely he had a family waiting for him back home but he lost his life trying to do the right thing."

Detective Ericson stares at me for a moment and gives a short nod. "Alright. And by the way, you can call me Peter. I'm no more than a few years older than you two."

I nod with a small smile.

"Uh, so this man, uh..." Kyle starts. "What crimes did he confess to? You said that he, uh, that you were keeping him in a cell." Even though his face doesn't betray the unaffected look he's trying to pull off, his voice definitely does.

"Yes, he did confess to some crimes but they weren't related to this case." Detective Ericson answers him. "He wouldn't tell us anything about how he came to know about the fire and whether or not he was involved. But to answer your question, he confessed about driving drunk, getting into fights... nothing major. But the fact that he chose to come to the police station in person, and also refused to tell us how he knew about the murder, leads me to believe that he wanted to be arrested. And now that this happened to him, it seems to me he knew his life was in danger. He wanted us to protect him, but unfortunately we failed."

"What else did you find?" I ask him.

"Not much. We're still investigating to find out more about Mr. Davis. His funeral was held yesterday. His wife refused to talk to us, she's grieving so I think it's a bit too soon to try to get information out of her. But since her life might be in danger too, I plan on speaking to her this week and provide security if needed. I'll inform you as soon as we find a valuable lead."

"Okay. I'll be waiting." I nod.

"Just remember to inform us immediately if you receive any threats or anything like that. Although it's highly unlikely considering the fact that you don't have any proof against the culprit. But we never know how things will turn out, so be careful. Both of you."

"Thank you," I say to him and we both stand up, taking turns to shake his hand.

Noticing that Peter is eying Kyle's hand, I look down to see the picture squeezed in his palm. He glances down too and from the look on his face I know he didn't realize what he was doing.

"Uh, sorry." He tries to smooth it out before handing it back to Peter.

Kyle and I keep silent until we walk out of the police station and start walking by the side of the street. His hands are curled into fists by his sides and his breathing is ragged.

I feel like I would go crazy if we don't talk about it now, so I grab his shoulder and we come to a halt. "Okay, we need to calm down and figure this out. Nothing makes sense."

"I know." He runs his fingers through his hair in frustration. "I've never been more confused."

"But why did you--" I cut myself off as a woman passes by. "Why are we hiding the truth from the police? They'll find out sooner or later," I say more quietly.

"I didn't want him to ask too many questions. He would've suspected me too. I mean what are the odds that the son of the man who suddenly decided to report a crime from three years ago is in a relationship with the victims' daughter."

"But it's obvious that you weren't involved in that. You were already in the mental hospital at the time."

"Yeah, but I just-- I don't know. I didn't wanna talk to him about this. It's still... hard to talk about him, you know?"

I nod as we continue to walk. "I understand. But when they find out you're his son, they'll be more suspicious of you because you tried to hide it."

"I know. But what are they gonna find against me? There's nothing to worry about."

"Yeah, but uh..." I don't know how to say it without upsetting him, but I say it anyway. "I still don't think it was a good idea to lie to Peter. I don't know how your father's involved in my parents' death, but as his son you could've helped them find out more about him. You could've helped with the case."

He stops walking and holds my cheek with his palm, a determined look in his eyes. "I'm sorry about that. But I promise you Rae, I'll do everything I can to find out the truth. I'll find out how he's involved in that fire if it's the last thing I do."

"No, don't promise me that!" I say desperately. "Do you wanna end up like your father? Whoever's behind this is dangerous, and I can't let you risk your life like this. The police will investigate, it's their job. Not yours."

"Didn't you hear what the Detective said? My-- that woman won't tell them anything. She could be scared for her life, I don't know. But I have to make her tell me everything she knows. We need answers, Rae. I need answers or I'll go insane."

Wait, is he saying he'll talk to his mom?

"Are you saying--"

"Yeah, I'll talk to my mother. I'll go to her house first thing tomorrow."

I gape at him for a while unable to say a word. I'm devastated that out of all people his father had to be the one involved in my parents death, but maybe this is a good thing if it's bringing Kyle back to his mom.

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