There Is No Light in Darkness by Claire Contreras Read Free Book Online Page B

clear my throat. “I’m ... fine. How are you?” I ask in a confused tone.
    “Good. How’s law school?” he asks, watching me intently.
    This would be a good time to use my poker face. I take a deep breath and pray that I have a poker face to play with.
    “How’d you know I was in law school?” I ask evenly.
    “You said you’re a friend of Aimee’s. I assume you know her from school. That girl doesn’t have a social life outside of school. I’m assuming you have some questions for me?” he asks, raising an eyebrow.
    I take a deep breath as he takes a sip of his drink and can no longer wait to ask him the one question that’s been tormenting me for the past thirteen years. “Did you kill my father?” I ask quietly.
    He chokes on his drink and coughs a couple of times. “Wha ... What? I meant questions about your estates. What are you talking about?” he sputters.
    “Sorry,” I say as my phone starts ringing. I look down and see Cole’s name on my screen before I send it to voicemail. “That was an awkward thing to ask, but I know who you are.”
    He clears his throat. “No, Blake. You don’t know who I am. If you did, you would not ask me a question like that. My job is to put criminals behind bars. Why would I kill someone?”
    I feel the walls of my throat starting to close in, and I urge any stupid tears to stay away. “Can you tell me what happened to him?” I whisper brokenly.
    The question makes his face crumble. He recovers his composure quickly, and I know that if I wasn’t looking for a thousand truths in his eyes, I would have missed it.
    “I don’t know what you mean, Blake. Who is your father?” he asked, surely in the voice he uses on his clients.
    “Mr. Lewis, I know you’re the man that took me from my house when I was little. I don’t know why you did it, but I’m sick of not knowing who I am. Did you kill him or not?” I ask boldly.
    “I already told you that I don’t kill people,” he spits angrily before getting up to pace his office. “I don’t have any information for you, Blake. I suggest you save your energy and stop poking your nose around in places. You may find something that you don’t like. Trust me, I learned the hard way.”
    I tilt my head to scrutinize him. “What are you talking about? You’re one of the best attorneys in Chicago.”
    “Yes, I am. That doesn’t mean I’m not paying for my past. Please—just let it go. You’ve done well for yourself.”
    “You say that as if it’s easy,” I mutter under my breath before I realize what he just told me. “How do you know what kind of life I’ve lived? Have you been watching me?” I ask horrified.
    “I’ve been keeping an eye on you, yes,” he sighs. “It’s for your own good. Can I trust you to keep this to yourself, Blake? I have a meeting in five minutes and one hell of a week in front of me. I can’t have this weighing on my mind right now.”
    I laugh sarcastically. “I would hate to be a burden on your conscience, Mark. Your secret is safe with me. I still have questions, though.”
    “Blake, do you know the saying, ‘curiosity killed the cat?’” he asks and waits for me to nod. “In this case, curiosity kills everybody except the cat. Trust me, it hurts more that way. For the sake of the people you love, let it go.”
    “Well, Mark, lucky for me, I don’t love anybody,” I huff.
    He looks at me with a raised eyebrow. “Sure about that, Blake?”
    His response makes my breath falter. I do love somebody, I love five somebodies, and I’m scared as hell to lose them. I turn and open the door to let myself out. I have to get out of here before I choke this man. He freaking knows what happened, and he thinks it’s a joke. I feel tears of anger pooling my eyes, but I won’t let him see them. I close the door quietly behind me, and I don’t stop walking until I’m back in the parking garage of my building. I turn on my car, and as I pull out of the parking garage to go