Chapter 5 #2
Chewie snorted before he started rubbing again, and I wasn’t sure what to say.
I wanted to know, not just for my own curiosity, but for my safety.
I didn’t believe Juni would willingly put me in an unsafe situation, but if my assumption was right that it wasn’t something you asked about, she might not even know if he’s dangerous.
I thought about how Sugar had welcomed Chewie into his home, multiple times from what I understood, and knew there was no way he’d let someone who could be a danger to his daughters come near them.
I admitted, “I would like to know some of the details. You don’t have to get graphic or anything, but a little context would be nice.”
“Like all stories that involve a young man, it started with a girl.” When I raised my eyebrows, he said, “I didn’t kill her, but I killed a man because of her.”
“Explain, please.”
“I had a girlfriend, and I was absolutely positive she was the love of my life.” Chewie laughed bitterly before he said, “God, I was stupid. Anyways . . .” I cleared my throat, and his laugh was much more cheerful this time.
“Juliette was always in the middle of some kind of drama. I was too young and stupid to see that it was always a drama of her own making. For months, she’d told me how mean her stepfather was to her.
I let it slide as long as it was just words, but then she told me that he’d come into her bedroom one night and raped her. ”
“Oh, no.”
“I lost my shit. I went over to her mom’s house and unleashed on the man.
I was so fucking mad that I can barely remember what I did to him.
I finally realized he was unconscious and stood up to walk away.
Juliette and her mom were just a few feet away and weren’t the least bit upset at all.
It wasn’t how you’d imagine a woman would react when someone storms into her house and attacks her old man or how a young woman would respond when faced with the man who has been her abuser.
I realized it was a trap when Juliette’s mom said, ‘He’s still breathing!
’ but didn’t make a move to help him. Juliette yelled for me to finish the job, but I just left in shock, horrified at what I’d just done because I knew it was based on a lie. ”
“And he died?”
“He did. The cops came to my house not long after and picked me up. I mistakenly thought I could explain the situation and apologize for whatever was wrong with him. When I left, he was unconscious but still breathing, but they didn’t believe me.
I was arrested and charged with second-degree murder.
They did an autopsy to find out the exact cause of death, and it didn’t match my story. ”
“How so?”
“His cause of death was asphyxiation.”
“Did he choke on his own blood or . . . ?”
“There were fibers in his mouth that showed he was smothered with a pillow.”
“What?”
“It took some time, but Juliette eventually slipped up and told her best friend that she’d tried to get me to kill him, but I was too big of a pussy to finish the job, so she and her mom did it.”
“Life insurance.” When Chewie raised his eyebrows, I explained, “I watch a lot of true crime. For research.”
“Uh huh.”
“Am I wrong?”
“No. You were right on the nose. Juliette’s mom was done with the guy, so he wasn’t any use to her alive, but she would get half a mil if he was dead.”
“She convinced her daughter to help her get rid of him?” I asked in horror.
“Her mom was the one who wanted to have him killed, but Juliette came up with the idea to use me.”
“That bitch! How old were you?”
“I turned eighteen in the county jail while I was waiting to go to trial.”
“How old was she?”
“Same age. She found out she was pregnant after she got arrested. I never doubted that the baby was mine and made arrangements for some of my parents' friends to adopt it. Vincent and Margo lived next door to us while I was growing up. They never had any kids of their own, but I knew they had always wanted a family. They were great people who would give the baby a good life. It didn’t take much to convince them, and Juliette didn’t fight it, so Vincent and Margo took Samara home from the hospital and became her parents. ”
“That’s so sweet!”
“I kept in touch with them through letters, but a few years ago, Vincent called and told me his wife had died of cancer and he was dying too. He asked me to move back to Oregon and get to know Samara so she wouldn’t be alone after his death.”
“She doesn’t have any other family?”
“None. Vincent had a brother, but he died years ago, and Margo was an only child. They were my parents’ age, but he said that raising Samara kept them young.”
“I bet it did. I’m sure it was hard for her to lose both parents so close together. It’s great that you could be there for her.”
“She’s a wild one, but we got along from the start. They never hid the fact that she was adopted and told her funny stories about the shit I got into as a kid, so she kind of felt like she knew me.”
“They did a good job.”
“A very good job. Samara is a great kid. Well, she’s not exactly a kid anymore, but you know what I mean.”
“How old is she now?”
“She’s twenty.”
“And she was born when you were eighteen?”
“Yes.”
“Oh,” I whispered, more to myself than anything.
Math wasn’t my strong suit, but that would mean Chewie was younger than me. Much younger.
“What are you thinking about?”
“Do you know how old I am?”
“No, but I don’t care.”
“I’m older than you.”
“So are a lot of people.”
“But a lot of people aren’t thinking about you naked in my bedroom!”
Chewie’s face broke into a huge smile before he asked, “Still thinkin’ about that, huh? When are you going to do something about it?”
“I’m not a cradle robber, Chewie.”
“I’m decades from the cradle, sweetheart. I’m not gonna ask your age, but I am gonna say that cougars just became my favorite animal.”
I winced before I said, “That was a horrible joke.”
“Technically, it was a pick-up line. I’ll try to do better next time.”
“Next time?”
“Taya, there are at least four inches of snow on the ground by now. I have a feeling your girls’ weekend isn’t going to happen.”
“Oh, no! How am I going to entertain myself without my friends here?” I asked dramatically.
Chewie yanked me back onto his lap and right before his lips met mine, he murmured, “I wanna hear you roar.”