Chapter 14 Damar Scott #2
His expression shifted, disappointment shadowing his features. I felt a pang of sympathy for him. He had so much to deal with already, and I was giving him yet another piece of bad news.
“It’s okay,” he insisted, but I could see it in his eyes—the hope that had been crushed yet again. I knew he was still holding on to the dream of us starting a family, and my body was just another reminder of how far we were from that.
“No, it’s not.” I sighed. “I know you really want this baby. Maybe we can try—”
As we pulled into our driveway, a large SUV parked in it caught my attention.
My annoyance flared up; I really didn’t feel like dealing with company right now.
I assumed it was family or friends coming by to support Damar.
But as we got closer, my eyes widened at the sight of a pristine white Range Rover parked out front, a big red bow perched on top like a gift.
“What the hell?” I muttered under my breath. My ballooned eyes bounced between Damar and the truck.
Damar watched me proudly as he smoothly said, “Happy birthday.”
I turned completely toward him, bewildered. “Wh–What? That’s for me?”
He lay a soothing, comforting hand on my thigh. “Of course.”
Tears filled my eyes as I began to stutter. “H–How did you do this? W–Why did you do this, especially today of all days?”
“I needed something to make me smile, and so did you. You deserve it.” As tears slid down my cheeks, he explained, “I paid the dealership to drop it off for me.”
The initial shock began to fade, slowly giving way to excitement. Without thinking, I jumped out of Damar’s car. “I can’t believe this,” I shrieked excitedly.
As he stepped out and joined me, his gaze softened. “You have no idea how much I love you, Aviana. I really appreciate everything you’ve done for me and Stephanie during this time.”
A rush of guilt flowed through me. His words squeezed my heart like a vice, reminding me of how much he truly cared. Now, more than ever, I wanted to confess everything about Mythic, but I couldn’t bring myself to shatter the fragile temporary peace we had.
I could hear sirens in the distance, a wailing sound that grew louder as we stood there. Damar continued to speak, pouring his heart out, but the noise drowned out his words.
“I adore you, Aviana,” he said, his voice straining to break through the blaring noise.
Then the sirens reached a deafening pitch. Suddenly, multiple squad cars sped into the driveway, their lights flashing and sirens blaring.
Two detectives rushed out of a blacked-out SUV. Their serious expressions instantly raised the hairs on the back of my neck. Confusion covered me as I looked between the detectives and Damar, who stood frozen with a blank expression on his face.
The male detective stepped forward, reaching for Damar’s arm. “Damar Scott, you’re under arrest for the murder of Jeremy Scott.”
I felt like the ground had been pulled out from beneath me. “What? No,” I shouted. “You can’t be serious.”
As the detective took his cuffs from his waist, I erupted, “What the fuck is going on? Damar, tell them you didn’t do this.”
My mouth dropped watching Damar surrender without a word or fight. He turned, allowing the detective to put his arms behind his back and cuff him.
“Damar,” I screamed, stepping toward him, but the female detective softly grabbed my arm, stopping me.
As the detective began to lead Damar away, he walked with them willingly, and my confusion turned to rage. “Why are you going with them?” I shouted, disbelief flooding my voice. “You didn’t do this. You couldn’t have done this.”
Panic rose, causing my breath to come in sharp gasps. The female detective stepped in front of me and placed her hands firmly on my arms. “Calm down, ma’am. We need you to step back.”
“Get your hands off me,” I screamed, struggling against her grip. “You don’t understand! That’s Jeremy’s father. He wouldn’t kill his own son.”
“Well, he did.”
I guess the female detective felt sorry for me. She introduced herself as Detective Randall and offered to escort me into the house to explain everything. As she followed me, I could sense her genuine concern.
“Aviana, I need to ask you some questions,” Detective Randall said gently, guiding me toward the living room. “We need to talk about Mia and Damar’s connection.”
“Wh–What connection?” I stuttered. “They were friends because she was my best friend since high school.”
“Why would he have her phone?”
I shook my head, bewildered. “I don’t know,” I spat as I plopped down on the couch, holding my face with my hands. “I have no idea why he would have it. Mia has been missing for a while—”
“We know.” Detective Randall sat carefully next to me. “When she came up in our investigation of Jeremy’s murder, we did some digging.”
My expression balled up with utter confusion. “How is any of this related to why Damar was arrested for Jeremy’s murder?”
Detective Randall’s expression hardened slightly, but her tone remained calm.
“While investigating Jeremy’s death, we went through his phone and found a recording made the day he was killed.
In the recording, Jeremy questions his father about why he has Mia’s phone, and then there’s a scuffle followed by gunshots. ”
The world around me spun as her words sank in, each one cutting deeper than the last. My stomach churned violently, and I felt the blood drain from my face.
A wave of nausea crashed over me as the realization hit—this wasn’t just a simple misunderstanding.
Damar was entangled in something far darker than I could have ever imagined.
“Oh my God…” I gasped, and my breath hitched in my throat.
I sprang to my feet, causing Detective Randall’s eyes to bulge.
I then stumbled toward the guest bathroom as panic set in.
The walls closed in around me, and suddenly, it felt like I was being smothered.
I barely made it to the toilet before I bent over and retched, the contents of my stomach spilling out in violent waves.
The shock and dismay crashed over me like a tidal wave.
Each heave brought with it a fresh wave of despair.
I felt as if the ground had been ripped from beneath me, leaving me grasping for something—anything—to hold on to.
As the sobs erupted from my chest, I couldn’t shake the images of Jeremy, Damar, and Detective Randall’s horrifying allegations.
It was all too much, and I felt utterly lost in the chaos.