Chapter 21 #4
Leaning back in the seat, I shook my head, ending the conversation. Sloane didn’t take the money because she loved Jaleb. She didn’t trust that Jaleb loved her. Not enough to ruin his own life, so she took the one thing that never failed her.
The truck was silent as Ward drove to Sloane’s hotel. Despite their argument, Treason still climbed out, walking Sloane inside. My plate was already full, so I didn’t bother asking if they exchanged words.
We got home, and Treason hid in his office under the guise of last-minute work for the STEM Lab’s grand opening. After my shower, I called the voice I missed the most.
“Hey, Squirt,” I fell back on the bed, with the phone on speaker.
“Don’t hey me, what happened to you’ll see me soon ?” Rayven fussed.
“I wanted to, but it’s been hectic. Campaign season.”
“My brother better win this election for my sacrifice.”
“Your brother?”
“Cut it out Vie. You like Treason, and that makes him my brother by default.”
“How’d you come up with that?”
“Those pictures from the blogs,” Rayven replied, referring to our movie date in the park. “I know what your real smile looks like, and thanks to Tre, so does Madison Pointe.”
A few weeks ago, Treason was so busy with building permits that he’d barely slept. So engrossed in the task in front of him, he wasn’t eating either until he found time to eat my pussy until I agreed to let Ward stop for coffee. Treason was pissed. Ward demanded my approval when he paid his salary.
I didn’t bitch about missing him, but I didn’t need to because Tre understood the responsibility of introducing me to intimacy I’d never had before.
It made me crave it like a drug, and the late nights felt personal when I knew otherwise.
On a random Thursday night, he came home early with flowers and told me to get dressed.
We spent the evening on a blanket in the park, eating gummy bears and watching Carmen Jones.
After the movie, we stopped by the STEM lab for the final walk-through. That transitioned into a private tour, which reminded Treason that he missed me, too.
“Keep your voice down. I don’t want anybody to know how sexy you sound with my dick inside you.”
“I miss you, too, Blue. That’s why you’ve been acting up? You miss me and don’t know how to say it. Or scared, too, but I’ll do better.”
It was never just sex with Treason but a reminder that our connection was deeper than an arrangement. Others, it was a lesson in taking the back seat because the show wasn’t mine to handle.
“This is all you gotta do, Blue. Look pretty and take this dick.”
Apparently, I needed to be bent over with his hand over my mouth, stroking my pussy. It killed him to silence my moans to the oblivious crew wrapping up down the hall, but he had to.
“I know what those moans do to me. I can’t have them living in another man’s head.”
The visual was fresh in my memory. I could see it again. Real joy and love that felt safe. A tear escaped because those days felt so far away lately, as if they were never real at all.
“Where is Tre anyway?” Rayven asked, using his nickname like they were old friends.
“Down the hall, working.”
“Get up so I can say hi.”
“Why?”
“Because my sister likes him. I need to get to know him.”
“Barely. He’s working anyway.”
“So! He can take a break.”
Hauling myself to my feet, I shuffled down the hallway because Rayven refused to give up. I don’t know why she was so pressed to speak to him anyway.
“Rayven wants to say hi,” I announced, handing him the phone with a warning.
“Wassup Rayven?”
“Hey!” The excitement in her voice made Tre smirk. Her light was different. Any room got brighter with her in it.
“When are you coming to visit?” he asked, running the city while appeasing my kid sister.
“I wanted Vie to come here, but whenever she lets me.”
“ Vie , doesn’t run shit ‘round here. When do you want to come?”
“Asap. I miss her, and we need to talk.”
“Oh yeah, what do we need to talk about?”
“You’ll find out when you see me.”
“You have classes,” I leaned in, reminding her.
“I can come home for a weekend, Vie. Relax.”
“Yeah, Vie . Relax, being pre-med is hard as fuck. Let the girl live.”
“Thank you!” Rayven exclaimed.
“I follow her social media. She’s living plenty.”
Just last weekend, she was at a frat party with her suite mates Deja and Ashley. I was happy to see her singing into the camera while drunk with her friends. It made all the shit I went through worth it. Rayven would never have the empty feeling of regret that filled my chest daily.
“You sound like somebody’s nagging ass mom already.” Tre’s loaded jab got him punched in the chest. “Has she always been this violent?”
“Only when she likes you.”
I held my fist up again because they were having too much fun at my expense.
“It’s college. She’s supposed to have fun. Ain’t much fun in adulting after that. Let her enjoy it.”
“Whatever, y’all have fun chatting. I’m going to bed.”
Rayven could barely get the words out, laughing at my attitude, “Wait, Vie. Come back!”
“She’ll be aight. You eating good, or surviving on noodles and takeout?” was the last thing I heard.
I curled up against the pillow, half-lost in the glow of Shadows and Motives .
It was always on television growing up. If we wanted to spend time with Sloane, that meant watching too.
Rayven even thought about majoring in law her freshman year because of it.
The bedroom was dim except for the TV, while the detectives argued about the husband’s body, which they’d just dragged out of the river.
The door creaked open, letting me know Treason was likely leaning against the door frame. Arms folded, eyes lowered, and focused on his target —me. He looked so good doing it, I etched the visual in my head so I could replay it on demand.
“Stop staring. It’s weird.”
“You know what they say about people who turn on crime docs to sleep?” Treason asked.
“All of it’s true too. I’d hurry back down the hall if I were you.”
“I thought you’d be asleep.”
“I was on my way, then it got good,” I mumbled.
“You raised a solid kid. Rayven is a lot cooler than you.”
“I don’t think nagging ass moms are supposed to be cool.”
Treason shook his head, then pulled his shirt off.
“You’re looking for a fight because you’re stressed.”
“I’m not looking for a fight. I need comfort. Support. My brain is moving a thousand miles a minute. I can’t even think, let alone figure out what to do,” I confessed.
Treason climbed into bed, opening his arms.
“Comfort never left. That’s you hiding in your shell because you’re stressed.”
There was nowhere to hide with Treason. He saw everything, the good, bad, and ugly, yet he was still here, treating me like the princess he always saw when he looked at me.
“When your comfort is part of why you’re stressed, it doesn’t feel so good.”
Treason zipped his lips with one leg bent. He watched the screen, his jaw flexing, and his brow pulled, while I wondered if this baby would be more like him or me.
“You think she did it?” I asked him.
“I wouldn’t ask,” he stretched his leg beside me. “I get paid to provide the best defense possible and poke holes in the prosecution’s case. It’s on twelve to prove if she did it or not.”
“I don’t know why I’m surprised.”
He smirked, exposing that curve of his mouth I both loved and hated. “The only thing that matters in court is what you can prove. Not guilt or innocence.”
“Then what would you have done?”
“Since her dumbass failed getting rid of the body, attack the evidence. They tried to burn the clothes and drown the body. That means there are gaps—things the state can’t fully explain. I’d drive every hole in their story wide open until the jury is unsure. Reasonable doubt is all I need.”
“Doesn’t seem like a win. Those kids will never be the same, let alone normal.”
“The most normal person you think you know is probably the most fucked up. Normal is a myth.”
Like Jaleb cheating on his wife and falling in love with Sloane.