Fate Actually (Moonstone Cove #2) - Elizabeth Hunter Page 0,77

you.” She pointed to Nico. “Leave me and Drew alone with Danny.”

Drew sat up straight. “Excuse me?”

“Tell them to go out and wait with the other police.” The pressure was so great, she felt like her ears would pop. “Just do it.”

Henry stood and motioned for Nico to go with him. He cast one more look at Toni before he left the room.

She turned to Danny. “Breathe.”

He took a deep breath. Let it out. The pressure in the room began to dissipate. Danny began to calm down, and she could sort through his feelings more clearly.

Worry. Anger. Guilt. A lot of guilt, but anger too.

“You’re angry with someone,” Toni said. “None of this was your idea. Someone pulled you in.”

Danny refused to look at her.

“You didn’t kill anyone,” she said. “But you know more than you’re telling Drew. You need to come clean.”

Danny shook his head over and over. “I’m not gonna say another—”

“You want to talk,” she said. “I can feel it. You want to tell him because you feel guilty. You know it was wrong. You know…” Toni blinked. “You’re the one who cut the tractor wires, aren’t you?”

Danny froze.

“You never meant for it to go this far.” She wanted to reach out and take his hand, but she knew she shouldn’t. Whatever he confessed to, Drew needed it to come from Danny, free and clear.

Toni remembered what Henry had said. …it’s like that asshole crept into my head and knew everything. He played on every single thing I was most afraid of.

“He pushed all your buttons, didn’t he, Danny? You needed the money for a good reason, and it was there. It wasn’t anything too big, right? Calling off a work crew. Fiddling with a tank. Cutting the switch on a tractor. No one was going to get hurt. Nico would be fine.”

Danny started to nod. “Yeah.” His voice was broken. “No one was going to get hurt.”

“Because you’re not that kind of person,” she said. “I know that. Henry knows that. He’s your friend. We know you wouldn’t hurt anyone on purpose.”

The young man’s face fell and his eyes grew glassy. “I don’t know what to do.”

“You need to tell Drew the truth.”

“I can’t. I honestly don’t know whose blood is on that shirt.”

Toni blinked. “You’re telling the truth.”

“He’s what?” Drew sat up. “What now?”

“I don’t know whose blood it is.” Danny spoke quickly. “I was the one who tampered with the equipment, okay? That was me. Fairfield told me to do it. My dad needs a knee replacement, and I’m trying to save up money for the copayment. So I needed the money, and Fairfield wanted stuff done. Not big stuff, okay? Nobody was going to get hurt. He just needed Nico to lose enough this season so that he’d sell that land, okay? I don’t know any more than that.”

“Whose shirt is it?” Drew asked.

“I don’t know whose blood is on it.” Danny pleaded with him. “Please don’t arrest me. I’ve never been arrested in my life. Please.”

“How did it get in your car?” Drew asked. “Danny, I need more.”

“I don’t know.” Tears rolled down his face. “I can’t tell you that. I didn’t beat anyone up.”

“Truth.” Toni rubbed her temple. “But also a lie.” A headache was starting to pound.

Drew went back to his first question. “Whose blood is on that shirt, Danny? We’re gonna find out soon enough. It’s already at the lab.”

“I don’t know!”

“Truth.” Toni frowned. What was going on here?

“Tell me who the shirt belongs to.” Drew was insistent. “Tell me how it got in your truck.”

“I’m telling you…” Danny heaved out a breath, trying to control his crying. “I don’t know.”

“Lie.” Toni’s eyes went wide. “You do know whose shirt it is, but you don’t know whose blood it is.”

Danny looked at her. “I can’t tell you.”

Anger. Pain. Guilt. Frustration. Shame.

Toni shook her head. “I can’t tell. There’s too much.”

“Okay.” Drew stood and reached for Danny’s arm. “Danny Barba, you’re under arrest for charges I am going to have to sort out down at the station because I know your ass is lying.” He shot a look at Toni. “Stay here. I’ll tell Henry to come get you. You’re about a minute from passing out.”

Chapter 26

She fell asleep in Nico’s office, minutes after Drew took Danny out the door in handcuffs. She had no idea how long she slept, but when she woke, the sun was beaming in through the west-facing window and her body was stiff from sleeping