Dead Pretty - Samantha Towle Page 0,28

about are not who they thought them to be.

I know that Tobias’s family, to this day, believes that he’s innocent. Even with all the physical evidence against him and after a jury of his peers deemed him to be guilty, they still refuse to accept it.

I’ve learned from my experiences that nothing is ever as it really seems.

People only allow you to see what they want you to.

You never really know anyone. No matter what you think.

The closest person to you could be hiding all kinds of things.

So, it would be no surprise to me if Mike did murder his girlfriend.

The one thing for me is that Sarah’s murder is not connected to the other two unsolved murders, meaning there is no copycat killer in this town.

I do have to wonder what it is about me that seems to attract murderers. I left town to get away from one murderer, only to start working at a job with another murderer.

I don’t believe in coincidences. Maybe you could call it bad luck, but I wasn’t his victim.

Maybe there are just more evil people in this world than I thought.

After my shift was finished, I helped Margaret close up the library.

She was really distressed by everything going on. So much so that she insisted on driving me home. She said that I shouldn’t be walking the streets alone. Not with what had happened.

She might find it hard to think that Mike killed his girlfriend, but regardless, a girl is dead, and a killer is out there somewhere.

If only she knew my past, she would know that walking home alone in daylight was the very least of my fears.

After being dropped off at my apartment building, with a vigilant Margaret waiting until I was inside the building before driving away, I headed up to my apartment and found Eleven waiting outside my door for me.

I was happy to see her, and also, it gave me a reason to knock on Jack’s door.

Yes, I am that pathetic.

And I won’t lie when I say that I was disappointed when he didn’t answer.

I taped a note to his door, letting him know that Eleven was with me. Then, I took a long shower, washing the day off me. Dressed in sweats. Brushed my hair, leaving it to dry naturally. Then, I made dinner for myself and Eleven. She had tuna, and I had a bowl of tomato soup.

I’m curled up on the sofa with Eleven when there’s a knock at my door.

“That’ll be your dad,” I say to Eleven.

Leaving her on the sofa, I go to the door, checking the peephole to ensure that I am right and that it is Jack. I unlock the door and open it to him.

His hair is mussed up. The way it is when he’s just taken off his motorcycle helmet.

“Hey.”

He smiles at me, and my heart shimmies in my chest.

Stupid heart.

“Hey. Come in. I’ll get her for you.”

Jack steps inside the doorway, closing the door behind him.

“She’s escaping again?” I say to him as I walk over to get Eleven.

“Yep. Still not figured out how she’s getting out. Not sure I ever will.” He chuckles.

I feel his laughter run down my back like a caress of warm hands.

“How was your day?” he asks me as I pick up Eleven.

I turn back to him, cuddling her to my chest. “Weird,” I answer him honestly.

“Weird how?”

“The police came to my work today.”

I watch carefully for his reaction. I’m not fully sure why I do this. Maybe it’s the untrusting part of me that does.

“The police?”

He’s leaning back against the wall. The only expression on his face is the wry lift of his brow. “Someone been stealing books?”

“No. They were looking for a guy who works there. Mike. It was his girlfriend who was found dead yesterday.”

I’m still watching.

“No shit,” he says.

Still no real facial reaction. His words are not what I would have expected someone to say to that. But then, from everything I have learned, possibly the reaction I expect isn’t necessarily the correct one.

Perhaps Jack is reacting as a normal person would. Not a guilty person. Or maybe he’s just reacting like Jack would, based on all his life experiences—which I know nothing about. I can only surmise about his time in the military. I know very little about him in general.

But if I got to know him well, then that would mean, in turn, he’d get to know me too. And I can’t do that.

“So, what happened? Was