Nothing is hidden under the sunlight // JJ

Chapter 31

Cameron's yard was for once more the ideal place to spend your days. Thanks to the trees which were planted around, it was always cool and the sun most of the times was hidden behind them. The light breeze welcomed Sophie and James who had just arrived in the house after a long walk with the sun burning them.

They found Wheezie staring at her phone like she used to do most of the times. Both of the siblings were feeling bad for her. She was alone most of the times, like she didn't have any friends. Sophie looked at James who nodded in agreement. Just one look was enough for the siblings to understand eachother. Sophie was going to talk to Wheezie and try to learn from her whatever she could and James was going to find Ward and talk to him about Rafe.

"Hi Wheez" the girl said sitting next to her. Without taking her eyes off her phone she nodded Sophie that she had heard her and she was listening. "Could you do me the honour to talk to me? Or is it too much to ask?"

Wheezie turned to look at her "You know right? All this time I knew that it wasn't John B but I didn't knew that I was living in the same house with a murderer."

"How exactly did you knew?"

She gave her an are you kidding me? look "Sarah had told me... As it turns out I was the only one she could trust. Now let's talk about something else."

As much emotionless she was trying to seem sometimes her feelings could be seen. She had lost her sister and her brother was in jail. And let's just not forget that she was the less living child along with him. They were sharing the same kind of rejection over Sarah. "Sure, let's talk about something else!" The girl agreed not wanting to make Wheezie feel bad.

"Are you going to bring someone at Midsummers?" Sophie was taken by surprise. That was the last thing she had thought ever since she had arrived.

Midsummers. The day when fairytales are becoming reality. The day when the women are dressed like princesses and the men as princes. A day when the lights are more than just lights, when they could be considered as fairies. As a child she always wanted to take part in that celebration... but she was too young and when she could join them her parents weren't with her and her grandmother wasn't capable of taking her there. And now that the time was coming she hadn't think about it. She didn't know who to bring. So she just sighed and looked at her cousin with a disappointed look on her face.

"Unfortunately none... But I guess I'll be fine just by myself. What about you Wheez?"

"Okay so, don't tell anyone, but I think that I've found someone!" That was it. She was 14 and yet she had found someone to go with her on midsummers. She was 16, but still, she hadn't been in a relationship, she hadn't moved on to the next level -just like many friends of hers, she hadn't even had her first kiss yet. Well, actual kiss the truth or dare kiss with Kelce didn't count. She was feeling happy for her little cousin but... She was jealous.

"Oh my God! Wheezie that's great! What's his name?"

"There's no way bailing him out James! He murdered someone and then he made me believe that someone else had done it." Ward exited the house yelling at James who was following him trying to make a conversation.

"Don't worry, you'll know when they're lying."

JJ's words came into her mind. He was lying. She knew it. She could tell. He was saying it more to himself than to James. He wanted to believe it himself that this was what had actually happened. She had to let James know. If she wasn't going to do that James was going to take Ward's side.

"But he's is just a boy... He's your son!" Sophie said forgetting everything about Midsummers and Wheezie's date. "And you can't be sure about that, I mean since when did you believe a drug dealer uncle?"

"Since my son became addicted. If there's a person you can believe when he tells you something about your addicted son, that someone is the drug dealer. These guys know everything!" Ward replied lowering his tone and grasping Sophie from the shoulder making her look straight into his eyes. She shook her head. She wouldn't turn against him now. She wouldn't play all her cards now. She had to wait. She had to make him believe that she was on his side. She had to know first why on earth was that Sheriff addressing him for.

"But have you tried to listen what he has to say about it?" James caught his attention making turn to face him.

"I have... He said unbelievable things. Like he was protecting me from being arrested and stuff like that! The boy is out of his mind." Sophie felt the blood in he veins boiling. This man was not her uncle. At least not the one she used to know... That man would never say such things.

"I'm going dad. Sophie would you mind escorting me?" Sophie's organism welcomed Wheezie's words as a balm. It was the magic elixir which would help her get out from this full of lies conversation.

The two girls stood up an moved quickly out of the yard. "Thank you for that. I owe you one!"

"It's okay, I really had to go and you seemed pretty upset to follow the conversation. See you later!"

Sophie was left alone in the street out of Cameron's house. There were so many things that she didn't know. So many things that she had to learn and so many things that she unfortunately would never know. And as long as she had no clue about what was going on she could not know about what ward had done. And as long as she couldn't know about what ward had done, she could not help Rafe. It was like a chain. She only hoped that this was just it. Just a chain. Because if it was a vicious circle then she had it really bad.

She tried to put her thoughts in order. Trying to remember everything that she had been told over the past days.

"She almost accused dad for..."

"If it wasn't for her father..."

"You only know what Rafe and Ward have told you"

"I helped John B ran away. You see he was chased by the police because he was accused of murdering someone. So I helped him escape."

"As long as he was blaming John B was fine. Now that he is in edge of self distraction he prefers to make me suffer in order to be safe."

"So last year a cop, Sheriff Peterkin was about to arrest Ward."

"But then cops started arriving at our house and spending hours locked with Ward on his office. I have no idea what are they talking about but I think one of the things is an exchange. Peterkin's murderer or his imprisonment."

"And the real criminal here wandering around like nothing has happened."

Something had happened with Ward. Something more terrible that what had happened with Rafe. The problem was that she didn't know what.