Where Fires Dare to Burn

Chapter 25 - Straight Off the Deep End

The hour it took Kenny to arrive at the station was the longest in Luke's life.

When his room mate walked through the doors of the sheriff's department, he had Gabi in tow, and looked thoroughly askance at having been asked down here in the first place. He spotted them sitting beside Deputy Addison's desk and Luke shot upright, waving frantically. Oaklynn stood up beside him, hugging herself tight and looking even more uncomfortable than she did before.

Another deputy led them over. Gabi just looked baffled, a baggy hoody swamping her slight frame. He could just see the faint bulge of her tongue behind her lower lip, moving the piercing back and forth like she did when she was nervous.

"God, am I glad to see you," Luke exclaimed.

"So I hear," Kenny replied, still looking around with a wary expression on his face. He eventually found Oaklynn's eyes and gave her a nod and a smile. "How you doing?"

She shrugged. "I've been better."

"I'll bet," Gabi interjected icily. "Trouble just follows you everywhere, doesn't it?"

"It's not my fault."

"Sure."

"Gabi..."

"What?" She looked at him as though he were insane. "What else has to happen before you realise she's bad news?!"

"You don't understand."

"Enough, enough, enough!" Kenny blurted, flapping his hands between them in annoyance. "We can sort all this out later. Luke, what the hell's going on? Why am I here?"

"It's about-,"

"Easy there, Mr. Arbor," Addison snapped, stepping between them quickly. "The sheriff will talk to your friends alone."

"But I-,"

"Alone," she repeated firmly. Then she turned her attention to Kenny. "Mr. Matlock? Miss Truong? If you'll follow me please, Sheriff Nalen just has a few questions for you both."

Luke's mouth opened. He wanted to scream, to tell Kenny exactly what to say, but he knew if a single word left his mouth it might invalidate anything his room mate told the sheriff. The story he'd sold to Nalen was the same he'd sold Kenny and Gabi – movie night, nothing to talk about. The only problem was that both of them clearly hadn't believed him. Both of them knew there was more to it. The right poking and prodding from Nalen and the whole thing could come crashing down.

Kenny gave him an apologetic shrug; Gabi buried her hands into her hoodie pockets and shuffled awkwardly off in the direction Addison indicated. He felt fear surging in his gut as his friends were led away, his life hinging on whether or not they would lie for him. His mind went spinning. If they didn't corroborate his version of events his only recourse would be to tell the truth. That filled him with arguable more horror. They'd think he was crazy, for certain, but where would that leave Oaklynn? How would she explain what had happened?

Just as he felt a full blown panic attack starting to overwhelm him, she grabbed his hand.

Oaklynn pushed her fingers through his and squeezed hard, pulling herself close and pressing her shoulder against his. He clung to her hand without thinking, feeling the familiar electric tingle he'd missed for so long. A shudder went right up his spine and he tried to calm himself, letting her presence wash over him.

"It'll be okay," she whispered after a moment.

Luke managed to nod. He held her hand tighter. He didn't know when he might get the chance to do it again.