My Sister's Keeper

Chapter 30

30

FROM THE MOMENT Ashleigh stepped out of that storm into my home, anything having to do with her seemed to happen in a Twilight Zone atmosphere. Things around her just did not look, act, or add up the same way they did in the normal world. It was as if some kind of spell had been cast on me.

"Who? The old man?" I asked.

"Both. Jackson and his wife."

I wanted to get the hell out of there. To go out and look for "Rachel's Diamond." To work on characters, blocking, and set designs. I wanted to run to my sister and scream.

"Jesus!" I said, still trying to comprehend what he'd said. "I can't believe it." He didn't answer, or even look up. I drew a slow breath to calm myself as he reached for my notes. "We need to tell them all that stuff I found out today. They need to know it."

"Quiet, Richard. Please."

I touched his arm. "All we did was go out there to talk to Ashleigh's brother."

Scott looked up. "We who?"

"Sydney Deagan was with me."

Scott's eyes narrowed. "Is...that your girlfriend?"

"No. She owns the dance school where Ashleigh used to study dance. Deagan Dance and something," I said.

"Deagan Dance Center."

"She knew David from the past and thought he might talk to her quicker than me."

He sighed. "So, was it just you and Miss Deagan?"

"Yes."

"Where did you go after you left Jackson's place?"

"We came back to my house so I could clean up and change clothes. Then I took her back to her car."

"Then what did you do?"

"I went back home and went to bed."

"Alone?"

"Yes. Do I need an alibi for that, too?"

Scott dropped the notepad in his briefcase, snapped it shut, and stood. "Sure. The D.A.'s going to say that you went back out there after you dropped her off and killed them."

"But I didn't."

"Come on. They're not going to hold you. Let's get out of here."

Scott gave me a ride home but didn't say much until he turned onto my street. "How do you know Sydney Deagan?"

"I dated her sister, Jewell, a few times back in high school and I'm shooting her students' recital photos this year. Why?"

He pulled in the drive, moved the gearshift to neutral, and turned to face me. "She's a potential witness and I don't want any surprises coming up. Are you two romantically involved?"

I exhaled. "No. Not really."

His eyes hardened. "And what exactly does not really mean?"

"It means we're not involved. I kissed her once, that's all."

"When?"

I looked at Scott. His jaw pulsed and the color had faded from his face. "Is this important?"

He spoke without emotion, but his hand gripped the gearshift so tightly that his knuckles had turned white. "When?" he asked again.

I unclipped my seatbelt and opened the door, pushing it out with my foot. "I'm sorry. I think I've misled you. It was a peck on the cheek—a thank you. Nothing more."