Page 27 of Reese’s Protection

Knox sneered in the cops’ direction but sat down on the chair beside me.

Grant straightened and inclined his head. “Hello, Jayce.”

Officer Paxton gave him a curt nod. “Grant.” He paused. “The Kings . . . .”

Grant patted my arm lightly and walked to stand in front of Officer Paxton. “The only King involved is Kai. He found Mr. Heagney, which I’m sure Reese will explain. There’s no reason for Kai to need a lawyer, so you don’t need to excuse yourself from the investigation. River won’t need to do his law thing.”

Paxton smiled gratefully. “Thank you.”

Grant left the room as Paxton stepped closer to the bed. Layton and Knox didn’t leave their seats, but I didn’t miss how Layton straightened, his face as hard and unforgiving as Knox’s. It was easy to see they were brothers.

“My partner is the Kings’ lawyer,” Paxton said with a crooked grin. “If we’re both involved, one of us has to excuse ourselves.”

“I see.” I shrugged, then instantly regretted it when agony streaked across my chest. I winced, touching my hand to my bandaged wound.

Knox went to stand, but I gave him a reassuring glance and held out a hand for him to hold. He slid his fingers between mine and gripped them tightly.

“Ask your questions,” I murmured.

“Can you tell me how your gunshot injury occurred?” Paxton tugged out a notebook and pen from his shirt pocket and began to write something. Behind him, his partner crossed his arms and stared at me. There wasn’t anything sinister in his expression, but I trusted Paxton a whole lot more than his partner.

“I was relocating a handgun when it fired accidentally. I didn’t know there was a bullet in the chamber. I should’ve checked. I wasn’t paying attention.” I dropped my chin and sighed, playing the role of someone who was embarrassed. “It hit me—” I tugged at the hospital gown’s collar and dragged it down for them to see the bandage. “—right here.”

“Whose gun was it?” Paxton asked.

“Mine,” Knox answered. “He was cleaning our bedroom when I wasn’t home, trying to be helpful.”

Paxton pressed his lips together and hummed, writing in his notebook. “And who found you, if Mr. Tennant wasn’t home?”

“Um, Kai? I think that’s his name. I’m sorry, I just woke up, so I haven’t had the chance to even meet with him and thank him.” I fiddled with the nail on my thumb. “But I was told that it was him. He was driving past when he heard the gunshot. He stopped to see what was happening and heard me screaming.”

“You don’t remember him coming into the house?” Officer Paxton’s words were soft and not accusing. It sounded like he was genuinely questioning me as an unbiased interviewer.

“No.” At least it wasn’t a lie. I didn’t remember anything that happened after I was shot. I didn’t even know what Kai looked like. I could’ve walked past him on the street and not realized.

Paxton cleared his throat and glanced toward his partner, who gave him a sharp nod, causing Paxton to sigh. He returned his attention to me, giving me an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, Mr. Heagney, but I have to ask. We received a call last night to the nonemergency number about Mr. Jeremy Vance. His mother was worried about him. She said she hadn’t seen him in three days. His house is the same as usual, but he’s nowhere to be found. Do you know anything about that?”

“Why would he?” Knox snapped with a glare. “He’s been in and out of consciousness for days. How would he know anything?”

Paxton gave him a look of reproach. “I have to ask due to Mr. Heagney’s history with Mr. Vance. It’s awfully convenient, don’t you think? His neighbors claimed they heard nothing, but the feeling is that he isn’t very liked in the area.”

I shushed Knox when he opened his mouth again. “I’ll answer. It’s fine.” I slid my gaze to Paxton. “I’ve been here. I haven’t seen Jeremy since the night at Sinful.”

“And you?” Paxton turned his attention on Knox. “According to his friends, you and he argued and fought the same night Mr. Heagney accidentally shot himself.”

“We did fight.” Knox’s jaw tightened and he smiled, but it was all teeth and nothing pleasant. His face was still vibrantly purple with swaths of green mixed in for good measure. He waved at his face. “And as you can see, he and his friends ganged up on me and won. That was the last time I saw him. I went to Layton’s apartment to clean up. I didn’t want Reese to worry. Then, I got a phone call about Reese’s accident, and I rushed here as fast as I could.”

“Can anyone corroborate your story?” Paxton raised his eyebrows.

“Me,” Layton said. I’d almost forgotten he was there, and I took a moment to stare at him. He was paler than usual, but when all eyes turned to him, he straightened with determination. “Knox came to my house.”

“What time was that?” Paxton asked.

“Around seven or seven thirty. I wasn’t watching the clock expecting to be questioned by police.” He fell back against his seat and crossed his arms.

Paxton sighed. “These are questions I have to ask, folks.”

“We don’t know anything about that fucker’s disappearance.” Knox stood, and while he didn’t approach the cop, his message was clear. It was time to wrap up this conversation. “But if he was as nice to everyone else as he was to Reese, then I can imagine the list of people who might be involved could be lengthy.”