Page 33 of Between Regrets and Promises (Between Us Trilogy #2)

MASON

Being booked into jail is uneventful, though it doesn’t help that every person I pass knows my dad. I am fucked. I’ve been sitting on a bench in a stark white cell for the past three hours. My fists and face hurt, and when I’m finally granted my one phone call, I dial Liam.

“How’s jail?” he answers after the first ring.

“Already watched a dude piss all over the floor.”

“You’ll be out soon. We each gave our statements.

Sophie was truthful. Talked about the verbal and physical abuse.

They took pictures of her bruises, and she put it all out there.

It was bad, Mason. You were right. If you wouldn’t have killed him, I would’ve after finding out everything that he was doing to her.

On top of that, verbal and mental abuse, too. ”

The seriousness in his tone feeds my rage even more.

I knew something wasn’t right. I fucking knew it.

All that matters now is that she’s okay. I can’t blame her for being scared of him, considering how out of control he was with three men fighting back his same size.

“Where is she now? How is she?” I’m more concerned about her well-being because I can only imagine how she feels and what emotional state she’s in.

“I made Sophie come home with me and told her she was sleeping here. She’s a fucking wreck and blames herself for it all,” he tells me. “She was worried about you too,” he adds, and it makes my heart jolt forward, but I don’t address it.

“I’m glad she’s there. And Serena?”

“She’s on her way to you. She said she’d leave as soon as possible.”

“Fuck,” I mumble.

“If you need to get bonded out sooner, let me know. I can call someone,” he offers.

“That’s okay. I’ll wait for Serena and let you know. Thanks, man. Thanks for being my best friend through all the bullshit.”

“You’re not gonna get all sentimental on me now, are you, and confess your undying love for me?” Liam snickers.

“You wish, you bastard,” I barely get out when the officer tells me my time is up.

I let Liam go and am escorted back to my jail cell with a piss-covered floor.

I’m thrown inside like a criminal, like a murderer.

Without a doubt, word has already gotten around town that the district attorney’s son killed a guy and is sitting in jail.

I need Serena to get her ass here as soon as possible.

Another hour passes, and I’m relieved when the door swings open.

An officer lets me know I’ve been released, and I’m so thankful Serena came through.

She’s going to lay into me, no doubt. As I grab my shit and walk through the door, I’m shocked when I look at my father.

The color drains from my face when I realize how livid he is.

Behind him, Serena looks half terrified and half pissed off.

“What’re you doing here?” I bark out, not wanting him to come to my rescue because he’ll hold it over me for the rest of my life as he does everything else.

“You think my son, my only son, gets arrested for murder and no one tells me? If so, you’re stupider than you look right now.”

“Ahh. Almost forgot everyone was on your payroll.” I nearly bite my tongue off trying to keep the rest of my heated words to myself. Though it pains me, it’s for the best, considering we have an audience.

“You’re set to be on the docket first thing Monday morning. More strings I was forced to pull for you.” He glances at Serena. “Since your lawyer is present, I assume you don’t need me anymore.” The agitation is prevalent as he glares at me.

“I didn’t need you in the first place,” I spit out, wishing he wouldn’t have come.

My words cause my father to let out a hearty, sarcastic laugh. “That’ll be the day.”

“Try not to kill anyone else while you’re out, got it? Your tallies are adding up,” he snaps before leaving.

I’m two seconds away from telling him to go fuck himself when Serena grabs my arm and squeezes. “It’s not worth it.”

I suck in a deep breath, trying to calm down. “You’re right. But damn, sometimes he’s intolerable.”

She snorts. “I think he means well. He doesn’t want you sitting in jail and rotting. That’s not a life for you.”

I let out a steady breath, though I’m pissed the hell off. “He’s more concerned about himself and how it will affect his reputation if I sit in a cell, not the fact that I’m there.”

Serena shrugs.

“You look good,” I tell her as we walk outside. It’s nearly midnight, and I’ve had a hell of a day. I want to go home and sleep in my bed because, for a moment, I thought I’d be sleeping on a cold bench.

She smiles. “Thanks.”

Her heels click on the pavement as we walk across the parking lot toward her BMW.

After she unlocks it, I slip inside. The car is an upgrade from what she was driving while in law school.

When she gets in, she bends over to remove her six-inch heels and throw them in the back seat. It causes me to laugh.

“You could kill someone with those heels,” I tease.

She laughs. “They’re my secret weapon.”

I wouldn’t put it past her if she felt threatened.

I’d trust Serena with my life. She knows the legal system like the back of her hand, and she’s an up-and-coming lawyer in Sacramento.

Serena’s worked her ass off to get where she is in her profession.

She’s one of the best criminal defense attorneys in this city, and I’d almost be willing to bet in the state.

Hard-ass is her middle name, and she doesn’t take no for an answer.

Not from anyone, not even my father. The girl is a genius but also has street smarts too—a lethal combination.

And damn, I’m happy she’s on my side and has been for years, even before she could legally practice law in California.

“So tell me what happened,” she says as she backs out of the parking lot.

“Is this on the record or off?” I quip, and she playfully rolls her eyes as she takes the ramp to the highway.

“Start from the very beginning. If you want me to represent you and get your ass off for murder, then I need to know it all, know what I’m up against. I’ll put on the record what needs to be there. The rest is between us.” She smiles.

I try to think back to when this all started, and I know I need to be open with Serena. Not only is she representing me, but she’s my friend too. I tell her about Sophie and how Weston got into the picture of all of this, and why I looked into Weston’s past.

“Does anyone know you did that?”

“Liam and Jerad. Liam isn’t gonna say shit.

Jerad won’t either, considering he wasn’t supposed to do it in the first place.

I trust him, and he’s holding a position for me in his department, if I didn’t ruin my chances,” I continue, explaining how I tried to warn Sophie about Weston being dangerous.

“But she didn’t take your advice, obviously.”

If she would’ve, maybe none of this would’ve happened, or maybe she’d be dead. There’s no way to predict what could’ve happened. “No.” It’s all I can say as I temporarily get lost in my thoughts, but Serena quickly pulls me out of my head.

“So what happened tonight?”

I think back to the evening’s events, and everything seems like a weird blur.

Maybe it’s because I’m somewhat in shock.

There was a point when my friends and I could’ve died.

Being held at gunpoint is scary as fuck, and nothing could’ve prepared us for that.

I try to replay it all, from the confrontation to the parking lot fight when he pulled out the gun.

Serena listens carefully, and I know she’ll probably remember this conversation word for word because that’s how she is.

“Well, considering there’s no open carry in the state of California, we’ll have that on our side.

Not to mention, he pulled it out with intention to threaten and kill.

That’s essentially assault with a deadly weapon.

Doubt it was registered to him, considering he had a record.

Either way, you acted in self-defense since he pulled it out and threatened you and your two friends with it.

Hopefully between the witness statements and him breaking the law, this’ll be an open and shut case without contest. Of course, we’ll see what we’re up against at your plea hearing on Monday. ”

“You think it’ll be easy to prove self-defense?”

She grins as she takes the exit toward my house. “Absolutely. Considering who your daddy is, I’m sure it will be no issue.”

“Oh, shut the hell up.” I groan. “It’s gross when you call him my daddy.”

She snorts. “Your father is probably gonna be there. He already mentioned as much when we were waiting for you to get released. Lay low for the rest of the weekend. Considering who you are, people will be talking. The rumors are gonna go wild if they aren’t already.

I’m surprised the news station wasn’t waiting for you when you were released, considering how high profile your father is. ”

“Anything for a scandal.” I groan, rolling my eyes.

Serena turns on my street, then pulls into the driveway.

“You okay?” Her voice softens.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. I’m exhausted and need to decompress.”

A small smile touches her lips. “Also, I know how you feel about your dad being in your business, but you may want to thank him. He literally saved your ass quicker than I could’ve. No one cares about an attorney, but when the DA walks in, shit moves a little faster. It’s kinda magical.”

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were a fan. You in line to be the third Mrs. Holt?” I tease, and she makes a gagging sound. Sometimes, it’s too easy to give her shit.

“You know it’s complicated. I don’t want to owe him anything because he holds it over me. I promise you, the only reason he was there was to beat the reporters. Any longer and he’d have a fire to put out, and he’s worried about appearances. Always has been. That much hasn’t changed and never will.”

She leans her head against the seat. “He’s a hard-ass, but I don’t think he’s a bad guy. I do believe he cares about you, but I’ll stop now. I’m not a therapist, just a lawyer.”

I chuckle. “Thanks. So how’ve you been?”

“Good, Mason. Real good. Working a lot, living that lawyer hustle life. How about you? Landed that dream job yet?”

A lump the size of a golf ball forms in my throat. “Depending on how all this goes will ultimately determine that. There’s a guy retiring in forensics in the fall, and I've pretty much been guaranteed his position, but I don’t know anymore.”

Serena grabs my hand and squeezes but then pulls away. “It’s all gonna work out. It always does.”

“Yeah, I hope.”

We sit, listening to the hum of the engine, both lost in our thoughts.

So much has happened over the past few years.

I’ve worked so damn hard to earn that promotion, and this one night could ruin my entire career.

But if that’s what it ultimately took to make sure Sophie was okay, then I’d sacrifice it all a hundred times over.

Serena breaks the silence. “I’ll pick you up on Monday at seven thirty. That way I know your ass will be on time,” she says, snickering. “Also, I might need to chat with Sophie. If the case isn’t thrown out, we may need her to testify as a character witness.”

“I’m sure she’ll do whatever you need.” Talking about Sophie with Serena is awkward, and I’m glad she hasn’t asked me anything personal.

“Well, get some rest and try to stay out of trouble for the next forty-eight hours, alright?” she teases. “No more excitement for a long while.”

“Trust me when I say I’ve had enough for a lifetime. Thanks for everything,” I tell her as I reach for the handle.

“You’re welcome. Call me if you need anything, even if it’s to talk,” she says.

“I will.” I open the door and stand in the driveway. She waves, and I watch her car until the taillights fade in the distance. I pull my phone from my pocket and realize how late it is and how exhausted I am. I’m ready to hit my bed as soon as I see it.

When I walk into the house, I notice how eerily quiet it is but can see a lump of a body on the couch.

I take a few steps forward and hear Liam snoring, which means Sophie is in his bed.

Though he can be a prick, he loves Sophie like a sister, and most likely refused to let her sleep on the couch, which makes me smile.

I climb the stairs and grab some clothes, then go to the shower. As the hot water streams over my body, I can’t stop thinking about the gun, then Sophie’s sweet face comes to mind, along with the makeup she used to cover the bruises that fucker left.

While I hate that a life was lost today, I think Weston was capable of causing irreparable damage to Sophie, if he hasn’t already. The thought of his mental and physical abuse has me seeing red again, but it’s over, and all I can hope is that she'll be able to heal.

Hopefully, Liam told her the details of today, but if she wants to know, I’ll explain it the best I can. My heart still aches for her and everything she’s been through. I wish she would’ve listened, but I’m convinced he wouldn’t have let her go so easily.

The water runs cold, and I take that as my cue to get out. I grab a towel and dry off, then get dressed. Instead of going to my room, I go to Liam’s and crack open the door. Moonlight splashes across the floor, and I can hear her steady breathing.

My sweet Sophie , I think to myself, stepping inside and going toward her.

I hate to wake her, but after everything, I need to see her, even if it’s to say I’m here for her.

And I always have been.