Page 9 of Into The Rabbit Hole

Wade opened his mouth to try and explain but found he didn’t know where to begin. Where did he start? The problem went way back. Yearsback.

This wasn’t just about the last few hours. There was so much more. So muchmore.

“How did she die?” his father askedsoftly.

“I don’t know. There was a green mist, smoke, and it knocked us out. When I came to, she was dead. Someone killedher.”

“The psycho,” his father said, barely above a whisper, and looked down at the dark gray surface of thefloor.

“Yes. But it was myfault.”

“No.” His father returned his gaze and shook his head. “The fault is all mine. It’s myfault.”

Wade couldn’t argue with that but he couldn’t excuse his own guilt either. This crazy person may have been after his father, but they’d targeted them individually and hurt them, hurt him, in a way that was personal and specific to him. They’d tailored whatever destruction they wanted to issueout.

His seemed to be the most thought out and planned. It was like this person had made an example out of Wade. An example that he was using to send a message to everyone else to show they meant business. To show they were being serious and this was no longer about sending scary notes anddrawings.

Taylor’s accident and the finger in the package woke them all up. This, on the other hand, would keep them in check and keep them guessing as to what was coming next. Wade had no doubt that this person intended to kill themall.

He wanted to make them suffer first, though. Question was,why?

The man before him, his father, held the answers, but Wade was too drained to askanything.

Right now he was ready for death. That was what hedeserved.

“Who was she to you?” his father asked. “Merissa Stevens. Who wasshe?”

That was a good question. Who was she tohim?

“My son’s mother,” Wadeanswered.

His father widened his eyes at him. “Yourson?”

“He died,” Wade said quickly, eliciting a melancholic look from hisfather.

Wade looked at him and saw the sadness brimming in hiseyes.

“I’m so sorry, son. It looks like we have a lot to talkabout.”

Wade shook his head. He’d said more than he thought he had strength for already and didn’t think he could say more. “I can’t, it’s toopainful.”

“I know. But Wade, I’m going to represent you. So I need to knoweverything.”

“I’m afraid that’s not the best idea, sir,” said a voice from behindthem.

Wade looked up to see a man about the same height as his father coming into the cell. The unyielding expression on his face told Wade that he’d already convicted him in hismind.

Wade returned his gaze back to his father who stood and glowered at theman.

“And why’s that,Mitch?”

Mitch eyed his father with caution. “You represent the state, sir. You’re the state’s attorney, and your son has been arrested on suspicion of murder. You know what that means, and I have to be quite blunt and say that things are not looking good forhim.”

Something gripped Wade’s heart when he heard that. Yes, he was ready for death, but a part of him didn’t want to be charged for murder. He didn’t want everyone to believe that he could be the kind of person to kill Merissa. Her family would already be devastated. He didn’t know if he could live or die knowing that they thought he had killedher.

But when he thought about it, things didn’t look good for him at all. He had no witnesses, no alibi, not anything. It was just him and her in the house. All he had was hisword.

“Then that’s all the more reason for me to be here,” his father proclaimed to Wade’ssurprise.