Page 11 of Trial of Deceit (The Family’s Oath #1)

Bags were beneath her eyes. Her braids were fuzzy. Her head was throbbing. Last night’s memories were muddled as she tried to make sense of what happened after she got home.

Her attempt was futile. She was left distracted, causing the day to pass by in a haze.

Ashari barely listened while Charlie raved about a guy she met at the grocery store last night while shopping for cupcake sprinkles, but she woke up completely after the last kid left, and in walked a person she never expected to see.

Charlie squealed before running toward the man, causing Ashari’s eyes to widen. Charlie threw her arms around him, and he smiled while returning the hug. Breaking the hug, she smiled at Ashari. “Here he is! His name’s Dimitri.”

Ashari quickly regained her composure. She forced a smile while walking toward Dimitri, who watched her through calculated eyes. “Hi! Me hear so much ’bout you already, and unu only meet last night,” Ashari said, glancing at Charlie while offering Dimitri a hand.

Dimitri tightly squeezed her hand as he shook it, forcing Ashari to smile through the pain. “Charlie is amazing. Feel like me know her fi a long time.”

“Plus, we’ve met before!” Charlie announced as they freed hands. “Few days ago deh a waa open house, he was there. It nice fi stumble in a him again.” She smiled at Dimitri before stepping backward. “I’ll be out soon, then we can leave. Me have fi help Ash clean first.”

Dimitri smiled. “No problem. Tek yu time wid Ash .”

Ashari returned Dimitri’s fake smile. “Weh unu a go?”

“Another open house,” answered Charlie, who’d already begun cleaning up.

Ashari kept a close eye on Dimitri while they cleaned up.

Dimitri ignored her, too engrossed with discussing property taxes with Charlie.

Wondering if this was a sick prank, Ashari snuck away to the bathroom.

She texted Senior to put a tail on Charlie.

She’d hate for a civilian to get caught up in this mess.

Senior didn’t answer, and Ashari scoffed, knowing it’d been a long shot. She exited the bathroom to see Dimitri laugh at Charlie’s complaint about the stresses of purchasing property. Ashari was taken aback. Dimitri was acting nothing like the man she’d researched.

He seemed relaxed. Happy. The opposite of Jediah’s bodyguard.

So, if Dimitri was here, where was Jediah? Ashari’s studies showed that Dimitri rarely, if ever, left Jediah’s side.

Or maybe her research was wrong. Just like she’d heard that Jediah shouldn’t have been able to find out anything about her beyond her cover, yet here she was, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“Neva realize seh yu come back,” Charlie said before walking over. She hugged Ashari. “Mi will see yu tomorrow.”

“You wan’ me bring you home after you view the property?” Ashari asked.

“Mi will bring her home,” Dimitri said, and Ashari looked at him. He still wore that silly smile on his face, and she wanted to wipe it off.

“Okay,” Ashari forced out before turning her attention to Charlie. “Be safe. See you tomorrow.”

Charlie nodded and exited the building while firing off more questions at Dimitri. Ashari turned the lights off, closed the door, then went to her car. She went home to see Lyssa moving about the kitchen and cooking up a storm.

“Big chef!” Ashari joked, trying to shake the unease Dimitri gave her.

Lyssa smiled over her shoulder. “You’ve been working so hard on this case. You deserve a nice dinner.”

Ashari’s stomach grumbled, and Lyssa chuckled.

Ashari smiled, allowing Lyssa’s familiarity to put her at ease.

Maybe Charlie and Dimitri were a coincidence, but she couldn’t discuss it with Lyssa.

Lyssa would find a way to get jealous, and Ashari couldn’t bother going over the no attachment agreement they’d come to since they’d started messing around while preparing for the case.

“I appreciate it, Lyssa. I’m gonna shower. Be right back,” Ashari said before running to the bathroom. When she returned, the lights were on low, and dinner was plated beside a glass of red. Ashari raised a brow as she sat, staring at Lyssa through the steam rising from the plate of shrimp pasta.

“This isn’t supposed to be romantic,” Lyssa rushed out. “But I know wine makes you wetter, and it’s been a while since…”

Ashari smirked as she twirled some pasta onto the fork. “Can’t stay away from me, can you?” she asked while moving the fork to her mouth. She chewed slowly while watching Lyssa lower her head to hide a blush. Swallowing the delicious bite, she complimented Lyssa’s cooking.

Lyssa raised her head and thanked Ashari. She started eating, and they chatted for the next five minutes with Lyssa blushing whenever Ashari flirted with her. Their chatter was interrupted by a knock on the door. They snapped their heads in that direction.

“Who’s that?” Lyssa mouthed.

Shrugging, Ashari grabbed her gun before moving toward the door. She looked through the peephole, her lips parting as she stared at Jediah.

His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows as he moved a long cigar from his mouth and blew the fumes toward the door, blurring Ashari’s view. “I know you’re in there.”

She swallowed hard as her heart raced. “Y-yes?”

“I’m bringing you out to dinner. I want to make up for my behavior the other day.”

Ashari’s eyes drifted to his chest, peeking through the two undone buttons at the top of his shirt. Was that supposed to be attractive? She scowled and looked at Lyssa, who was stabbing at the pasta with knitted brows. “Fine. But me just hop outta the shower, so give me a minute fi put on clothes.”

Jediah nodded. He glanced at his watch before taking one step back.

Ashari rushed toward Lyssa and lowered her voice. “Sorry I can’t finish dinner with you. This case means everything to me.”

Lyssa nodded, then grabbed Ashari’s hand before she could walk away. “Promise me you won’t… have sex with him again?”

“I never did,” Ashari spoke the half-truth, and Lyssa’s eyes brightened. She hurried to the bedroom and got dressed in a pretty semi-formal dress. After securing her earrings, she slipped through the front door.

Jediah’s eyes raked up Ashari’s exposed legs, making her shudder from the unwelcome attention. His eyes met hers. They were unreadable, but that tiny smirk on his mouth said everything. “Aren’t you ravishing, little stranger?”

“Not My Ari anymore?” she asked as he pulled her to him by the waist. Her hand landed against his chest, and he inhaled a deep breath of her hair.

“I don’t know who you are…” he mumbled into her hair. “But it makes me want to find out.”

“Why you don’ ask the somebody weh give you the file pon me?”

“I tried.” Jediah pulled away to rest his cigar in the corner of his mouth. “But he found nothing.”

“So, wa dat mean?”

“Something about you, Ashari…” He trailed his eyes up and down her legs again, and a chill ran through her for the second time. Jediah saw, and he smirked before wrapping his arm around her waist and leading her down the hall. “Makes me want to find out all about you in a fun way.”

Ashari smirked as he held her close to him. If only he knew his smug confession made her job easier. Senior would never lie about protecting her, so she no longer worried about Jediah finding out the truth. By the time he did, he’d be rotting away in a dark prison cell.

Ashari snuck a glance at Jediah. He had one hand locked around the steering wheel.

The other rested atop the gear stick with an unlit cigar tucked between his fingers.

Ashari stared at the veins running up his hands until her focus locked onto the dagger tattoo on the knuckle of his index finger.

His fingers were adorned with rings, one being silver with a fox emblem.

His hands were strong. It’d be easy for Jediah to choke her to death, then dispose of her on the unlit roadside. The sun hadn’t fully set yet, but these roads were dark, street lights being few and far between.

“Which restaurant—” Ashari shrieked as a vehicle slammed into them from behind.

Her body shot forward. The seat belt dug into her skin while Jediah slapped his hand against the dashboard.

Her head slammed against Jediah’s hand, his rings pressing into her forehead while he hissed and tried to get the spinning car under control.

Ashari’s vision blurred, and her head felt dizzy as the car screeched before hitting a tree.

“Are you good?” Jediah asked, helping her up so he could assess her.

She blinked until the dots in her vision cleared. The car’s bonnet was bent out of shape. Smoke rose from it. She nodded at Jediah while he swapped the cigar for a gun.

Jediah looked over his shoulder. “Keep your head down,” he said while a car’s bright headlights approached from behind.

He took a gun out of the glove compartment and handed it to her.

“Do you know how to use it?” he asked, and Ashari quickly shook her head.

Jediah sucked in a breath. “Okay. Just stay here.”

“Don’t die,” she whispered while undoing her seat belt. She slid off her seat and made herself small in the space between the backseat and the front seat.

Jediah smirked. “I won’t die before I figure you out.”

Ashari watched as he pushed against the door, trying to force away the tree branches that blocked them in.

Finally, the door opened. Jediah slipped out, then quietly closed the door behind him.

His feet cracked dead twigs as he moved around the car, trying to find a vantage spot before the other car came closer.

Light flooded the area as the car slowed. Footsteps moved across the road, approaching Jediah’s car before bullets sprayed the SUV. The force shook the car. Ashari curled her hand around the gun as she moved her hands to her ears, trying to block out the deafening sound of the flying bullets.

How bullet proof was this vehicle? And where was Jediah? She hoped those assailants didn’t kill him before she got to put him in prison.

As the shower of bullets silenced, a heavy thud came seconds later, then a loud bang . A groan followed, and Ashari’s head snapped up. That sound was worrying.

She pulled the car door open and stepped outside.

Her eyes widened to see Jediah lying on the ground with his back facing her.

One of Jediah’s elbows was propped up, supporting the top half of his body while his other arm was outstretched and pressed against the side of his leg. Two unmoving bodies were close to him.

Someone was fleeing with a gun in their hand. They hadn’t gotten too far.

“Ashari! Pull the trigger,” Jediah gritted out.

Ashari’s eyes widened as she watched the person run past the car that had slammed into them. “N-no. Me caan’ do it.” She dropped to the ground beside him, trying to inspect where he’d gotten shot.

Jediah shrugged her off and demanded she help him stand. He threw his arm over her shoulder, and hopped toward the car with Ashari’s help. They entered the vehicle.

“What are you doing?!” Ashari yelled as Jediah reversed out of the bushes, then sped toward the person running away. “Jed! Stop!”

Jediah floored the car. Ashari reached for the handle near the roof of the car. The car slammed into the person, rattling the car as it rolled over them. A sickening crunch drifted up from beneath the car.

“Dem don’ dead,” Jediah said, sneering while reaching for the door.

Ashari rushed out, “I-I’ll do it.”

Jediah looked at her, studying her, before he nodded.

Ashari curled her hand around the gun she’d tossed onto the floor after getting Jediah into the car. Her heart raced as she hopped out of the car, taking unsteady steps toward pained groans. Blood pooled beneath the car, rich in color as it neared Ashari’s feet.

Ashari cursed low as she kneeled. She thought if she came out and pretended to shoot them, she could use her phone to call an ambulance. Though it’d arrive after she’d have left with Jediah, it would’ve been a great effort. Seeing all the blood made her know it was a lost cause.

Ashari looked beneath the car, and her eyes widened. “Jaia?!” Ashari asked in a loud whisper.

“A-Ash…” Jaia forced out, her trembling fingers raising off the ground slightly.

A tear rolled down Ashari’s cheek as she reached for Jaia’s hand. “Why’re you here?”

“I th-thought you were hurt.” Jaia coughed up blood.

Ashari’s lips trembled. She could no longer see Jaia through the tears blurring her vision.

“D-don’t let me die like this,” Jaia begged.

“ASHARI!” came Jediah’s yell from inside the car, and Ashari wiped away her tears with the hand holding the gun.

“Wait!” Ashari yelled back, looking at Jaia while squeezing her hand.

“Pl-ease…” Jaia begged, and Ashari nodded.

She raised the gun and aimed at the center of Jaia’s forehead. She closed her eyes before pulling the trigger. Jaia’s trembling hand stilled, the life draining from her eyes. Ashari’s grip loosened. Jaia’s hand fell into the pool of blood. Ashari bit into her lip to mute a scream.

She wanted to reach out and close Jaia’s eyes, but there was no time. A headlight was approaching. Ashari stood and ran to the car. The car screeched , smoking as Jediah floored the gas pedal. Ashari almost threw up inside her mouth as she heard another loud crack as Jediah sped off.

Ashari flicked the safety on and tossed the gun onto the floor as if it burned. She put a fist to her mouth. “Me neva kill anybody before, Jed…”

Jediah laid his hand on her back. “You had to. For me.”

She closed her eyes, and Jaia’s face flashed in her eyes. They weren’t the closest, but Jaia was on this case with her. She was becoming family. “Bring me home. I don’t want dinner anymore.”

“I will after I get my leg checked out,” Jediah said while handing her an uncapped bottle of water. “I won’t apologize, Ashari. It was us or them.”

She took big chugs of the water, then wiped away the excess from her mouth with the back of her hand. “Who were they?”

“An enemy…” he replied, his brows pulling together while his hand tightened around the steering.

Ashari narrowed her eyes on Jediah as his body swayed, trying to bring him into focus. “I don’t feel good,” she murmured.

“I know…” Jediah said. His voice was distant.

“W-what did y-you give me?” Ashari slurred, slumping into the seat. Her tongue was heavy in her mouth.

“Your first test,” Jediah answered. “And you passed, My Ashari.”