Page 9 of Twisted Truths

“The evidence is bullshit. She would never hurt them. Or herself. Who else are you looking at?”

He narrows his eyes. “Even if I wanted to, I can’t share details of an ongoing investigation.”

“So, it is ongoing then?”

“Look, I know you’re upset?—”

“Upset doesn’t even begin to cover how I’m feeling, Shane,” I say, my voice low and cold. “You know Zara. Do you really believe she’s capable of killing our mum? Or Rylan? Christ, he was only twelve. And how was she supposed to get the best of Paul? He’s twice her size on a good day.”

Shane’s eyes flick to Levi, then back to me, but he doesn’t say anything. The silence stretches between us, thick with unspoken tension.

“You’re asking me to go against the evidence,” he finally says, his voice strained. “I’m not some idealistic cop who believes in blind loyalty. Idoknow Zara, but do you? You’ve been gone for six years, Nash. She wasn’t the same seventeen-year-old girl you left behind.”

My jaw tightens. “I know her well enough to know she’d never hurt our family.”

“My job is to follow the facts. She left a note?—”

I lean forward, my hands clenched into fists on the table, fighting the rage bubbling up in my chest. “I’m telling you the facts are wrong.If there was a note, she didn’t write it. You’re just holding onto the easiest explanation. Zara didn’t do it. She couldn’t have.”

He looks at me, his eyes flickering with something I can’t quite place. Regret, maybe. But he doesn’t let it show for long. Instead, he leans back in his chair, arms crossed, his expression hardening again. “You’re too close to this, Nash. Let us do our job. You’re letting your emotions blind you.”

“Are you going to do your job?” I snap. “It seems to me you’ve already made up your mind about what happened.”

Levi shifts uncomfortably. “Nash?—”

“No,” I cut him off, my voice sharp. “This isn’t about me getting emotional, Shane. This is about the truth. You thinkyou’ve got it all figured out, but you’re refusing to look at any other options.”

Shane leans forward, his hands flat on the table now, the weight of his gaze heavy on me. “We’re working with the facts. You’re here trying to rewrite them.”

“I’m asking you to look beyond the obvious,” I growl. “Look beyond the easy answer. She’d been out of the Circle for less than ten hours. You think they let her go willingly? How many people have you met who have left that compound of their own free will? How many?”

Levi winces. He knows exactly who I’m referring to.

“This isn’t some damn revenge mission. Zara made the decision to join them, just as she made the decision to leave.”

“About that…” Levi shifts again, and Shane shoots him a sharp look, holding his hands up to stop him.

“I don’t want to hear it.” He sighs again. He’s been in the game long enough to know that sometimes things aren’t as clear-cut as they seem. “What do you want me to do?”

“Your job,” I say simply. “Investigate the Sunfire Circle. Look into Ignatius and Gabriel. I’m telling you they have something to do with this.”

“This isn’t just a case ofdoingmy job, Nash,” Shane replies, his tone low. “This is about getting it right. No matter how much you want to believe Zara’s innocent, the evidence says otherwise.”

“And if the evidence was forced or faked?”

He doesn’t answer right away. Instead, he stares at me like he’s considering it, before letting out a long breath and pushing himself up from his seat.

“We’ll see, won’t we? Stay out of the investigation. I’ll update you when I can, but for god’s sake, don’t go getting yourself into trouble. Letushandle it.”

Levi and I watch him walk out of the café, neither of us saying a word until the door closes behind him.

“Are we going to do what he says?” My brother’s tone is resigned, telling me he already knows the answer.

“Hell, no. We’re going to nail that fucker Ignatius, and his son, too.”

He sighs. “I thought as much.”

Chapter Four