Free Cuts Run Deep by Amber Garza Page B

fingerprints were all over the damn thing.”
    The room spun, and I struggled to catch my breath. “Your gun? My fingerprints?” None of it made any sense. I squinted, trying to remember. Why couldn’t I remember, damn it . Surely I’d remember shooting Jackson. No. There’s no way. I’d never kill him. I loved him. God, I loved him more than anyone in the world. I wouldn’t hurt him. Then again, things were weird that night. They’d been weird ever since….No, I wouldn’t go there. It wasn’t possible. I grabbed my head in my hands, wishing for the millionth time that this was all a nightmare. If only I could wake up and everything would go back to how it was a few days ago.
    Mom rushed to my side. “It’s okay, honey.”
    “It’s not okay, Darla. Stop placating her. That’s how she got into this mess. I’ve always told you that you baby her too much.”
    Mom stepped back like she’d been slapped. “That’s not true.”
    Dad waved away her words like she was insignificant. “A detective is coming back to question you tomorrow, Piper. I hired an attorney. Mr. Roth. He’ll be here with you. The detective can’t talk to you without him present, so don’t answer any questions until he gets here. Understand?”
    I nodded, fear snaking around my heart and squeezing hard. Oh god, what’s going to happen to me? Clasping my hands together, I thought of Jackson. Of how he always protected me. If only he were here now. But he wasn’t.
    Who was going to help me now that he was gone?

Jackson
     
    I never planned to tell Piper about my dad. I’d never told any of my friends. Not even Tyler or Zach, and we’d been friends since we were kids. Sure, they knew my dad and I weren’t close. Anyone with half a brain could see that. But none of my friends had tight relationships with their dads either. I think it’s like teenage protocol or something. 
    But when Piper showed me her scars, I knew I had to be upfront with her. She shared something so personal and deep with me. It was the first time she’d really let me see her without any walls up. And I knew that if I had any hope of her continuing to let me in, I had to be open to her too.
    And I don’t regret it. Not at all. I never felt as close to her as I did that day. When she nestled into my chest and held me tight, it was like she was releasing all of her fears and hurt into my arms. Like she was trusting me to save her.
    That’s exactly what I wanted to do. I wanted to save her. I wanted to make everything better. I wanted to erase all her sadness and pain.
    If only it were that simple, but I could tell when I looked into her eyes that it wasn’t. There was a lot of turmoil there. Maybe that’s part of what drew me to her. That raw sadness in her green eyes. It was magnetic to the hero in me.
    At least that’s what Zach said. He said that I only like Piper because I have a hero complex. I know that in some ways he’s right. Ever since I was a little kid I’ve had a desire to help people. I remember one time when I was around five years old, Mom took me out to lunch at a little diner. It’s no longer open anymore, but I think it was called Melba’s. Anyway, there was an old man eating by himself, and he looked so sad. I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. At some point Mom got up to use the bathroom, and I carried my plate over to the man’s table and asked if I could sit with him. He said yes, so I sat down. Apparently he’d lost his wife recently, and this was his first time eating out by himself. I could tell he was grateful that I sat with him, and it made me feel good. When Mom returned she was upset with me, and on the way home she warned me about talking to strangers. But I knew that I had done the right thing. The man needed help; he needed someone. And I was there.
    Tyler knew better than to tease me since our whole relationship was because of my need to assist others. That didn’t stop him from being rude to Piper though. And that