Free On Thin Ice by Linda Hall Page B

him even now? Sent him money when he needed it? Was that why he was worried that Bryan was the only onewho could expose him? Was he worried about what Bryan held over his head?
    After Megan’s grandmother accused Bryan of pushing her, Bryan had come to Alec. “You remember that night, bro. You remember when I came home that night. I wasn’t out at her grandmother’s house. The people are going to say I was. People are going to say all sorts of things. But I can’t tell them where I really was. You gotta trust me. You got to tell them I was with you. Because I was. You know I was.” His voice was staccato and breathless and he literally jumped from foot to foot as if he was on drugs. Alec asked him if he was.
    “No. No. No, I’m not. Because I didn’t do it, ya know. I didn’t. You gotta help me. You gotta.”
    Alec knew that he would. He would protect his brother like he had protected him all these years.
    Later, in court, he would say he had spent the evening shooting pool with his brother. But the timeline was off and he knew it. Back then, Alec didn’t believe his brother had pushed Megan’s grandmother to her death. His brother wouldn’t tell him where he had really been that night, only that he didn’t do it. Alec believed him, then. So did their mother. Their father hadn’t said much. He never did where Bryan was concerned. He mostly just holed himself up at work and pretended that problems with Bryan didn’t exist.
    What did Alec think now? He honestly didn’t know. Maybe no one would ever know the truth. His brotherhad gone to jail. Justice had been served. In the end, his perjury hadn’t mattered. But he had betrayed Megan. And when she had walked away, pregnant with their baby, he knew he didn’t deserve to go after her.
    How could he tell her the truth now? If he wanted Megan in his life, then he knew he would have to continue to keep his secret. He looked out at the moon and made a decision. God had forgiven him his sin. Justice had been done. The whole thing was long over. Megan didn’t need to know. She need never know. But why did that resolution make him feel so miserable?
    He went back to the desk and retrieved a manila envelope from the bottom drawer. It was the kind of envelope with a string and toggle. He unwound the string and pulled out a picture, a five-by-seven color photo of himself and Megan. It had been taken at the winter dance, a few months before they were to be married. She had pulled the sides of her long hair up into a glittery barrette on the top of her head, and the ends of her hair softly curled around her shoulders. Her dress was light blue, caught in at the waist by a wide ribbon. It fell to the floor in satiny folds. She looked happy and confident. She was also pregnant in the picture, but neither of them knew that when this picture was taken.
    He stood next to her, awkward and skinny and miles taller than she was. He wore a flower on his lapel of the same flower variety as the corsage she wore on herwrist. Whenever he stayed in this room, he looked at this picture.
    If he remembered correctly, it was Bryan who had taken the picture. Bryan had been happy for the two of them. Smiling, he had slapped Alec on the back. Alec had winced away from this slap, which seemed more like a punch. “Hey Bryan, easy there, brother.”
    Bryan had laughed and said, “The best man won. I’m just happy for you, bro. Meggie is a great kid.”
    “She is.”
    “Besides, you already know she was never my girlfriend. We’ve only ever been good friends, and I’ve already moved on.”
    And he had. By that time he was dating a girl named Olive. That didn’t last long. He now had a Christian girlfriend and they planned to marry.
    A girl that Megan said she recognized.
    There was a gentle knock on his door. Alec put the picture away before he rose to open the door. His mother stood there, pale and agitated. She said, “I just wanted to make sure you have everything you need.”
    “I’m