Free The Secrets That We Keep by Isabel Lucero Page A

zooms back out and goes to another picture and does the same thing. Finally, after looking through all the pictures that the two men are in, a look of recognition, perhaps shock passes his face and then his face is hard and serious. I’m sitting there just waiting for him to say something but when he does, it isn’t what I was expecting.
    He raises his eyebrows briefly after looking at the last photo, the photo I had recognized Lucas in, and then he puts the camera down next to him and his hands ball into fists and he places them on his knees. He turns and looks at me and I hesitantly look up into his face. The anger radiating off of him is scaring me.
    “What the fuck Annabella? You don’t know these guys? Are you sure?” he asks accusingly.
    “Uh...no, I don’t know who they are. Why would I?” I respond, only partly lying. I didn’t know both of them, only one, but I wasn’t ready to mention that now.
    Julian doesn’t say anything right away, he only narrows his eyes at me slightly as if he’s trying to figure out if I’m lying to him or not. I hope he believes me. What a joke, I hope he believes my lies. I feel so terrible for not telling him that it’s Lucas that’s in that picture, but I feel like I need to find Lucas first. To ask him what the hell is going on, what he’s doing following me around, and how he even found me. I need to get some answers for myself.
    “Really?” he asks, his voice dripping with disbelief. “You’ve never seen these guys before to day? I need to know the truth Annabella. Have you seen either one of these men before today?” He runs his hand through his hair, something he does when he’s frustrated. I feel even worse now because I can hear the desperation in his voice. He wants and needs to believe that I haven’t seen these guys before. For whatever reason, he doesn’t want me to know them, so I give him what he wants.
    “No, I can hardly tell what they look like . I only noticed them today Julian,” I say, my voice slightly rising. “Why, do you know them?” I ask, almost accusingly and regret it because I shouldn’t be accusing him of hiding anything from me when I had just brazenly lied to his face. God, I’m a terrible person.
    He blinks and jerks his head back a little while looking at me with a confused look on his face. “How the hell would I know them?” he replies. I just shrug my shoulders and look down at my hands in my lap.
    “Are you fuckin’ kidding me right now?” he yells. “You think I have people following you? What the fuck do I look like? I don’t know these fuckin’ bastards.” He’s standing up now and staring down at me and the look on his face would frighten a grown man. I’m taken by surprise because at no point did I ever think Julian had people following me. Why would he need to keep tabs on me? I’m curious as to why he assumed that’s what I thought. I can’t help but think he has a guilty conscious. He has been asking me more about my daily plans lately, and let’s not forget he has been having these secret phone conversations that he has to leave the room or house to have. I wonder now what all this could mean. Julian hasn’t been acting like himself lately, and I need to know why.
    I stand up feeling instantly defensive at him towering over me. Even with me standing up, he still seems to tower over me, but I refuse to be this scared little woman sitting on the couch allowing her husband to yell down at her. “Are YOU kidding me? What the fuck is up with all the hostility Julian? I never thought you had people following me. What makes you jump to that, huh?” I have my hands on my hips now and I’m staring him down. I’m sure I’m not nearly as intimidating as him, but I’m upset.
    He flinch es and hesitates momentarily, realizing that he was the one who threw out that idea, not me. “I don’t know, I’m sorry baby,” he says, his voice softening. “I just didn’t want you thinking badly of me. You know