Free By the Pale Moonlight (Book One of the Moonlight Series) by Jennifer Hendren Page B

middle name.
I say we hit the library first."
    He opened his passenger door and shut it
soundly behind me before sliding into the driver's seat. "You're
the boss." He paused before putting the car in gear. It rumbled
beneath us. "Thanks, Mac. I can't tell you how much it means to
have someone to talk to about this."
    "Anytime."
    "I want you to make me one promise." His gaze
shifted to some students piling into a mini-van across from us.
    I swallowed, not caring for the direction of
this conversation.
    His eyes looked tired and haunted as he
watched the group laughing and carrying on. The sound of their
light-hearted banter seemed to draw him further inside himself.
Just what had he experienced in the last three months? I wondered
if I would ever know the entire truth.
    "I shouldn't have brought you into this, Mac.
But I guess I had no other choice at the time." He said the last
quietly, almost to himself. "Promise me that if things get bad
you'll walk away—our friendship be damned."
    "We're going to the library. I think we'll be
safe." Making light of the situation made me feel like a complete
ass, but I couldn't help myself. I'd say anything to erase his
troubled expression.
    "That's not what I mean." He clenched his
jaw. "Never forget what I am, Mac. Never let your guard down."
    The hair on my scalp prickled. Was he saying
I might be in danger from him? The memory of the presence in the
school corridor came back to me with terrifying clarity. Had it
been him? It didn't matter what I thought because, in that moment,
I knew he believed he had killed Kim. Every fiber of my being
revolted against the thought.
    "November fifth, Ty. Until then, we're both
safe." Until then, I had a chance to prove his innocence—to myself,
but more importantly, to him.
    Finally, he looked at me.
    "Am I right?" I asked, my breath caught in my
throat.
    "If I have anything to say about it."
    "Then I'll be safe. Because if nothing else,
I trust you ."
    His expression didn't change. "Do you
promise?"
    "Yes." I nodded slowly, disappointment
hitting me when this didn't dispel the tension in his body.
    He put the car in gear. The mini-van had gone
by then, and he pulled forward into their spot before turning out
of the parking lot.
    As we drove in silence, I concentrated hard
on breathing in and out as I studied his profile. His mouth turned
down slightly at the corners, and he gripped the steering wheel
hard. He couldn't have killed Kim.
    Despite my resolve, a sliver of doubt crept
into my mind.

Chapter 7
     
     
    With a grunt of exasperation, Ty threw a
heavy volume across the table. A small dust cloud rose off the worn
leather jacket as it skirted the edge and nearly fell off the
table. We sat in the middle of the stacks located in the basement
of the library and thankfully no other visitors were in the area.
He groaned loudly as he popped his neck. "This is useless."
    "We've only been searching a short time." I
tried to remain positive, but even I had grown doubtful in our
ability to turn up anything useful. The stuff we'd found suggested
only one way out of Ty's predicament. I cringed just thinking about
it. Silver bullet—that was the solution. Right .
    "Maybe I should be spending my time finishing
those restraints," he said. "It seems I'm going to need them—for
the rest of my life. That is until someone stumbles across me with
a shotgun. Think what they say is true? Think they'll find me naked
in the woods, a bullet through the brain?" His attempt at wry humor
failed miserably.
    "Don't talk like that, Ty." I frowned at his
slumped shoulders. "We've only just begun."
    "If you start to sing, I'm going to knock you
upside the head with this book." He shook a thick volume in my
direction and laughed when I stuck my tongue out at him.
    "You love my voice."
    "Mac, I hate to break it to you, but no, I
really don't."
    "Whatever." I stared at the many books piled
around us, flipping through a few pages. I felt just as overwhelmed
by the task before