Framed Read Free Page A

good friends, sharing phone numbers and all.”
    “I'd rather hear it from you.”
    “Let's see, I work, I frequent Boston even though you don't want me to and think the boys will kill me on sight if they catch me there. I avoid Ronnie like the plague because she's pissed and she scares the shit out of me. I keep an eye on Cooper just to be sure he doesn't fall off the wagon. I worry constantly about Scarlet, the PC, and that freaky murder that happened in the city. I don't sleep, I rarely eat, and I have to keep all of it under wraps so Peyta, who happens to think this whole newfound world she's in is the cat's pajamas, doesn't see this for what it is.”
    “And what would that be?”
    “A curse, Sean. It's a curse,” I lamented under my breath. “They're going to find a way to get rid of me eventually. You try living with that monkey on your back. It sucks.”
    “I don't know how many times I have to tell you that I won't let that happen—”
    “Right. Do you tell me that right before or just after you tell me that you'll take me down yourself if you have to? You can't do both, Sean. You'll eventually have to pick a side. Your ass depends on it too, remember?”
    “I know exactly what my ass depends on, thank you very much. And though I will do what's necessary to fulfill my obligations, I will not do so because of pressure from others, or even a direct order from the powers that be. I will only do it because I see that there is no other option. Tell Scarlet not to force my hand and there won't be any problems.”
    “She knows the rules, Sean. No guest appearances.”
    “Not even a cameo.”
    I looked around to see if anyone had overheard our quiet, but heated argument. The few patrons in there seemed completely fixated on whatever they were doing and the two employees were too busy shamelessly flirting with one another to have seen a car crash through the front entrance. Once I was convinced we were in the clear, I returned my attention to the impossibly green eyes affixed on me.
    “So what have you been up to?” I countered.
    “I've been trying to keep you alive, as always,” he replied. “Not an easy task. When were you down in Boston last?”
    “Two nights ago, I think. Why?”
    “Which way did you come home?”
    “The same way I always come home, on the interstate. Why?”
    “Who was the last person to see you that night?”
    “In Boston? The guy at the Goodwill store. Why?”
    “And was Cooper home when you got back?”
    “No, he was at the library late, studying. Why? And so help me God if you ask me one more question—”
    “I'm just making sure you're keeping appropriate attention on your whereabouts these days. The more detail you have and the more people you surround yourself with at all times, the better.”
    “So this whole get together was really just an alibi pop quiz?”
    He shrugged his shoulder in the most unapologetic way.
    “I'm out,” I said, grabbing my purse. “I don't have time for this shit, Sean, and, quite frankly, you don't either.”
    I didn't have to look back to know he would follow me out; he liked to have the last word as much as I did. I hadn't quite made it to the door when the news program on the TV caught my attention. More information about the murder of the woman in the alley had been leaked to the press, and they had an entire segment devoted to all the gory details. Sean was stopped in his tracks by it too. We stood just feet apart, staring at the newscast in complete silence. Before it finished, I broke away; I couldn't handle anymore rehashing of an event I was already too familiar with. I made it out the door and a couple of buildings down before Sean strode up next to me, so close that his arm rubbed against mine.
    “Somebody better start fucking explaining why I just saw a report on the news describing how that woman's wounds look like they were inflicted by an animal,” Sean growled into his cell phone. “I don't care how preoccupied you've been.