I lifted a palm to cut him off. “It’s okay,” I said. I shook my head slightly. “I mean, it’s not okay, but I understand, because it didn’t exactly make me look innocent. If I was searching for a person who killed one of my loved ones, and I saw someone show up in town wearing their stuff, I’d be suspicious too. And it didn’t help when I admitted that I killed someone.”
“That’s true.” Hunter exhaled deeply. “But I guess the search is over now. I won’t exactly be able to continue it from prison, will I?”
“Prison?”
He stared down at his hands. “I kidnapped and tortured you, Laney. Even I can’t buy my way out of this.”
I hesitated for a moment, breath hitching in my throat. “Hunter… I’m not going to turn you in,” I finally said.
His forehead creased. “You should. I deserve it.”
I watched him as he spoke. I could tell he wasn’t just manipulating me into feeling bad for him so that he could stay out of trouble. There was raw pain and remorse in his eyes, along with acceptance.
“No,” I said. “You did bad things to me. Really bad things. But I don’t think you’re a bad person.”
“I clearly am.”
“You’re not. You were desperate to find Lindsay’s killer, and you honestly thought I was guilty. You wanted answers.”
“That doesn’t give me the right to torture you,” he muttered.
“No, it doesn’t, but I believe you when you say you’re sorry,” I said. I threw my hands up. “I don’t know… maybe I’m just an idiot. But I genuinely believe you.”
He looked at me, brows lifted. “You’re really not going to turn me in?”
“Areyou going to turn me in?” I shot back.
“For what?”
“Hunter, I confessed to a murder half an hour ago,” I said, lifting a brow.
“Oh. That.”
“Yeah. That.”
He slowly shook his head. “I’m not going to say a word to anyone about it,” he said. “Honestly, I don’t even know why you feel so guilty about it. Sure, he was your dad, but he fucking sold you to a rapist when you were only a kid. If I were you, I’d see him as a sperm donor and nothing else. Not a real father.”
“I get what you mean,” I replied. “But what I did with Mom… it was still wrong.”
He gripped my chin, raising my eyes to his again. “Laney, what the two of you did was self-defense. That’s the way I see it, and you aren’t going to change my mind. And I’m never, ever going to tell anyone else. I promise. Your secret is safe with me.”
“Thank you,” I murmured.
I felt something pass between us then. An understanding. A kinship. We were both good people who did terrible things out of desperation, and we were both riddled with remorse over it.
Real bad people wouldn’t feel guilty at all.
Without warning, Hunter moved even closer and wrapped his arms around me, smoothing one hand up and down my back. “I think you deserve better than anything your life has given you so far,” he said, voice husky with emotion. “I just wish I was good enough to give it to you.”
Electricity seemed to crackle through my body as I let him tighten his grip on me. In that moment, I felt completely safe with him. Like I belonged in his arms.
“You are good enough,” I whispered.
He slowly pulled back, shaking his head. “I’m not. But I want you to know—I’m going to try to make things right. For all the things I did to you.”
“You don’t have to do that,” I said.
“Yeah, I do. And I want to.”