Red_Roses_and_Black_Dahlias_-_Macy_T

4
IDENTITY
MADDOX
Her eyes were fixated on the gray metal table, with her index finger
constantly tapping onto the surface nervously. She was trying to breathe
deeper but it didn’t seem to work in relaxing her as her shoulders were still
taut, and she was frowning.
In all the years that I’d known her, I had never seen her so on edge, not
even the first time she was arrested.
It made me want to find the motherfucker who did that to her and fucking
finish the job she started on his friend. The first time the thought crossed my
mind, I was surprised.
Sure, I knew over the years I had developed a certain sense of
protectiveness over her, but nothing as fierce as how I felt last night when I
got the call about a murder at the mayor’s house. I was in my car the second I
hung up and broke all speed limits to get there on time. No matter how many
times I tried to tell myself it would be okay, that neither of the Raymond girls
had been hurt, I couldn’t get the images of Sofia and Valentina lying in a pool
of their own blood out of my mind. We didn’t have any information on what
had gone down when I got the call, so anything was possible.
When I finally got there and saw her shaking body gripping Valentina
while an officer tried to calm them down, I nearly ran to hug the shit out of
her. She was badly beaten, her arms were black and blue and her upper lip
was split open. She was drenched in blood too, and for a second I thought it
was hers and nearly lost it.
I had to stop myself because I knew how it would look to anyone else. I’d
known her since she was sixteen, and even though I knew what I felt for her
was nothing short of friendship, I still had eyes. And I knew Sofia Raymond