Chapter 3

3

"Stray cats?" Mr. Thompson asked, his expression darkening.

"That warehouse is full of grain and expensive textiles. If cats are tearing into the sacks, we need to see the damage!"

He started walking toward the door. I lunged forward and grabbed his arm, my hands shaking. "No, really! I checked! Everything is fine, please just trust me!"

Right as I spoke, a loud, guttural groan of pleasure erupted from inside the warehouse. It was unmistakable, and every man in the crowd knew exactly what it was.

The crowd erupted. Several young workers pushed past me, but I grabbed the lead man's sleeve, sobbing. "Don't go in! I'm begging you! I'm telling the truth!"

Since I was refusing to speak, someone turned their gaze toward Quentin. A foreman grabbed him by the collar. "What's really going on in there? If you lie, I'll knock your teeth out!"

Quentin's face was ghostly. He knew that if he admitted Jace was in there, the manager would ruin him. But if he lied to the sheriff, he was also dead.

"It… it's just cats," Quentin stammered, his eyes darting around. "Silas and I… we chased them off. That's it!"

Ms. Halloway stepped forward, her eyes like daggers. "If it's just cats, then your earlier claim about Jace and Wynter was slander. Should we go to the station now, or do you want to rethink that?"

Quentin collapsed to his knees, sobbing. He couldn't find a single word.

Just then, a booming voice came from the back of the crowd. "Who's slandering my son?"

It was Arthur Bennett. He saw Quentin on the ground and immediately kicked him in the chest. "You little rat! You dare make up lies about my boy?"

Quentin curled into a ball, his pants visibly darkening as he lost control of his bladder. He knew his life was over. There was no way out.

I rushed over to hold Arthur back, acting like a loyal dog. "Manager Bennett, please don't upset yourself! I know Jace is a good man. Wynter would never betray me."

"Her family is poor, and I give them my entire paycheck every month. Why would she do this?" I added, my voice trembling.

"We've been engaged for years, and she won't even let me hold her hand. She's so virtuous. She'd never do something so shameful!"

As if on cue, more loud, animalistic noises came from the warehouse. A group of deputies pushed through the crowd and headed straight for the door.

"Officers, please! There's nothing wrong!" I cried out, trying to block them.

A deputy shoved me aside. "We received a tip about a potential theft of company property. Step back!"

This time, I couldn't stop them. With a loud crash, the deputy kicked the door open. The moment the flashlights hit the interior, everyone gasped and recoiled in horror.

There weren't just two people inside.