House Arrest

Chapter 2

I had spent five hours in the police stations holding cell before I got the news. Five hours of tormented agony thinking about my mangled up future. I had no doubt they would put me in jail. I even thought I deserved it. But this all changed once I got the news.

"One year." A random officer had said to me.

I was sitting in one of the cubicles gaping at an officer named James who sat on the other side of the desk, while Alex Knight was sitting rigid beside me. I hadn't been able to comprehend the news that James had just thrown in my face. He was an older man, with clean-shaven white hair and a tight black outfit, like all the other officers, except his seemed more regal somehow.

"You have a very difficult case here. With a small group of officials, we've decided to place you under house arrest. But we also concluded that placing you back in your own home might cause more harm then good. So we came up with the idea of placing you under the care of Officer Knight until a full evaluation can be conducted and your case be fully concluded."

I sat there, unable to control my gaping mouth. Living with a complete stranger? Is that considered a fair punishment for murder these days? I looked over at Knight, who was staring at the man in front of him like a rabid dog on a chain. There was a tap on my shoulder but it felt detached. Jack was standing there, looking more at Knight than at me.

"Come on Danielle, I'll escort you to your house to pack." He gave a stern nod to James and then patted the frozen Knight before leading me out of the station. The sun was shining brightly in the sky and there was not a cloud in site. It was warm, and being outside helped melt away some of my anxiety. I grabbed the passenger door handle and Jack winced, "Sorry, but technically you have to sit in the back on this trip."

I nodded, and climbed in the back. Jack looked back at me through the metal bars and smiled, "I had a say in what happened to you. You seem like a nice girl, so I advocated for you to live with Alex as opposed to in a jail cell. He's one of my best friends, by the way, and he's really nice once you get past the, um, asshole."

"Thank you so much for helping me. It really means a lot. I needed a friend in there."

He grinned, "You are in for such an experience at Knight's house."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see. He's a little troubled, but you know, who isn't these days."

We pulled into my driveway with me still contemplating what he meant by troubled. Bryson's car was still in the driveway, but now so was my dads. I climbed out of the car and Jack followed me towards the door to the fence. The giant wooden tree house stood proudly in the oak tree. Bryson was frantically climbing down its ladder.

"Dannie!" He gathered me into his arms and spun me in a dizzying circle. I grinned at him as he hugged me. Jack stood off to the side, a faint smile on his face.

"Danielle Elizabeth Grace, you might want to get your ass up these steps." I looked up to see my stepmom was standing on the porch, her hands resting defiantly on her hips. Although she was trying to look menacing, the smirk of victory was evident on her face.

I slowly walked towards the house, Jack and Bryson flanking me. I walked past Becca and stepped into the house. Within five seconds, I was being screamed at.

"I come back from the trip to find this?! What the hell did you do?!" My dad was standing in the living room, where broken glass and plywood lie all over the floor. The outside was marked off with bright yellow police tape.

"Dad... Please listen to me." I said, my voice soft and cowardly.

"I don't want to hear it. I am so glad to see you getting out of my fucking house. It finally allows me to break every last tie with your goddamned mother. Get out of my sight, and don't come back." His voice was threatening and it came out as a low growl.