Firecracker (On Hold)

Chapter Forty-Two

Chapter Forty-Two

Justin's P.O.V.

That woman is going to be the death of me; seriously. She changes so quickly and it's nearly impossible to keep up. That Joe guy turning up has seriously upset the apple cart. This leads me to believe there's more going on with the whole situation. Knowing that Ariya won't actually go anywhere, I make myway into the house again. Louise is giving Palmer some lunch with Mike and Todd looking on in wonder.

I clear my throat, raise an eyebrow and curtly say, "The animals won't tend to themselves, guys. Ariya has cleaned all the stalls, but you need to do the rest of the barn work and head count the herd. Get on that while I have a chat with our visitor."

They all leave the house pretty quickly and while Palmer eats, I spin a chair round and sit so I can rest my arms on the back of the chair and still face him. He shoots me a sideways glance and I know I'm making him uncomfortable. Good. I'm glad I still have that skill. Ariya was making me doubt my ability to scare people.

I wait for him to swallow the bite of sandwich he's just taken before I say anything. I think the silence is making him even more uncomfortable.

"So, what's the story here?"

"No story, sir."

I shrug, "I find that hard to believe. I mean, you came all this way for what? Just to check on Ariya on her birthday? That seems a little odd to me. You'll forgive me if I'm a bit suspicious of the whole thing."

He takes a deep breath and then explains, "I think she has issues. I think she's misunderstood and that she probably isn't as bad as she makes out. I don't know why she is the way she is, but I didn't want her to spend her birthday in an unfamiliar place without a familiar face, at least. I've known herfor a long time because I've arrested her many times over the years. By the time she was sent here, we'd come to a bit of an understanding. She used to hit me, but she stopped doing that when I started treating her with a bit of respect and like a person; not just another criminal. I don't know what is going on in her head, but she'll treat people according to the way they treat her. That's why I'm so shocked she exploded so much at seeing me. She hasn't done that in a very long time. She normally shoots sarcastic remarks my way, but nothing like the reaction she gave me earlier."

I purse my lips together, trying to decide if this guy is telling the truth. It's saying something when I trust a criminal over a cop, but Ariya isn't like anyone I've ever encountered, in more ways than you can imagine.

I decide to risk showing my hand by asking, "Have you ever managed to get any information out of her or made any kind of friendship with her?"

He chuckles, "Not a chance. That girl doesn't give anything away. She doesn't have friends and she doesn't want friends. She's made that very clear on a number of occasions. She's never had any known associates and we've always found her on her own when we've snapped her up or gone looking for her. She is the complete definition of a loner."

Well, that means I've managed to form some kind of bond or trust with her, because according to this guy she's never given them any information about her past. That kind of makes me feel a bit better about the situation. Maybe having this guy around might not be such a bad thing. Maybe it'll give me some insight into her life before she was sent here.