(Un)Covering the Truth

Seventeen || Apartment 46

Walking in the building, I noticed James was slowing his pace. I turned to him, he was looking down, hands in his pocket.

I grabbed his arm and pulled his hand out of the pocket. He looked up at me and I gave him a reassuring smile. We walked to the elevator, hand in hand, and pressed the 4th floor button.

"How in the world was my brother able to afford this place?" James muttered to no one in particular.

"The side job," I say, "Whatever he was doing, he did it well and was payed in return. These are some of the nicer apartments in Callaway, they're a lot like a hotel, really."

James shook his head, "I can't believe this is my brother we're talking about."

The elevator dings and we step out, but neither of us walk down the long hall before us.

"I'm sorry, James," I say.

"Can we at least get proof my brother was doing illegal things?" He asked, "So far we've only ever heard it from people."

"Yeah, but the other cellphone? The apartment? That costs a lot and he doesn't have an actual job," I say, "He's paid minimum wage."

"Red, please."

I looked him in the eye. They were begging at me, and it was easy to tell he knew the truth. He knew his brother wasn't as great as he always believed. He was clinging to this last strand of hope that wasn't even there. The smallest, most impossible, chance that his brother wasn't a criminal.

I sighed, "We can ask Zoey, if she's willing to talk."

He nodded, but his hope was fading. He knew it already, he just didn't want to admit it. Admit that his brother had a life, a whole other side to him, that no one knew.

"You can do this," I say reassuringly. And we walked down the hall past the doors until we found apartment 46, "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be."

And so we knocked.

There was a shuffle of footsteps that could be heard behind the large door. I hear a chain move, a lock click, and the door swings open.

"Hi, I'm—" I started, but she grabbed me and pulled me into the apartment. Shoving me into a cabinet.

"Where the hell is Andrew?!" She hissed, hands dangerously closing around my throat.

I struggled to breathe, this woman is crazy. I'm going to die here.

"Stop! Get off of her now!" James said, rushing in to pry Zoey off of me.

He grabbed her arms and pulled them back, Zoey tried to keep her grip and ended up scratching me as James pulled her away. Once she was no longer suffocating me, she calmed down.

James stood between me and her, one arm in front of me, and the other in a fist.

"Don't you dare touch her again!" He barked.

Then Zoey did something we both didn't expect. Falling to the floor like a rag doll, she bursts into tears.

James turns his head to me, and we exchange a confused glance.

She just went from murderous, horrid psychopath to 10 year old girl who didn't get the dress she wanted in like 3 seconds.

"I'm sorry!" She wailed, taking in heaving breaths between words.

I raised an eyebrow.

"I just, I miss him!"

James turned around completely and whispered to me, "I don't know what to do, I don't know emotions!"