Deceptive Truth: Cowboy Justice Association (Serials and Stalkers Book 4) by Olivia Jaymes (reading women .txt) 📕

Now, if he really has changed, that's awesome. I'm happy for him, but I don't need him in my life. I'm far more content without Ben Owens."

Randy stuck out his chin. "What about me? What about the rest of your family? Have you walked away from us too? Is that why you took this case? Is that why you've taken that woman's side?"

"I didn't take her side," Knox shot back, his frustration building. "I'm looking into this case because they hired my firm. I'm keeping an open mind. If it points in his direction, that's where I'll go. If it doesn't, then it doesn't. Listen, this isn't a game. Someone might be dead here and I'm trying to get to the truth."

"You're not being loyal."

"I'd rather have the truth than be loyal to a lie."

Pushing his empty plate away, Randy wiped his hands on a paper napkin. His lips were pressed together in a thin line and his color was high. "I don't think we're going to agree on this. Maybe I should go."

"No, I should go. I have a lot of work to do."

"Proving Cal is guilty? Or innocent?"

Leaning down, Knox placed his hand on the table so they were face to face.

"You know what I love about law enforcement? Catching the bad guys?"

Randy shrugged. "I don't know. What?"

"The truth doesn't care how we feel. It doesn't care about my feelings or your feelings or what we want or hope for. The truth just is. It's neutral. It's real. It's not based on emotions, but on facts. That's what I love about my job." Straightening, he dug into his pocket and dropped a twenty on the table. "It was nice to see you, little brother."

With that, Knox turned and left the coffee shop. He'd known that the conversation wouldn't go well but he'd hoped for better. Ultimately, it didn't matter. Randy - and any of the rest of his family - wasn't going to stop him. If anything, he was more determined than ever.

He had a job to do. Find Lori. Discover the truth.

It was the only thing that mattered.

Tom was already in the kitchen eating eggs and toast when Jenna went downstairs the next morning, craving a cup of coffee. She wasn't in the best of moods. Knox had left to go see one of his brothers. He'd slipped a note under her bedroom door sometime early this morning. She'd wanted to go with him, of course, but he'd said in his note that he needed to speak to his family on his own.

She wasn't angry. Not really. She was frustrated, though, that he seemed to think that she was going to be nasty or accusatory with his siblings. He hadn't said so out loud or even in the note but she could see that he didn't quite trust her.

"The coffee's made," Tom said. He was sitting at the table in the breakfast nook, the newspaper spread out in front of him. "You can have the comic section."

Jenna had never been much of a morning paper person but she did like to read the funny pages. Garfield was her favorite.

"Thanks, I'm going to take you up on that." She poured herself some coffee and added cream and sugar before joining him at the table. "I'm surprised to see you still here. I know you like to be in the office early."

"I have a meeting on this side of town," he explained. "It didn't make sense to go all the way to the office and then drive all the back. I'll go into the office afterward."

He closed the paper and turned all of his attention on Jenna. "Actually, I was hoping you'd be up early. I wanted to talk to you while Michelle is still asleep."

Wrapping her hands around the warm mug, she braced herself for the coming conversation. Tom wasn't much of a talker. He was a quiet man who only spoke when he had something important to say.

"What did you want to talk about? Is...everything okay?"

His mouth turned down and he took an audible breath. "We need to talk, Jen. Really talk. I know that you have your friend here now to help find out what happened to Lori. This is what we've been waiting and hoping for. For someone to finally take us seriously and look into this. But..."

"But?"

He'd been looking down at his empty cup but now he looked up at her. His eyes were shiny with tears. "We have to be realistic. The chances of finding Lori...alive..."

He broke off, clearing his throat a few times. A large lump had taken up residence in Jenna's throat as well. Her stomach tightened painfully and she was glad she hadn't tried to eat anything yet.

"I know," she replied quietly. "I know the odds are against us."

"I know we don't talk about it," he said, his voice shaking. "We pretend that we just need someone to find her and that everything will all be okay again but Jen, I just don't think that's going to happen. I haven't said anything to Michelle. It would break her. She needs to believe, but I know that you're stronger. Tougher. More realistic. You have to know that even if your friend finds Lori. She's..."

"Probably dead," Jenna finished for him. "I know. But I have hope. I have to have that or I think I'd go insane."

"I have hope too. I do. But with each passing day it's getting a little harder. You know? I just didn't