Book 2 -7-

[The Prisoner II]

SEBASTIAN

“If you don’t know why you’re here, how can you say you didn’t do it? What didn’t you do?” I scanned her face, watching for any telltale signs of lying. Arianne was an open book; she hid nothing. My heart felt like it would pound out of my chest as our eyes locked, hers asking me to believe her.

“I know, which is why I’m telling you I’m innocent of whatever they’re saying I did. Sebastian, you know who I am. Am I the kind of person to commit a crime, whatever it may be?” She stretched her arms across the table, keeping her gaze fixed on me.

Atticus tried to take control, wanting to jump across the table, wrap my hands around her scrawny neck and squeeze until she spit out the truth, but I stopped him. Her blood wasn’t clean enough to have on my hands. We wouldn’t be any better than her if we did.

“Where were you last night before midnight?” I asked her, watching to see her reaction, though I didn’t have to wait long, which was disappointing.

“In my room—alo