Alpha's Irresistible Neighbor
By: J.P. ComeauBecause every decision he had made within the confines of his temporary mansion gave me a deeper look into the madness of his mind.
Ring-a-ding-ding!
I ripped my cell phone out of my pocket and unlocked my screen. I had my news notifications set to go off if anything regarding Gunther dropped as breaking news. Or, news at all, for that matter. But, with his trial plastered on television for the world to behold, everything was breaking news.
However, reading that headline brought me a sense of justice that only happened when our system actually worked.
Breaking News: Gunther Scofield Found Guilty On All Counts; Sentenced To Life In Prison.
I scrambled to get the live feed open as I walked over and sat in Gunther’s leather office chair. I leaned back, listening to the springs squeak and groan with my weight as I propped my feet up onto his desk. Life without parole, that was exactly what that man deserved. And for once, justice had been delivered swiftly and accurately, as far as I was concerned.
However, I didn’t like how calm and collected Gunther looked with those cameras stuck in his face.
“Mr. Scofield, how do you feel about your verdict?”
“Mr. Scofield, is there anything you want to say to your daughter?”
“Mr. Scofield, do you think you’ll appeal to try and get parole?”
“You’re asking the wrong questions,” I murmured.
Then, one of the news anchors got a question right.
“Mr. Scofield, why go through all of this just to get caught?”
That’s when Gunther put tension on the men hauling him toward the car at the bottom of the steps of the courthouse. Those massive cement steps were filled with dumbass reporters asking dumbass questions to try and fill a three-minute spot during their amateur hour, trying to make a name for themselves. But, that particular news anchor?
He was on to something.
“Why make yourself vulnerable by meeting with your daughter when you knew there was a chance you’d get caught?”
And that’s when Gunther smiled. “Sometimes, things are simply bigger than us. But, just because they’re bigger doesn’t mean they’re right.”
The police officer hauling him out yanked on him, stumbling him down a few steps. People kept snapping pictures and cameras continued rolling, but Gunther went as peacefully as possible when the police officer ducked him into the back of the cruiser. I turned his answer around in my head, trying to figure out why the hell it bugged me so much.
Then, it clicked.
“He just confirmed it,” I murmured.
Holy shit, Gunther had just confirmed my theory.
He had done all of this on principle and used his daughter’s injustice as a smokescreen.
But… why?
That’s the question I intended to figure out.
4
Dannika
“I can’t watch this any longer!”
As I stood beside my cousin watching the judge bring down a guilty verdict upon that disgusting human being’s head, the question he tossed out for the world to hear rattled Penny. I couldn’t blame her, either, with that deadpan stare. Those downturned lips.
Gunther Scofield was a terrifying man.
And he had just outwardly taunted my cousin for the entire world to hear.
“Penny?” Mikael asked. “Penny, wait up!”
“I need some space, please,” she said through her tears.
My heart broke as I watched my cousin’s pregnant fiancée rush out of the room with tears in her eyes. Mikael spun himself around in circles, not knowing whether to finish the news segment or rush after the love of his life. The helplessness in his gaze turned my gut. I’d never seen him so… at a loss.
“Go after her,” I said.
He raked his fingers through his hair. “What if she really needs space?”
I placed my hand on his forearm. “What is your gut telling you?”
“That I want to hold her.”
“I’m not asking what you want. I’m asking what your gut is telling you.”
He heaved a heavy sigh. “It’s telling me to get her some hot tea and sit with her for a while.”
I nodded. “Then, go. I can clean up the table before I head out. I need to check into my AirBnB anyway.”
He pulled away from me. “I’m so sorry. I’ll call you the second I can.”
