Page 71 of The Other Side of Green

“No, he was busking on the street.”

“Oh no.” Mom clasped her hand to her chest. “Poor Evan. Was he homeless?”

“No! He just liked playing, liked earning a bit of money from it.”

“Oh,” she started to laugh. “I’ll dish you up some food. Why don’t you wash up?”

“Sure? Can I use my laptop on your internet? I need to look into something.”

“Of course, this is your home, Jack.”

“Actually, I’ll go and have a quick shower, then I’ll get on with it.”

“Perfect.” She stood on tiptoes to kiss my cheek.

I turned for the bathroom, eager to wash the day away.

Feeling a hundred times more focused than I had earlier, I rubbed a towel over my hair as I left the bathroom. Stopping in the guest room, I started to tick things off my to-do list.

First, Greene. I left him a voicemail telling him I still needed a few more days personal time, but then I’d be back.

Then I called Luca, it unsurprisingly going to voicemail. I kept it short and to the point. “We need to talk. Without fists.”

Grabbing my laptop out of my bag, I walked back in to search for Mom and what would hopefully be one of her amazing meals. God, how I’d missed them.

Evan had sent me some links for genetic testing. My focus centered on how quickly I could get one done and what it would involve.

If I could give Lyra hard facts tomorrow, I could keep us connected somehow.

“That shower is amazing.” I folded the towel as I walked into the open plan kitchen. “It should be made compulsory to shower ten times a day in this house.” My smile died as I caught sight of Mom and Phillipe in the kitchen. In Mom’s hands was the gray and rust colored hoodie, just hanging there, limp and useless.

“Jack? What is this?” Mom’s eyes were wide and shining with pools of water.

“What are you doing?” I strode forward, hand stretched to snatch it back out of her grasp, but Phillipe stepped in front of me.

“Jack, where the hell did you get this? Why do you have a jumper covered in blood?”

“I—” I faltered. What could I say? My possible girlfriend, now perhaps sister, took it from her brother who committed the crime and gave it to me…

Yeah, right.

“I…” Nothing.

“Jack.” Mom weaved around Phillipe. “I know what this is. I’ve seen it before.”

With my heart thrumming I blew air through my lips. “I can’t say.”

“Jack, son, you were only at the station a few days ago giving a statement. How did you get this?” Phillipe questioned.

“Don’t ‘son’ me,” I snapped back.

“Jack, don’t be like that. You know how it was meant,” Mom said.

“So if we were to test this blood it wouldn’t be your dad’s?”

I shifted from foot to foot.

“Jack! Please!” Mom’s voice broke and it landed heavy on my chest. “I know it wasn’t you that night, I could tell. I’ve always known that.”