Sweet as Pie Crimes Read Online Free

Marcus said solemnly, pressing his lips together and staring at the ground as though he felt very foolish.   “And watch your language,” he added sarcastically.
    “Look, you either tell me what this is all about or…” I couldn’t finish the ultimatum.  I wanted to say that either he told me his story or I would leave him there outside the closed hospital.  But I had nowhere to go.  My situation was even more dire than it had been on the highway.  Twilight had morphed into some ungodly hour, and it would be suicidal to roam through the barren town alone.
    “Or what?” Marcus probed.
    “Or I’ll never bake you another deep dish apple pie again,” I said spontaneously, my odd sense of humor again fueled by my discomfort and frayed nerves.
    “Well then I better start talking,” Marcus said with a grin. “Although you told me on the bus that you wouldn’t believe anything I say now, so I’m probably wasting my breath.” His mouth straightened into a grim line as he began talking.  “I’m risking a lot by telling you this, Becca.  First, I’m risking your opinion of me…although I guess my credibility has already been shot to hell in your eyes…”
    “Not necessarily,” I fibbed.  “Go on.”
    “And I’m also risking my own life and safety…and freedom,” he finished as though I hadn’t spoken at all.
    “I’m listening, Marcus,” I said softly as cold anticipation made goose bumps pop up on my arms.
    “I don’t owe those two goons who were shooting at us anything.  I lied,” Marcus confessed as I nodded.
    “I know.”
    “Yeah, I’m not the best liar.  Anyway, those guys are undercover cops.  They’ve been chasing me all over Washington, but I’m too smart for them.  I evaded them for months.  But they finally caught up to me at your pie shoppe.”
    “Why are you being chased by two cops?” I asked suspiciously, taking a step back as prickly hairs joined the goose bumps on my arms.
    “I’m not a criminal.  Let me reiterate that.  I am not a criminal,” Marcus declared, looking directly into my eyes.
    “Then why are they chasing you?” I asked as calmly as I could.  Terrifying scenarios were running through my head, and I couldn’t wait another minute for the man to tell me th e truth.  Nothing he could say could be worse than my own violent imaginings.
    “I’m not a criminal,” Marcus repeated for the millionth time.  “But I am an accused criminal.”
    “What do you mean?” I asked cautiously.
    “I was in prison in California for the past three years, Becca.  Convicted of a crime I had nothing to do with.  Wrongly convicted.  Shoved into a cage like an animal without a retrial or other chance to prove my innocence.  They stole three years of my life in prison, and I wasn’t going to let them steal another damn minute.  That’s why I had to take you hostage.  That’s the only reason why, Becca.” The intensity in Marcus’s eyes was alarming, and I recoiled further away from him.
    “What crime were you convicted of?” I asked with a mouth dry as sandpaper.
    Evading my question, Marcus took a step closer.  “You have no idea how awful the last three years have been for me.  I spent my thirtieth birthday behind bars!  I lost my most of my friends and family because they believed the damn verdict!” His voice was raw with emotion.
    “What crime were you convicted of?” I echoed my words of a few moments ago, assuming a defensive stance and crossing my arms over my chest protectively.  Mentally, I braced myself for the petrifying word I sensed he would utter.
    In a droning whisper, Marcus confessed, “Murder.”
     
     

Chapter 4
    Consciously, I backed further and further away from Marcus as the bottoms of my feet tingled with fear.  As the chilling word “murder” echoed in my thoughts, I schemed a way to escape my hellish situation and somehow arrive safely back in civilization.  But my mind was a blank slate with just one word,