Conflicted (Secrets and Lies) Read Online Free PDF Page A

I needed to think and I knew where to go. I drove off campus going back to the interstate to head south.

 
    CHAPTER THREE
    I gazed in awe over the horizon finding the balance I needed. The beautiful lake off in the distance always brought me a sense of peace that I could never find anywhere else. It was one of the few places a person can view everything between downtown and the suburbs. The various neighborhoods seen from a distance all blended not setting any one of them apart. The ugliness that plagued so many of them was invisible up here.
    I admired the beauty mulling over everything from the meeting. On the one hand, it was the opportunity of a lifetime. On the other, it was taking me back to a world that I ran from before finishing high school. You didn't mess around on the south side.
    Is it worth it?
    I knew in my heart that being a journalist was all I ever wanted for myself. Then last year happened and it felt like my dreams were light years away. This was an opportunity to get back into that world. As great as it all sounded, I couldn't ignore that it was a little dirty to spy from the inside for my own benefit in the end. There was something about Harrison that didn't sit right with me. I had little reservations regarding the business end of what he was proposing but he seemed to be the furthest thing from trustworthy. My gut had never let me down in the past. It was screaming with doubts about entertaining this offer.
    My mind drifted to the idea of double-crossing F. F. Sweeney & Company. F and F stood for Fitzgerald and Fitzpatrick. Those families had been here for generations. The same went for the Sweeney's. They were hardcore Irish families. The gut wrenching feeling in the pit of my stomach forced me to consider the danger if anyone found out what I was doing there. As if to reinforce my thoughts, gunshots sounded off. It wasn't anything that I hadn't heard before but it was rather eerie with my current thoughts. It was a decent reminder of the level of danger that went into this offer. More shots fired making me feel even more mixed up.
    I circled back to my uncanny ability to present myself well and assimilate into pretty much any situation with ease without revealing my true colors. My guard was usually up making it easy for me to investigate and report when I did work on articles for the paper. I approached most things from a distance and prevented myself from forming any personal attachments. My morals would be in question by pursuing this offer. I sighed not feeling any closer to a decision. As I sat in my stupor, I heard footsteps crunching against gravel on the trail. I glanced over my shoulder to confirm the person behind those steps.
    Trey is the last person that I want to deal with right now. He knows me too well.
    He was my oldest friend in the house. When Bri started crushing on him, I was open to it and not surprised in the least. I saw why she liked him. Like Jackson, Trey was eye-catching. He kept his blondish brown hair trimmed depending on his mood or time of year. I'd known him since we were four so I'd seen it buzzed down to nothing to shaggier and spiky. He typically kept a dusting of scruff on his face personifying the rugged tough guy look that his personality backed. The part that sucked you in the most was his mystical gray eyes. He was in pristine shape. Trey appropriately wore clothes that displayed the precise lines throughout his body.
    He reached me keeping a short distance between us. I noted the concern is his eyes.
    "What do you want Trey?" I asked crossly.
    "I know your meeting with your advisor was today. When you didn't come home, I figured something was up. When you need to take a break from everything, you come here. You always have - even when we were kids. You may not like it but I still know you Mia," Trey replied, shoving his hands into his faded jeans.
    I exhaled feeling perturbed that every word that he said was right. My strange quirks didn't go unnoticed by