“But this does.” I lower the barrel and toss the gun to Alvarez. Both men are shocked, Alkaline’s smile turning into a scowl. “The good guys win, even when they lose.”
“Come on,” Alvarez says as he yanks the livid Alkaline away. I wait until he’s out of sight before I turn back to the night sky and waterfall in the distance, hugging myself and shaking until Harry wraps me into his warm arms. I burst into tears.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
JUSTIFIED
Fifty thousand people from all walks of life have come together in Stan Lee Park to honor my best friend, the largest gathering in the city’s history. I insisted it be called a celebration of life instead of a memorial, just the way Justin would have wanted it. There’s even a Ferris wheel, games, and clowns around with all proceeds going to the hospital. Justin and Rebecca would approve.
I do wish he could have been interred in the Pendergast crypt with his parents and grandparents, or had a proper funeral, but this is better. His body never washed up. They dragged the river for days, but not even a shoe surfaced. For those days I clung to the hope he made it, that he could survive, but I know that’s not the case. He would have made contact by now. Not even Justice could survive a thirty story fall into water without being knocked out and subsequently drowning. He was officially declared dead a week later.
The media went into an orgasmic frenzy over the whole thing. The public couldn’t get enough of the whole story. Galilee’s captain of industry and upholder of justice, protector of the weak, all melded into one handsome package gives his life for his best friend. The news stations rehashed both his lives until he was practically canonized for sainthood. I don’t disagree.
I lean against a tree near the stage, a small smile on my face as a twenty-something girl tells the story of the time Justice saved her from being raped. The man was convicted and tried, and she became a rape crisis counselor, to help others like her. This type of story, coupled with anecdotes about the men behind the mask, have been going on for almost two hours. I especially loved Bitsy’s retelling of their dinner in New Urbana when she looked across the table and just knew he was Justice. So never happened. The girl finishes to applause and steps off the stage, replaced by an elderly gentleman who recounts the time Justice saved him from a mugging twenty years ago.
After a dozen police and bystanders saw Justin recover in a few minutes from two shots to the head, the Pendergast secret was out of the bag. I didn’t deny it. They deserve to be recognized for all they’ve done for this city. Good deeds should be acknowledged, and fifty thousand people here agree with me.
Harry worms his way through the crowd with my water. “Sorry. There was a line.” He gives me a kiss before handing me my drink. “Hey, you’ll never guess who is here. Captain Moonlight. I used to have his poster over my bed when I was a kid.” He slides his hand around my waist and I rest my head on his shoulder. “I got his autograph.” I smile at him. Don’t know if I love him yet, but I sure as hell need him.
The old man finishes and we all applaud. Shannon, an absolute god-send these last two weeks, rushes over. “The press is getting restless. You should go on next.”
“Okay,” I say. She nods and runs off to put out more fires.
Harry looks at me full of concern. “You know you don’t have to do this. If you don’t want to or aren’t ready—”
I press my finger to his well meaning lips. “Of course I do. Think a little thing like fifty thousand people is going to scare me? I think not.” But it does. It so does.
“What if they ask you about Alkaline? Or Grace?”
“I tell the truth.”
Ryder and Grace were both taken into custody and charged, but only Grace pleaded not guilty. I have a trial to look forward to in the coming months, but right now she’s in solitary under close scrutiny. As for Alkaline, even I don’t know where they took him. It’s rumored he’s in the underground bowel of the prison, completely cut off from humanity and doped to the gills where he will remain until the end of his days. They won’t make the same mistake twice. I just pray they don’t make any new ones.
There are times when the weight of regret crushes me. When I walked into Justin’s bedroom and smelled his scent. When I had to tell Lucy that her nephew was dead. When I wake in a cold sweat from a nightmare as I just watch him fall over and over again is almost unbearable. Pretty much every second of the day because Alkaline’s out there breathing when my best friend isn’t. But it’s not about what’s fair, it’s about what’s right. I get that now. It’s not about dying for Justice, it’s about maintaining justice. Much harder.