Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 64320 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 214(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64320 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 214(@300wpm)
“It’s because of her,” Kat speaks lowly, but her breathing picks up as anger gets the best of her.
“It’s not hard to focus on revenge,” Mason says as if reading my mind. “It’s not your fault for wanting this over so you could protect your wife.”
The clink of ceramic on glass gets my attention as Kat sets down her mug and makes her way back to me.
“So, what do we do now?” Kat asks then leans her back against my front.
Mason smirks at her and looks between the two of us. “See, this I love,” he says, tapping the folder in his hands.
“We came up with a plan. The cops have to find out. James and Samantha need to be focused on each other and forget about me.
“So … what’s the plan? Leak it to them somehow?” Kat questions.
Mason steps in and says, “James is going to post about how Samantha’s fucking a drug dealer. He’s going to write all about how he found coke and a grab bag of pills in her office and that’s why they’ve split.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because my guy has access to his email account. And he drugged him about two hours ago. James is going to wake up with a hangover and unleash hell when he realizes he emailed his contact at the News Journal, who’s eager to post anything at all about this case.
“The cops are itching for something and they know they have nothing. This city talks, and Derek at the News Journal will foam at the mouth to have the inside scoop before anyone else,” Mason answers Kat.
I hope it’s enough to satisfy her. She can’t know the last piece. Just one more secret. One final release.
“James will be relieved more than anything else,” I add, trying to ease her worry. “He’s a time bomb of paranoia waiting to go off.” Mason backs up, leaning against the back of a sitting chair as he adds, “And Samantha will be behind bars by morning.”
“She can’t deny the pictures of the evidence,” Kat murmurs, grasping the plan, but quickly licks her lower lip and shakes her head, seemingly finding a gap in the details. “She’ll make bail.”
“With the cops James has in his back pocket?” Mason looks at her with disbelief. “No way. She’s done.” He’s good at convincing her this will work, even though I’m still not convinced. If anything, I know nothing is bulletproof.
A moment passes and I let my hand slip to the small of her back. It takes everything in me to assure her, “It’s done. This will work and it’s done.” There’s a nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach, knowing either one of them could mention my name. I could go down too. But it’s a risk I have to take for all this to be over. I can’t outrun it and I’m willing to take a deal, I’m willing to do anything to put an end to it all.
“Good,” Kat says with finality.
“Do you need me to do anything?” I ask Mason as Kat cradles her body against mine.
“I can take it from here, but I’d stay inside and keep a low profile until there’s word about the arrest.”
I give him a tight smile then lean down to kiss Kat’s hair, savoring every moment. I’m doing it for her. With my throat tight and everything inside me ringing, I whisper, “Let’s go home, baby.”
One week later
“Is he in there?” I ask Mason as we sit in the car.
Andrew Jones, also known as Mathew Staller, is about to meet his maker. The man who sold Samantha the drugs, helped her plan a murder, and got off with nothing has to pay for what he’s done.
He didn’t get a single charge that stuck to him. Not a damn thing. Samantha protected him and pled guilty when it came down on her. So did James, accepting the weaker charges that were merely slaps on the wrists. I slipped under the radar, although I’m certain Mason had something to do with that.
Andrew got off completely. Until now.
“Yeah, this is his address,” Mason answers as he unbuckles his seat belt. The click is loud in the still night air.
I watch the light at the end of the street turn green, but there’s not a single car down the road where Andrew’s house is. Not a person in sight, in fact.
It’s only him and us.
I guess he liked being out here for his privacy, away from the city in a Podunk area … maybe it’s where he cooks up the drugs. Or maybe he’s lying low since it all went down only days ago.
I don’t know, and I don’t give a fuck. All I want is for every person responsible to pay the price.
As I step out of the car, the chill of the evening creeping into my bones, I tell Mason, “You better never tell Kat.”