“Can I have Detective Fisk, please?” he said into the phone. “Thank you.” He was put on hold, and he shook his head at me. “You’ve been reading one too many crime novels, Charlotte.”
“That’s bullshit. They want to nail you for this, Noah. They’ve been quiet so far because they’re waiting for the media to get interested, and then they’re going to ride this case for all it’s worth. Me sending that email was just the first step of what was inevitably going to happen. The DA’s office wants to bury you, and they’re not going to listen to anything that makes it look like they’ve got the wrong person. And you know it.”
“Charlotte, I will not play games with your life. Now get your things.”
“Get my things?”
“Yes. We’re going back to my apartment. You agreed to do as I say, and this is what I’m saying.”
“And you agreed to try things my way.”
“Yes, well, the situation has changed.”
Red hot fury coursed through me. How dare he just decide to change our agreement. He’d said we could try this my way, and at the first sign of a speed bump, he was taking it back.
A weariness washed over me.
Let him, a voice in my head whispered, tempting and sweet. Let him take over, let him call the police. Let him take you back to his apartment, let him take his frustration out on you with his hand, his belt, his cock. The thoughts pulled on my mind. Come on, they beckoned. Just do it. Let him take over.
But I couldn’t give in.
Because Noah was wrong.
His desire to protect me was clouding his judgment. If he called the police, it was going to backfire. Sure, maybe they’d make some half-ass attempt to trace the call from Anonymous, but that could take weeks. And that was assuming they even believed Noah in the first place.
And then what? Even if the police figured out who’d made that call, it didn’t mean they were going to start an investigation. Especially now that my email had been printed in the City Herald. The cops would blow it off as a prank call from someone who’d been following the case and decided to try to scare me.
No.
The police and the DA had already decided who killed Katie. This trial was going to be high profile, and they wanted to win.
Suddenly, I was scared. It had been a mistake, sending that email to Ryan Ramos. I’d been foolish, and it had cost me. But it was done. There was nothing I could do about it now. And if Noah did this, if he contacted the police in a misguided effort to protect me, it would make things worse.
We had a chance to keep him out of jail, no matter how slim and dangerous that chance might be.
We needed to take it.
“I’ll lie,” I said.
“What?”
“I’ll lie. I’ll refuse to turn over my phone, I’ll say you’re making it all up.”
His eyes widened in outrage. “Charlotte. This is not up for discussion.”
“I’m not trying to discuss it,” I said, shrugging my shoulders. “Go ahead. Do what you want. They’re going to think you’re making it up. They might even charge you with obstruction of justice or interfering with an investigation.” It was a stupid threat. They wouldn’t charge him with obstruction or interference. But they would think he was crazy. They would use whatever he said against him. The last thing he should be doing right now was talking to the police, and he knew it.
He hung up the phone.
He looked at me, our eyes meeting across the living room.
It was a stalemate.
He wanted to protect me.
And I wanted to be protected by him.
But I also refused to lose him.
This might be his one chance at salvation, and I would do anything to bring it to fruition.
“Noah…” I started, but he gave me a slight shake of his head, warning me not to speak. So I stayed quiet while he mulled the situation over in his head.
He crossed the room to me, until our chests were almost touching. He put his hands on my shoulders and slid his hands down my arms before intertwining his fingers with mine. “I cannot let you do this.”
“You’re not letting me do anything.”
“I explained the rules, Charlotte. I will have complete control of your body and your well-being. You are not to make a move without my permission.” His tone was measured, even, but he was a man that had been pushed to the brink, and I could feel his need for control still simmering below the surface. He needed my surrender, and if he didn’t get it… well, then there would be consequences. I was starting to realize that his was how he dealt with anything – fear, sadness, lust, anxiety – that left him unsettled.
“You said we could try it my way,” I said gently. “You said we could do this.” I squeezed his hands in mine and he closed his eyes. I saw the pain pass over his face, the agony that tortured him when he thought of me being in danger.