It was leverage, just like the photos the cops had of me. Except this was leverage against a guy who wanted me hurt.
I wouldn’t do anything as obvious as blackmail with my leverage, though. For one thing I didn’t think it would work. There’d be nothing stopping him from telling Colin what I was doing, and that I’d snooped to get information. Even if Colin were surprised to find out about Tony Yates, I doubted he would trust me much after that.
No, I had to bring the cops down on Philip. I told myself it was about distracting him, about destroying the business that held Colin captive, but it felt more like payback for what Philip had done with Tony Yates.
The cops and Philip—the proverbial rock and hard place. What I needed was for them to go at each other. I wasn’t sure which side would crack first, maybe they both would, but I needed them to hammer each other, not me. I just had to make sure to step out of the way; otherwise, I’d get smashed right in the middle.
FIERCE
Prologue
Colin slammed the bathroom door shut, and I winced. He was still mad about last night. Maybe because I’d accused him of paying someone to rape me.
Okay, probably that.
And maybe he was also pissed because I’d obviously spoken with Rick, since I knew about the debt and the closing of the bakery. Well, I hadn’t broken the agreement not to communicate with him—Rick had. I’d never even made such an agreement. Besides, Colin was the one who’d fucked up, manipulating Rick and me. Being controlling. Being a hard ass.
Shouldn’t he forfeit his right to be pissed off?
Rick carried some fault as well, risking the bakery by racking up all those debts. Still, it wouldn’t do to forgive Colin so easily. He’d taken away my choice. My consent, really. With a baby and no job, I could hardly have refused his offer to move in. I would have consented anyway—I did actually, not yet knowing the truth—but that wasn’t the point. Driving me to desperation was just as bad as holding my wrists above my head. Almost.
Colin stomped out of the bathroom. The man could really throw a tantrum—quietly, though, like he did everything else. I got up to brush my teeth and get ready.
Once downstairs, Bailey fussed for breakfast. I gave her sliced bananas while I made pancakes. She was still making up for last night’s diet and didn’t mind letting me know it.
According to the calendar the next drop wasn’t until tomorrow. I had no doubt that I’d see the cop again before then, probably today. I didn’t want Bailey to be here for that.
Colin joined Bailey at the table and plowed through his pancakes in brittle silence.
I finally cracked. “What are you doing tomorrow night?”
He didn’t look up. “No plans.”
So he wasn’t going to the drop. Good. I’d pay special attention tomorrow to make sure he stayed home, even if I had to deep throat him for hours.
“Let’s have movie night,” I offered.
He shrugged his shoulders just a smidge as he took a bite. Stubborn man.
The difference between his amiable silences and his angry one was like the difference between a chilly day and a hailstorm. I didn’t enjoy the animosity between us, but I wasn’t ready to call a truce. The only thing I’d done wrong, the snooping, he didn’t even know about. Okay, so that wasn’t the best defense, but I still felt indignant.
For the first time in weeks he left right after breakfast.
Chapter One
I called Shelly.
“Hey, girl,” she said.
“Can you take Bailey out today?” I needed to make a stand, for all of us, but I could hardly do it while Bailey was here.
“You aren’t going to do anything stupid, are you?” she asked.
“Of course,” I said lightly. “You know me.”
She sighed. “I haven’t seen her in a while anyway.”
“I’ll owe you forever.”
“You already do.” She hung up.
After Shelly picked Bailey up, I settled in to wait. I had kept the card that first cop had given me, tucked between my clothes and next to the money from Andrew. My little stash of secrets. I could call the number, but on the small chance they had forgotten about me, I had no desire to remind them.
From beneath the coffee table I took out the yards of upholstery fabric and basic sewing kit I’d purchased earlier. The place was in desperate need of curtains, but one glance at the prices in the local home decor store had me bolting for the door. It cost more than Bailey’s car seat to cover half of a bay window. He had told me to spend anything, buy anything, but years of thriftiness didn’t just dissolve because my boyfriend was a successful small business owner and the brother of a wealthy crime lord.