Page 81 of The Hero
“Name one time you were bitchy to someone else,” Bob challenged.
Marlowe frowned in concentration, then looked at him and said, “I refused to let one of the women in prison take my spot on the floor next to the window.”
Bob shook his head. “Doesn’t count. Anything you did while incarcerated was fully justified. Try again.”
Marlowe huffed out an adorable breath. “Fine. The last time I drove on the interstate around DC, before I went to Thailand, there was construction and the right lane was closing. But I didn’t get in the left lane right away. I drove all the way to the front of the long line of cars and forced my way in.”
Bob burst out laughing.
“What? That’s bitchy!” Marlowe insisted. “I should’ve gotten into the left lane along with everyone else, instead of passing them all and sneaking in.”
“Yup, you’re a coldhearted bitch, all right,” Bob told her.
Marlowe sighed, then rested her head against his chest again. “Fine. It’s not in my nature to be mean. I don’t like it. Even if Ian deserved everything I said, I still feel ... weird about it.”
“You were amazing. And while I initially agreed with the chief’s plan for how he thought that call should go, you actually played it much better. In hindsight, West would’ve been suspicious if you had a bunch of small talk, then suddenly did a one-eighty and tried to blackmail him.”
“I don’t know what happened,” Marlowe said. “I was planning on asking how he was, how long he’d been back in the States, how his family was doing ... but the second I heard his voice, I kind of saw red and just blurted out what I was thinking.”
“Again, you did good.”
“Do you think he’ll actually show up?”
“Yes.”
“You can’t know that,” she protested.
“Marlowe, you threatened to turn him in. You gave him enough detail about the sale of those coins and how you knew he was on the dark web ... he’s gonna show. He’s not going to risk being arrested before he can make that sale,” Bob said firmly.
“I don’t want to see him again,” Marlowe whispered.
Bob tensed, and he opened his mouth to tell her that she didn’t have to, that they’d figure something out, but she continued before he could speak.
“But I have to. I need to look into his eyes and see if he has even a speck of remorse for what he did to me. And I know that today’s call might not be enough to put him in jail. He didn’t actually admit to anything. It’s an okay start, but he’ll bereallyscrewed if he shows up with those coins.”
She was right ... damn it. “We’ll get Chappy’s Jeep completely wired up, in a way that West won’t be able to tell. And you won’t get out. You can talk to him through your car windows. He won’t get near you. And Tex is really amazing at tracking devices. We’ll get you some earrings or a necklace that will record both video and audio, just in case. We’re gonna get him, Punky. Thanks to you.”
“I should feel guilty about what’s going to happen to him. But I don’t. Does that make me a bad person?”
“No. It makes you human,” Bob reassured her.
“I’m scared,” Marlowe said, barely audibly.
Bob’s arms tightened around her. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
She nodded, which made Bob feel better, but she didn’t relax in his arms.
“I just ... I want this over. I want to be able to live my life. I want to explore Newton, hang out with Carlise, June, and April. I want to eat more Granny’s Burgers. I want to have my brother and his family come up and visit.”
“And you’ll get to do all of that,” Bob said, fairly alarmed now. “Why would you think you wouldn’t?”
“I don’t know.”
But he knew she was lying. She clearly had a bad feeling about this, and he couldn’t blame her. Bob was frustrated and stressed out himself, and even though he had faith in his ability to protect her, and the abilities of his friends, he still worried that something might happen that none of them could prevent.
“You can always stop this,” he told her. “At any point, you can call it off.”
“And let him get away with what he’s done?” Marlowe said. “No. I want to do this. I want to make him pay for stealing those coins. We can’t allow him to sell them. They should be returned to Thailand. And I don’t want to be watching my back for the rest of my life, wonderingif I’m gonna be thrown back in jail.” She shifted in Bob’s arms until she was straddling him. “Can I go with you on your next tree call?”
