Page 9 of The Replay
My chest rises and falls at a rapid rate because no, I’m not done. But shit, what are my options here?
The SUV’s engine hums around me, a mechanical beast ready to swallow me whole. I ignore Jaymin’s question and retrieve my phone from the floor mat where I must have dropped it. I press my finger on the power button. “Come on. Come on.” The screen illuminates. Yes!
I wait for the home screen to load, my knee bouncing with impatience when Jaymin plucks the device from my fingertips. I lunge for it but not before the driver shoves an arm between the seats, effectively knocking me back.
“Give that back!”
Jaymin ignores me. Tucking my phone into the purse beside her feet, she glares down her nose at me. I consider diving for it. But then what?
“My patience is wearing thin, Ms. Russo. I recommend you pull yourself together so we can get this conversation over with.”
I force myself to breathe, each inhalation shallow and quick.
Jaymin’s eyes are narrowed. “You’re making this harder than it needs to be, Cecilia. Austin is out on bail. Get yourself together so we can discuss what needs to happen next.”
Her words hit me like a punch to the gut, knocking the air out of my lungs. “What?” Disbelief and horror mingle into onesickening cocktail. “He made bail?” How the hell did he make bail?
The officer who took my statement said he wouldn’t. That given the severity of his crime and the clear motive and evidence, he wouldn’t be afforded the opportunity before trial.
Was the officer mistaken? Or did he lie?
Jaymin’s gaze is steady, her lips pressing into a thin line. “Yes. He made bail,” she repeats, each word a dagger of cold reality. “I need you to listen to me very carefully.”
I swallow hard, my pulse racing. But the shock of her revelation has cut through my panic like a knife.
“Austin was released this afternoon. But, he didn’t come home. My husband is in the process of locating him now, which is why?—”
“You think he’ll come after me again?”
Her jaw tightens. “My son is angry. But he isn’t an idiot.” Not sure I agree with that statement. Austin did try to drown me on campus with cameras and witnesses after all. “His anger may have clouded his judgment before, but I do not believe him so unreasonable as to allow his anger to override him again. No. This—” she indicates the space between us, ”—is merely a precaution until my husband is able to determine our son’s whereabouts.”
She’s kidding herself if she believes that. “How long are you going to force me to stay here?”
She sighs and looks away. “As long as is necessary. I suggest you get comfortable.” So much for ten minutes.
cecilia
. . .
"Pull around back,"Jaymin says to her driver, her voice low but with the kind of authority that doesn't invite discussion. As the SUV shifts into reverse, moving down a narrow alley, I catch a flicker of dread in the pit of my stomach. The alley dead-ends, brick walls rising on either side like a tomb closing in around me. I peer out the tinted window, trying to pinpoint where we are, but nothing here looks familiar. Richland isn’t that big of a town, but this... this is unfamiliar territory.
The engine cuts off, leaving an eerie silence, and I feel the weight of it press against my chest. Jaymin unbuckles her seatbelt with a slow, deliberate click, her manicured nails tapping against the console before resting in her lap. The locks are still engaged. My breath catches. I listen for that telltaleclickof the doors unlocking, but it doesn’t come. Instead, the driver’s eyes meet mine in the rearview mirror—dark, impassive, waiting.
Swallowing hard, I try the door handle, pushing with my shoulder.
It doesn’t budge.
Shit.
I shove against it again. This time a little harder.
Nothing.
Jaymin sighs softly, as though mildly inconvenienced by my panic. The driver, without a word, opens his door. The dull thud echoes in the narrow alley, and my pulse kicks up a notch. When he rounds the car and yanks my door open, I almost stumble out. His large frame blocks the exit, towering over me with a blank expression, as though this is just another Tuesday afternoon for him. Keys jingle in his hand, a subtle reminder of who’s in control here.
“If you’ll follow me,” he says, his voice calm, too calm. His hand gestures toward the stone steps that lead to an old wooden door. But my legs refuse to move. I glance down the alley, weighing my chances. The walls feel like they’re closing in.How the hell do I get out of here?
My mind runs a mile a minute while my body stands frozen on the pavement. His hand flexes, and he presses a button on the key fob. The locks disengage. Jaymin opens her door and steps out before I’m able to react.
