Page 51 of Pretend I’m Yours
“It doesn’t matter how the hell you tied the knot. If you were married, then you would have records to prove it. And you don’t,” he said.
“And you expect me to believe that you just walked into the courthouse and asked to see my marriage license? Then what? When they didn’t show you, you decided that had to mean that I’m not really married?” I sneered. I was going to do everything in my power to maintain the upper hand, but we both knew that I was fighting a losing battle.
“Not at all, though that would have been a lot easier,” he said. “You forget that I have connections.”
“Who?” I demanded. “Who the hell did you go to find my private information?”
“That is none of your business. If you had any idea how people on the inside work, then you would know better than to even ask that question,” he said with a shake of his head. “You’re sick,” I said. “And I don’t believe you. You’re just trying to make me think that you know things about my life that you don’t. You weren’t there for the wedding, now you can’t get over the fact that I’m married and lost to you forever.”
He laughed again. I knew the laugh. It was the same laugh that he used to use when we were arguing and he felt he was winning. The problem now was, I knew that I was losing. It wasn’t just a matter of who was right and who was wrong now.
Brandon had clearly done more research on me than I ever knew, and he was now going to act on it. I didn’t want to think about what he might have planned. It scared the shit out of me to think about what he was capable of.
He might not be a cop any longer, but he had been for years. He knew how crime scenes worked, and I had no doubt in my mind he would be able to get away with murder if he wanted. And, if he was telling me the truth when he said there were others like him working for the city, he’d have help doing it.
“So what are you going to do?” I asked at last. “Murder me? Prove to the world that you had the last say in my life? Do you really think that this is worth all your time?”
“Considering all that you cost me in life, killing you would not only be worth it, I would wish I could bring you back so I could kill you all over again,” he said as he looked in the rear-view mirror at me. “But if I were to do that, then you really would be lost to me forever.”
“What do you mean, really?” I asked. “I already am. You and I are done and over with, and we are never getting back together. I don’t care what you think you know about me.”
“At the end of the day whether you are married to that guy or not doesn’t matter,” Brandon said, flipping the conversation back around. “Because where we are going, we aren’t going to know anyone who can tell differently.”
“You’re not making any sense,” I said. “Care to explain, or are you going to continue with your cryptic messages and hope that I eventually catch on to what you’re talking about?”
“Alright, if you must be so impatient as to know now, then I’ll tell you,” he smiled in the rear-view mirror at me. “Tonight, we are going back to my place. You are going to be a good little girl and shut up or I’m going to have to gag you on top of tying you up.”
“I’d like to see you try,” I warned, though I knew I didn’t stand a chance against him. Even though he had caught me by surprise in the alley, I wasn’t strong enough to fight him off even if I tried. It was another thing we both knew to be true.
Hell, how many times had he proven his brute strength against me when we were together? Of course he’d be able to tie me up if he wanted to.
“You will,” he promised. “And then you are going to sit down and shut up.”
“So what? You’re going to just keep me as a hostage in your house and hope that the cops never show up? Like you said, whether I am married to Drake or not is irrelevant. He and I live together, and when he finds out that I’m missing he’s going to call them, and you know you are the first suspect on the list,” I said.
I hoped I’d talk enough sense into him he would let me go. But I had a feeling that was nothing more than wishful thinking. Being an ex-cop himself, he would know that I would go to the cops first thing. And with all that had happened, even now he was the prime suspect.
