Chapter 9 - THE CONFRONTATION|
Marcus grabbed Vanessa by her elbow, hauling her out of the studio while she screamed and wept hysterically. The two guards outside didn't even dare to draw their weapons; they surrendered their badges to Marcus immediately.
Within thirty seconds, the street outside was quiet again.
Adrian reached out, flipping the sign on my studio door to CLOSED, and locked the bolt.
He turned to face me. The studio was completely quiet save for the soft humming of the air filter.
"Claire told you," Adrian stated quietly.
"Yes," I said, leaning against my work desk. "She told me Vanessa staged the attack to get inside your house."
"I knew the bruise was fake the moment she stepped into the foyer," Adrian revealed, stepping closer to me. "The angle of the impact was wrong for a break-in. I let her stay because I wanted her to think I fell for it so I could track who she was calling."
"And you couldn't tell me that?" I asked, my voice rising slightly with anger. "You couldn't take ten seconds to pull me aside and say, 'Elena, she's a suspect, play along'?"
"If I told you, your reaction wouldn't have been genuine!" Adrian argued, stepping right up to me. "Vanessa is trained to spot deception! If she saw you acting calm, she would have known I was setting a trap!"
"So you used me!" I yelled, slamming my hand onto the wooden table. "You used my genuine hurt and my confusion as a prop in your mob game!"
Adrian went completely rigid. My words hit him harder than a physical strike.
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"Elena..." he breathed, his eyes filling with deep, genuine pain.
"You made me feel small in my own home, Adrian," I said, tears finally welling in my eyes. "You let her walk into our hallway in your shirt while I sat upstairs feeling like an intruder. Do you have any idea how that felt?"
