Chương 5
“I’m getting married today.”
The sentence came out before I could stop it.
Then I corrected myself.
“I was getting married today.”
Elena was quiet.
“I’m sorry.”
I hated how much kindness hurt.
“Please don’t tell anyone.”
“I won’t discuss your personal circumstances.”
“What about the investigation?”
“Only with people who need to know.”
My phone vibrated against my ear with another incoming call.
Mom.
David had gotten to her.
“Elena, I have to go.”
“Change every password that may have been accessible from your home devices.”
“And Rachel?”
“Yes?”
“Do not assume this is only a family argument until the audit tells us that.”
I looked again at the form containing my security questions.
“I don’t.”
We ended the call.
My mother’s missed call appeared immediately.
Then a voicemail notification.
Then Megan texted.
I’m at your place.
David is here.
I read the message twice.
Then I called her.
She answered immediately.
“Do not come upstairs.”
“Where is he?”
“In the hallway.”
“What?”
“He was waiting outside your door when I got here.”
My chest tightened.
“Did you let him in?”
“Absolutely not.”
Behind her voice, I heard David saying something I could not make out.
Megan lowered her voice.
“He says he needs to talk to you before you do something stupid.”
“Put me on speaker.”
“No.”
“Megan.”
“I know that tone.”
“Please.”
There was a rustle.
Then David’s voice came through, clearer now.
“Rachel?”
I gripped the steering wheel.
“Why are you at my condo?”
“To talk.”
“You have my number.”
“You’re not answering.”
“That’s not permission to come to my home.”
“This is my home too.”
“No, it isn’t.”
A pause.
I could hear Megan breathing.
David said, “I have clothes there.”
“You have a drawer.”
“I have a key.”
“Not anymore.”
“That doesn’t even make sense.”
“It will.”
His voice sharpened.
“Are you seriously changing the locks?”
“Yes.”
“Because of one argument?”
“Because you blocked me from leaving.”
“I was trying to stop you from making a decision you’d regret.”
“That is not better.”
“You were upset.”
“I was leaving.”
“You were blowing up our entire life.”
“Our life doesn’t require me to surrender my bank account.”
“This is exactly what I mean.”
His voice rose, then dropped again.
“You take one thing and turn it into something monstrous.”
I looked through the windshield at a mother lifting a toddler into a shopping cart.
The child had dropped a red mitten on the pavement.
The mother noticed, picked it up, shoved it into her coat pocket, and kept moving.
The normality of the scene felt almost obscene.
“Did you give your mother my employee ID?”
I asked.
Silence.
Megan said, “What?”
David answered too quickly.
“No.”
“She had it.”
“I don’t know how.”
“Did you ever photograph my work badge?”
“Jesus, Rachel.”
“That isn’t an answer.”
“No, I did not photograph your badge.”
“Did you write the number down?”
“No.”
“Did you give her access to my condo?”
Another pause.
This one was longer.
Megan swore.
“David.”
“It wasn’t like that.”
I closed my eyes.
“What was it like?”
“Mom needed to pick something up.”
“When?”
“A few weeks ago.”
“What?”
“The wedding binder.”
“The binder was at your place.”
“She thought there might be another copy.”
My pulse started thudding in my ears.
“You gave her my key.”
“I let her borrow it.”
“You gave her my key.”
“For twenty minutes.”
“You told me she had never been inside without me.”
“I forgot.”
Megan made a sound halfway between a laugh and a gasp.
“You forgot that your mother let herself into my sister’s condo?”
“I didn’t think it mattered.”
I opened my eyes.
“It matters now.”
“Rachel, come home.”
The word home landed wrong.
Like he was still entitled to say it.
“No.”
“I am standing here trying to fix this.”
“You’re standing outside my door after I told you I didn’t want contact.”
“You didn’t tell me that.”
“The security officer did.”
“He doesn’t get to decide whether I speak to my fiancée.”
“I’m not your fiancée.”
He inhaled sharply.
Megan said, “You should leave.”
“Stay out of it.”
“Don’t talk to her like that.”
“She inserted herself.”
“She’s standing outside her own sister’s apartment because you showed up uninvited after trapping that sister in another apartment.”
“I did not trap anyone.”
“You blocked the door.”
“For thirty seconds.”
The precision startled me.
“How do you know it was thirty seconds?”
He said nothing.
I sat straighter.
“David.”
“What?”
“You keep saying this was one argument.”
“It was.”
“But you know exactly how long you stood in front of the door.”
“I’m estimating.”
“Did you know the security app recorded audio?”
“Obviously.”
“Then why are you trying so hard to define exactly what happened?”
His breathing changed.
For the first time, I heard fear underneath the anger.
Not fear of losing me.
Fear of consequences.
“Rachel, don’t do this.”
“Do what?”
“Turn private relationship problems into some criminal accusation.”
“I haven’t accused you of a crime.”
“You’re talking like you’re building a case.”
I looked at the envelope on the passenger seat.
Maybe I was.
The thought did not make me feel powerful.
It made me tired.
“Megan, call the building manager.”
“I already did.”
David muttered something.
Megan snapped, “You were told to leave.”
“I’m not leaving until she comes here.”
I started the car.
“No.”
Both of them went quiet.
“I’m not coming there while he’s outside.”
Megan said, “Good.”
David said, “Rachel.”
“If you leave before I arrive, I’ll come home.”
“This is ridiculous.”
“Then it should be easy.”
“I need my things.”
“You can collect them later with notice.”
“You don’t get to evict me from a place I practically live in.”
“You have never paid rent there.”
“That’s not the point.”
“You’re right.”
I turned out of the grocery-store lot.
“The point is that you need to leave.”
Megan said, “The manager’s coming.”
David cursed under his breath.
“Fine.”
May you like
He disconnected.
I stayed on the line with Megan.
