Page 117 of Snitches and Serpents

And not only that. The last thing I said to her…

Oh fuck.

Across the table, Derrik Payne simply continues speaking. As if my entire world hasn’t just been jolted out of its axis and then forcefully slammed back again.

“And, not that I’m an expert on all things Elle Summers,” he says, “but I really can’t see her doing well in prison, so my money is on her taking the deal.”

“She wouldn’t sell me out like that,” I press out, my shattered mind still scrambling to catch up.

“Wouldn’t she? I have told her that I’m offering you the same deal. And she knows just how much you hate her now, so she knows that you will take this deal in a heartbeat.”

“I don’t—” I cut myself off before I can say too much.

Because fuck, he’s right. Elle probably thinks that I hate her now. Hell, I did hate her up until a mere minute ago when my dumbass self finally realized that this was indeed a setup, but not one of her doing.

God, I have to give it to him. He’s a damn cunning bastard.

He can’t prove that we brought the drugs unless one of us talks.

So he set this whole thing up so that I would think that Elle had done it, and so that she would see that I thought that she had done it. Which would then make her think that I hated her. So when Payne dropped the news that he had offered us both this deal, she would be convinced that I would take it.

Even if she has figured out that he can’t nail us for this as long as neither one of us confesses, she also has to be able to trust that I will keep my mouth shut too.

And given that the last thing I did was to tell her that I would kill her the next time I saw her, I have royally screwed up any chance of that.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. If I hadn’t been so damn insecure about her feelings for me, this would never have happened. If I had just believed her, if I had just trusted that her feelings for me were actually genuine, we could have both walked out of here free and clear.

But now, because of my devastating moment of hurt and insecurity, one of us is going down for this crime.

Either I rat her out, and she takes the fall while I go free.

Or she rats me out, and I take the fall while she goes free.

Derrik Payne flashes me a smug grin, full of victory, as he leans forward and holds my gaze. “The first one to take the deal is the one that gets it.”

My heart jerks behind my ribs.

His smirk widens. “So, what’s it gonna be?”

41

ELLE

Fresh morning air fills my lungs as I walk out of the police station a free woman. Tilting my head back, I gaze up at the blue sky above and draw in a deep breath as I walk away from the building. My body feels light.

I made the right decision.

When it all came down to it, it was an incredibly easy decision. Clear as day. I never would have made any other choice than this one.

Shock pulses through me when my dad’s car suddenly swerves into the parking lot in front of the police station. My heart leaps. I really don’t want to talk to him right now.

Ducking away, I hurry towards the alley that runs between the buildings opposite the police station. If Dad wants to lecture me about how much of a disappointment I am, he’s going to have to wait. Right now, I’m too relieved to deal with his dark mood.

A bright morning sun peeks up over the horizon and bathes the world with light. Not a cloud can be seen in the sky. It’s as if the world itself is showing me that regardless of how dark the night gets, a bright morning always rises in the end.

I hurry past another alley mouth on my way to escape the admonishment my dad is planning to give me.

My stomach lurches.

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