Page 115 of Can You Take It?

“You really should stay away from this case if you want to live,” I say, ignoring his prison threat. “I can’t keep trailing you for the rest of your life.”

“It's funny coming from you, considering you tried to kill me twice,” he accuses.

I don’t answer immediately. What the hell is he talking about? His words don’t make sense, and I can't afford to show my hand if I'm not sure what game we're playing.

It’s good that Martin hacked into the GPS system of Richard's car so I could know his location. When I saw him getting closer to me, I was going to abandon my car and make a run for it. But then I saw someone attacking Richard, and I wasn’t going to let him die.

“I don’t get it. Why send people to kill me only to save me? What’s your angle here?”

I start to speak, “I did—”

“If saving me is your way of playing the victim card, don’t. It’s not working.”

“I didn’t send anyone to kill you. I saw someone attacking you, and I reacted. That’s it.”

“Oh, sure. You just happened to be in the right place at the right time, huh?”

He’s not buying it. His eyes are filled with suspicion and anger, and I don’t blame him.

“You expect me to believe that?”

“I don’t care if you believe it or not. It’s the truth,” I snap. “You know what? Feel free to be a jerk and use sex to get the truth out of me since it's the only time you seem to believe anything I say. Although, I think that trick might not work anymore.”

I see a flash of guilt cross his face, and for a moment, he looks almost human. “That was... I shouldn’t have done that. It was wrong.”

I don’t respond to that. I have nothing left to say. Richard’s phone buzzes again, and he glances at it, then back at me.

“You should arrest me.”

It’s the only way. If I’m locked up, out of reach, then Victor won’t have any reason to come after Richard. He’ll have no more leverage.

Richard scoffs, or maybe it’s more of a bitter laugh, like I’ve just suggested the most ridiculous thing he’s ever heard. His hand moves to his face, palming it like he’s wiping away the absurdity of the situation. “I can’t.”

I blink, thrown off by the rawness in his tone. I don’t know what to say. I thought he’d jump at the chance to do what he’s been threatening to do from the start.

“No, wait,” he adds, dropping his hand and looking at me. “I don’t want to.” His words are almost broken, like admitting that costs him something.

“And it’s actually funny,” he murmurs, shaking his head like the thought sickens him. “Considering I’ve spent the last few hours convincing myself that locking you up would fix everything. But what would that even mean if the girl I fell in love with wasn’t there anymore? I would lose the woman who challenges me, who makes me feel alive, who makes me want to tear my hair out one second and worship her the next.”

“Richard, I—”

“So no,” he cuts me off. “I’m not going to lock you up because I’m willing to choose you. I’ve always believed in following the rules, but for you... for you, I’d crush the system. I’d burn it all down if it meant keeping you safe. You’re everything I’m supposed to go after, everything I’m supposed to fight against. But I’m willing to fightforyou instead.”

I look into his eyes, seeing the pain, the conflict. “You don’t mean that.”

“I do,” he says. “I’ve seen the worst humanity has to offer. I’ve spent years hunting monsters, thinking that was my purpose. But then you came into my life, and everything changed. I realized that I don’t want to live in a world without you. You're the air I breathe, the reason my heart still beats. If I take that away, I'm just a corpse waiting to rot. I don’t care about the rules, the job, any of it. Because how do you arrest the person who holds your heart captive?”

His words hit me like a punch to the gut. “Richard...”

He continues. “I’m willing to throw it all away for you. I’d go rogue, turn my back on everything I’ve ever known. I’d fight the whole damn system if it meant feeling your heartbeat next to mine. But you need to come with me. Leave behind whatever vendetta you have against people. We can start over, away from all this. We can have a life together.”

If not for the look in his eyes, I might’ve believed he was lying—that this was just another one of his tricks to lure me in, to get me into custody without a fight. But the way he’s looking at me, like I’m the only thing holding him together, it tells me he’s not faking this. He’s not playing me. And somehow, that makes it hurt even more.

“Will you?” he asks again, his voice softer, almost breaking. “Will you come with me?”

The offer hangs in the air, so tantalizingly close yet so impossibly far. It sounds so perfect, like a fairytale. But I know better. Fairytales don’t exist for people like me.

Richard knows it too. His business face falls into place, replacing the warm expression I’d been craving. He gave me a taste of what I wanted, but I didn’t take it. And now, reality crashes back in.

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