Page 65 of His Puppet

I give her shoulder a squeeze, and finally she looks up at me with her eyes narrowed and jaw tense. I ignore it.

“Cut the bullshit, Bianchi. You know why I’m here.”

“Hmm,” I say, tapping my chin. “No, I don’t believe I do.”

His glare moves to Emily, and she doesn’t meet his eyes. She’s hiding her face with her hair. It’s kind of cute.

“What the fuck did you have your girlfriend take from my house?”

Girlfriend. That’s a great sign.

I widen my eyes and part my lips in mock surprise, my palm planting against my chest. “Detective.” I gasp. “That’s a serious accusation.”

“Stop it, you motherfucker!” he yells, stomping onto the sidewalk but keeping a few feet between us, which is smart. He’s already done enough to get thrown off this case, and I’m sure he knows it.

Matt takes a deep breath and clenches his hands at his sides. “I can’t fucking wait for the day I get to slap cuffs on your wrists, you son of a bitch.” He sneers the words and moves his gaze to Emily then back to me. “But in the meantime, tell me what you had her take. I’m not an idiot, Bianchi. Don’t insult me.”

“I don’t know what could possibly make you think I had my girl break into your house. She’s never even met you.” I look down at Emily. “Right, babe?”

Emily looks up at me, daggers shooting from her eyes, then she glances at the detective and clears her throat.

“Actually, Matt and I have met… I was taking a jog and—”

“Oh, fucking save it.” Matt scoffs. “You went into my office. Don’t bother lying to me.” He looks at me. “Either of you.” Back to Emily. “I know who you are,Polly. I know all about you, and if you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay away from this guy. I could arrest you for so many charges, you’d be in prison for the rest of your life.”

“Mmm, could you, though?” I ask, pursing my lips. That gets Matt’s eyes back on me. “I mean, right now you’re harassing us both, Detective, and we’re starting to feel emotional damage from this experience. If we weren’t such good friends, I’d probably tattle on you to my lawyer. How could you arrest her if you’re suspended from the force?” I shake my head with disapproval. “You really should think these things through.”

Matt doesn’t respond to that, but his face gets red like a cartoon character, and it’s hard not to laugh.

I smile. “But you’re not here on official police business, so why don’tyoucut the bullshit. You’re here because you’re trying to save your ass.Ifin the event my beautiful girlfriend had committed this atrocious crime you’ve accused her of, it would look awfully bad for you, huh? I mean, Jesus.” I rear back and blink as if I’ve just considered something. “You supposedlyinvitedPolly inside? Then you left her unattended in your office? Surely, you aren’t that careless, Detective.”

“I didn’t say I invited her in.” Matt says, puffing out his chest. “I said she stole something. It isn’t my fault if she broke into my place.”

Ah, gonna go with the good ol’ fashioned lie. That’s a low one for Detective O’Rourke.

I open my mouth to counter, thoroughly enjoying every minute of this exchange, but Emily speaks first.

“So, let me get this straight,” she squeaks, her voice as high-pitched as a mouse. She clears her throat, and when she speaks again, her voice is normal, confident even. “You think I broke into your house and stole something, but you don’t know what? How would you have ever known I stole something if you can’t even say what’s missing?” She shakes her head. “I’m sorry, Matt, but you’re not making any sense.”

“You’re a fucking professional thief,” he sneers at her, a little too aggressively. My smile falls, and my eyes narrow. He’s pushing it. “If whatever you’ve done comes back on me, it won’t matter what story I give. No one would ever believe you over me.”

She holds out her wrists with a straight face. “In that case, go ahead and cuff me.”

He just glares at her.

“That’s what I thought,” she says, letting her hands fall to her sides.

Air rushes out Matt’s nostrils as he shakes his head. “What the hell are you getting out of being his whore?” He gestures to me.

My jaw tightens, and I clench my fists. “Easy, Detective. We’ve kept it friendly thus far. You call my girl a whore again, and I’ll be inclined to commit a serious crime.”

“Is that a threat?”

“Yes,” I say, my voice even. “It is. I suggest you take it seriously.”

He looks for a brief moment like he may spit something back, but his mouth hangs open, then he closes it. He clears his throat and tugs on the collar of his shirt.

I run my hand over Emily’s back, give her a ‘let’s go’ look, then prepare to continue down the sidewalk. Matt speaks just as my feet shuffle, and I pause.

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