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“I am not your wife,” I reminded him harshly.
“Maybe not according to the State of Georgia, but in my heart, you will always belong to me. Just as I will always belong to you. We are forever connected. Nothing you do will change that.”
I considered arguing against his assertion, but it wasn’t worth it. He wanted me to argue. I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction. Wasn’t going to play into his hand.
“Speaking of which, how’s my daughter?”
“She’s not your daughter. Not anymore.”
“Again…” His jaw tensed, my answer clearly getting under his skin. “The same argument I made for that ridiculous petition for divorce stands for you terminating my parental rights. I will always be a part of Imogene. You will always see me when you look at her.” He curved even closer. “She’s always had my eyes and smile. Does she still?”
“Imogene’s her own person. You have no influence over her.”
“And how about you? Do I still have the same hold over you?”
Refusing to answer for fear of what he’d see, I stood, crossing my arms in front of my chest. “I came to see you, as you requested. Now you can answer Agent Curran’s questions. Enjoy prison, Nick.” I started toward the door.
“I don’t think so, Julia. We’re not done yet.”
I faced him again, more annoyed than anything. “You promised. You said if I came to visit you, you’d tell Agent Curran what you discussed with Claire Hale.”
“I said no such thing. Not once did I state or imply that I would tell him about my conversations with Ms. Hale.” His lips curved into a smirk.
I knew this look. I’d seen it whenever he was about to unleash one of his stupid mind games on me.
“After all, Zeus only answers to one person.”
“Hera,” I exhaled, momentarily lightheaded.
“I’ll happily discuss my rather illuminating conversations with Ms. Hale. But not with Agent Curran. With you. And only you.”
I hesitated, glancing between the door and Nick. I had the power to end this. Didn’t have to stay here. This wasn’t part of the deal. I was supposed to visit Nick as a token of good faith, then be free to walk away. Sitting in the same room and trying to question him when I had no experience in anything like this never factored into it.
It was another one of his games.
One I knew I shouldn’t play.
But I’d already come this far. I couldn’t walk away without anything to show for it.
“Fine.” I spun around, striding back to the table and plopping down onto the chair, leaning back into it. “Tell me what you know. But you do understand how ridiculous this is, considering you’re fully aware he’s watching this entire thing.”
Nick grinned, briefly shifting his gaze past me and to the two-way glass. “Of course I do.” He refocused his attention on me. “But as you should have figured out by now, I don’t give anything away freely. There’s always a cost.”
“What do you want, Nick?”
“Oh, Julia… There are so many ways I could answer that, but if I told you what I really want, I fear the fine, upstanding gentlemen who work for the Department of Corrections would pull me out of here in a heartbeat. Send me back for diagnostic testing to see if perhaps I should be reclassified to the Special Management Unit instead of in this maximum-security hell. So, instead, I’ll settle for…a game.”
I straightened. “A game?”
“I must confess, life in prison has been trying, my darling. I’ve been forced to converse with the bottom rung of society, most of whom barely have anything more than a high school education. And that’s just the guards. My fellow inmates…” He shivered dramatically. “Suffice it to say, I do miss being able to speak with someone who possesses a higher level of education. Or at least someone who can hold their own in a lively discussion. You’ve always had a spark, Julia. Always had a gift for engaging people in conversation. Even when we were kids together in that dreadful foster home, I was drawn to you.”
“What kind of game are you proposing?” I shifted in the chair, unsure which made me more uncomfortable — the hard metal or Nick’s penetrating stare.
“Tit for tat, my love. You answer one of my questions, and I’ll tell you one thing I discussed with Ms. Hale. Full disclosure, though. She visited me quite often prior to her tragic death.” His eyes gleamed. “This could go on for hours. Days. But I assure you…” He looked up, staring at the two-way glass, “and Agent Curran…” He returned his gaze to mine, “by the end, I’ll have shared everything we discussed. But only with you.”
He paused, allowing his offer to have a moment to marinate.
“So, what say you? Shall we have a game, Julia?”
I licked my lips, my gaze shifting between the door and Nick. This was quickly becoming more than I bargained for. More than any of us bargained for.
But it was too late to stop this runaway train now. All I could do was follow it all the way to the scene of the crash.
“Let’s play.”
A slow smile pulled on his lips, his eyes alight with a disturbing kind of excitement.
“Marvelous.”
