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The moment Drake slammedthe door behind him, Heather burst into sobs. She’d hoped that when she told him that she’d been a member of the Citizens Committee, he’d care enough about her to forgive her for the part she’d played in his kidnapping. Why hadn’t he understood that she’d had no choice?
She supposed the fact that he hadn’t just proved that she’d been right to tell him that she’d deceived him, right not to accept his proposal. In a way, the tears were those of relief, because she no longer had to worry that at any minute she might be found out. She only hoped that once he calmed down, he’d be able to appreciate her honesty.
Her breakdown hadn’t even had a chance to work itself out before someone knocked softly at the door. Gasping, she rubbed her hands hopelessly across her face, trying to get control of herself. “Come in,” she called brokenly, hoping against hope that Drake had come back, that he was at least willing to talk to her about this.
Instead, the young, blond, uniformed constable that she recognized from earlier in the day came in, looking bashful but resigned. “Miss Fields,” he said, looking everywhere but at her tearful face. “I’m Constable Graham. You’re to come with me.”
She stared at him, still blinking back tears. “Wh-what? Where are we going?”
Was Drake sending her back to Jocelyn’s? Did he want her out of his house so badly that he’d send her away without another word? He had every right to do so, but she’d thought that he’d at least take some time to think about it all before taking such a drastic step.
“I’m to take you to J Division, Miss.” The young man’s ears pinkened. “You’re being arrested.”
“Arrested?” she breathed. She didn’t know why she was so surprised. She knew that she was guilty, that she deserved to pay for her crimes, but she hadn’t really thought Drake would be the one to make her do it.
“Yes, miss.” He cleared his throat. “I’ll give you ten minutes to prepare yourself.”
She swallowed thickly and nodded, thankful for his kindness. But how did one prepare themselves for something like this?
* * *
AFTER LEAVING CONSTABLEGraham to arrest Heather, Drake headed straight to J Division. He needed to talk to Ness before Heather arrived. He needed his friend to help him make sense of what had happened. All he knew was what she’d admitted to him. She’d been an accomplice to the bombing, which meant she was partly responsible for the deaths of two innocent people. She’d also had a hand in his kidnapping.
He still couldn’t believe that the whole time that he’d been trying to rescue her, she’d been trying to learn his secrets. She’d probably never been in any danger at all.
God, he’d fallen for her so utterly he hadn’t even suspected it!
He didn’t trust himself to see the situation clearly. He didn’t want to talk to her. He was afraid of what he’d do.
Once he arrived, he barged directly into Ness’s office, glad to find the man hard at work on a pile of paperwork.
“I just arrested Heather Fields,” Drake said without preamble.
Ness blinked and slowly put his pen aside. “You did what?”
“She was in on it,” Drake said, and then let out an explosive breath. “She’s part of the Citizens Committee. She was Lindon’s lover. She admitted everything to me.”
“Heather?” Ness shook his head, looking at Drake as though he’d lost his mind. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand.”
“I don’t understand either,” Drake said, knowing it sounded insane. “I came home from work, and Heather told me everything. She said that it had all been a lie. That she was working with those bastards the whole time.”
“HeatherFields?” Ness asked again, as if Drake was talking about someone else.
Drake could only nod. “I don’t know how I could have fallen for her so completely, how she got me to let my guard down. I need you to question her when they bring her in. I can’t do it. But I need to know everything. Why she did it.” He sighed and raked his hand through his hair. “No matter what she says, I think we need to hold her here for a few days until we capture Lindon.”
“I’ll put her in a private cell,” Ness agreed, looking troubled. “I just can’t see her doing something like this. And Allison’s decided to claim her as her sister...”
“I don’t care,” Drake said coldly. “If she’s committed a crime, she needs to pay for it just like anyone else.”
“Even though you care for her?” Ness asked quietly.
“Especially because I care for her,” Drake snapped. “I’m not thinking clearly right now. I proposed to her, and she lied to me. I can’t trust myself to make the right decision here.”
“Damn,” Ness said with a shake of his head. “I suppose O’Brien and I were wrong to worry that you wouldn’t be able to do what needs to be done with Danbury.”
Although that was exactly the reaction he’d been hoping for, he couldn’t bring himself to be happy about it. In fact, he was starting to wonder if he’d ever be happy again.
He cleared his throat, deciding he might as well tell Ness the rest of the bad news. “I talked to the magistrate today. He decided that we don’t have enough of a case to proceed with Danbury’s arrest,” he admitted. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what else we can do.”
