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My stomach is in knots, but I know Addy wouldn’t blindly tell me to trust him.
“Okay. Let’s hear it,” I reply, urging them on.
“You’ll need to more or less be bait.”
Andrews words make my eyes go wide, but the real reaction comes from Jack.
“No!Absolutely not. Undernocircumstances will Andrea be used asfucking bait,” Jack’s words boom. His commanding tone draws silence from everyone for several moments.
“Let’s at least hear him out. Listening isn’t agreeing,” I say gently to him.
He crosses his arms, and his face is stone, his lips set in a hard line. He stands, shaking his head. “There has to be another way. He almost killed you.Twice.He won’t get that chance again.” His words, as usual when it comes to protecting me, are final.
“I hear you, and I understand where you’re coming from and why. Just hear me out,” Andrew says.
Placing my hand on Jack’s arm, I give him a pleading look. Irene and Charlie watch us both closely. Neither of them offer their opinion yet.
Jack’s face softens with my touch, and he reaches to take my hand in his. “I’ll hear you out, but don’t think that means I’m agreeing to it.”
“Fair enough,” Andrew says before speaking to the group. “I’ll tell Christopher a partial truth; Andrea reached out to Addy. I happened to be there and spoke to her as well. For the next part, we have to make Christopher think I’m coming to get you by ensuring he overhears a conversation between Addy and me. I’ll say to get you home, I have to agree to take youtofilecharges against him.”
A few moments of silence pass. I don’t know how I feel about this so far. I’ll have to put a great deal of trust in Andrew.
“What do I need to do?” I ask.
Irene leans forward, her fingers pressed to her lips in contemplation.
“We need somewhere he can‘find you’where you’ll be alone. He’s too much of a coward to approach you with anyone around,” Andrew answers.
Jack’s eyes blaze with anger. “Are you out of your fucking mind? That’s too dangerous!”
Cool, calm, and collected, Jack has left the building. This man’s beastly side appears to be in the driver’s seat for now.
“Calm yourself, Jack. Right now. Save all that anger for when that asshole is in front you,” Irene barks, giving Jack a stern look before turning to me. “You’ll be at the café, cleaning after we close, but you won’t be alone. Jack and I will be there, out of sight.” She speaks as if she’s had this planned forever.
“What about me?” Charlie asks, hesitantly.
“I don’t want you to be there,” I say quickly. “I won’t risk him hurting you. Not a chance.” That’s something I refuse to budge on, and she doesn’t argue even though I can tell she wants to.
“Then what?” Jack asks, beyond frustrated with the entire conversation. He still holds my hand, but his eyes no longer meet mine.
“He’ll make a move to hurt you. He won’t risk you coming home and filing charges against him. We know him well enough to bank on it,” Andrew says.
Jack releases my hand and paces. His hands are balled into fists, and he looks angry enough to explode.
“You won’t really be alone. Andrew and your friends will be there, but you can’t let on, you know,” Adalyn says.
She knows better than anyone that the thought of being alone with Christopher ever again guts me. I survived thus far, but that doesn’t mean I would again.
“I know, Addy.” It’s all I can say.
Sitting here, planning to face this monster on purpose, is anxiety inducing to say the least. However,thistime,he’sthe prey andI’mthe predator. He’ll never see that coming. He’s too full of himself to think I’d ever target him.
“I’ll do it,” I say flatly.
“What?” Charlie yells. “You can’t be serious. This is for the police to handle. You shouldn’t do it; you just shouldn’t.”
She’s by my side as she pleads with me, and I feel Jack’s eyes boring into me. He doesn’t say a word though.
