“The police?” Ryan laughed wildly. “No. No police. She said if police come, she kills me.”
Detective Bennett wrote something on a pad and held it up.
Keep him talking.
Daniel nodded.
“Ryan, why did you call me?”
A pause followed.
Then Ryan whispered, “Because Emma won’t answer.”
My body went cold.
Daniel’s eyes flicked toward me.
Ryan continued, his voice breaking. “Tell her I’m sorry. Tell her I was scared. Tell her Vanessa made me crazy. She put ideas in my head. I didn’t mean—”
I sat forward despite the pain.
“Don’t.”
Everyone looked at me.
Daniel moved to mute the call, but I shook my head.
I spoke loudly enough for Ryan to hear.
“Don’t you dare.”
Silence.
Then Ryan gasped.
“Emma?”
My whole body shook, but my voice stayed steady.
“Yes.”
“Emma, baby, please—”
“No.”
He began crying harder. “I’m going to die.”
I looked at Ethan sleeping beside me.
I remembered the nursery floor.
The blood.
My baby’s weakening cries.
“You told me to take an aspirin.”
Ryan made a broken sound.
“I didn’t know.”
“You gave me sedatives.”
“I didn’t know they were that strong.”
The room went completely still.
Detective Bennett’s pen stopped moving.
Ryan realized what he had said one second too late.
“No. Wait. Emma, listen—”
“You knew.”
read more in next page
