Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 68456 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68456 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 342(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 228(@300wpm)
“It’s a promise,” she hisses. “I’m smarter than you, and I play a longer game. Of course when I approached you in the bar, I knew who you were! I figured that having the chief of police in my arsenal was a smart play. You have no idea who else I’ve got dangling on my lines. The people of this town are stupid and easy to manipulate. I was within spitting distance of having Ashley’s job, genius. Think about that for a minute. You don’t want to fuck with me, Tyler. I’m smarter than you realize.”
Smarter, no. Crazier? No fuckin’ doubt about it. If I didn’t feel like a dumb fuck before, what she just said would’ve done it. Still, as smart as she thinks she is, I’m the one standing here recording while she runs her mouth.
“You sound proud,” Ben says.
I turn my head in his direction to give him a shut the fuck up look, but he’s focused on her. I don’t know why he said anything at all—we agreed he’d stayed silent.
Looking back at Rita, I find that her attention is on Ben. “That’s because I am proud,” she boasts. “I’m the one in control, because I’m holding all the cards. Everyone is always so desperate for me to stay quiet they make all of my little problems go away.”
Ben makes a huh sound, like he’s having trouble understanding what she’s saying.
“I don’t get it,” he says. “What are you proud of, exactly?”
She puffs up, smiling like a cat who ate a canary. “That I’m a puppet master. I promised myself when I moved back here that I’d do it my way. I made a plan and I’ve followed it. Not only that, I’m also holding a card I never could’ve known I’d draw when I hooked the chief of police. Ashley Colton coming back to town and catching Tyler’s eye is nothing but gravy for me. I’ve been renting space in that girl’s head since forever. She’s almost too easy.”
It takes every ounce of willpower I have not to tell her to shut the fuck up and keep Ashley’s name out of her goddamn mouth. The possessive feelings I have about her are only amplified by Rita’s words. She talks a lot of shit, but after her spiel about lollipops, I’d say it’s Ashley who’s renting space in her head—not the other way around.
My attention goes back to Ben when he clears his throat. “That sounds risky,” he says. “I mean, Ashley just got here. Leaving again would be no skin off her nose. What’ve you got to use if she goes and Tyler doesn’t respond to you anymore?”
The smug grin on Rita’s face disgusts me.
“This isn’t about her. Don’t get me wrong; I like to mess with her, because it’s fun. It’s a bonus, and one I’m enjoying immensely, but at the end of the day though, she holds no power. That’s what everyone else is for. I’ve got the most important people in this town on my strings. Mr. Yang from the town council, Judge Kahn, Mayor Brown, and Fire Chief Denton. Every one of them probably has nightmares about when and where I might turn up and cause a scene next.”
Holy. Shit. That explains why the mayor and the fire chief both tried to get me to hire Rita to replace Felicity.
“So you’re blackmailing them,” Ben clarifies.
She shrugs. “I wouldn’t describe it as such, since I haven’t asked for a cent. It’s not their money I want—it’s their influence. Your thinking is too narrow. Life is about control. If you have it, you can do anything. I like knowing the most powerful people in this town are afraid of me and the havoc I could wreak upon their lives at any time. Having that particular group of people on the hook means I’ve got aces in the hole to cover pretty much any situation. The people in this town made me miserable when I was younger. I’m just returning the favor.”
Jesus fuck. First of all, Ben is a goddamn genius. By showing interest, he got her to reveal her hand. Second, I’ve never felt better about the fact that I use condoms one hundred percent of the time.
“If I were you, I’d stop running at the mouth about being a puppet master. It’s going to be pretty fuckin’ hard to maintain control once everyone is clued in to what you’re doing,” Ben taunts.
Turning to me, he cocks his head. “You get what I’m saying, right?”
I hold back a laugh. The look we exchange makes it clear that he’s punting over to me.
“I do. I’m looking forward to calling all of the people she mentioned so I can fill them in on her play.”
“Wh… what the fuck?” she snaps.
I smile. “Bitch, you just played yourself. You’re so up your own ass that you didn’t even notice that you walked right into the trap Ben set. Telling us who you had on the line just set them all free. I came here tonight to tell you to knock your shit off, but now I’m going to do one better. Leave, Rita. The jig is up. By this time tomorrow, there won’t be a soul in this town who doesn’t know just how low you’re willing to go to get your way. Once it all airs out, you’ll look worse than you already do, and the people who live here will hate you more. You should’ve tried being a decent person.”