After He Watched Me Drown, I Built My Empire novel · Chapter 12 of 24

Chapter 12: Say It Out Loud

Remo stood when he saw me, and the badge hung from his fingers on its chain.

"I'm resigning," he said. "The drive is in my truck. The file's yours. Play it for the table, burn it, or give it to the Delmonte Don if you want."

"No."

"Silvia."

"You don't get to quit. Quitting is the easy part."

His hands closed on the badge.

"Walk with me," I said.

The patrol crew was on the dock for the morning shift, six of them again, with their coffee and their logbooks.

They looked at us and stopped talking.

I stood beside Remo and did not touch him.

"Say it," I said. "Say it to them."

He looked at me once.

Then he turned to his crew.

"On Thursday I filmed Silvia Arcuri going into the lake," he said. "I held the phone for forty seconds before I dove. The Don told me to film. Nobody told me how long to wait. I chose that."

The only sound was gulls.

"If any of you want a different captain, say so now," Remo said. "I'll hand over the keys."

The old deckhand with the gray beard looked at his boots.

"You did the wrong thing," he said. "And you went in after her. Both are true."

"They are," Remo said.

Nobody asked for the keys.

"He stays," I said. "He answers to me, and I'll decide the rest. Go and have breakfast."

They went, slowly, looking back.

When the dock was empty, I took the badge out of Remo's hand and pinned it back on his jacket myself.

My fingers were not steady.

His chest rose and fell under my knuckles.

"Upstairs," I said.

"Silvia."

"Rule two. You don't touch me unless I ask."

"I remember."

"I'm asking."

He closed his eyes.

"You're angry. You've had no sleep. I won't be the thing you do about it."

"I'm not asking you to be the thing I do about it." My voice shook. "I'm asking you to be the one thing in this whole place I've decided about on my own."

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