He Watched Me Die Twice Chapter 04
“Where’s the flash drive?” Jonathan demanded.
Martha turned completely ashen and burst into tears.
“Jonah,” she sobbed. “Bri handed me drugs. How was I supposed to trust her intel?
“I was so scared Damian was setting a trap for you.”
Tears streamed down her cheeks, her voice shaking. “I was terrified you’d get hurt. I can’t live without you.”
The crowd in the plaza swayed right back to her side.
“She’s right. You can’t trust a word out of a dealer’s mouth.”
“She was just trying to protect Lieutenant Arnold.”
Jonathan watched her, his expression unreadable.
Finally, he pulled her close again, looking like a man trying hard to convince himself.
The memory jumped abruptly to a cargo ship out on the open ocean.
Jonathan was there, undercover as a buyer, wearing a baseball cap pulled low.
A jolt of panic hit me when I saw him.
Forcing myself to stay calm, I closed the distance between us.
Brushing past him, I hissed under my breath, “What are you doing here? It’s a setup. Get out!”
He didn’t even have time to react before the ship’s alarm started blaring.
“We’ve got a rat on board!” one of the dealers screamed in a panic.
Jonathan’s hand flew to the gun at his waist, his eyes locked on me in total disbelief.
Knowing exactly how bad this was about to get, I made a split-second call.
I brought my gun up fast, aiming the barrel right at his chest.
“Stop looking,” I yelled over the chaos. “He’s the rat. Tie him to the mast!”
Half a dozen guys rushed forward, tackling Jonathan and pinning him hard to the deck.
I walked over.
Raising my gun, I brought the butt down hard on his unhealed shoulder.
He let out a low groan, a sheen of cold sweat breaking out across his forehead instantly.
He glared up at me, his eyes burning with pure hatred. “Brianna, I was so wrong about you.”
I leaned in close, letting out a soft, mocking laugh right by his ear. “What a pity, Lieutenant Arnold. Be a little more careful about who you trust in your next life.”
I stood up straight and laughed out loud.
But nobody saw the tears sliding down my face, washing away into the rain.
Just then, the heavy thrum of an approaching helicopter filled the air.
It hovered low over the cargo ship as Damian started climbing down the rope ladder.
Damian jerked his chin. Catching the cue, his guy struck Jonathan hard across the back of the neck, dropping him cold.
Then, without a second’s hesitation, Damian backhanded me across the face, sending me sprawling to the deck.
“Nice acting, Brianna.”
He crouched, pinching my chin tight between his fingers.
“You hit your ex so hard, I almost bought it.
“What’s the endgame here? Fake your own death so he makes a clean getaway? Hmm?”
The massive screen went black.
Down in the square, the crowd exchanged uncertain looks, questioning my supposed crimes for the very first time.
“Could she… was she really just putting on an act to save him?”
“If Damian thinks so, something’s off.”
A few people even spotted the tears mixed with the rain on my face.
Slowly, quiet but genuine voices began rippling through the crowd, taking my side.
Back in reality, Jonathan went rigid.
If he hadn’t just watched the memory playback, he would have completely forgotten I’d ever told him to run.
A cold chill crept up his spine.
High above the square, the screen flared back to life.
The feed flickered for a second before snapping into sharp focus.
Jonathan’s head jerked up, his eyes widening at a scene he never saw coming.