Page 25 of Dark Thirst (The Scandalous Novellas)

I give Sean directions to Anna’s house as I’m accessing her phone.

I’ve been working on a program for a couple of years that would give me invisible entry to anyone’s phone and computer remotely.

It’s not something I have told anyone I’m working on, but I’ve tested it on Stephanie over the last couple of months, and it’s worked perfectly.

“How long have you been planning this, Michelle?” Sean asks softly. He seems conflicted, and I understand why. In the last hour, I’ve shown him just how unhinged I really can be. I’ve only become this way because of him and my need to have him in my life.

“Well, if she hadn’t blackmailed you into getting back together with her, she wouldn’t be in this position.

So, not long.” My fingers fly over the keyboard of my laptop as I secure the program on the phone.

I just need to gain access to her computer and we will be all set.

I already erased the picture she took of us; she has nothing left to blackmail us with.

Sean is quiet the rest of the ride, and by the time we arrive at the small ranch, it’s dark out.

Good. I don’t want anyone in this sleepy neighborhood to see us in the car.

We pull into the driveway and open the garage door using a remote that’s in the car.

No other car is inside, so the roommate must not be home… I pray.

He closes the garage door behind us, and I hear a thump coming from the trunk. Shit, she already woke up?! We look at one another, and without speaking a word; we get out of the car and I open the door to the house to take a quick peek inside.

It’s still and quiet inside the house. A nicely decorated living room and two similarly decorated bedrooms are in the house. I cannot tell which one is hers, unfortunately.

There’s sounds of a struggle coming from the kitchen, so I race back to see Sean carrying Anna in and she’s squirming around in his arms. He has her mouth covered with his hand. I should have put something over her big mouth, knowing she’d be a problem.

In the heat of the moment, I notice a butcher’s block with knives inside, and I grab one and approach Anna.

She stops immediately as I point it towards her and threaten, “If you keep struggling, I won’t hesitate to shut you up permanently.

” She breathes quickly, her chest rising and falling, and nods in understanding.

Sean’s eyes are wide with surprise and fear. I don’t blame him, but she needs to be controlled, and if he won’t do it, I will. “Which room is yours?” I ask, while still holding the knife.

“The one at the end,” she squeaks out. I move closer to her and cut the rope binding her ankles so she can walk.

“Follow me,” I tell them both as we head to the bedroom at the end of the hallway.

I grab my backpack that I left in the hallway and throw it onto her bed.

Looking around, I see her laptop on the nightstand, and I get to work on it.

The program only takes a few minutes to install, so we don’t need to be here long.

Sean pushes Anna onto the bed and she squirms her way onto her elbows to prop herself up.

“Are you two fucking crazy?!” she screams out, and I turn to face her with a wild look in my eyes.

She swallows deeply and shuts up again. I remember her passwords, so gaining entry to the laptop is easy.

Once I’m in, the program automatically downloads.

“I’ll make this easy on you, Anna. So listen up.” Both Anna and Sean turn their attention to me.

“Since you wanted to follow and blackmail us, I’m returning the favor.

I’m installing a program on your computer.

It’s already on your phone,” I say while tossing her phone onto the bed next to her.

“It will track every single thing you do from here on out. No one will be able to locate this program to remove it. So don’t get any ideas of taking it into Geek Squad and having those idiots remove my access. ”

Her eyes filled with tears. “What do you want from me?”

“I want you to live your life, but leave us out of it. I’ve deleted the picture you took, and I will always check up on you. If you so much as try to fuck with Sean or me again, I have loads of information to send to the IRS about you not paying taxes on your little side hustle.”

Anna’s eyes narrow. “What are you talking about?” Her voice is sharp.

I smile back, “Well, the government doesn’t take lightly to someone not paying their dues. Keep doing what you're doing, and I’m sure you’ll be fine. Fuck up, and I’ll not only come back and cut you up, but I’ll send a little anonymous tip and they’ll come knocking on your door.”

“Michelle, we need to go,” Sean chimes in. His face is unreadable, stone solid. I can’t tell if he will go along with my plan or stop me.

My phone vibrates, alerting me that the program is installed, and I have full access. I hold it up to show Anna her desktop from my screen. “See? I can and will watch from afar. I will see every move you make, and I can access your camera just to watch you whenever I want. Understood?”

She swallows and nods while turning to look at Sean. Maybe she thinks he’ll stop all this and be on her side? I’m sort of thinking that might happen until he walks towards her, grabs her by the throat and slams her down onto the bed.

“If I ever see you or hear from you again. I’ll fucking kill you. I suggest you pack your shit up and get the fuck out of Chicago,” he says slowly, inches away from her face. Tears are streaming down her face as she sobs; hurt and afraid of the man she thought she knew so well.

Hell, he even surprised me.

He turns towards me and nods. “I’m sure your roommate will be back soon, so you’ll be fine. Remember, if you call the cops, we’ll know.” And he walks out of the room without looking back.

“So long, Anna,” I say cheerfully as I pack up my laptop, take one last look around the room to make sure I haven’t left anything, and walk out towards the kitchen.

I place the knife back in the butcher’s block and wipe the handle.

Evidence, ya know? But as I look around, I don’t see Sean.

I walk back out to the garage and see that he’s going through Anna’s car. “What are you doing?” I ask.

“Making sure we don’t leave any prints. I already ordered an Uber to take us back to the shop.

We have to pick up our cars and clean up the mess we made,” he answers calmly.

“Everything is clean. Let’s go out the front door.

” He walks past me, and I follow. We go through the front door and lock it behind us.

The street is dimly lit, and we walk together into the darkness. He takes my hand and squeezes it tight. I don’t know where our future will take us, but at this moment, I feel like whatever happens, we will always be together.