Chapter 4
Franklin's suit jacket had some random dust on it—who knew where he picked that up.
The two of them were a mess.
The moment I stepped out, Franklin's eyes instantly reddened.
He lunged at me like a furious beast, wild and out of control.
"Leila!" Franklin barked.
His voice was rough, and his bloodshot eyes stared at me, unblinking.
Franklin yelled, "Why didn't you pick up your phone last night?
"Do you even know what went down at my place?"
I stepped back, dodging his arm as he lunged at me.
I looked at him coldly.
"Why should I answer your call?" I shot back.
That just pissed him off even more.
He shouted, "My place got broken into.
"Last night, when we got home, the lock was broken. We had to call a locksmith to get inside, and the whole place was completely ransacked.
"So much stuff is gone."
Katherine broke down, sobbing as she spoke.
"My jewelry, my brand new bag, and Franklin's laptop from his study, everything's gone.
"That's hundreds of thousands gone.
"Leila, this is all your fault."
She pointed at me, her voice sharp.
"If you hadn't taken down the security camera and the smart lock, none of this would've happened.
"You did this on purpose."
I watched their little act, the way they played off each other so perfectly, like they'd rehearsed it.
The whole thing was almost laughable.
I shot back, "Blame me?
"Wasn't it just yesterday in the mediation room that you accused me of invading your privacy with the security camera?
"Who was the one acting all scared just because there was a camera at the door?
"And who demanded I rip everything out on the spot, no questions asked?"
My words hit them like a slap in the face.
Katherine's sobs stopped cold, her face flickering between pale and sickly green.
Franklin's lips quivered, but he couldn't say a single word.
"I just gave you exactly what you wanted," I said, my voice calm. "So now that something happened, you want to blame me, the 'privacy violator'?"
Franklin took a deep breath, trying to steady himself.
He snapped, "Don't play word games with me.
"I don't care if you paid for the security gear. Once it's on my apartment, you can't just take it down whenever you feel like it.
"You're deliberately wrecking my stuff.
"I've already called the cops. They'll be here any minute."
He thought that would scare me.
I nodded and said, "Sure.
"Let's wait for the cops to get here and sort this out face to face.
"I'm actually curious. How does the security gear I paid for, and got your approval to install, supposedly violate your privacy?
"And while we're at it, let's let the cops decide who's actually in the wrong here.
"Let's see who's really being malicious and trying to frame someone."
With that, I leaned against the doorframe, looking completely unfazed as I stared at him.
Franklin's expression changed completely.
Clearly, he hadn't expected me to keep my cool like this.
Calling the cops was just a bluff; he thought it would intimidate me.
He'd never actually let the police look too closely at this mess.
Because deep down, he was scared of being exposed.
That letter of authorization would turn him into a laughingstock in front of the cops.
Down the hallway, neighbors cracked their doors open, peeking through the gap to see what was happening.
They pointed and whispered, snickering and judging as they gossiped.
Franklin's face went dark red, almost purple with embarrassment.
He'd never lost face like this in front of the whole building before.
Just then, the elevator doors slid open with a ding.
Two cops in uniform stepped out.
"Who called the police?" one of the officers asked.
Franklin looked like he'd just grabbed onto a lifeline.
He immediately pointed at me.
He blurted out, "Officer, I'm the one who called.
"This woman, she..."
Before Franklin could even finish, I cut him off and walked right up to the cops.
I pulled my ID out of my bag.
I said, "Hi, Officer.
"This might be a bit complicated. Let's go inside and talk.
"We shouldn't disturb the neighbors in the hallway."
I kept my tone steady and clear, not backing down but not being pushy either.
The older officer glanced at me, then at Franklin, who seemed a little unhinged.
He nodded. "Fine."
I opened the door and gestured for them to come in.
Franklin and Katherine exchanged a look, then followed me inside.
A brand new circus was about to kick off.
I'd got all my lines memorized and every prop in place.
My living room wasn't very big.
With two cops, plus Franklin and Katherine, it felt pretty cramped.
I poured water for the two officers.
I completely ignored the other two.
The older officer was Perry Jones, and the younger one was Stanley Lee.
Perry took a sip of water and looked at Franklin.
"You go first. What exactly happened?" he asked.
Franklin immediately launched into his accusations.
Franklin exaggerated every detail about the break-in last night, making it sound way more dramatic than it really was.