She presses ahead before she loses her nerve. “If anything happens to me, or to Ned, or to his father, or to my family, that phone goes to the police. And I’ll tell them it’s you on the other side. Being told off by a mother who didn’t want her kid in a drug ring. Maybe you were scared she would talk or cut a deal with the cops. Protect her son from prosecution and put you in jail in trade. But I have Ned’s burner phone, and if you don’t leave me and Ned alone, that phone will still end up going to the police.”

He takes another step toward her.

“You’ll never find where the phone is now. Or guess who has it. But they have their instructions. You’re going to give me that video of my dad and Danielle. First.”

He brings up the video on his phone. She knows he can have copies elsewhere, but that’s true of her and his text message, as well. He shows her the video, then trashes it. “There. Happy?”

“Thank you.”

“I want us to trust each other, so sure. Get me Ned’s phone, now.”

She nods. She turns and goes upstairs.

She hears Marland laugh and say, “You smart little thing. I never would have looked here.”

She goes into the bathroom of the smallest bedroom upstairs. She shuts the door. She kneels before the sink, opens the cabinet door, and fumbles along the top surface. The key Ned gave her to this house was finally useful: she guessed Marland wouldn’t suspect she’d hide something here. She’d secured the phone here, bound with masking tape, after she’d found it, afraid to keep it in her house, and she stares at it for a moment that turns into minutes. If she gives this to him, he’ll erase the text messages and her leverage is gone. She takes a deep breath and snaps a picture of the threatening text message with her own phone’s camera. It’s better than nothing, but it also proves nothing. But if he grabs her phone and inspects it for a backup photo, he’ll see it.

She keeps the photos. She decides it’s worth the risk. She takes a few moments to gather her courage.

She goes to the top of the stairs.

The lamp downstairs, with its faint glow, is off.

“Marland?” she calls.

No answer.

“This isn’t funny. I’m doing what you want.” She takes a tentative step down. She puts Ned’s burner phone in her pocket and switches on the flashlight app to light her way on the stairs.