The little yellow bug made it's way down the road as the streetlamps guided it to the parking garage where Emma was supposed to meet Neal and the client. She parked a little ways away and shut off her lights. There was no one else around yet. Emma turned the keys in the ignition and the bug quieted. She slipped out of the car and looked around. Still no sign of anybody. She figured she had just gotten there first. The place was eerily silent, save the echo of her footsteps on the pavement. There were only a few other cars parked in the garage, none of which she recognized.
"Neal?" she called as she approached. The echo of her voice throughout the garage was the only answer. She sighed and pulled out her cell phone to check the time. It was ten past eleven, where were they? She started to dial Neal's number.
"Freeze!" A voice suddenly yelled. Emma's head snapped up. A police officer pointed a gun at her. Emma's hands instantly shot up in the air. "Wh-what's going on?!" she cried.
"Is that your Volkswagen outside?" the cop demanded.
"Yes, why-"
"You're in possession of stolen property! Your description, as well as the description of your car was reported earlier today. Take off your bag and put it on the ground."
Terrified, Emma slowly did as she was told.
"Turn around."
She stood up and turned. "Please, you're making a mistake!" she cried. But the cop ignored her. He began to recite her rights as he snapped handcuffs on her. She was terrified. What would happen to her? Was she going to jail? Worries raced through her mind.
Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye she saw movement farther back in the garage. She looked up. Neal was peeking out from behind the column, a bewildered expression on his face. Emma looked at him desperately, her eyes pleading with him to come to her rescue. The cop started turning her away to take her to his squad car. She looked back over her shoulder certain that she would see Neal coming to save her. But instead she felt like she'd been kicked in the gut. Neal was running away, fast as he could, without even a glance back at her. Emma's jaw fell and she dropped her head staring at the ground with wide, disbelieving eyes.
The police officer led her to his car and opened the door. He put a hand on her head to guide her in and then shut the door. He walked back over to her bag and looked through it. The officer extracted something from the bag and walked back to the car. He held the watch up to the window for her to see with an accusatory expression painted on his face. She stared at it blankly, not even caring about the item anymore. She dropped her head, too consumed with Neal. The officer retrieved the rest of her bag and put it in his trunk. Then he opened the driver's door and got into the squad car.
The police car left the garage and started down the street towards the station. Emma was in shock. Had Neal just abandoned her? He was letting her take the fall for his plan. His arrangement. She'd stolen the watch for him and now he left her? Tears started falling down her face. This morning she'd been terrified he left her. She'd been wrong then only to have it hurt worse now. She'd seen him running, skipping out on her. She hung her head. How could she have trusted him? He was a thief, a con man and a coward. She should have seen that through his charm but she had wanted so desperately to believe she'd found someone who cared about her. But in the end he didn't. He'd only been using her and she was easy to abandon. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to stop the tears. She was stupid, so stupid to trust him and now she was paying for it. He said she was his Princess but he lied. He lied. He left.