“Katie,” he whispered and knelt where I sat on the couch. “What’s the matter?”
He took my hands and then sat beside me, his jacket still on. He wiped tears off my cheeks and of course I felt like a baby, crying like that.
“Oh, nothing,” I said and tried to control my emotions. “Detective St. James called and wants to come over this afternoon to go over the attack again. It just upset me, that all this is happening. And I hate him,” I said, remembering the expression on his face. So self-satisfied.
“Oh, sweetie,” he said and pulled me into his arms. I let him, burying my face in his jacket, which smelled of the outdoors, still a bit cool. “Why the hell do they want to come over again? Don’t they understand what you’ve been through? How many damn times do they have to interview you?”
I pulled away and shook my head. “They said they wanted to go over a few matters and that it was routine.”
“I'll cancel my meeting at the corporation,” he said and glanced over to where Sophie was sleeping. “I’ll stay and sit with you while they question you.”
I shook my head. “No,” I said. “You go. They didn't want you to be here and said if necessary, I'd have to go to the precinct. I'd rather not go out so I’ll ask Lara if she can come and do the interview with me. She volunteered.”
“I’ll call her right now,” Drake said and pulled out his cell. He entered in her number on the keypad and put the phone on speaker. It rang twice before Lara answered.
“Hey, Drake,” she said cheerfully. “How’re things?”
“Sorry to bother you, but the police have asked to come by to ask some questions of Kate this afternoon. They don’t want me here during the interview. Kate wanted to know if you can come.”
“Oh, I can’t,” she replied, her voice sounding frustrated. “I’m in court this afternoon. Why the hell are they interviewing Kate again?”
“They said it’s routine,” I called out. “That’s okay if you’re busy, Lara. I can do it by myself.”
“You’ll do nothing of the sort. I can send over one of my junior lawyers. They can advise you in case they ask you anything you shouldn’t answer or don’t have to answer.”
“I don’t know if that’s necessary,” I said. “I have nothing to hide. I did nothing wrong, so why would I not want to answer their questions?”
“Believe me, Kate, you do not want to answer their questions without a lawyer present. If they’re on the wrong track with this case, they can twist things like you wouldn’t believe. Take my advice. Let me send one of my junior staff.”
I sighed, not wanting some stranger to listen to all the private details of my life with Drake. “If you think it’s a good idea.”
“I do think it’s a good idea. I’ll send Dana. She’s nice and bright. You’ll like her. She knows the law about cases like this so she’ll be a great addition.”
“Okay,” I said, reluctant now that I had to face this.
“You okay?” she said, her voice sounding hesitant. “I’d prefer to be with you, but this is the best I can do on short notice.”
“No, it’s fine. Thanks for your help.”
“Yes, thanks,” Drake added. “I offered to stay with her, but as I said, the police didn’t want to interview her when I was present.”
“I understand,” Lara said. "They're afraid you'd influence her."
Finally, we said goodbye and Drake hung up.
“There,” he said and tucked his phone back into his jacket pocket. “Aren’t you glad I phoned? It’s better that you have someone with you who knows what’s kosher. I like cops, but Lara’s right. If they think I’m guilty, they might be searching for something from you that might help pin it on me. I’ve read about cases where the cops got tunnel vision and went off on the wrong tangent, ignoring evidence in their faces because it didn’t fit their theory.”
I nodded and picked Sophie up out of her chair, wanting to feel her warm little body in my arms. “I’m glad I’ll have one of Lara’s staff here with me. I’m sure it’s nothing.” I put Sophie up on my shoulder and she seemed content to sit with me and look at the big painting behind the sofa. It had bright colors and dark lines, and seemed especially interesting to her.
“I hope so,” Drake said doubtfully, “but you can never be sure they don’t believe Lisa. The cops always start with the significant other in cases of attempted murder and murder.”
“Why is Lisa doing this?” I asked, frustrated that we couldn’t get her out of our lives no matter what. “She must be nuts.”
“She’s definitely off the deep end if she’s suggesting I asked her to run you down. You know that, right?”
I frowned at Drake. “Of course I do,” I said, feeling bad that he even had to say it out loud. “I know you love me. I know you tried to quit when you learned Lisa was in your class.”
Of course, that made me cry again and I wiped my eyes, not wanting Drake to see how close to tears I always seemed to be.