Ben looked at the man and wondered how he would know something like that. It wasn’t smart to go around advertising you were a billionaire, especially with men like them.
“I bought them secondhand,” Ben replied.
The older man looked him in the eyes. “Bullshit.”
“You one of those Hollywood guys? Are we sitting in the midst of greatness?” the drunk man guffawed.
Ben shrugged a shoulder. “I’m just here to do my time.”
“What’d you do?” the old man asked.
Ben smiled. “Ran a stoplight.”
All three of his cellmates chuckled. “Stick to that story and you’ll be just fine.”
Ben relaxed, taking a seat and leaning his head against the wall. He bought some time, but he knew he needed to get his ass out of that cell sooner rather than later. The next guy to come into the cell might not be quite as friendly.
Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was laughing at the situation. No one he knew at the office would ever believe he had spent the night in jail after beating a man to a bloody pulp. It wasn’t exactly his style. He shook his head thinking about what Rachel was going to say. He knew she wouldn’t be mad, but she was going to give him a rash of shit for it.
“He’s smiling again,” one of the guys said.
Ben’s eyes popped open and his head came forward, staring at the three men all looking back at him. This was not going to end well if he had to spend another day in that cell.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Katherine
SHE WALKED INTO THE police department and demanded to speak to someone in charge. Of course, she was essentially laughed at. She made her case again, demanding someone talk with her about Ben’s case. She was asked to wait and after thirty minutes, she was finally escorted to a desk in an open area.
“How can I help you?” a desk cop asked.
Katherine did her best not to lose her cool. She hadn’t slept all night and was ready to scream at the injustice over what was happening to Ben.
“You can help me by telling me why my boyfriend is locked up for saving my life and the man that was trying to hurt me is out free,” she said in a cool voice.
The cop, Bowers, smirked. “Miss, do you know how many times a day we hear this exact story?”
Katherine leaned forward, a dangerous smiled on her lips. “No, I don’t know what you’ve heard, but I can testify to my story and that’s the one I’m here to talk about. I don’t care about anyone else or what their stories are.”
“Okay, so what can I do for you?” he asked.
She took a deep breath. “Yesterday, my husband, who I left because he beats me, showed up at my work place. My boyfriend, Ben O’Leary showed up at the right time and kept my husband from dragging me out the door to do who knows what.”
Bowers was nodding his head. “Sounds like you’ve got a rough situation on your hands.”
Katherine could see the guy didn’t care about what she was trying to say. “Ben saved me. When the police showed up, who we called in the first place, Ben was arrested, and my husband was allowed to walk free.”
“Are you in fear for your life?” Bowers asked in a far more serious tone.
She gulped down the lump in her throat. “Yes,” she whispered.
“I can’t do much about this Ben guy, that has to go through the courts, but I can give you a card with a list of services for victims of domestic violence.”
Katherine closed her eyes and shook her head. “I’v
e tried that. You’re not listening to what I’m saying. Tim Marshall is dangerous. Ben is not. Ben is locked up while Tim is roaming free. He’s going to come after me and you people have the wrong man locked up,” her voice was high-pitched as she fought back the hysteria.
She’d been trying her best to stay calm, but she knew her situation had just been magnified. Tim was going to find her. She wanted to run, but she couldn’t do that until she knew Ben was out of jail and not going to be charged with the assault.