Chapter Eleven: Two Steps Forward and One Step Back
Numbers
I texted Mia, but she was acting a little strangely since the club incident. She didn’t reply. In some ways, I understood it. She’d only just finished representing me in one situation, only to be caught in another tricky situation because she was present at the club. It made sense for her to be the one to go to bat for us. As I sat in my office looking over spreadsheets I gave her another call.
She answered after the second ring.
“Ah ? hey, how are you, Mia?”
“Hi, Numbers. I’m good… just working,” she said, reluctance in her voice.
“Mia, is everything all right? You literally ran out of there last night. I want to tell you I know it looks bad, but we aren’t criminals. Rebel Saints are a legit club for the community. I feel the need to tell you that. We just have some past entanglements that are compromising our current situation. Believe me.” I wanted to keep seeing her, but I wanted her to know I wasn’t deliberately trying to bring danger to her.
“It’s just getting to be too much. I wanted some space, so I left.”
“I know the other night was hectic with the overdose and everything,” I gulped hard. This wasn’t going to be easy, winning her over. I pulled the phone away from my ear and took a deep breath. I slowly put it up to my ear. “I don’t want to impose or anything, but the whole club has been called in for questioning. Have they called you?” I got straight to the point, I thought with Mia’s no-nonsense approach, this might be the best way to get through to her.
“Yes, she said I would be called in too, but I haven’t been given a time or date yet. It would be the best solution for me to represent the club. I was directly involved, and I saw what happened with my own two eyes. I would like to do it.” She made the offer without me having to ask.
Relief washed over me. “Phew. That’s great, because I’ve been called down to the station tomorrow at 11 a.m. Think you can clear enough time in your schedule to be there?”
“Let me check my calendar, and I’ll see.” Her voice sounded cold.
I didn’t know if I was being paranoid, but something between us had shifted. “Mia. I have this feeling you and me aren’t okay because of this,” I blurted out.
“We’re fine. I want to prepare for tomorrow though. She’s going to grill you a little harder because this is the second incident. Do you have anything you want to share with me before then?” She wasn’t budging and giving me a window in.
I would leave that conversation for face-to-face. “I’m sending the camera footage over, so you can see what you make of it. It shows the guy walking into the club from the back door. Nobody else was there.”
“Explain like you did at the club, that’s all, and stay calm even if she pushes your buttons.”
“Okay, Mia. I’m looking forward to seeing you, and not just because of the interview.” I wanted her to know I had feelings for her and even in the midst of this I cared for her.
“I’m sorry the Rebel Saints keep running into trouble, and it will be good to see you too,” she replied with more warmth.
Maybe there was a glimmer of hope after all. “You and me both.”
It felt so odd to be back in the same place, same situation with Mia. I stared at the cold bleak walls of the interrogation room with Mia beside me.
She looked immaculate with her white collar top, open at her neckline to reveal cleavage that left my mouth watering. Her long legs were contained with a pencil skirt that emphasized her hips, and her pretty toes were visible in open-toe wedges.
She was definitely trying to kill me.
Detective Mandy Shepherd entered the door just like she did the last time, armed with papers. “Good morning and thank you for being here. I wanted to let you know that I will be recording the conversation on this device here. A tape recorder. Do you have any objections to that before we get started?”
“No,” Mia stated with her slender manicured hands in front of her.
“Let’s begin. This is the second time the Rebel Saints have been called into question in recent weeks, and it's very concerning for the Holbeck police department,” she started off.
“Correction ? it’s the second time you have enquired about said persons ? one of whom is a part of the Rebels Saints motorcycle club,” Mia added firmly. “There have been no charges laid, and neither incidents have been linked to Mr. Briggs or the Rebel Saints.”
I gave the detective my best take-that smile.
Detective Shepherd scoffed. “Mia, you were at the club that night? Why were you there?”
Oh, shit.
“I was there to see my friends,” she answered simply.