Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Before I could fully process what Adeena said, the doorbell rang.

I scurried away without answering it. “Oh my gulay, there’s someone at the door. Do you think it’s the police? Do they think my family killed Derek?”

Adeena’s voice flowed, warm and reassuring, through the phone. “You’re innocent, so there’s nothing they can do to you, right?”

We both paused, knowing that wasn’t quite true. The law tended to work differently for people like us.

She continued, “Go answer the door. The longer you take, the more suspicious you look. I’m calling Amir to let him know what’s going on.”

I thanked her and hung up, but stayed in the hallway staring at the front door. Whoever was on the other side got tired of ringing the bell and started pounding on the door. Tita Rosie bustled by to answer.

“Lila, what’s wrong with you? That’s probably Bernie out there and it’s freezing!”

She was right.

Bernadette stomped inside, both to knock the snow off her boots and also because she was pissed at me. “What the hell, Lila? Have you been standing here this whole time?”

“Bernadette, language!”

She flushed. “Sorry, Tita Rosie.”

My aunt gestured for Bernadette’s coat and led her into the dining room. “Come in and warm yourself up. I made almondigas for lunch.”

Bernadette’s eyes lit up. “My favorite! You remembered?”

Tita Rosie smiled. “Of course I did. I even added extra fried garlic, just the way you like it.”

Bernadette swooped in and hugged my aunt, who patted her a few times on the back, the awkward gesture contrasting with her beaming face. Unfortunately, the doorbell rang yet again, interrupting this love fest.

We all looked at each other, Bernadette and I in alarm and Tita Rosie in confusion.

“Who could that be?” Tita Rosie asked, moving to open the door.

Bernadette and I huddled together. “Did you hear about the poison?” she asked.

I nodded. “That’s why I didn’t answer the door right away. I thought you were the cops. How did you hear about it?”

“The usual office gossip. Guess I’ll forgive you for letting me freeze on the front porch, but don’t think you can avoid the cops this time . . .” she trailed off as Tita Rosie and Detective Park stepped into the room.

I forced a smile. “Hello, Detective. We were expecting you.”

“You were?” He raised an eyebrow, glancing back and forth between Bernadette and me.

“Oh don’t worry, she didn’t tell me anything. Not that I didn’t ask her, of course.” I hurried to clear Bernadette from suspicion. “I got the info from . . . another source.”

“I see. And you’re not going to tell me who this source is?”

Tita Rosie cut in. “Excuse me, Jonathan, but what are you talking about? Source for what?”

He sighed. “I’m sorry Rosie, but this isn’t a social visit. We received an anonymous tip that had the chief speed up the results on the dishes we took from you. They tested positive for arsenic. I’ve got a warrant to search your home and restaurant.”

I stiffened and stopped my aunt from responding. “This all seems pretty quick. I think we need to get our lawyer here.”

“Anak!” My aunt grabbed my arm. “We have nothing to hide and Jonathan’s right. The sooner they solve this case, the sooner I get my restaurant back. Right?” she asked, looking at the detective.

He smiled, as if he’d already anticipated my aunt’s answer. “Of course, Rosie. I’m just trying to do my job here, you know.”

“Tita, we really should wait for Amir to look this over—”

“Ay, Lila, stop fussing.” She lowered her glasses onto her face to look over the document. “This seems to be in order. Do we need to do anything?”

“A team is going to search your house while I head over to your restaurant to lead the search there. You should all stay here, OK?”

He made the call and waited until another officer knocked at the door. He let him in, showed him the signed document, and instructed the team on what to search for. They went to work and Detective Park took his leave.

I watched him for a moment before coming to a decision. I grabbed Bernadette and pulled her aside. “Ate, do you think you can stay with Tita Rosie while this is going on? Amir should be here soon, but I don’t want her to be alone for this.”

She nodded. “You going over to the restaurant?”

“Of course. I can’t let them do this to us. Besides, I don’t exactly trust them. Not after what happened with Ronnie . . .”

Bernadette’s lips pulled into a thin line at the mention of her ex-boyfriend and his troubles. “Go. I’ll take care of Tita Rosie. You handle your business.”

I hurried out to my car, trying to push down the sense of panic that’d been rising since I first got Adeena’s call.

We’ll be fine, I told myself. We didn’t do anything, so they couldn’t possibly find anything on us. Right? Right.

I sure hate it when I’m wrong.