Chapter Thirty-Nine Her

Chapter Thirty-Nine Her

Present Day

Detective Sessions arrived a few minutes after the ambulance crew. Instead of surrendering to the sweet bliss of sleep and

forgetting this day, which was my original plan, I fought through a barrage of annoying questions designed to determine the

extent of my injuries.

Do you have a headache? What day is today? What’s your address? What really happened out there? That last one came from the detective, complete with his usual scowling lack of charm.

After a half hour the ambulance crew left with my thanks and my adamant refusal to go to the hospital. I didn’t trust the

detective. He’d run tests or collect DNA, which would be a problem. I already had to hope my bat cleaning and general household

subterfuge stopped that line of attack. I didn’t want to make anything easier on him... or for him to find out my secrets.

With the medical personnel gone, that left Detective Sessions, me, Mom, and Elias. We squared off across from each other at

the kitchen table.

Mom glared at the detective. “You owe my daughter an apology.”

I could get to like this new, throw-up-the-barricades Mom. This was all for show, of course. Part of her I’m just here to help scam but having her rush to my defense for a change ticked off an unexpected warmth inside me. This must be what kids who

were loved and wanted by their parents felt like all the time.

The detective did not look impressed. “The same daughter who has a bedroom with a dent in the wall, a mess of strange paint

on another wall, a hidden murder weapon in her greenhouse, and a motive to want her husband dead? That daughter?”

It did sound pretty grim when he lined the pieces up like that.

“You’ve falsely accused her of killing her dear husband. You leaked suggestive information about her. You’ve surrendered to

Kathryn and her vindictiveness.” Mom ticked off her own list while showing off pretty pink nails and a new manicure. “You’ve

put a target on Addison’s back and I want to know what you plan to do about that.”

Detective Sessions sighed. “Your daughter didn’t tell me about the threats.”

Always my fault. This guy never wavered in placing the blame on me. “I wonder why.”

Elias set down his coffee mug with a thud, grabbing the spotlight from the rest of the table. “Okay, let’s keep this civil.”

The detective kept staring at me. “Should you be in the hospital?”

Not happening. “I’m not leaving this house ever again.”

“That would be smart,” Elias said. “She has a sore back. She doesn’t have any signs of a concussion, but we’ll watch her for

nausea, confusion, and the like.”

Wait, was he moving in, too?

Elias kept going. “We’re going to have a talk about hiring security.”

“Yes.” Mom nodded. “An excellent idea.”

“I’m not inviting even more people into this house.” If I felt better that might have sounded less targeted at Mom, but so what. My constant, futile

search for peace kept getting derailed and everyone sitting at the table played a role in that.

“We have one letter and covert photos, which I will take back for testing. I doubt we’ll find anything because I doubt any

evidence has been preserved. And I can’t tell what’s under that slap of paint on the wall in the bedroom. I’m guessing heavy

duty cleaning supplies took care of that.” The detective hesitated for a few seconds. “Some people might think these alleged

threats are a convenient way to throw the scent off you, Mrs. Dougherty.”

This guy. “Do these people also think I threw myself into a tree?”

The attack did have a novice hint to it. If I had gotten to that tree limb first. If a car had come down the street. If I’d

looked up a second earlier and could identify who hit me. There were so many ways the camera ruse could have gone wrong. I’d

been unlucky but someone had gotten very lucky... so far.

“We’re collecting security video from neighbors and checking Mrs. Dougherty’s feed. If someone stepped onto the property or

played with the cameras, we should see them.”

The detective was tiresome and, frankly, a bit obvious. He’d pinned his hopes on me being the killer and drove to that conclusion

no matter what the evidence said.

Mom’s chair squeaked across the floor as she stood up. “I’m getting Addison something to drink.”

“I’ve seen the news and heard the rumors, Nick. I know the pressure is building. You’ve got the governor’s office all over you. You’re dealing with a dead hero. People want answers now. There’s talk about bringing in the BCI.”

That was news to me. “‘BCI’ sounds official.”

“The Bureau of Criminal Investigation. A division of the New York State Police. Think of them as state-level FBI.” Elias kept

his focus on the detective. “You need to rework your strategy here.”

The detective’s flat expression suggested he didn’t care for that. “Don’t tell me how to do my job.”

“You have a widow who’s been threatened and attacked.” Elias pointed toward the window over the sink. “Now the press is outside

her house.”

“That’s a good thing. That kind of presence should keep anyone else from sneaking up on her.” Without taking a breath the

detective shifted course. “Did you want Richmond dead?”

Yes. No question I did. The more I learned about him, the more dead I thought he should be.

Originally the plan was for me to ruin him and for Mom to swoop in and decide if he’d suffered enough. That was her thing.

Then I lived with Richmond and his threats, saw what an evil jackass he was, and stopped wavering on the revenge part. Dead

and ruined. Some people deserved both. Richmond certainly did.

I went with a shorter, more snide answer instead. “That’s your question after finding out someone attacked me—”

Elias tried to talk over me. “Of course she didn’t want him dead.”

The defense didn’t go far enough, so I outlined some truths the detective either didn’t know or intentionally ignored. “Richmond has an angry ex-wife. He’s upset some patients and there are questions about at least one of his surgeries. The father of one dead child is looking for answers, which has Richmond’s former business partners panicked and potentially in trouble. Yet, your focus is only on me.”

“You suddenly have a lot of theories about who killed your husband.”

Not suddenly but the man didn’t listen to reason. “And you only have one.”

Elias cleared his throat. One of his big stop-talking cues. “That’s enough.”

The legal strategy here made no sense. This wasn’t the time to scold me. I’d thrown out hints and Super Detective didn’t even

ask a follow-up question about Richmond’s office mess. The detective might know about the Cullen family and the potential

lawsuit, but the lack of mentions in the press suggested not. Detective Sessions had tunnel vision, which meant I was on my

own.

“If someone kills me, will that convince you I’m not the villain in this?” I asked because I really wondered.

The detective’s blank expression didn’t change. “I think you’re safe.”

“And I think you’re incompetent.”

“Okay.” Elias stood up. “Addison needs to rest.”

The detective slowly rose to his feet and joined Elias. “I have more questions for your client to answer. I’ll ask them when

the rest of the forensics come back.”

Whatever. “Find out who attacked me. That’s who you need to question.”

“We do seem to have a rash of violent people swinging bats and tree branches in town. Never had those crimes until... when did you get here?” The detective shrugged. “Don’t leave the area.”

“I’m sure one of your covert sources would fill you in if I tried.”

“That’s right. Someone is always watching, Mrs. Dougherty. You’d be wise to remember that.”

For once I hoped he was right because then there would be a witness to whatever happened next. I needed one of those because

I didn’t see any sign that the person who wanted me on edge and injured, maybe dead, planned to stop.