Night Shift(89)

“Sure,” she said, trying to make her own hands relax. “About the shooting.”

“Sure. Had you ever seen that man, the one in the stretch Hummer?”

“Never.”

“Any of those men familiar to you?” Arthur’s wide blue eyes were fixed on her face.

“No.” It was a pleasure to tell the plain truth.

“What happened? Just take your time. We’re trying to figure this out. Every detail helps.”

Fiji was glad he’d told her to take her time. She did. “I heard all the commotion across the street, and I came running out,” Fiji said. (Best to omit that the Rev had called her. That was not explainable.) “The Rev and Quinn were standing in my front yard. Diederik was just going in the side door of the pawnshop, or maybe Quinn told me he’d gone in. I don’t remember which.”

Arthur nodded, to show her he was listening.

“I saw all the men had guns. They were moving toward the pawnshop. Slowly.”

“Did you realize there was someone left in the Hummer?” Arthur asked quietly.

“I never thought about it at all. The windows were tinted dark. The doors on the pawnshop side were open.”

“What happened next?”

“I thought all the men were going to go into the pawnshop. I was scared for Bobo. And Olivia and Lemuel.” Fiji took a deep, shuddering breath, remembering the fear. If she had really been uncertain how she felt about Bobo, she now knew. “Then Diederik and Olivia came out. And Bobo.”

“Do you have any idea, however out there, about why these armed men would be going into the pawnshop?” Arthur’s voice was gentle, but his eyes were intent.

“No,” she said. “I was stunned.”

“Someone has to know why those men showed up,” Arthur said. “They’re not talking, except to ask for a lawyer.”

“Maybe Olivia can tell us? How is she?” Fiji asked cleverly. Information!

“Still in surgery, and it’ll be a while before she can talk,” Arthur said.

“Can you tell me about her?” Dammit, someone’s got to tell me.

“About her wound? Not in any detail. One of my deputies talked to the doctor who’s operating, and he seemed fairly certain she’d pull through.”

“Good.”

“Fairly certain” was something.

“Just a few more questions? I can tell you’re tired.” Arthur looked concerned, and he might be, but he was also a cop.

Fiji nodded.

“What happened to Ellery McGuire?” Arthur said.

“Who . . . ? That’s the name of the man in the limo? The one who shot Olivia?”

“Yes. The guy who was filling up his car at Gas N Go said you stretched out your hand to him. What was that about?”

“I begged him not to shoot again,” Fiji said. “He was pointing the gun at me, and Olivia was bleeding.” She shook her head. “It was horrible.” And it had been. She could feel again that burning intensity that had seized her when she’d realized what she must do.

“He didn’t think you spoke. The witness.”

“I’m not saying I made a speech. But I said at least, ‘No, no!’”

“Okay. Then what happened?”

Then I killed him. “He sort of crumpled and his hand dropped,” Fiji said, as she’d told the doctor. “And he turned really white, and stuff came out of his mouth. I guess he’s dead?” She’d known he was dead, but she had to play this out.

“Yes. He’s dead. But you had no weapon, right? So you couldn’t have harmed him physically.”

“I had no gun or Taser or anything,” she said truthfully. “I just wanted him to stop. I was so scared that Olivia was dead.” And she shuddered, remembering Olivia’s blank eyes and the blood coming out of her abdomen. And knowing Lemuel was asleep and could not wake to save her. And knowing this meant the hospital, and the chance Olivia would really die. And being very, very angry.

Fiji began to cry, and that pushed Arthur to finish up in a hurry.

“She’s not dead, Fiji,” he said, in as comforting a voice as he could manage. “And we have all the attackers under arrest. I don’t know how Bobo and Teacher rounded them up, but they had those assholes under control.”

“But those assholes are not talking?” She was really curious how they were going to explain their presence.

“Not a squeak.” Arthur’s mouth pulled down at one corner. “Not until their lawyers get here.”

“Smart,” Fiji said. “And professional. I want to go home.”

“You’ve got some insurance,” he said, smiling. “Why not stay a while? The doctor wants you to spend the night, make sure you’re okay.”