“Thank you,” Damita said.
“Thank you, Ms. Whitmore. You’ve been more helpful than you know,” O’Flannery responded.
“If we have more questions, should we reach out to you here or at work?” said Alberti.
“Probably. . .uh, you can reach me here.”
“Are you sure?” Alberti asked.
“I’ve been staying with a friend of mine, Carmella.”
“I don’t understand, Ms. Whitmore. Isn’t this where you live?”
“My husband and I are separated.”
Once outside the detectives finally spoke to one another. “I’d bet my pension the husband had something to do with this,” said Alberti.
“Do you really think a husband could engineer something so horrible to do to his own wife?” O’Flannery asked.
“I’ve seen far worse since I’ve been on the force.”
“That’s so true,” O’Flannery agreed.
• • •
In less than a week, Damita was feeling better. Her ankle was fine and the doctor thought she would be okay to return to work. Carmella and her mother had been frequent visitors since she had gotten out of the hospital, not only because they were concerned about what had happened to her, but also because they didn’t trust Neal. Damita called both Carmella and her mother and asked them to come by one afternoon when Neal was out.
Karen was smiling. “It’s nice to see you walking around,” her mother said.
“Are you ready to come back to my place? I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to stay here much longer. He might get the wrong idea,” Carmella said, with contempt.
“I agree with you,” Damita said.
“Now that’s my smart daughter talking. If you’re not ready to find a place and you want to give Carmella a break you can always come back home.”
“Carmella, my mother’s right. I’m going to stay with her and give you a chance to have your apartment back.”
Carmella frowned. “I don’t need my apartment back. You weren’t in my way. In fact, I liked having you there.”
Damita smiled. “That’s sweet, but you and Derrick need your privacy.” She turned to her mother. “I’ll stay with you, Mom, and I’ll start looking for my own place. I also need to find a lawyer. I’m going to file for divorce. It shouldn’t be too difficult. I have my own money and I don’t want anything from Neal, so hopefully it will be quick and easy.”
“I don’t know about quick, given what I’ve heard about divorces in New York City, but it should be easy, especially if you hire an attorney.”
Neal came back to the apartment just in time to hear the word divorce. He felt like everything was falling apart. Everything he tried seemed to fail and now the inevitable seemed to be happening. She was going to start divorce proceedings. He didn’t know what to do. He had run out of options.
He stepped back and came back into the apartment, making sure to make enough noise so that they would think he had just walked in. He didn’t want them to know he had heard their conversation.
He pasted a fake smile on his face. “Damita, I’m home!”
She cautioned Carmella and her mother to be quiet.
“My mother and Carmella are here with me in the back.”
“Hello,” he said.
“Hello,” replied Carmella.
Karen simply nodded.
“I was going to cook Damita’s favorite tonight; spaghetti and meatballs. Would you both like to stay and have dinner with us?”
“I need to get home. Derrick and I are going to the movies tonight.”
“I’ll leave with you, Carmella.”
They both kissed Damita goodbye.
“I’ll call you tomorrow,” her mother said.
“Okay, Mom.”
At dinner, Neal was surprisingly quiet.
Damita managed a smile. “The spaghetti was very good. Thank you,” Damita offered.
“I’m glad you liked it. I realize it’s your favorite.”
“I appreciate it. You didn’t have to.”
Neal’s face suddenly looked very serious. “Damita, can I ask you a question?”
“Sure, of course you can.”
“Is there any part of you that still loves me?”
“Neal, I don’t want—”
“Tell me the truth. I promise I won’t react. I need to hear the truth.”
“I love you, but not the way I used to. I finally realize that just because you love a person doesn’t mean you can live with them or be married to them. We’ll both have to get used to that idea if we’re ever going to be anything other than mortal enemies. And, I don’t want to be your enemy. I never wanted to be.”