Searching for Beautiful(63)
“Yes, ma’am. You’re the taxpayer. And you are correct about wrong judgments. Why, my initial impressions of you were completely wrong.”
Her friend’s brows snapped together. “What do you mean?”
Stone Petty’s voice held true innocence. “I originally thought you were a sweet, calm, hippie do-gooder.”
“Oh. And now?”
Gen held her breath. Some strange kind of tension squeezed between them, and she was caught in the middle. It was so unlike Arilyn to go on the offensive, especially with someone in authority. She usually respected teachers or anyone in a uniform a bit too much.
“Now I don’t.”
The unspoken insult hit the target. Arilyn gasped, but he’d already pulled up to the small station and parked by the curb. He opened the door, escorted them out, and brought them inside.
Gen had never been in the police station before. It looked like the typical small-town, Main Street facility like the firehouse and ambulance volunteer corps. The lobby held a high counter, a few chairs, and the stale scent of coffee, sweat, and guilt. Officer Petty guided them through a long hallway, which opened up on a room with a few battered desks, filing cabinets, a makeshift kitchen, and a few doors she imagined led to private offices. Definitely nothing to regale Kate and Kennedy about. She bet they would ask her a million questions regarding the inside.
Petty settled them at a corner desk by the wall. She sat down on the metal chair, noting various photos and mishmash pinned to the wall behind each desk, but nothing personal lay on Officer Petty’s. Files. Computer. Desk calendar. Clock. Seemed he liked his sweets, judging from the multiple crumbled cookie bags. Half a pack of Marlboro cigarettes lay open. Oh no. Maybe Arilyn wouldn’t see. Maybe she’d realize they were in a dicey situation and not go on a rant. Maybe—
“You smoke?”
The high pitch of her friend’s voice made Gen wince. Too late. Petty cocked an eyebrow, slid the pack into the top drawer of his desk, and stared at her.
“You got a problem with that?”
Arilyn leaned her elbows on the chipped wood. “Yes. I have a huge problem. Besides polluting the environment and killing others with secondhand smoke, you’re a time bomb of health issues. Cancer. Pain. Death. Still worth it?”
Gen kept still. The tension between them tightened another notch like a noose, and the stare-off was too intense for breathing. Finally, Petty grinned real slow and deliberate.
“Yeah. It is. Now, why don’t you tell me your side of the story before you piss me off enough to put you in jail for something.”
She gasped. “You can’t talk to me that way.”
“Yeah, I can. You’re on my turf, little one. Better get used to it.”
Gen almost closed her eyes but it was too fascinating to miss. Her usually centered friend glowered, muttered something violent under her breath, and slammed her butt down on the uncomfortable chair.
“Where’s Wolfe?” Gen asked.
“With Officer Devine. Ms. Meadows, you can start. What did you see or hear before you called us?”
Arilyn recounted her side of story with just a bit of a sulk. Gen took it slow when it was her turn, trying not to leave anything out. She gave Petty her cell phone so he could see the initial call from the hospital and her subsequent one to David. Petty kept focus, interrupting with an occasional question. Finally he closed the folder and looked up.
“We’ll go over the facts and be in touch.”
Arilyn leaped to her feet. “That’s it? That’s all? Aren’t you going to arrest David?”
“Are you pressing charges?”
“Yes.”
“No,” Gen said. Arilyn jerked her head around. “I can’t right now. I just want to get Wolfe out of here and go home.”
Her friend grasped her hand. “He assaulted you,” she said quietly. “I know you’re scared, but we’ll all help you. Report it.”
“Not now. Please, A, don’t push this. This is so much bigger. I have to think of the hospital, legal issues, publicity, Wolfe. I’ll apply for a restraining order against him so he’ll stay away from me. I never want to see him again.”
Arilyn bit her lip, obviously frustrated but not wanting to push. “Fine. Let’s get Wolfe and go home.”
“Sorry, ladies, we’ll have to hold your friend overnight.” Officer Devine, aka Beauty, strolled over and looked at them with a bit of sympathy. “He violated the restraining order and assaulted Dr. Riscetti. We’ll have to wait for bail in the morning when the courts open.”
Gen battled tears, then realized Wolfe would hate her crying. She swallowed them back, tilted her chin, and swore she’d be practical. She’d been the one to drag him into this mess, and she was going to get him out. “Did he call for a lawyer?”