Miriam gazed out over the river from her desk in her new office and smiled to herself. It was mid-November, and even though the leaves had finally fallen and there were nighttime frosts, this day was gloriously sunny and warm. She was just about to meet Ashley for lunch at the salad place downstairs when her office phone rang.
‘Miriam Kagan,’ she said, pleased by her professional tone. It had been only a few months since she’d settled into her new office and taken on new legal work, and she was surprised by how much she was enjoying it.
‘Um. Hello. May I please speak with …’ There was a pause as the male voice sounded like he might be reading something. ‘Miriam Kagan?’ He pronounced Kagan like ‘Ka-GAHN.’
‘This is she. Who may I ask is calling?’
‘Hi. This is Officer Lewis from the BPD. The Bethesda Police Department, that is.’
‘Officer Lewis, how kind of you to return my call,’ Miriam said, although she wasn’t hopeful that the call would be any different than the dozen or so she’d already made and received. Through the Freedom of Information Act and a few well-placed lawyer friends – and fine, she’d admit it, her highly tuned Facebook-stalking skills – Miriam had pieced together a near-complete list of the officers who had been on duty the night Karolina was arrested. She’d left dozens of messages over two months’ time. She’d spoken to nearly all of them by phone, when they chose to call her back, and not a single one had anything illuminating to say. Yes, they remembered Karolina spending the night in the holding cell. Why wouldn’t they? It wasn’t every night you got a former Victoria’s Secret Angel – or, depending on your area of interest, a current senator’s wife – in jail. Yes, they knew at the time that she was being held for driving under the influence. A few of them remembered seeing Harry and his friends and then Elaine, when she’d come to pick them up, but others did not. No matter. Not a single officer had anything to say that was different from what had been shared in the papers: namely that Karolina was brought in drunk, semi-hysterical, and refused at first a Breathalyzer and then a blood test. They all assumed one was administered after a court order was obtained, as would have been standard procedure, but none of them would swear to it.
‘You’re welcome. And I know I said I was calling from the BPD, but I retired last month. Really to join my father’s business, since he’s been ill. But legally speaking or whatever, you should probably know that I’m no longer a member of the force.’
‘Okay,’ Miriam said. ‘That’s fine.’
Officer Lewis cleared his throat. ‘Yes, thank you. Anyway, I feel terrible that I didn’t tell someone this earlier, but it would have been … complicated. With my superiors and all.’
Miriam inhaled sharply and hoped the ex-cop couldn’t hear her excitement. ‘Okay,’ she said, stretching out the word as soothingly as she could.
‘Are we off the record?’
‘Of course.’
‘Well, I read all over the news that Mrs. Hartwell refused various sobriety tests. And that is not my recollection from that night. It was the very opposite, in fact.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘Yes, ma’am. She asked repeatedly to be administered a Breathalyzer. Begged, in fact.’
‘She did?’ Miriam asked, although this was exactly what Karolina had been claiming all along.
‘Yes, ma’am. Multiple times.’
‘And you’re sure of this?’
‘Very, ma’am. I was the officer on duty who completed her booking. The field officers left at shift change, and I was responsible for finishing her paperwork.’
‘I see,’ Miriam murmured. ‘And you clearly remembered her begging for a Breathalyzer?’
‘Yes, ma’am.’
‘And may I ask why you didn’t administer one? Isn’t that protocol for all suspected DUIs?’
‘Yes, usually. But in this case, Chief Cunningham said that we were forgoing the sobriety tests because Ms. Hartwell was a VIP.’
‘Meaning?’
‘That Senator Hartwell wouldn’t be too pleased if his wife was arrested for drunk driving. I wasn’t entirely comfortable breaking with protocol, but I did understand it was a sensitive situation.’
‘Yes, I can understand that,’ Miriam said, trying to sound sympathetic.
‘I should have called earlier …’
Miriam nodded, even though he couldn’t see her. ‘Of course, Mr. Lewis. I think anyone could understand your hesitation. But will you do the stand-up thing and set the record straight? You’re off the force, there will be no personal fallout for you. And Mrs. Hartwell – who just so happens to be a lovely person who has suffered a great deal – will be forever indebted.’
There was a moment of silence. ‘You would use my name?’
‘Yes,’ Miriam said definitively. ‘That’s the only way.’
Another moment of silence during which Miriam held her breath, and then she heard: ‘Okay. I’ll do it.’
They arranged a time and a place to meet that coming Friday, and Miriam pumped her fist when they hung up. She grabbed her purse and coat and flew down the stairs, not even bothering to lock her office. She and the others who shared the space were like a dysfunctional family. They complained about the weather over coffee each morning and drinks occasionally after work. They signed for each other’s packages and greeted each other’s clients and shared news updates and weight-loss tips. The psychotherapist named Dara, whom Miriam adored, had started dragging her to some insane Pilates-meets-kickboxing class three times a week, and Miriam had already dropped two sizes.
When she raced into the salad place, breathless, Ashley looked up from her phone with a strange expression.
‘Sorry I’m late. I—’
‘Miriam?’ Ashley interrupted, leaning across the table far enough to stop Miriam midsentence. ‘I have something to tell you.’
‘You and Eric are getting back together?’ Miriam asked, nearly certain that would be the outcome, when being the only question.
Ashley twisted her mouth into a look of pure disgust. ‘Eric? Oh, hell, no!’ she said loudly enough for the people behind the counter to turn and look. ‘He can go screw each and every one of his Ashley Madison girls for all I care.’
‘Okay.’ Miriam laughed. ‘Noted.’
‘I’ve met someone. More than met, I guess I should say. I’m in love. He’s a local dad, actually.’
Ashley lowered her voice, although they were the only two customers in the entire place. ‘I can’t believe I never knew him, but I suppose Greenwich is bigger than we think. And our kids aren’t the same age.’
‘That sounds great,’ Miriam said genuinely. A divorced dad who lived locally sounded like one of the best possible outcomes from this whole horrible ordeal.
‘And I haven’t even told you the best part.’ Ashley leaned in and whispered, ‘He’s British.’
‘Nice!’
‘He’s gorgeous. And so, so sexy.’
‘Good for you,’ Miriam said. ‘I’m really happy for you.’
Ashley nodded. ‘Thanks. I know it’s a little awkward with you and Emily being friends and all, but I think we can all be grown-up about this, right?’
‘Emily? My Emily?’
Ashley peered at Miriam. ‘She didn’t tell you?’
‘Tell me what?’
‘Normally I’m not one to gossip – and Alistair has assured me there’s nothing going on between them – but I did see a naked selfie she sent him on her phone.’
‘Wait – Emily Charlton? Some guy named Alistair? That’s ridiculous. She would never do that,’ Miriam said with more confidence than she felt.
Ashley pulled her own phone from her bag, scrolled, and held up the screen for Miriam to see.
Miriam narrowed her eyes. ‘Those are just naked breasts. They could be anyone’s!’
‘Please, Miriam. I have her number in my phone. Just so long as she doesn’t think I stole her man or something. Whatever they had isn’t any of my business – and you know how much I admire her – but, well, I don’t want her thinking there’s still anything between them. Because there’s not.’
Something about the way Ashley was looking at her made Miriam want to laugh. Suppressing the impulse, she said, ‘Is that maybe something you’d like me to convey to Emily?’
Ashley appeared to think about this. ‘If you want to. So long as you don’t think she’ll be offended.’
Miriam smiled. ‘You can never tell with Emily, but I’ll do my best.’ Her phone buzzed and she glanced at it. It was a text from Paul.
Have you had lunch yet?
Here now w/ Ashley. She has a new man.
That’s good b/c Eric has three new women.
Paul!
Sorry. Anyway made a rez for date night tonight.
Where we going?
Miriam was so caught up in her text exchange, she didn’t even notice Ashley stand up. ‘Sorry, I have to run,’ Ashley said. ‘The hair place just called that they can fit me in. I want to get a blowout before my date. Thanks for listening, Miriam. You’re the best.’
‘Any time. And I’m happy for you, Ash. You deserve it.’ Miriam watched as Ashley walked to her slate gray Range Rover with a bounce in her step. Good for her, she thought.
This time her phone rang. ‘Hey, baby,’ she answered. ‘I was just about to text you back.’
‘Time for a quickie?’ Paul asked, his voice gruff and sexy.
‘No!’ Miriam laughed, although she was delighted he’d asked. They were both trying to make more of an effort at spontaneity. ‘Ashley just left and I’m headed back upstairs.’
She was updating him on the new development in the Karolina case when Miriam felt a strong hand clamp down on her shoulder and she jumped. Paul stood just behind her, grinning.
‘What are you doing here?’ she asked, standing up to kiss him.
He didn’t say anything. He threw out her empty coffee cup, collected her purse from the back of the chair, and took her by the hand.
‘Where are we going?’ Miriam asked, practically giggling like a little girl. ‘I haven’t even ordered yet.’
‘Shhh. Can’t you keep quiet for a minute, woman? We’re going to check out that insanely expensive throw blanket in your office. Let’s see if it delivers the quality it promised.’