“You’re sure you’re feeling better?” Mac stared at her, leaning against her bedroom doorway, looking unconvinced as she did her best not to wince while she put on her shirt. It took more effort than she was willing to admit, and just lifting her arms felt like someone was twisting a knife in her back. But she forced a smile for him anyway.
“I’m great.” She got to her feet, grateful for Ellie sitting beside her, keeping her steady. “We’ve got to get down to the station. There is way too much to do, and I can’t do it from here.” She walked over to him and stared up at him, hoping even if he didn’t buy what she was saying, that he would at least understand.
He stared down at her, arms folded in front of him, a skeptical expression for a long moment before he sighed and pushed off the doorway. “You know I’m just worried about you, right?”
Marissa gave him her best smile, leaning up to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. “I’m fine.”
He groaned but followed her down the stairs.
It had taken her more than a day to recover, but thankfully she was feeling better, just in time for the rest of the interviews.
Once they arrived at the station, there was plenty to do. Jackson had assigned Stalinski and Donaldson to dig deeper into a connection between Allison and Rolley although Jackson openly admitted he was pretty sure the bracelet was planted there. Marissa and Veronica were tasked with interviewing Allison’s serious ex-relationships for a second time just in case anything had been missed: Laura Seaver, Natalie Beckett, Ryan Cooper, and Troy Stone. Even though Mac had wanted to stay, he had been summoned to Seattle with Bennet to check in on the surveillance status. Marissa was disappointed to see him go, even if it was just for the day.
Around the time she was entering the day’s first interview, Marissa realized she had never really been a fan of any of Allie’s exes. If she had to choose one she liked best, it would have been Natalie, and she barely tolerated her. Ryan Cooper was their first interview. He was also their shortest. He had been Allie’s first high school boyfriend, with whom she had shared many of her firsts. But Ryan was happily married with their second baby on the way. He had married the girl he had begun dating right after Allie, and they had been together for over a decade. When Marissa asked, Ryan said he didn’t remember Allie ever seeming distant or feeling like she was with anyone else when she was with him. It was so early in her dating career that Marissa doubted that the manipulative relationship they were looking for had begun yet. Marissa’s impression was that he felt a genuine loss when they spoke of Allie and that he didn’t have anything to hide. But Marissa was also second-guessing herself. Thankfully, Ryan also had a solid alibi of being in California visiting his sister-in-law on the night of the murder.
The second interview was with Laura Seaver. Marissa let Veronica lead this one, feeling uncomfortable with the idea of interviewing her own therapist. However, she did interject more than she had planned. Dr. Seaver was collected and relaxed and spoke of Allie with great admiration and sadness. She said that when she thought Allie was distant, she felt maybe Allie had been seeing someone else, but she always denied it. Laura Seaver was currently in a relationship with a woman who lived in Tacoma, only a couple hours away. Marissa couldn’t get a read on her one way or another, but she said she was in Tacoma the night Allie had died.
Before Marissa could go through another interview, she decided to call Brian. It had been long enough. She had kept the radio silent since Thanksgiving and obviously still wasn’t talking to Melanie. Heading out of the station, she texted her brother-in-law with the idea of lunch, although the thought of food made her feel nauseous. He responded quickly, and they planned to meet at the sandwich shop in his building.
Marissa got there a little early and popped into the bathroom to adjust herself. The interviews left her looking as drained as she felt. Marissa hadn’t bothered with anything more than some concealer to try and hide the bags under her eyes and some eyeliner. She also hadn’t bothered to brush her hair, just threw it up into a bun. Marissa let it down and frowned at the mirror. She didn’t know who the hell was staring back at her; she barely recognized herself. She fixed her hair, threw it back up into a messy bun, then splashed some water on her face.
Exiting the bathroom, she looked presentable, maybe just a little tired. She decided to wait toward the sandwich shop’s front, anxiously picking at her fingernails. Thankfully, she didn’t have to hang around long.
Brian gave her a smile she could see was forced and tried to hide his concern as they got in line for sandwiches. She didn’t even know what she ordered, but she did get a Sprite to sip on.
“I’ve got some small updates for you,” she said as she grabbed a table and sat down. Ellie curled beneath the table comfortably without cue as Marissa sat down and stared at her wrapped-up sandwich.
“Before we get into that, though.” She sighed. “I’m really sorry about Thanksgiving,” she admitted. It was hard for her to get the words out. She wasn’t necessarily sorry about her behavior or anything she had said but more for the fallout she imagined Brian probably had endured after. She could only imagine what the house must’ve been like if Mel was still in a rage, which she figured she probably was. “I didn’t mean to cause such a commotion.”
He seemed both grateful and relieved for the apology. Then came the question Marissa knew would be next. “Are you going to tell me the truth about that ‘old friend’ you brought with you?”
She stared at Brian for a long moment, folding her arms in front of her and frowning back at him. She hadn’t wanted to overload him with any more secrets, but if he was going to ask for them, she might as well be honest with someone.
“We are old friends,” she started as he rolled his eyes at her. “We met on a case about five years ago. He works for the FBI. He’s here for work. They are finally taking the stalking photos seriously, and he’s here on surveillance.” She paused with a heavy sigh. “We also dated after that case for several months, after Jared got out of rehab. He was the guy I was seeing when Jared wanted to give us a try again.”
She came to a stop, picturing that moment in her head. It felt like a lifetime ago.
“But he and the FBI are now camped out at the house across the street from me. And even though our infamous photographer knows he’s FBI, it would be best to keep it quiet.”
She watched her brother-in-law’s jaw drop. “You dated a guy for months, and none of us knew? How did we all miss that?” He blinked. “Although I guess Jared knew.”
Marissa sipped the Sprite she ordered, leaving the sandwich wrapped and untouched. Adding a slight shrug, she shook her head. “You didn’t miss anything. I didn’t tell anyone.”
At the time, she told herself it was because of his job. The truth was she wanted something that was just hers.
“Jared did know. It had actually gotten pretty serious.” She paused. It had been the only reason she had introduced Mac and Jared in the first place. “It’s not really a big deal. It’s been, like, five years. He’s moved on; I’ve moved on. He’s just here for a job. Mel just happened to invite me when he was checking in. She saw him, got excited, and invited him.” She sighed. “My guess is Jared probably thinks I broke it off to go back to Mac. Because he apparently thinks that little of me.”
She couldn’t help it. She hadn’t been able to let that train of thought go. Everyone had apparently thought very little of her in that sense. At least here, she could be honest, or so she hoped.
Instead, Brian scolded her. “No, look, don’t go there. You know he doesn’t think little of you. Marissa, you broke his damned heart, and you knew you did it. Whether you have good reasons to do it or not, it’s not fair of you to put any of this on him. You know it’s not about that.”
Marissa shifted, trying not to noticeably sink in her seat. She knew he wasn’t wrong, but on some level, it just didn’t seem fair. Fuck. She was just so tired. For half a second, she thought about coming to her own defense, but she let the thought pass. There wasn’t anything she could say that made a difference.
She let a moment pass, taking a deep breath and still shifting uncomfortably in her seat. Ellie sat up under the table and rested her head on Marissa’s lap. With one hand, she pet the shepherd, feeling her heartbeat speed up and return to normal.
“We found Rolley’s car about an hour away. No camera, no evidence in there.” She let out a grumble. “We did, however, find Allison’s bracelet in there. It was more than likely planted.” Marissa cracked her neck, feeling the stress rising back up. “I’ve also started interviewing all of Allison’s serious ex-relationships.”
Honestly, she wasn’t sure which was more frustrating—planted evidence or interviewing her best friend’s past partners.
They spent the rest of the time discussing Owen Rolley’s suspected suicide and how neither bought into it. It was all speculation, but everything pointed to murder.
Glancing at her phone, Marissa sighed. “I should probably head back.”
She got to her feet slowly, Ellie instantly on her feet and at her side to steady her. Marissa grabbed her soda and gave Brian a melancholy smile. “Again, I’m really sorry about the whole Thanksgiving fiasco. I will find a way to make it up to you, I promise. And…” She paused. She had almost asked him to give Mel a hug for her, but right now, that was not something Mel would be receptive to. “Take care of that beautiful family of yours.”
She hurried through the goodbye and disappeared out of the building before giving Brian the chance to do much, leaving her sandwich sitting on the table.
Once outside the building, Marissa walked along the main street and past the precinct. Needing a minute, she turned down one of the boardwalks. Marissa faced the sea, watching the ferry heading out and boats off in the distance, taking advantage of the beautiful day at the end of November. Looking down at the water, she watched it splash against the pier and wondered just how cold it must be. Marissa should have felt cold now, the wind was blowing off the water, and she knew what November breezes felt like along the coast. Still, it wasn’t touching her for whatever reason. In fact, her cheeks were growing hot as she stood there, leaning against the railing, watching the water quietly.
The next thing she knew, she was sitting on her front porch, holding a bag of ice on her wrist with Ellie sitting beside her. Mac was pulling into the driveway across the street. He closed the door and ran his hand through his hair. He made his way over, smiling until he saw the ice pack.
“What did you do?” He sat down next to her on the step, petting Ellie as she shoved her head into his hands.
“I…” Marissa pulled the ice pack off to reveal a dark black bruise that wrapped its way around her wrist. She had absolutely no memory of how she got it. She had no memory of how she made it home. “I don’t know,” she answered honestly, choosing not to go into detail.
“Jesus,” Mac muttered, running his finger gently on it. He looked up at her but must have seen something in her face that kept him from prying further.
“Come on, why don’t we get inside?” He helped her up and led her into the house. “Are you hungry?” He didn’t wait for an answer, heading straight for the kitchen. He had stocked her fridge at some point. “How did the interviews go?” he asked as he dug through the fridge, picking out ingredients.
“Um…” Marissa paused, scraping the corners of her memory to find an answer.
Grabbing her phone, she opened her texts, seeing the last conversation with Veronica.
[Veronica: Hey Ronnie, I’m going to head home. I really don’t feel good. Can you handle the last few on your own?]
Marissa had no memory of sending the text, but based on the time, it was shortly after she had left Brian. The clock on her stove told her it had been over four hours ago.
“I did the first two,” she finally said, answering Mac as he stood in front of her. “I wasn’t feeling too great, so Ronnie finished.”
“How about your hand?” He raised an eyebrow, gesturing to her swollen wrist.
Looking down at the bruise, she again frowned. “It’s fine,” she said quietly, offering no explanation of what happened.
“Let me look at it,” he said. She could tell he was trying to keep his frustration to a minimum. If Marissa hadn’t been feeling that same frustration, she would have thought it was cute. Mac took her hand in his gently and ran his fingers over the swelling and bruising. He eyed her for a long moment, the uncertainty clear on his face.
“Keep the ice on it.” He frowned, clearly not pleased. “Are you feeling okay?”
The question felt out of left field. “Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”
He watched her closely before shaking his head. “So they need us both in Seattle tomorrow. Are you up for interviewing Daniel Fryer?” he said finally, letting out a breath and turning back to the stove, preheating the oven.
Marissa nodded, sitting herself down on a stool and leaning her elbows on the kitchen island. “Of course.”
“Are you sure? Because I can always insist we put it off a week…”
“It’s fine, Mac,” Marissa insisted, giving him a small smile. “Now, what are you making for dinner?”