Trish left the courthouse and drove to Sue Ann’s apartment. She climbed the stairs and rang the doorbell. The next sound she heard was a loud bang from a collision against the lower half of the door, followed by a wailing cry. Trish winced. It was too late to turn and leave. When the door opened, Sue Ann had Candace in her arms. The little girl’s head was buried against her mother’s shoulder.
“Sorry, that was my fault,” Trish said. “I should have called to see if it was a good time to stop by.”
Sue Ann stroked the back of Candace’s head. “And I would have said yes, until the last ten seconds. Come in. Maybe you can distract her.”
The apartment was a wreck. Toys and dolls were scattered everywhere. Adults’ and children’s clothes were strewn about the room. Dishes were piled up in the sink. Trish reached out for Candace, who turned her head toward her. The little girl’s eyes were red, and there was a puffy spot on her forehead.
“Hey, baby,” Trish said. “Would you like Aunt Tish to read a book to you?”
Candace sniffled and nodded. Trish took her from Sue Ann, who let out a big yawn.
“She had an earache, and I was up most of the night,” Sue Ann said. “Her ear is better, but it’s made her irritable. And my energy level is on empty. Making a second baby is a lot of work.”
Trish hoisted Candace higher up on her hip. The little girl was getting heavier by the day.
“Then I want you to lie down for a few minutes while I distract Candace.”
“No.” Sue Ann shook her head. “I can’t let you—”
“See this badge?” Trish pointed to the gold-colored shield pinned to her uniform. “That means you have to do what I say, or I’ll arrest you and put you in a jail cell where you’ll have nothing to do but sleep.”
“Sounds wonderful.” Sue Ann smiled.
“Go.” Trish pointed toward the master bedroom. “Now.”
Sue Ann obeyed. The fact that she’d not asked why Trish stopped by unannounced was proof of her extreme fatigue. Trish made space for herself and Candace on the couch. Four books later, Candace’s head nodded forward and her eyes closed. Trish gently laid her on the couch and covered her with a thin blanket, then tiptoed down the hall and peeked in on Sue Ann, who was passed out. Trish closed the master bedroom door and returned to the living room.
With quiet efficiency, she went to work. She determined which clothes were clean and needed to be folded. The dirty clothes went into the washer. She then picked up Candace’s toys and returned them to the little girl’s bedroom. Candace and Sue Ann slept through it all. Trish softly sang to herself. Next, she tackled the kitchen. The dishes in the dishwasher were clean, so she carefully unloaded it, put in the dirty dishes, and started the wash cycle. There was a pound of ground beef in the refrigerator, and Trish found the ingredients for spaghetti in the cabinet. Within thirty minutes, the meat was simmering on the stove while Trish cut up fresh mushrooms and diced tomatoes to add at the last minute. As she stirred the meat, she wished she’d stopped by the store for salad fixings and a loaf of French bread. After she turned the heat down on the meat sauce, she mopped the kitchen floor. She was returning the mop to the narrow broom closet when Sue Ann came into the kitchen.
“What are you doing?” Sue Ann exclaimed.
Trish put her finger to her lips and pointed at Candace. “I hope it was okay to let her take a nap.”
Sue Ann peeked into the tidy living room and then gave Trish a long hug.
“You’re an angel,” she said when she released her. “I needed this so much today, and suddenly you showed up on my doorstep.”
“I needed it more than you did,” Trish replied. “I’d better get going. Mark should be here soon.”
The two women walked to the front door.
“Wait,” Sue Ann said. “Why did you stop by? You didn’t know what kind of day I was having.”
“But I knew what kind of day I was having, and I needed to be with someone who loves me even when I don’t love myself.”
Sue Ann pointed to the couch where Candace was sleeping and then to her own heart. “There are two of those people here. Are you sure you don’t want to stay and talk?”
“Not now.” Trish shook her head. “Just being here has been therapy.”
Sue Ann gave Trish another hug. “Come back anytime you want to take care of Candace, let me take a nap, clean up the apartment, and fix dinner.”
Holt returned to his office. It was probably a mistake mentioning his personal problems to Trish Carmichael, but he was frustrated. He plopped down in his chair and glanced at an empty picture frame he’d reserved for an engagement photo. It was destined to remain blank, perhaps forever. There was a knock on his door.
“Come in,” he said.
It was Ralph Granger. The Meredith case was still on top of the desk.
“Busy?” Ralph asked.
“I’m finishing up the brief to the court of appeals in the Sanford case,” Holt replied. “It should go out tomorrow.”
Ralph sat down in one of the two chairs on the opposite side of Holt’s desk. “How does it look?”
“Solid. And thanks again for going to bat for me with the county commissioners. A fifteen percent raise is more than generous.”
Ralph didn’t move. Holt waited. The DA looked up at the ceiling and moved his head to the side as if popping his neck. Holt put his hand on the Meredith information but realized he couldn’t move it out of sight without being noticed.
“I understand Cecil Burkdale came by to see you,” Ralph said.
“Yes,” Holt said, licking his lips.
“What did he want?”
There was no way to avoid a response. “To talk to me about Rex Meredith.”
“And?”
Holt swallowed. If he’d been on the witness stand, everyone in the courtroom would know he hadn’t yet told the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. He tried to sound as casual as possible.
“He mentioned a conversation they had the night Meredith died. According to Burkdale, Mr. Meredith promised him a promotion and discussed plans for future business activities. In Burkdale’s mind, Meredith didn’t seem like a man contemplating suicide. I listened to what he had to say, but I had serious doubts about his credibility.”
“I would, too,” Ralph replied, looking directly into Holt’s face. “He lost his job when Greg Stevens assumed control of Meredith Enterprises. I’m not surprised Burkdale is still stewing about that, but why would he want to talk to you now? This is old news.”
Ralph Granger wasn’t a great trial lawyer. Tony McDermott was right about that. However, the DA’s suspicious nature was enough to generate an unending series of questions until his paranoia was satisfied. Holt made a quick decision that stonewalling through silence was his best strategy. After a few moments passed, Ralph shifted in his seat and stood up.
“I know crazy people come by here all the time with hot tips, but I don’t want you to neglect your caseload to chase rabbits.”
“I’m too busy to do that.”
Ralph pressed his lips together and nodded slowly. “Good.”
“Thanks,” Holt replied, hoping to signal an end to the conversation.
The strategy worked, and Ralph continued toward the door. Holt let out a sigh of relief when he was gone. However, something in his boss’s demeanor made him suspect it was the DA, not Holt, who was withholding information. Holt tried to put his finger on what it might be but couldn’t. Then he smiled. Some of Ralph’s pervasive paranoia had rubbed off on him. Like the DA, Holt was becoming suspicious when there was no reason to be.
Shortly before leaving the office, Holt called Skip to break the news about Angelina. At first Skip thought he was joking. When he realized Holt was serious, his mood changed.
“I thought you and Angelina were set for life,” Skip said. “Don’t you think the chances are good that you’ll get back together after she cools off?”
“I hope so, but winning back a woman’s trust when she thinks you’ve cheated on her is one of the toughest things to do on the planet.”
“Yeah, every time I decided to get back into circulation, I ended any existing relationship first.”
Holt cringed. He remembered a girl he’d dated for over a year in college. He knew they didn’t have a future, but instead of telling her directly, he went out a couple of times with another girl. The first girl found out, and they had a messy public meltdown in the student activity center. Maybe what happened today with Angelina was delayed justice.
“Are you still going out with Brittany on Saturday night?” he asked.
“Yeah, I mean, I have to. If I didn’t, Angelina would be mad at both of us.”
“Yeah, that’s true.”
“But don’t worry, I’ve got your back. I know Brittany will want to talk about it, which will give me a chance to put in a good word for you. Tell me again. How do you want me to explain your need for alone time with the blond deputy?”
“It wasn’t alone time. She was helping me with the Meredith investigation, but you can’t tell Brittany that.”
“Did you ever come clean with Ralph?”
“No.”
Skip was silent for a moment. “Holt, as a prosecutor you know how hard it is to maintain a lie.”
“I’m not lying,” Holt protested.
“Right. But you sound like some of the guys I sent to prison, especially the ones who claimed they never saw the drugs in plain view on the kitchen table.”
“I’ll be careful.”
“You’d better be. Ralph’s tolerance for risk taking is a negative number, and having you snooping around town asking questions about a high-profile death like that, even if it’s been years ago, is a recipe for a huge public relations snafu. If a reporter finds out that Greg Stevens is the object of an investigation by the DA’s office, the whole thing will blow up in less than a second, and you’ll be in the middle of the explosion.”
Holt had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. “Call me after the date,” he said, changing the subject.
“What if it’s late?”
“If you’re smart, you won’t keep Brittany out all night.”
“Okay, Dad. And I’ll make sure I fill up the car with gas and park it in the garage.”