“Yes.”
“We’ll need to follow up with him. You have a number where we can reach him?”
I gave them Prime’s number, knowing he’d back my story without hesitation.
The female officer studied me for a long moment. I forced myself to hold her gaze. Forced myself not to fidget or look away.
“Did Larry have any enemies that you know of? Anyone who might want to hurt him?”
“I don’t know much about his personal life. He kept to himself mostly.”
“How would you describe your relationship with him?”
“Professional. He was my boss. That’s it.”
“Any conflicts? Disagreements?”
“No. Nothing like that.”
“Alright,” she finally said. “We may have more questions as the investigation continues. If you can think of anything that would be helpful to our investigation, please let us know.”
“Of course.”
Once the interview was over, I peeked back outside to see if Mehar was still there and she wasn’t. The fact that she popped up again meant that she was going to keep pursuing me until she spoke to me. This meant I needed to quit Grits. But I couldn’t just yet. Not with Larry being dead. I’d look too suspect. Just leave me alone, Mehar!
My phone buzzed.
Prime:You good?
Before I could even type a response, my phone started ringing. His name on the screen.
I answered, still out of breath from running. “Hey.”
“What happened?” His voice was calm but alert.
“Police came to Grits. Asking about Larry. His wife filed a missing persons report.”
“What did you tell them?”
“That I was home that night. With you.” I swallowed hard. “I gave them your name and number. They might call to verify. I’m sorry, I panicked, I didn’t know what else to?—”
“Stop. You did good. That was smart.”
“It was?”
“Yeah. We were together all night. Watched a movie at your place. Went to bed around eleven. That’s what happened. You understand?”
“Yes.”
“Say it back to me.”
“We were together all night. Watched a movie. Went to bed around eleven.”
“Good. If they call me, I’ll confirm. Did they say anything else?”
“Just that they may have more questions.”
“That’s standard. Don’t mean nothing.” I heard him exhale. “You okay?”
