“Ah!” Balogun cried out, grabbing her chest. “Goodness, Mrs. Kim, you scared the daylights out of me.”
“I scared you?” I held my racing heart in the same way. “What are you doing here?” I flicked over her shoulder to her partner, Kaplan, and a woman I didn’t recognize. She wore a cream pantsuit and a kind smile. “What are you all doing here?”
“May we come in?” Balogun asked. “There’s something important we need to discuss with you and your husbands.”
“I— Uh—” I glanced over my shoulder. “I was just on my way out. Can we do this tomorrow?”
She didn’t budge. “I’m afraid it really is important.”
“Sue?” Rhodes stuck his head out of the kitchenette. “What’s going on?”
“The detectives are here,” I replied, backing into the room. “They say they have to talk to us.”
“We do.” Kaplan’s large presence entered our suite, trailing me. He spotted Lily. “Would it be possible for us to speak to the four of you in private?”
Micah frowned, but agreed. “Lilybug, take your iPad into the bedroom. We’ll be right out here if you need us.”
Lily happily took her pad and went, completely unconcerned by the no-nonsense, unsmiling faces that were unnerving me.
“What’s the problem?” I asked, then straightened. “Wait, is it good news? Have you finally caught the real killer and let Mrs. Finley go? She should be surrounded by family while she grieves her son, not surrounded by bars and cinderblocks.”
Detective Kaplan gestured to the couch. “Please.”
Our dinner cooled on the counter as Rhodes, Micah, Alex, and I claimed the sectional, and the detectives and their friend sat in the armchairs across from us. The way the seats were divided, it felt like we were in an interrogation room.
Balogun released a deep breath. “The first thing I must do is apologize to you, Mrs. Kim.”
“Who? Me?” I cried, whipping my head around like she was talking to someone else. “Why?”
“Because you told us we had it wrong. You said all the deaths on your property had to be connected, and we needed to look harder. While we were doing our jobs and following the evidence,” she stressed, “it doesn’t excuse us for not listening to you... especially as you turned out to be tragically correct.”
“What does that mean?” Rhodes leaned over, taking my hand. “Right about what?”
“Our investigation into Mr. Layton’s murder took a new and terrible direction this week, and it has shed light on the recent events in a way that has been both chilling and illuminating,” Balogun said. “I won’t beat around the bush. We believe that Mr. Layton was blackmailing your mother’s former nurse, Mr. Agassi, into giving him drugs he didn’t want a record of receiving.
“I saywe believe, but the evidence is ample. Prescriptions with Madame Kim’s name on them were found in a hidden compartment in Mr. Layton’s car.”
“So, he was an addict?” Micah questioned.
She shook her head. “These drugs don’t get you high. For a woman, like Madame Kim, they are a harmless acid reducer, but for men they have a powerful side effect. Which is why they are rarely prescribed to men,” she said. “These drugs cause low libido, or in simpler terms, chemical castration.”
“Chemical... castration?” I repeated slowly. “I don’t understand. Why would he want that?”
“He wanted them because he was a pedophile,” Kaplan stated bluntly. “Who was clearly afraid he couldn’t control himself, so he wanted the drugs to do itfor him.”
The four of us gaped at him, the wind collectively whooshing out of our lungs.
“What?!”
“Pedophile?” Micah shouted, jumping up. “Oh my God, Lily!”
And then we were all jumping off the couch and sprinting across the living room.
“Wait— Wait!” Balogun and Kaplan cried, shooting out in front of us. “We understand, believe us we do, but that’s why Mrs. Zeller is here.” Balogun pointed to the woman getting up from the couch. “She’s a child psychologist with our department. She’s here to interview Lily.”
“That piece of shit never touched her,” Alex roared. “I was in the room for every lesson. I never left them alone. And if he ever fucking thought of it, I’ll dig him up and kill him again!”
“We’re sure you protected your daughter to beyond the best of your ability,” Mrs. Zeller soothed, “but we wouldn’t be doing our due diligence if we didn’t have a conversation with Lily to be sure. So, if one of you wouldn’t mind sitting with Lily while I chat with her, the rest of you can hear what the detectives have to say.”
