My brain finally kicked back in. “Sorry. I have to go.”
“You’re a witness, and you’re not going anywhere,” Pierce said, anger cutting lines into his rugged face. Oh, he was older than me, and there was no doubt he had a lot going on, but he had asked me out once. Right now, it seemed like a good thing we’d never made that date.
“I’m her lawyer, and I am going now.” I tried to put some authority into my voice, although the longer I remained in the room with the dead body, the more I wanted to scream.
Pierce leaned in. “You’re a prosecuting attorney, Albertini. You can’t be her lawyer. Even if you quit your job, you’re a witness, and you can’t be her lawyer.”
Crap. He was right. My shoulders slumped. “She’s my sister,” I whispered.
Pierce’s eyes softened for the briefest of seconds. “All right. I’ll have a uniform escort you to your car, and you drive directly to the station for an interview. I’ll be at least an hour here, but I want you in my office when I arrive. You can make arrangements for your sister on the way.”
It was the best I was going to get. “Thanks.” Without looking at the shiny gun or the battered body, I turned and walked out of the apartment with an officer at my side. She was in her thirties with a cute blonde bob, and she probably would’ve been pretty had she been smiling. I didn’t blame her. There was nothing to smile about.
After she’d seen me to my car, she disappeared back inside the building. A crowd was gathering on the sidewalk, and I pulled away from the curb before anybody could stop me.
Then I quickly dialed a phone number.
“What, Anna? Didn’t you get enough of me today?”
“Clark? I need your help.” I sped up to make it through a yellow light. “My sister was just arrested, and she needs a lawyer. She might qualify for a public defender, but if not, you can contract with private clients, right?”
“Yeah.” His voice went from cajoling to serious. “Where is she?”
Tears threatened my voice, and I shoved them away. This was just too much. “On the way to the police station. I told Tessa not to talk, but she looked scared. Please hurry.”
I twirledthe Styrofoam cup around on Pierce’s cluttered desk. As a detective in the Elk County Sheriff’s Office, he had his own office with a battered desk, two rather nice guest chairs, a plush looking leather chair for him, and a nice window that faced the city park with the beach and Lilac Lake behind him. My office was situated kitty-corner to this building around the park. I’d sat in his comfy guest chair for almost two hours before he arrived, and I’d memorized the pictures of him fishing with what looked like a brother, one with him and a smiling blond woman with the same light green eyes he had, and one of him in his dress uniform. Other than that, case files took up all available space in the small room.
I heard him enter the room before I saw him, and he shut the door, crossing around his desk to sit. His scent of salt and the ocean, even though we were nowhere near an ocean, filtered around. “Did you get food?” As usual, he didn’t start with niceties.
“One of the uniforms brought me a granola bar,” I said, my head hurting and my mind weary. My phone buzzed for what seemed like the millionth time, and I switched it to silent.
His dark blond eyebrows rose. “I’m sure you called the entire family.”
I sighed. “By the time I sat here, they already knew.” My immediate family consisted of the combination of two large families from Silverville; the Albertini and O’Shea families. Silverville was settled by Irish and Italian miners, and as most small towns go, there are few secrets. Even from fifty minutes away in the big town of Timber City, word about Tess’s arrest would’ve traveled faster than an August wildfire. “I’m surprised you didn’t see anybody when you came in.”
“I came in the back door,” he admitted, the leather seat groaning as he leaned back. His hair was ruffled, and his eyes battle weary, but he filled out the long-sleeved black shirt like it had been made for him. With the gun and badge at his belt, he all but screamed cop. “Tell me everything.”
I looked in the empty coffee cup. The coffee had sucked, but at least it had been something. “I was taking dinner to my sister, you yelled at me, and I fell into her living room. You saw what I saw.” My stomach hurt like I’d been punched. “Is Tessa okay?”
“When had you last talked to your sister?” Pierce asked, the slight gray at his temples giving him an air of command.
“Last night,” I said, picking at the Styrofoam. His tone was conversational, but there was no doubt he was interviewing me. Definitely fishing for information, and I had to be careful. This was my sister. “I called her when I saw thatThe Quiet Manwas on the old movie channel. It’s a family favorite.”
Pierce rolled his head, and his neck cracked. “You didn’t call her after Danny Pucci made his first appearance in court today?”
I caught my breath and hid the reaction as soon as I could. Pierce had done his due diligence before coming to interview me, now hadn’t he? “I did call her but didn’t catch her. There’s no way she killed him.” I sat forward, desperation ticking through my veins.
“Really?” Pierce tugged his phone from his back pocket and scrolled along the face. “Danny Pucci was arrested a year ago for domestic battery against one Contessa Carmelina Albertini. She pressed charges, and he got a slap on the wrist since it was a first offense.” Pierce looked up, his gaze hard. “I doubt it was the first time he hit her. Hell, Anna. She might have a decent self-defense case here.”
Fury nearly choked the fear out of me. Not quite, but close. I slammed my hand on his desk. “Tessa would never shoot anybody. She doesn’t have it in her.” Probably. Well, maybe. If she was in fear for her life, she’d shoot. I would, too.
“Where did she get the gun?” Pierce asked smoothly.
“That wasn’t her gun,” I retorted. “That gun was long, silver, and shiny. She has a smaller Lady Smith & Wesson, just like me.” Relief caught me with enough smoothness to calm me a little bit. Why would Tess shoot Danny with somebody else’s gun? She wouldn’t. “I told you she didn’t do it.”
“How long has Aiden Devlin been dating your sister?” Pierce expertly switched topics.
If he was looking to trip me up, he’d failed. “Aiden and Tess aren’t dating. I have no idea where he has been for the last two weeks.” It wouldn’t do to lie to Pierce right now, and I didn’t see a reason not to tell him the truth. “Before you ask, I don’t know why Aiden was at Tess’s apartment or if he had any prior relationship with Danny Pucci.” But I was sure going to find out.
