“Nothing much. Well, he said that he loved me and was so proud that I had chosen him out of all his friends. That he’d done whatever he had to do to make that happen because it was true love for us.” She sighed. “He didn’t confess to anything, but I did end up choosing him, and if he set Bernie up, that could be what he was talking about. Or maybe not. Maybe he was just saying that sending me flowers and courting me was what he had to do. I just don’t know.”
“It’s okay,” I hastened to say. “You don’t have to know.”
She sniffed. “They were good friends, though. For years—going way back. I feel badly I came between them, although if Lawrence tricked Bernie in such a horrible manner, he wasn’t who I thought he was. I’m just confused.”
I couldn’t blame her. “We’ll figure it out, I promise. For now, is there any chance I could get you to fire Thelma and Georgiana? I love those two, and I don’t want to see them get hurt.”
“They’ll be fine,” she said. “You can’t count them out just because they’re old. We have a lot to contribute, you know.”
I grimaced. Those two courted trouble even stronger than I did, but I wasn’t going to insult her. “All right. I’ll be in touch.”
“Thanks, Anna. Good day to you,” Florence said, sounding more cheerful.
“You, too.” I hung up. How was I going to put an end to Hawk Investigations?
Sighing, I tapped the back of my head against the wall several times in a move I’d seen Aiden do more than once. Glitter wafted down to shine on the wooden floor.
Chapter 24
Ihovered in the hallway for a second and then figured why not? Smiling at a couple of officers and passing several offices, I headed to the far end of the floor where the interrogation rooms were located. Aiden hadn’t exactly said I wasn’t welcome to watch. The light over the second room was on, so I dodged around the corner to the observation room, silently entering and shutting the door before walking toward the two-way mirror.
Aiden sat with his back to me, facing a monstrous man with a bulbous nose, the vibe tense in the room. Silver glitter sparkled in the back of Aiden’s dark hair, and I winced. Saber sat next to him, kicked back in his chair, his brown hair longer than it had been last time I’d seen him. They both wore ATF jackets and guns strapped to their thighs, looking tough and broad.
It was weird to see Aiden on the cop side of the table. Any other time I’d watched him in interrogation, he’d been the one being interrogated. Interesting.
Even though the atmosphere looked tense, he appeared to be relaxed. At least from behind.
“Either you want to deal, or you don’t,” he was saying, his voice level and calm.
I stepped closer to the window for a better view of the prisoner in the orange jumpsuit. His swollen and red nose went with the rest of him. Wide chest, big belly, arms that had gone to fat. He had to be in his mid-forties, and his bloodshot eyes showed he’d spent several of those decades experimenting with leaving this reality. If he was selling drugs, he’d been sampling them first.
“I’ve got nothin’ for you. Like I said,” he muttered, his shoulders twitching along with his upper lip.
“Looks like you’re coming down pretty hard,” Aiden murmured. “That’s unfortunate. I can’t promise you drugs, but I can promise you less prison time if you work with us. Or not. At this point, I’m about done, Sorenson.”
Saber slid his boots closer to his chair, losing the chill look. “Me, too. It’s lunchtime, and I’m hungry. Either tell us how our cover was blown, or we’re leaving. My gut feeling is that you don’t owe anybody anything, so either take care of yourself or not.”
Aiden nodded. “This is getting boring.”
Sorenson’s beady eyes looked from Saber to Aiden. If I had to guess, his spirit animal was one of those huge rats you find in alleys in New York City right after they put all the garbage out for the night in Times Square. “I want immunity.”
Aiden burst out laughing. “Shit. I don’t care that much about how we were busted, asshole. It’s more curiosity at this point, and immunity is off the table. Completely and forever.” He shoved his chair back. “Let’s go eat, Saber. We’re done here.”
“No. Wait.” Panic slithered over Sorenson’s blotchy skin. “Just wait a minute.”
Saber stood. “This is a waste of time.”
“Wait.” Sorenson waved a hand, his nails too long and a dented yellow. “Fine. I’ll tell you. You’ll talk to the federal prosecutor for me?”
Saber sat back down.
Aiden nodded; pieces of silver glitter fell down his back. “Yeah. We’ll talk to her, and it’ll help with whatever deal you get. If you go to trial, we’ll let the judge know you cooperated. Your future is all in your control. For now.”
Sorenson sighed. “Fine. I don’t have a lot.” He wiped the corner of his mouth, his shakes getting stronger. “It was just a note.”
Aiden was quiet for a moment until Sorenson started squirming even more.
“A note.” Aiden sounded bored. “Not enough. Let’s go.”
