After five hours in the emergency room, it was revealed that Rebecca had a broken wrist, fractured ribs, and two missing teeth. Her husband had really done a job on her. As they waited for her to be discharged, Rebecca described a night of horror that started because she wouldn’t give her husband $500,000 to buy a marijuana farm in San Diego. In the midst of his temper tantrum, he’d beaten her until she had no other choice but to break free and shoot him with his own gun.
There was a knock on the door. Emily stood from her seat at Rebecca’s bedside as the uniform cop guarding her client opened the door. A well-dressed woman with flawless dark skin and almond-shaped brown eyes entered.
“Rebecca Ferron?”
“Yes, that’s me,” Rebecca confirmed.
“I’m Charlotte McCoy. I’m from the Office of the State’s Attorney.”
Emily walked over to the woman.
“I’m Emily Storm, Mrs. Ferron’s attorney.”
The prosecutor smiled and held her hand out to shake. Emily accepted her hand and shook.
“Shall we step outside?” Emily suggested. “My client has been through a lot.”
“Of course,” the lawyer agreed.
The two of them stepped outside the hospital room. Emily closed the door and turned to the prosecutor.
“What are thinking?”
“I was thinking Man 2.”
Emily frowned.
“I’m thinking you need to go back in there a take another looked at my client. Manslaughter is a hard pass.”
“Counselor, I haven’t even gotten a statement from your client and you’re already arguing your case.”
Emily smiled patiently.
“But you have seen the case report. You’ve seen the arrest report, correct?”
“I have,” the attorney admitted.
“Well, with that being said… I intend to walk out of here with my client today.”
Charlotte McCoy laughed softly and looked down at her shoes. It was then Emily knew she had nothing on Rebecca. They could charge her, but the state would never convict her of manslaughter, or anything else.
“Well, why don’t you let me get a statement first? Then, we can go from there.”
Emily nodded. “Sure. Let’s do that.”
She opened the door and held it open for the attorney. Emily was willing to bet that Rebecca’s statement, along with her injuries, would most likely result in no charges being filed.
And she was right.
After taking her client’s statement, Charlotte McCoy left without charging her. They dismissed the officer guarding Rebecca. However, since the doctor admitted her, Emily still could not walk out of the hospital with her client. So, she left her business card with Rebecca and finally left the hospital.
It was nearly nine o’clock and her entire Valentine’s Day was spent working. All of that time was spent with one client, so she still had work to do at her office. Sadly, her chances of seeing Angel were slim to none. After such a long night of travel, he was surely asleep.
Emily stepped outside into the cold winter night and hurried into a waiting car. She fastened her seatbelt and stared out of the window, thinking how stupid it was for her to give so many people the day off.
It took ten minutes to get from the hospital to her office. The driver dropped her off in front of the building and watched her until she entered it before driving off. The lobby was quiet and darker than usual. Emily waved at the guard when she passed the security desk on her way to the bank of elevators.
No one was there, and the elevator was already on the ground floor. Emily stepped in and took it to the 20thfloor. She exited and walked the empty hall to her office. The clack of her heels, echoing throughout the hall, reminded her that she was alone.
