“I appreciate your optimism.”
Dominic watched the numbers above the door change. “You don’t have to do this,” he said without looking at me.
“I know, but you asked.”
Outside the main entrance, the late-August heat pressed hard against the building. The pavement shimmered slightly in the distance where the street met the sunlight.
A police vehicle waited at the curb. Instead of a cruiser, they’d brought an unmarked SUV. The detective from upstairs stood beside it, speaking with another officer. He opened the rear door when he saw us approaching.
Luca helped steady the chair while I shifted into the seat. The motion pulled at the brace again. I rolled my head back and let the pain pass without reacting.
Dominic slid into the seat beside me. Luca took the front passenger seat.
The car pulled away from the curb and joined the slow mid-morning traffic moving along the avenue. Dominic rested one hand lightly on the seat in front of him.
“Do you expect him to talk?” Luca asked from the front.
“Yes,” Dominic said.
“Why?”
Dominic considered the question for a moment. “Because the story he told himself has changed.”
“That’s a strong assumption.”
“It’s an informed one.”
Luca glanced back briefly.
“You’re not worried about manipulation?”
Dominic shook his head. “No.”
“Why not?”
“Because he already failed.”
The car stopped at a red light. Across the intersection, a man on a bicycle waited beside a food truck painted bright yellow and green. Someone had written the day’s menu in looping chalk on the side panel.
Dominic continued quietly. “People rarely attempt the same story twice once it has collapsed.”
The light changed, and the SUV moved forward again.
I watched Dominic for a moment. “You’re not angry,” I said.
He turned slightly toward me. “No.”
“Your reason?”
“Anger would require believing he took something from me.”
The police building came into view two blocks later. It was built of concrete and glass, holding an air of quiet authority.
The SUV turned into the parking lot and rolled to a stop beside the entrance. Stepping out first, the detective opened the rear door.
“The interview room is ready,” he said.
Luca helped guide the chair out of the vehicle. The heat wrapped around us again as we traveled the short distance between the curb and the doors.
