Well, now Beth felt like an ass. That made sense to her, and it was so like Sarah to think of all the different ways to take care of both LilyandWren in this situation. At the same time, Beth had immediately jumped to jealousy before even considering that Sarah might already have a plan she was working out.
“How far away are you?” she asked, flicking off the lights and grabbing her coat.
“Fifteen minutes.”
“Okay. I’ll meet you at the station.” Beth paused, wanting to be the parent who knew the next step here, but this was outside her area of expertise. “If I get there before you, what do I need to have Lily do?” She tried to hide the note of defeat in her voice.
“I won’t know until I get there. Make sure she doesn’t say anything or sign anything. Assume that anything you say inside the station is being recorded.”
“Got it. See you soon. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
Beth slid her phone back into her pocket, typed the code into the security system, then slipped out onto the darkened street, heading toward the police station.
Ten minutes later, she pushed through the imposing industrial blue doors of the East Precinct. Her sneakers squeaked from the damp sidewalks as she moved across the lobby floor towards the front desk where an officer was on the phone, talking in a hushed tone.
A moment later, the officer looked up at her as she hung up the phone. “Hi. What can I do for you?”
“Hi, yes, my daughter was brought in—or maybe is on the way here—I’m not completely sure,” Beth said quickly. Trying her best to channel Sarah’s easy confidence that she would no doubt handle this interaction with.
“Name.”
“Lily Gallagher.”
After a few clicks and taps on the keyboard, the officer spoke. “Looks like she was brought in with Wren Parker. Lily sustained a cut to her hand and has been patched up. She’s with an officer, awaiting a written statement. Parker is currently riding things out in our drunk tank.”
The whir of traffic filled the lobby as the doors opened, accompanied by the sound of expensive heels clicking across the tile floor. Beth turned and looked over her shoulder, catching sight of Sarah, flanked by Nell and Nate, moving towards them.
“Where’s Lily?” Sarah asked immediately, placing a hand on the small of Beth’s back.
Beth glanced at Nell and Nate before her eyes landed on Sarah. “I was just getting that information.”
Sarah, never one to waste time, turned towards the officer behind the desk, who was waiting patiently for them. “Hi. Sarah Gallagher. Lily Gallagher is my daughter. Is she being charged with anything?”
“I was telling your wife”—neither Beth nor Sarah bothered with correcting the assumption—“your daughter and Wren Parker were picked up outside of Singergy Karaoke after officers approached out of concern. Your daughter had a laceration on the palm of her right hand, which we patched up. Parker exhibited obvious signs of gross intoxication. We’re waiting on a written statement and your arrival. Parker is being charged with disorderly conduct and creating hazardous conditions that resulted in an injury. She is currently in a holding cell and is refusing to say anything until”—the officer squinted closely at the computer screen—“until Sarah arrives. I’m assuming that’s one of you?”
Sarah nodded in confirmation. “Okay. Thank you. One moment.” She turned away from the desk toward the three of them, all waiting for instruction on what to do next. Beth watched as Sarah and Nell communicated without exchanging words in a way that made her stomach clench—a reminder of how close the two really were.
“Beth and I…”
Nell nodded before Sarah even finished her sentence, reaching out to give Sarah’s arm a reassuring squeeze, makingBeth feel like she should have thought to do that before this moment. “Nate and I will take Wren.” Nell glanced at Beth, quickly withdrawing her hand, taking a half-step away from Sarah.
“You two can follow me this way.” The officer gestured toward Beth and Sarah as a buzzer rang, unlocking the door, and the two of them moved forward together. “Someone will be out to bring the two of you to see Parker in a few minutes,” the officer called back to Nate and Nell.
Their footsteps echoed down the empty hallway as they followed the officer past the line of plain white doors lining the pale blue painted walls, and Beth felt the reverberation of each step as she moved.
The officer pushed through a heavy door marked with a thick, black number eight to reveal Lily, seated in a windowless interrogation room, perched on a hard plastic chair. She looked up at the movement, Beth immediately taking in her red-rimmed eyes and tear-streaked cheeks.
Lily’s scared voice reached them first. “Mama, Mommy.” She jumped to her feet, sounding so much like the little girl she still was.
Beth reached her first, operating purely on blurred maternal instinct, wrapping her arms around Lily and running a soothing hand over the back of her head. “It’s okay, love. We’re here. Mom and I are here.”
“I didn’t—it was—” Lily hiccuped as she attempted to explain.
“Lily, sweetheart, please don’t say anything just yet,” Sarah said sternly, the three of them taking seats at the table as the officer sat opposite them.
Beth kept her arm around Lily, holding her close as the officer spoke.
