Page 148 of Hard Heart

“Fingernail scrapings. The ME looked the other way, and it wasn’t the only time he did that.”

“Would you be willing to make a statement to that effect?”

A nod. “I couldn’t have watched Paulson lose his pension, but…but I didn’t become a cop to participate in cover-ups. And I lied. I told him I tossed the sample, but I just filed it under a different crime number. It’s still sitting in storage.” She handed me a piece of paper with a series of handwritten digits. “That’s the reference.”

My heart raced. This. This was what we’d been looking for.

“I appreciate you trying to make things right.”

“I always figured Justin did it, but then the Carlson murder happened, and the guy had three different alibis. Plus there’s a rumour coming out of your office that you identified another suspect?”

A rumour Raelene had planted. “That’s right. We discovered how he got in and out of Blackstone House.”

She managed a wry smile. “You should apply for a job with the department.”

“No, thanks.”

“I guess I can understand that sentiment.” She backed towards the door. “Good luck with the petition. I hope you get the justice Levi deserves.”

The door closed behind her, and I sank onto a dining chair with a bump.

“Hot damn, I need to call Raelene.”

Jester held up his phone. “You want me to Airdrop the recording?”

He’d recorded the conversation? In a single-party consent state? Chef’s kiss.

“I hope Heidi doesn’t take this the wrong way, but I want to kiss you right now.”

He chuckled and picked up the remote. “How long until the pizza gets here?”

Fuck the pizza; I was going to DoorDash a bottle of Moet.

CHAPTER 46

SERAFINA

“Give me a hug.”

Levi wrapped his arms around me, and this time, he didn’t have to let go. Not until Jim handed him his belongings in a plastic bag, anyway. There wasn’t much. A watch, a ten-year-old phone, a set of keys with a beaded keyring, and some small change.

“Good to go?” Raelene asked. “It’s a circus out there.”

The past month had been insane.

On Sunday night after Rimer left, I’d called Raelene, and once I’d explained about the visit and the whole hiding-of-evidence thing, she’d cursed liberally and torn up all the work she’d done that day. Literally. I’d heard the paper ripping.

On Monday morning, I’d flown to Wise. Flora came along for the ride after she promised not to tell Mum and Dad about Levi. I’d do that when I was ready, so probably next year sometime. Jim had coughed uncomfortably when Levi broke the rules and hugged me, but then he’d shrugged and gone back to playing games on his phone because he’d heard the rumours of another suspect too. Everyone had, including approximately seventeen thousand podcasters.

On Monday evening, we’d flown to New York to watch a Broadway show because our pilot, a blonde lady named Storm, said it would be fun and Alexa wouldn’t mind. I sent Rudd a picture of Flora and me sitting in the front row, and Flora was sticking her tongue out.

On Tuesday morning, Raelene filed a monster of a petition for absolute innocence, alleging police negligence, corruption, and wrongful conviction. I’d always intended for my job at the Justice Project to be temporary, a stopgap while I looked for something better. But as I sat there in the office, I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else, and I knew I’d never find a better boss to work for.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Justice Project received a million-dollar donation from Astela Technologies, Inc., along with a request that details of the gift remain anonymous, and Raelene just about fell off her chair. I’d never heard of Astela Technologies, but when I googled the company, the logo looked familiar. I recalled seeing it on the back of Alexa’s laptop, and with that realisation, I just about fell off my chair too.

On Wednesday, Special Agent Rimer was suspended. Heidi spent twenty-four hours straight listening to true-crime podcasts, and eventually, Jester removed her headphones, ignored her protests, and carried her to bed before she got DVT from lack of movement. Worse, she’d corrupted Flora, who now had a list of her top-ten favourite serial killers, and they were talking about starting their own podcast together.

On Thursday morning, the Governor of Virginia had made a statement on TV, expressing horror at the potential “travesty of justice” and promising to do everything in his power to ensure justice was achieved. The lab got the message and bumped Rimer’s sample to the top of the queue, with a promise we’d hear the preliminary results by the weekend.