Page 69 of Hard Heart

“The good news is that I’m here to help.”

“Help? How can you possibly help?”

“I went to the law library and picked up a bunch of textbooks. Question one: police receive an anonymous tip that drugs are being sold out of a Richmond apartment. Without a warrant, officers knock, smell marijuana, and enter. They find heroin on the coffee table and arrest the occupant. Part one—is the evidence admissible under the Fourth Amendment and Virginia law? Part two—would your answer change if the occupant consented after the officers entered?”

“You’re calling to drill me through bar prep?”

“I have to use all that lovely commission money for something. Answer the question, Serafina.”

Yes, I was still annoyed at him, but my irritation was tempered because that was actually really thoughtful. Rudd had never taken the slightest bit of interest in my studies. In fact, he’d done the opposite. He’d booked concert tickets or a table at his favourite restaurant and just expected me to drop everything and go. I’d done my best to support his musical endeavours, rearranging my life to fit around his lessons and practices, keeping quiet when he needed to rehearse, applauding from the front row of every recital. And how had he repaid me? Oh, that’s right. He’d cheated.

Levi Sykes did display a number of shortcomings, but I was ninety percent sure he wasn’t fucking his cellmate, so he had that much going for him at least.

“The entry violated the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution and Virginia’s Article I, Section Ten. The evidence should be suppressed.”

“Why?”

“The officers smelled the marijuana, but that alone doesn’t justify immediate entry per Taylor versus United States and Kentucky versus King. So because they didn’t have a warrant or consent, the entry was unlawful. The heroin is inadmissible under the exclusionary rule.”

“And part two?”

“If the occupant consented after entry, that consent wouldn’t cure the initial illegality.”

Levi spent almost an hour asking questions, patiently reviewing the model answers with me and providing encouragement when I felt like quitting. No, I really couldn’t be mad at him, and when I hung up, Heidi—predictably—was also on Team Sykes.

“Ohmigosh, did that man just spend half the evening helping with your revision? Isn’t he the sweetest?”

“I’m not sure ‘sweet’ is the right word.”

“He found you a bodyguard.”

“Which I didn’t want.”

“Oh, come now. Jester’s hot. You think he’d take me for a ride on that bike of his if I asked nicely?”

“I doubt it.”

“Should we order him a pizza?”

“No, don’t encourage him.”

“You’re no fun,” she said, pouting.

There seemed to be a selection of men on motorcycles who took it in turns to sit outside, monitoring the comings and goings. Goodness only knew what the neighbours thought, but I’d seen Jester carrying one lady’s groceries, so I had to assume they were okay with it. He’d asked for a copy of my schedule, and I’d grudgingly provided it. There was no point in letting them clutter up the car park any more than they needed to.

I figured I could live with the intrusion for a week and a half, which was when I’d scheduled my next visit to Redding’s Hill. Much as I hated to admit it, Levi was right, and I did need to spend a weekend cramming. On Saturday, he called again and drilled me through questions.

We were in a holding pattern.

Or so I thought.

A week passed without incident, unless you counted the cookie jar at work running out of everything but oatmeal and raisin. That all changed the following Wednesday evening. Heidi had been gone for over an hour when someone rapped on the door. I peered through the peephole—because despite Sykes’s assumptions, I wasn’t a complete loser when it came to security—and saw Jester loitering in the hallway.

“Is this goodbye?” I asked hopefully.

Did he have better things to do than annoy me? Like, say, playing pool or wasting petrol on a long ride to nowhere?

“You gotta come with me.”