Chapter 5 : Am I a Suspect?

Chapter 5: Am I a Suspect?

I felt my jaw drop as I stood face to face with the officer that had seen me at my absolute worst just six months earlier. Seeing him also brought me back to that night in a way that felt like whiplash. I sucked in a breath, and I was back in the living room I had shared with Abbie, blood was everywhere.

And my best friend was gone.

Officer Drake furrowed his thick eyebrows, stepping away from his car to close the space between us. He was dressed in a short-sleeved, forest-green button-up, and black slacks. “Miss Grimaldi? Are you alright?”

“Yes, of course!” I squeaked. I glanced nervously behind me, back toward the house. I looked up at Officer Drake, chuckling lightly. “Is it alright if we do this elsewhere?”

He nodded and after I explained that I was just leaving to walk to the grocery store, he offered to walk with me. Once he turned off his car, we settled into a silent trek down the road.

I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye, trying to read him, but he looked completely relaxed, and not like he was about to interrogate me.

Even though he looked calm, there was still a tension in the air between us and I realized that it was coming solely from me.

“May I ask what this is about?” I blurted. When he turned to look at me in surprise, I averted my eyes, looking down at the concrete beneath our feet. “I’m sorry. It’s just that, didn’t I already answer a bunch of questions before, at the station?”

Officer Drake looked apologetic as he said, "You were a big help last time, but we did have to close the case. Recently, it’s been reopened and I’m responsible for discovering any new leads."

I pursed my lips as I digested that information. I didn’t know how to feel. Part of me was grateful that there were people who were going to fight for Abbie, to work to find out who had killed her. Another part of me couldn’t help but feel as if reopening the case was also reopening some old wounds that had just barely started to scab over.

Another thought suddenly occurred to me and I stiffened, shivering despite the comfortable heat of the warm May sun. My lips barely moved as I asked my next question, which should have been an obvious one in retrospect considering who I was walking next to. “Am I a suspect?”

I squeezed my eyes shut, unwilling to even glance at Officer Drake as I let the question float in the space between us.

His tone was unreadable. “Should I have reason to believe you could be?”

A hysterical laugh burst from my lips. “Probably! I was her roommate, probably the closest person to her.”

“Hmm, that is an excellent point.”

My head snapped up and toward him. I could feel my eyes widening in horror, but his casual stance hadn’t changed and he was observing me with a playful twinkle in his dark brown eyes, a smirk toying at the corner of his mouth.

He was teasing me.

I let out a breath and managed to narrow my eyes at him with a scowl. “Don’t do that!”

He laughed a light, carefree sound that did nothing to calm my racing heart. “Sorry, sorry,” he said, and even through his chuckles, I could tell it was a genuine apology. “You kind of walked into that one though, you have to admit.”

I giggled lightly, seeing his point. “I’m sorry, I’ve just been a little high-strung lately.” That sounded like the understatement of the year.

“That’s completely understandable,” he said gently, and that’s when I noticed how close we were. If I were to push my arm away from my body just a little, our arms would brush against each other.

Officer Drake cleared his throat and looked around. “So, how have you been? Your house is … impressive.”

I laughed as he struggled to find the right word. “Yeah, it’s a pretty nice house,” I allowed.

I tried not to grow bitter as I thought about how much nicer it could be if my stepfamily took any steps at all to take care of it. I shook the thought off, smiling up at him. “How have you been, Officer Drake?” I could feel my eyebrows furrowing when he gave me a sideways glance, raising one. “What?”

The smirk was back. “I thought we had agreed to be on a first-name basis.”

It took me a moment to summon the blurry memory. I could only vaguely recall the conversation he and I had in my old bedroom. That quite literally felt like a lifetime ago now. I pursed my lips, pleased when his name finally came to me.

“Sorry, Jack.” I glared up at him. “Although, I seem to recall that you called me Miss Grimaldi when you first saw me.”

“True,” he allowed. “Sorry, Mia.”

I swallowed and looked down, mortified by how much I liked the way he said my name. “So, how have you been?”

Jack shook his head. “I believe I asked you first.”

“I’ve been fine,” I said quickly, not wanting to go into details about the sorry turn my life had taken over the past few months.

He saw through me easily. “Have you?”

“Yes,” I said firmly. I fumbled for a vague, but still honest elaboration. “I mean, things haven’t been easy since … well, you know.”

His coffee-colored eyes softened. “I can only imagine.”

He was clearly waiting for me to say more. “I lost my job, so I had to move back home since I couldn’t afford to live in the city on my own anymore.” I decided to leave out that I was essentially blacklisted from the dance community after Abbie’s murder.

Jack nodded in understanding. “I’m really sorry to hear that.”

“I’ve really been fine though,” I said quickly. “I have a new job. I’m trying to save up so I can move back to the city.” He seemed satisfied with my answers, so I tilted my head to look up at him. “Okay, it’s your turn. How are you?”

Jack shrugged carelessly. “I’ve been just fine.”

I waited for a beat. When the silence stretched, I scoffed, crossing my arms before I could help myself. “You’re going to have to give me more than that.”

He pursed his lips. “There really isn’t anything more I can say. You’re much more interesting than I am.”

I actually laughed at that. “I doubt that.”

Jack looked lost as if he really couldn’t think of anything. “I’ve just been busy with work.”

I nodded. “Ahh, so you’re a workaholic.”

Jack frowned. “No,” he denied. Then his eyes lit up. “A buddy of mine is getting married later this year. A bunch of us went out to celebrate recently.”

So he did know how to have fun. “What’d you do?”

He rolled his eyes. “Nothing too imaginative. The usual stuff, drinking and dancing.”

I felt the corner of my mouth tug as I smirked slightly. “It doesn’t sound like you enjoyed yourself very much.”

Jack shrugged. “My friends are a bunch of idiots.”

I grinned at him. “I bet they’re a fun group of guys.”

I sighed when I looked up and saw we’d reached the grocery store. When I first saw Jack Drake leaning against that black car, I imagined this conversation going much differently. I definitely didn’t expect to feel comfortable, and more like myself than I had in months.

I turned to face him. “Thank you for walking with me.”

He smiled and nodded. “Thank you for your time, Mia.”

I gripped the strap of my purse with both hands, unwilling to go. I had enjoyed the casual conversation with Jack so much that I nearly forgot the reason he had come to find me. I swallowed.

“Do you think you’ll really be able to figure out who did this to Abbie?”

I felt my chest and throat tighten in a way that they hadn’t in six months. It felt as if I had cried every last tear in my body when it first happened. Now, it felt as if I was going to do it all over again.

A horrible realization hit me at that moment. I had not truly given myself the time to grieve the loss of my best friend. Immediately after that horrid night, I packed up my stuff and returned to Staten Island. I let my stepfamily take advantage of me and buried myself in my job at the club, completely ignoring the grief.

Now it felt as if it wanted to burst out of me all at once.

“Yes.”

I looked up at him through watery eyes, blinking the liquid away. A fierce determination stole over his features, causing his jaw to tighten and his eyes to narrow.

I struggled to keep my voice from shaking. “You really think so?”

He nodded one hard nod. “I promise you, Mia. I will do everything in my power to crack this case.”

I felt a wave of calm go through me and wiped away the couple of tears that had leaked out. “Thank you,” I said, hoping he could get just an ounce of the overwhelming sincerity I felt at that moment. “I’ll help in any way I can, tell you everything I know. Please, just let me know if there’s anything at all that I can do.”

“Of course,” Jack said gently. He seemed slightly calmer, but his expression was still tense. “We’ll bring this killer to justice, Mia. I’ll make sure of it.”

I shivered at his words, the emotions welling up once again. “I’ll tell you anything, but I truly have no idea why anyone would want to hurt Abigail. She was the purest, sweetest person I ever met.”

I looked down, willing the tears away. Jack was only going to know me as that girl that cried every time we met.

Something small and rectangular appeared just inches from my nose and I looked up. Jack’s eyes were concerned, but the muscles along his jaw were still tight. He almost looked angry. His “Take my card,” he said. “If you think of anything at all that you think could be helpful toward solving this case, please do not hesitate to call me.”

I bit my trembling lip before taking the tiny business card from him. My fingers brushed lightly against his, causing what felt like a tiny shock to go through me. His heated gaze never left mine, even when I slipped the card into my purse.

And honestly, I didn’t want it to.