Witness in the Dark (Love Under Fire #1)(16)

“Thanks,” he mumbled as Wendy came into the room, already dressed in leggings and a long sweater that fell off her left shoulder.

“I’ll go get food,” she announced, and turned to Sam. “Any requests?” she snapped, like it would be a problem if there were.

Sam just shook her head.

When Wendy was gone, Sam took a shower, using the tiny shampoo, conditioner, and soap she’d taken from the hotel before they left. She dressed in the same clothes from the day before, wondering if it defeated the purpose of the shower. Would she be wearing these clothes every day until the trial?

Fortunately, when Wendy returned with the groceries, she brought clothes and toiletries for Sam, as well. The clothes weren’t fancy, and some of them were too big, but Sam was grateful.

“Thanks,” she said.

Wendy warmed up slightly and nodded. But their girl moment was interrupted by Benson’s cell phone.

“Yeah?” he answered. “She’s here. Sure.” He turned to Sam and held out the phone. “The district attorney wants to question you.”

“Hello?” Her voice cracked.

“This is District Attorney Hugh Harris. I need to ask you a few questions.”

“Of course.”

The few questions turned into two hours of relentless badgering. He tried from every angle to get her to recant her story, to say that she could be wrong, or that she wasn’t one hundred percent sure.

When Benson’s phone died, Harris called back on Wendy’s and continued until Sam finally got angry. “Look, you’re supposed to be on my side. Maybe you need to go back to law school so you know who the hell you’re working for. News flash—it’s not Congressman Howe. He’s the bad guy. He’s the one who murdered that girl, and it doesn’t matter how many times you ask me, that’s the truth. The truth doesn’t change!” she shouted.

“You’d be surprised,” he said flatly. “I needed to get you rattled, to make sure you wouldn’t change your story. This is a big deal, Samantha.”

“You think I don’t know that? God! Someone tried to kill me! And since dead people don’t care if they’re found out, it means the person who wants to shut me up is still alive, so it’s not Kenneth Holden.”

“The U.S. Marshal who extracted you identified one of the men as being in Ashton Howe’s Secret Service detail. We’ve also lifted a partial print from Holden’s home that traces back to another man in Howe’s detail. That’s not enough to convict him, though. Those things can be explained away as rogue employees trying to set him up. Your testimony is the vital piece we’ll need to lock him away.”

She stopped pacing as that sunk in. It all came down to her.

“Howe’s lawyers are going to tear you up on the stand,” said Harris. “They’ll pull out every skeleton in your closet.”

“I don’t have any skeletons in my closet,” she argued.

“Then they’ll make some up.”

“Are you saying I should give up? Recant?”

“No. I’m not saying that, at all. What I’m saying is, if there is any chance that you are going to give up, it would be better for everyone if you did it now.”

“I’m not going to let this go.” Sam sounded like an irritable child, even to herself. “He can’t get away with killing people just because he’s powerful and rich. It’s not right.”

“Okay, Ms. Hutchinson.” Harris sounded pleased, for once. “Then prepare for battle.”

“I’m ready.”

Except, she had never been less ready for anything in her life.

“Call me if you remember anything else.”

She didn’t see how it was possible to remember anything more. Harris had pulled every minuscule detail out of her head. “Okay.”

“If you hadn’t been in that alley, he would have gotten away with this. Heather Riddell would most likely stay an unsolved crime forever. Everything comes down to the eyewitness. Your testimony is the basket that is holding most of our eggs.”

She swallowed. He was saying if something happened to her, there would be no case. “I understand.”

She handed the phone back to Wendy and went to her room, where she sat on her bed and studied her hands. For probably the hundredth time, she heard Nikki’s voice in her head.

What if he comes after you to shut you up?

If she had taken her friend’s advice, Sam would be sitting at her desk right now going over marketing reports and sales figures. The worst thing she’d have to worry about was dealing with a breakup. Instead, she was running for her life.

She flopped down on her bed and stared at the ceiling. Did she regret her choice? She’d thought by now she might.

But she didn’t. She was giving up her old existence to do the right thing. Many times in her life when she was faced with a difficult decision, she’d thought about her father and what would make him proud, if he were alive.

Three days later she had become best friends with that ceiling. She’d made Wendy promise to pick up some books the next time she left the safe house—there was only so much The Price is Right a person could watch without going insane—but until then, time had slowed to an excruciating pace.

“Congressman Howe has been arrested,” Benson yelled from the living room the next evening. “It’s on the news.”