Victorious(48)

“Yes, I had some friends. People I did things with. But I didn’t date, if that’s what you mean.”

“I’m just having a little trouble believing that in all that time, with all those people you came into contact with, lived with, did things with, you never told anyone about Stone or the trial or anything about your life before college. I have a daughter. She talks about everything.”

Her eyes flash with anger. “Was your daughter attacked and repeatedly raped by a man she trusted when she was fifteen? Did your best friend lure her to his home, hold her down, take her virginity, her innocence, and ruin her life? Did your daughter’s parents disown her when she refused to back down from bringing charges against your best friend and boss? If not, then you certainly have no place to judge me or the choices I made after I was attacked.”

I want to stand up and cheer. I’ve never been more proud of her or more impressed by her than I am in that moment.

“You went to college in the same state in which you helped to send the governor to jail. No one recognized you?”

“I’d changed my appearance by then. I’d changed my hair color from reddish brown to the current color, and until this week, I wore brown contacts that changed my eye color. I was also older by then, and I had matured in the years since the attack and trial. No one ever so much as suggested that I might be April Genovese. They were college kids. What did they care about the girl who brought down the governor? Most of them probably didn’t even know it had happened.”

“When you heard the media was reporting that Flynn Godfrey’s new girlfriend was the same girl who brought down the governor of Nebraska, what did you think?”

“I knew right away that David had cashed in on what he knew about me. It had to be him, because no one else knew.”

“Since the story went public, have you spoken to anyone you knew before in Lincoln?”

“Only my sisters, who I hadn’t spoken to since before the attack.”

“You didn’t speak to Rogers?”

“Why would I? Flynn’s lawyers were handling the situation with him. I had bigger concerns, including the loss of my job and livelihood. I had no desire to speak to the man who’d given me a new identity and then stolen it from me when it served his purposes.”

Both men look at my wife with admiration while my heart swells with love and respect. She’s magnificent.

“Have we answered all your questions?” I want him gone so I can be alone with her.

“For now. We’d like you to remain available while the investigation continues.”

“We’re going to London for about forty-eight hours this weekend for the British Academy Film Awards,” I say, “but we’ll be back in LA early next week.”

“We’d like to know what else is being done to find Rogers’s killer,” Emmett said. “Surely you have persons of interest by now other than my clients?”

“We’re investigating a number of promising leads. The information you provided today is very helpful.”

“It’s safe to assume, then, that my clients are not suspects?”

“Not yet. This is an ongoing investigation, and we reserve the right to question your clients again.”

“I’ll show you out,” Emmett says, tuning in to my need to have the agent gone.

The moment we’re alone in the kitchen, I reach for her. “You were f*cking magnificent.” I realize she’s trembling, which infuriates me. “I’m so sorry you had to go through all that again. I hope that’s the last time you ever have to talk about it.”

“I hope so, too.”

“We can skip the lunch today if you’re not up for it.”

“We’re not skipping it. You’re an Academy Award nominee, and we’re going to that luncheon.”

I raise her chin and kiss her. “So proud of you, sweetheart.”

She smiles weakly.

Emmett comes back. “That was awesome, Natalie. You handled him like a pro.”

“I just told the truth.”

“You did it brilliantly.”

“See?” I tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. “I’m not the only one who thinks you’re f*cking amazing.”

“Don’t forget I’ve had training on how to deal with hostile questions, cross-examination, the whole nine yards.”

“I’m so turned on right now.”

“And that’s my cue to get the hell out of the love nest,” Emmett says, laughing.

I get up to shake his hand. “Thanks for coming, man.”

“You got it. Any time.”

“We’ll see you at the office tomorrow and at the club on Friday.”

“Oh. Really?” He glances between Natalie and me.

“Really.”

“Well, okay. See you soon.”

“Keep me posted on anything you hear from the investigator.”

“I will.”

I see him out the door and return to the kitchen, where Natalie is staring out at the pool, lost in thought. Probably lost in torturous memories. If I could, I’d spend every dime I have to erase those memories for her.

“Are you okay, sweetheart?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just that I’ve been forced to confront my past more in the last few weeks than I have in years.”