The Last Invitation (30)

“Detective.” Jessa wiped her hands on her napkin. “This is my friend Faith, but you know that.”

“Yes, I’m aware,” the detective said.

Faith frowned. “Okay. That’s scary.”

“I have a call into your office to speak with you after I meet with Jessa.”

That sounded like a threat, and Jessa wasn’t in the mood, so she skipped over the introductory blather and went right to the main question. “What’s going on?”

“We need to find somewhere private to—”

“No.” Jessa wasn’t in the mood for closed-door meetings in conference rooms and the explanations she’d have to dole out after to appease the partners. “You can say whatever it is in front of Faith, because I will fill her in five seconds from now anyway.”

“Ellie Bartholomew came in today and gave us more background on the driveway incident,” the detective said, sounding very serious and in charge.

Jessa had been waiting for this news. “Good. It’s about time.”

“The information implicates you,” the detective said.

Faith made an odd sound before she started whispering, “Oh, shit.”

“Implicates me in what?” Jessa refused to panic. She hadn’t done anything wrong. Hell, the case only started a few weeks ago, and it already took up too much time, but it was only at the beginning stages.

The detective leaned against the closed door. “Mrs. Bartholomew says you advised her to ignore the judge’s order and leave the jurisdiction with Curtis. That you provided her with information about setting up new identities for her and her son.”

Why would Ellie do that? Why lie and hand Darren that sort of ammunition? “You can’t believe that. It’s not true.”

The detective looked at Faith. “You’re familiar with this case, aren’t you? Assisting women in trouble is your specialty. Some say making them disappear is your expertise.”

Faith being Faith, she didn’t ruffle. She continued chewing. “I’m just sitting here eating a sandwich.”

The idea of this case spilling out on the people she loved—in a real way, not in the way where Tim worried his boss would get ticked off—was not okay. Jessa rushed to put the attention back on her. “Faith is not involved in the Bartholomew case. At all.”

The detective shrugged. “Mr. and Mrs. Bartholomew believe otherwise. They’re contemplating their options.”

And Mrs.? “What the hell does that mean?”

The detective smiled now, clearly pleased with her verbal bombshell. “Civil charges. Possibly criminal.”

“No . . . no.” The panic hit Jessa in waves now. In a blink, she saw all her hard work, all the sacrifices she’d made, the good and bad choices, wither into nothingness. “This can’t be happening.”

Faith threw the half-eaten sandwich on the desk and gestured toward the desk phone. “Jessa, I think you should get another lawyer in your office to hear this.”

Right. Counsel. The pros and cons, mostly cons, swirled in Jessa’s head. She should have enough experience and presence to handle this without bringing in the big guns, but the assurance in the detective’s voice had Jessa shaking from the inside out.

The detective nodded in Faith’s direction. “What about you?”

“Again, trying to eat my lunch.” But Faith’s usual joking tone had disappeared.

“Do you have a lawyer?” the detective asked.

Faith didn’t break eye contact. “The shelter and charity have lawyers.”

The detective’s smile deepened. “Good.”

“Wait a second.” Jessa struggled to make sense of the conversation and to keep Faith firmly out of it. “You’re saying Ellie and Darren came into the police station together?”

The detective nodded. “Yes.”

“They couldn’t stand in the same courthouse together.” When the detective didn’t say anything, Jessa tried again. “He’s pressuring her to make up these lies. He has to be.”

Nothing else made sense. Darren had crashed into Ellie’s car. Maybe that was a message that he would do anything to win. A warning, and Ellie had heeded it. She was too worried about Curtis not to listen to it.

Jessa tried to make the detective understand. “Faith can explain this better than I can, but this is how these cases go. It’s about control. Ellie is doing what Darren wants because he’s convinced her he has power over her. He might be threatening her behind the scenes.”

The detective stood there, not saying anything for a few minutes. “This is a courtesy call. I wanted you to know the case is moving, but not in the direction you expected.”

The pressure ratcheted up. Jessa could feel the walls caving in around her. If the professionals who saw cases like this couldn’t stop Darren’s games, no one could. “Please tell me you see through this bullshit.”

“If either of you would like to make a statement, sooner would be good. You’re already on the defensive.” The detective handed Faith a card and dropped a second one on the corner of Jessa’s desk.

Jessa couldn’t take much more. “Please leave.”

“In these situations, the first to talk wins.” The detective opened the door. “Enjoy your lunch.”