Lila

She'd slept a lot during the day, waking at different times when the nurses checked her. Then again when she heard the door go and someone took the seat next to the bed.

​​

When she opened her eyes the light outside was dimming—like it was late afternoon. And the man in the chair next to her was a gray-haired older man with strong shoulders and a soft smile. He wore glasses, a collared shirt with a sweater over it. And even though he didn't have anything official on, she knew immediately that he was a Police Officer.

"Hello, Lila, my name's Harry," he said quietly when he saw her looking at him.

"Officer Harry?" she said warily.

He smiled. "Detective, actually. Detective Harry Quinn."

Lila's heart sped up. "Hello, Detective."

"How are you feeling?"

"I've been better," she said, but pushed herself up slowly to sit. The pain medication they'd added to her drip was helping. But it was also making her very sleepy.

"I'm sure you have. I wonder if you're feeling up to answering a few questions for me?"

"Does the Department know you're here?" she asked immediately.

He hesitated. "I'm on the clock right now. But they don't know I'm here specifically, no."

Lila stared at him. This was the one man in the Police force Dane had trusted—as far as he was willing to trust a Police Officer. But even with this man, Dane had concerns. She didn't know what to do.

"What kind of questions?" she asked in a small voice.

Harry sat forward, his elbows on his knees. She thought he was about to fake sympathy and compassion and she immediately wanted to get away from him. But he surprised her.

"I know he was… working on something. He obviously got you out, but not himself. That worries me. A lot."

"It should."

They stared at each other for a long, silent minute. Then Harry ran a hand through his hair and sat back. "When can we talk?"

"That depends," she said, rolling her jaw. "How do I know you aren't on the payroll?"

Harry's eyebrows popped up. "Didn't Dane tell you? I—"

"You know his assistant turned out to be… against him?"

"Yes. I was there."

"So you'll forgive me if I don't always trust Dane's judgment on who should be trusted."

"He trusts you."

"Which is another reason why I trust myself."

Harry smiled. "I'm starting to see why you got under his skin in the way no one else did."

"Why's that?" Her heart ached.

"Because you wouldn't take his shit," Harry chuckled.

Lila couldn't help but smile. "There's some truth to that," she admitted. "But it was more too."

He nodded. "Well, Mrs. Daniels, I want you to know that, while I'm well aware of the weaknesses in our system, I still believe attempting to settle these kinds of matters in the legal system is the best way to go. So if you ever have time or energy to speak with me about what you know about why your husband hasn't shown up to work for two days, I want to hear it. In the meantime, I'm required to meet with you regarding your own disappearance—though I can see that you are clearly overcome with pain right now, so your memory couldn't possibly be trusted later. So we should postpone that interview until, say, Thursday?"

Lila smiled broader. "I would thank you for that, Detective Quinn."

He nodded and stood, but before he turned, he paused. "You're Lila Farris, correct?"

Her smile died. "Yes."

"I was involved in your father's case a little—only on the fringes. I always had a feeling things weren't quite right there, either."

Lila held his gaze for far longer than she should have, but her heart kept swinging between trusting this man, and recoiling from him. "I think you're probably right," was all she said in the end.

Harry nodded. "If you want to talk anytime, here's my card. But otherwise, I'll see you Thursday?"

"Yes, you will," she said quietly then watched him leave before she slumped back onto the pillows.

Oh, Dane, she thought. How am I ever going to decide who to trust without you here?

*****

Dane

The second video made him physically ill. He swallowed it back, but it was a close-run thing. When it was done, he pushed the tablet back to Felix and waited.

"Fun times," Felix said without a smile.

"If you say so."

"How would you feel to know your father plans to release that publicly?"

It hit Dane right in the chest, like a fist. He kept his face blank, but his breathing sped up. "I'd say you'd do the work of burning bridges that you mentioned earlier."

Felix nodded slowly. "And I think it'll add a little pressure to your wife, and your colleagues, too, don't you?"

"What's your point, Felix? Are we just going to run in this circle over and over again? I get it. He's ruining my life so I have nothing to go back to. Okay. Fine. Next?"

Felix regarded him for a moment, his eyes narrowed, then he picked up the tablet and messed with it again. Dane's heart dropped to his toes, but he made himself sit quietly and just wait.

But all he could think about, all he could wonder, was what Lila was going to do when she saw that. How she'd feel. What she'd want to say to him. What she'd say to other people.

He'd known this was going to be the hardest thing he'd ever done.

He hadn't expected to question himself—or her—so soon. He'd underestimated his father again. And that made him sweat. And ache.

While he waited for Felix, he closed his eyes and rubbed them for a moment, took himself back to their wedding night—when he'd taken her to the hot tub and she'd just given herself over to him. He'd had her in the water, in his lap and told her to just let go. And she had.

She'd laid herself bare to him, trusted him, trusted his hands, his love, his intention.

Did she still feel that way?

Would she after all this?

"Strap in, Dane," Felix said, turning the tablet back to him and pushing it across the table. "There's more."

"There's always more," Dane muttered.

*****

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