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I kiss him on the forehead and tell him that I’ll see him later tonight for dinner and go back outside to where Francis is still waiting in the squad car.
I rap on the window and say, “Let’s do this.” Together, we walk up to the Harpers’ front door. I pull the arrest warrant from my coat pocket while Francis rings the doorbell.
Joyce Harper opens the door and looks from me to Francis, dressed in his uniform, in confusion. “Maggie? Is something going on? Did something happen?”
“Is Mr. Harper here?” I ask ignoring her questions.
“Yes, he’s upstairs. Did something happen?” Joyce asks fearfully.
“Can you please go get him for us,” I say evenly though my pulse is racing.
“Of course,” Joyce says, stepping aside to let us in.
“Nice house,” Francis murmurs as Joyce disappears up the steps. Nice house, with dark secrets, I want to say but don’t. I know my relationship with Cam Harper will eventually come to light but I’m okay with it. I’ll finally be able to speak the words that I haven’t been able to. I’ll be able to say, This is how I lied, and now this is my truth.
“Maggie?” Cam Harper asks cautiously as he comes down the steps. “What’s going on?”
“Cameron Harper,” I say, steel in my voice, “you are under arrest for the murder of Eve Knox.”
“What?” Joyce Harper says in disbelief.
“You have the right to remain silent,” I say, watching Cam’s face, which has been leached of all color. “Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
“What are you doing, Maggie?” Joyce cries. She turns to Cam. “This is a mistake. Cam, tell them it’s a mistake!”
“It’s a mistake, Joyce,” Cam says. “Don’t worry. Go call Jerry, tell him to meet me at the station.”
I lock eyes with Joyce and in that brief moment there is a fissure in her devotion to her husband. I’ve seen it before. It won’t be today or even tomorrow, but eventually Joyce Harper will turn on her husband and she’ll cooperate with us.
“Joyce, go call Jerry,” Cam snaps and Joyce scurries away.
“You have the right to an attorney,” I continue. “If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you?”
“This is bullshit,” Cam says arrogantly. “No one will believe it.”
“Do you understand the rights I have just read to you?” I repeat.
“Yes,” Cam says bitterly as Francis pulls Cam’s hands behind his back and snaps a pair of handcuffs around his wrists.
Francis leads Cam outside to the squad car. The cold air burns my eyes and I watch as Francis places Cam into the back seat. After he’s situated, I lean in and whisper into his ear. “You are finally going to get what you deserve. You’re going to pay for killing Eve and for what you did to me and to any other little girl you raped.”
For the first time I see alarm in Cam’s eyes but he recovers quickly. “You don’t have any proof,” he says dismissively. “I’ll be back home in a few hours.”
“We have the proof,” I tell Cam and the fear returns. I can smell it on him. “DNA doesn’t lie.”
Hours later I’m sitting in Ellie’s bedroom. She’s asleep in my arms, her wispy hair still damp from her bath. I breathe in her powdery scent and watch her pink lips form a perfect O. I stroke her soft, plump cheek and a smile blooms. Her eyes flutter open and then close.
After arresting Cam and after Ellie’s doctor appointment I finally sat down with Shaun and told him everything. I told him about my argument with Eve at the caves and about Cam Harper and the baby. I was expecting him to grab Ellie and run. He was shocked and then enraged but not at me. At Cam.
Shaun held me tight as I cried and told me that it was going to be okay, that he wished I had told him about everything sooner. I wish I had too.
I slowly rise and carry Ellie over to her crib, kiss her cheek and gently lay her down. Her little fists wave until, with a contented sigh, her thumb finds her mouth. For the first time in a very long time, I know I will sleep through the night. Though I know there are murderers and thieves and monsters out there, tonight I will go to bed knowing that I’m not a killer and that a killer and a predator is behind bars. Cam Harper won’t be able to hurt anyone else.
I feel Shaun come up behind me and together we look down at Ellie and I think of Eve. “Sleep well,” I whisper. “Sleep well.”
