Page 17 of Fifty-Fifty

‘No, I’m K-Kate. Kate Brooks from Levy, Bernard and Groff.’

She was nervous, and a little stunned by the scene she’d just witnessed.

The man held out a hand to Kate and said, ‘Hi, I’m Eddie Flynn. This is Harper.’

Kate stared at Eddie’s hand, saw the blood on it and hesitated.

Eddie followed her eyes, noticed the blood covering his palm and wiped his hands.

‘Is this kind of thing normal for you two?’ said Kate.

Eddie and Harper exchanged a knowing look. One filled with shared memories of blood and killers.

Both of them nodded, and began walking toward her car.

‘Nice to meet you, Kate,’ said Eddie over his shoulder.

The two of them got into the car, Harper driving. She spun the tires, enveloping Kate in a cloud of smoke, then took off at an impossible speed.

Five minutes later Kate was in the interview room, taking a seat beside Levy. On Levy’s other side sat the client – Alexandra Avellino. Kate had a whispered conversation with Levy before entering the interview room. Just the two of them.

Levy didn’t seem surprised at the events outside the precinct house, but told her to put it out of her mind – he needed her sharp. The client had signed the retainer agreement and that was what seemed to matter most to Levy right then. He told

her she had to take copious notes during the interview – accuracy was everything. The cops had let something slip about a will, and he’d sent Scott to run it down.

The detectives Kate had seen outside arguing with Eddie came into the interview room. While they readied themselves with paperwork and set up a camera to record the interview, Kate took the opportunity get a good look at the client.

She looked like a skincare model. A beautiful, wealthy young woman in a terrible situation. Kate could tell she had been crying, judging by the swelling and redness around the eyes, and every now and then as Alexandra raised a hand

to put it on the table, or run it through her hair, she detected a tremor at the edge of those fingers. The cops must have clipped her fingernails – they were jagged and sharp. No one who put that much effort into their appearance would go out

with nails like that. Alexandra was the sort of woman who would have had a manicure that cost more than Kate’s entire outfit.

‘For the record, my name is Detective Brett Soames, this is my partner, Isiah Tyler, and we are interviewing Alexandra Avellino at First Precinct, New York City. Also present is counsel Theodore Levy and …’

Kate was writing furiously in her pad, the pen skimming across the page. She wrote, ‘Levy and’ and then stopped, waiting for the next word.

No one spoke. She raised her head and found the detectives, and Levy, looking at her. Waiting for her.

‘State your name for the recording, please, ma’am,’ said Soames.

‘Oh, sorry, Kate Brooks.’

Soames nodded, bunched his lips together in a way that looked like he’d just tasted something sour, and then continued.

‘Miss Avellino, at this stage we just want a first account from you concerning the recent events surrounding your father’s murder. You want to tell us what happened?’

‘Sofia butchered my father. There, is that what you want me to say?’ she said, her jaw wobbling, her voice tremulous.

Levy jumped in with both feet.

‘My client will issue a full statement, detective, once we’ve had disclosure.

You heard her tell you who killed her father. That’s it for now. For the record I know you have information regarding the deceased’s will, which you have not shared. If Mike Modine made a statement to police I want to see it. Until there is full disclosure my client won’t be answering questions.’

‘Mr. Levy, if your client is alleging that her sister killed Frank Avellino, then doesn’t she want her sister prosecuted? You’re telling me she’s a witness,’ said Tyler.

‘I found him on the bed,’ said Alexandra. Levy put a fat fist on her arm. He didn’t want to be so blatant as to tell her to keep her mouth shut, but he needed to give her a gentle reminder. Kate felt something else. Just seeing him put his fingers on a female made her skin crawl. Alexandra removed her arm from the