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I sucked in a deep breath through my nose. “I told you a few days ago that I work for the Federal Government. And I do. But when I told you I was sent back here to get a new office up and running, that wasn’t true. The office was already established. I was sent back because I needed to be close to the local agency office while we investigated a case.”
Piper wrinkled her brow. “What kind of case?”
Pieters glanced at where I was standing and I nodded at him to explain. “We’ve been following a group of people who have been conning people out of money. And I’m not talking about the usual ‘this is the IRS, send us a thousand dollars or you’re going to jail’ scam. These guys have been swindling people out of their life savings. We’re talking millions of dollars.”
Piper sucked in a breath. “That’s terrible.” She looked at me and then back at Pieters. “But I don’t know what that has to do with me.”
It was my turn to try to explain. “The names of the prescriptions that were written under pinged the moment Wheeler here said something. Although they aren’t exact matches for them, the names are one of the aliases we’ve been following for the last few months,” I told her. “It could just be a coincidence.” I cut my eyes to where Pieters was standing. “But I’m willing to stake my reputation that this is somehow related. And, if it is, if these assholes are somehow using you in their schemes, I swear to God, I’m not going to stop until we have every last one of them in custody.”
“So, what do we do now?” she asked.
Pieters looked at where she sat, her blue eyes round with fear as she chewed her bottom lip. Then he glanced back at me, asking permission for what he had to do. I gave him a quick jerk of my chin. I knew there was no way Piper was involved in this of her own accord. But we had to cover all of our bases, and do it the right way, to be sure she was going to be cleared of any wrongdoing.
I settled into the chair across from her and reached my hand out. She slid hers across to me and I squeezed when our fingers met. “Pieters has to question you.”
Guilt washed over me as I watched the fear that had been in her eyes spread, her face going ghostly white. “Question me?”
I nodded. “It’s standard procedure.”
She shook her head and jerked her hand from mine. “No. I don’t want to be questioned.”
He took the seat beside me, and in a voice I had never heard from him before, gently assured her, “I promise. No one here thinks you’re guilty of anything. But we’ve got to do this the right way. And, it’s either right here, right now. Or, we file a warrant and have you brought down to the office for questioning.”
Mr. Wheeler had remained silent, but now he turned to his client and leaned close to whisper in her ear. After a moment, Piper looked back at where we both sat, and though she was glowering at us both, she said, “Okay. Question away.”
Pieters began by reading her her rights and my stomach churned as I listened to the familiar words being directed at my girlfriend. “Piper Kelley. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed to you. Do you understand your rights?”
She didn’t answer, instead peered at me, her eyes imploring me to tell her what to do.
“Just say yes, you understand.”
When she still said nothing, I whispered, “You trust me, right?”
When she nodded, I said again, “Just say yes, you understand.”
She cleared her throat and barely more than a whisper told Pieters, “Yes. I understand my rights.”
“Miss Kelley, are you familiar with an individual named Josiah Matthews?” Pieters asked.
Piper shook her head. “No. I’ve never heard of him.”
Pieters nodded. “What about Matthew Shadblow?”
Again, she denied knowing anyone by that name.
On and on the questioning went, Piper denying knowing anything about the individuals we were investigating. It was no surprise to me, or to anyone sitting around that table, though.
Finally, when Pieters had finished his interrogation, I murmured to no one in particular, “I just can’t figure out how she’s connected to all of this.”
“I’m not connected to anything!” she sputtered, disbelief lacing her words. “I’m not a criminal! I’m a doctor!” Her eyes filled with tears as she said more to herself than anyone else. “Or, I was.”
I was on my feet and at her side in the blink of an eye, my arm wrapped around her shoulders and holding her close as she continued to sob.
Pieters cleared his throat and then said to Wheeler, “I need some air. Want to come outside with me?”
I didn’t see them leave but heard the chairs scraping the floor as I held Piper. “I promise you, your career is not over. I am going to figure this out. I’m on to something here, I just have to find that one common thread.”
She nodded and pulled away from my shoulder, swiping the tears from her face. “I never thought I’d have my rights read to me. Even though it was just a formality, it was terrifying.”
