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She walked over to the sofa and sat down, rubbing her temples as though they ached. “This is insane. If there’s any kind of fracas, Emory could be harmed or killed.”
“And whose fault would that be?” he said. “Her own. Why does she remain everyone’s cause célèbre? All of this, everything that’s happened, she brought upon herself.”
She looked at him, her expression wary and accusatory.
Abruptly he turned away. “I’ve got to go.”
“Where’s the charm on your zipper pull?”
He came back around. “What?”
“Last Friday night when you arrived at my house, you were wearing that jacket. I remarked on it, how attractive you looked in it. You bragged on it being new and told me how much it had set you back. Remember?”
“I’m not senile, Alice.”
“It had a recognizable designer logo dangling from the zipper. It’s not there now.”
“I lost it.”
“Where?”
“If I knew where, it wouldn’t be lost.” With impatience, he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “Anything else on your mind this morning?”
“You and I. We’re over?”
“I thought I’d made that clear last night.”
“You did. But I wanted to hear it from you in person.”
“Consider it heard.” He motioned toward the door. “I’ll see you out, then I need to get on my way.”
She stood up shakily. “I’m not feeling well. I need the bathroom.”
He sighed. “Top of the stairs through the bedroom. Hurry, please.”
“Go,” she said tearfully. “I’ll be sure the door is locked when I leave.”
Chapter 40
She hadn’t actually promised Hayes a ten-minute head start before she called the sheriff’s office. He had just assumed she would comply with his request. As soon as he was gone, she plugged her dead cell phone into the charger.
She checked her contacts for Sam Knight’s number, but before she could send it through, her phone rang in her hand, startling her. Even more startling, her LED read: Alice.
With a resurgence of anger, she answered. “I know, Alice.”
Alice made a hiccupping sound. “Jeff told you?”
“No. But it doesn’t matter how I found out. The point is, I did.”
“Emory—”
“Save it. I can’t talk to you now. In fact, I want nothing more to do with you. Ever.”
“What about the clinic?”
“Did you take its future into account when you started sleeping with my husband?”
“I deserve that. I deserve your scorn. More. But you must listen to me now.”
