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"Wait." She holds out her hands. "I didn’t do that."
"But you did leave the note?" the detective asks. “I recommend you don't lie right now. We have an expert analyzing the handwriting as we speak."
Her eyes flicker between the two of us, and she can see that she's trapped. "Ok fine. Yes, I left the note, but I didn’t do anything else, I swear."
I almost don't believe it. The detective and I share a look at how easily Mona took the bait.
She's the culprit.
"No," she shakes her head boldly. "I didn't. I was delivering donuts to the station and overheard them talking about your break-in. So, I thought maybe if I left a note...but I swear, I didn’t do anything else." Tears glint in her eyes now, and it’s so odd to see such a tough woman fold like that. I share another look with the detective, who nods and says,
"You’re going to have to come with us to the station. You can give your statement there."
"Am I under arrest?"
"Yes effectively."
I take a deep breath as he walks her out, curious eyes following them. And just like that I'm free to return home.
I'm not as happy about that as I thought I’d be.
22
LUKE
I pace back and forth,nearly ready to rip my own hair out. An hour. She’s been gone for an hour with nothing more than a stupid note to show for it.
I’ll be back soon. There's something I need to take care of.
That's it. That's all she gave me. If I wasn’t completely certain that it was her handwriting I would’ve thought she’d gotten kidnapped already. Or that something equally heinous had happened to her. And even worse, she’s answering my texts with these little non-answers.
Where are you?
I’ll be back
Huh? But where are you?
I’ll tell you when I get back.
It's just about driving me up a wall, and I wonder what other secrets she’s hiding. Or perhaps she simply doesn't understand how I feel about her. She can be mad at me all she wants but she can't just disappear without telling me. I go crazy with worry. And I'm going to tell her that the minute she gets home.
I already checked on the kids, who were doing fine. Chase had no clue where his mom went, either, but he probably wouldn't tell me even if he did. He's still pissed at me, and even though I should be annoyed at being misunderstood, I appreciate that he's so protective of his mother.
I just wish the woman was as protective over herself, and didn't do stupid things like disappear without telling anyone. I try to call again but as usual, it goes straight to voicemail.
Oh, you’re going to pay for this one Mia.I’m already planning a retribution, in my mind, because it's the only thing that can distract me from the worry.What do I do this time? Fill her bakery with strippers? Paint her house hot pink? Buy a Ferrari in her name and make her drive it?So many possibilities. I occupy myself with crazy thoughts until I finally hear the door open. I'm on my feet and in front of the door before she even completely steps in.
She jerks when she sees me there.
“Where have you been?” I hiss in a whisper, not wanting the kids to hear.
She recovers from her shock quickly and a little smile dances at the corner of her lips. “Were you worried about me?"
Yes, but I don’t want to admit it. “You don’t just disappear without telling me where you’re going. You could’ve been taken, or kidnapped, or worse." I've been trying so hard not to think about that for the past hour. Too many horrors reverberated through my mind; all the horrible things that could’ve happened to her.
Her amusement falls off and a gentle look enters her eyes, instead. She brings up her hand, touching my cheek and just then, it feels like coming home once again.
“I’m fine. I was with the detective. We solved the break-in case."
