Page 50 of Innocent Intent

16.

“You okay?”

Cassidy slowly peeled her eyes away from the passenger window and gave her attention to Davis. The two of them were sitting outside the UPS Store, where Zoey Wright would hopefully show up soon. The plan was for Davis to ambush the woman with an unsanctioned interrogation to see if she knew anything that would help in their search to find out who Jerrod Williams was, if she was willing to share.

“I’m great; why?” She scrunched her nose slightly and shifted her position in the seat of the compact car they’d rented after landing at LaGuardia Airport a few hours earlier.

“That’s why.” He motioned in her direction, and Cassidy looked down before her eyes lifted again and landed on Davis when he followed with, “You’ve been fidgeting for the past ten minutes. You don’t have to—”

“No, I do have to be here. This is important.”

“To you personally or for the case?”

“Both.” Cassidy huffed a sigh of irritation. “I know you’re taking a risk, allowing me to tag along. You’re still on the fence about whether I killed my husband, so I understand what’s happening here. I’m anxious because if she shows, I’ll be face-to-face with another one of his lies. I’m not worried you’ll find some hidden evidence that will further convince you that I’m guilty of killing Niles.”

Davis stared at Cassidy pensively. She matched his stare, trying to decide what he might be thinking.

“You have the right to be anxious. The man lied to you. Zoey helped him do it. I’m only asking if you’re okay because I get it. This can’t be easy. Truthfully, it has to be an entire pain in the ass. He lied to you for years. Left you in a complicated space, and now you’re doing your best to make sense of it all. I don’t know that I would be holding up as well as you are.”

She flashed a smile. “Maybe I’m managing because I already got my retribution.”

Davis scoffed. “If I believed that were true, you wouldn’t be here. I would have already tossed your ass in county, and you’d be awaiting trial.”

Cassidy’s brows pinched as she processed the affirmation hidden in the words. “Does that mean you believe I wasn’t the one who killed him?”

“For now, yes.”

“Thank you,” she stated quietly, and Davis was quick to follow that thought.

“Don’t thank me just yet. My opinion could change pending what happens in there.”

“Right.”

Moments later, a woman came strolling down the block. She tugged at her coat, shaking away a chill caused by the crisp fall air. Davis and Cassidy both watched her intently, then Davis’s eyes lowered to his phone. Once they’d arrived, he’d spoken to the clerk after flashing his badge and asking questions about the owner of the PO Box. Cautiously, the clerk answered but refused to hand over the woman’s home address. He did agree to a compromise, which Davis suggested. Call Zoey and ask if she would come down to the store to pick up a package with the insistence that it had to be picked up that day.

When Davis’s phone vibrated with a call, he answered while Cassidy held her breath, listening.

“You sure that’s her? Okay, heading in now. Stall until I get there.”

Once he ended the call, Cassidy glanced at the store and then Davis. “That’s her?”

“Yeah, let’s go because I know there’s not a chance in hell you’ll wait for me out here, but let me do the talking.”

She nodded, reaching for the handle to release the door before he added, “I mean it, Cassidy. Let me handle this.”

“Okay.”

He offered a firm visual warning before they both got out of the car and headed into the store. He opened the door, allowing Cassidy in first. The minute they were inside, Cassidy opened her mouth, doing the opposite of what Davis had asked.

“It really is you. I mean, your hair is longer and has highlights, but it’s definitely you.”

“Christ, I thought we agreed to let me do the talking.” Davis stepped around Cassidy, approaching the woman. Her expression was laced with apprehension as her eyes bounced between the two strangers who now had her cornered.

“Do I know you?”

“No.”

“Yes.” When Cassidy’s voice followed Davis’s, he issued another warning look. She held her hands up in surrender and made a mental note to keep her mouth shut.

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