Page 75 of Spark

“Mia, that’s very reckless,” Detective Daniels chastised. “If they had been, they could have hurt you.”

“Mac was here. Plus, you know I throw a mean hook,” Mia said, a small smile on her lips.

“That I do.” He laughed lightly. “Well, in any case. I’m glad you called me.” He turned to the other officer. “I can assume you have taken the statement from the neighbor?”

“Yes, sir. And I was just asking some questions when you came up.”

“Okay, I can take that from here. Go and help Officer Hooper document the scene. We will head downstairs and wait.” Detective Daniels motioned to Mia. “If you don’t mind, let’s let them manage up here, and we can go relax while we chat.”

“Sure.” Mia walked into the hall and grabbed her coffee from Mac, who finally lifted his head to look at her. He quickly looked at Detective Daniels before his eyes fell back to the floor. “Mac, you okay?”

He nodded but wouldn’t look at her face. “Yeah, I just have to get going.”

“Wait, they are going to want your statement, too, I’m sure.” She looked at Detective Daniels.

His face gave way to concern for a split second; it was so quick Mia thought she may have been seeing things. His face settled on a pleasant smile. “No, I took Mac’s statement downstairs when I first arrived. If he must go, that’s fine. Besides, he has my number.”

“He does?” Mia asked, and again saw that look of concern, almost panic flashing across his face.

Mac cleared his throat, drawing Mia’s attention. He was pale and seemed to be sweating.

“He gave it to me downstairs. Mia, I gotta go. I’ll see you later.” And with that, he flew down the steps and was gone.

Mia was a little shocked, but Detective Daniels placed a hand on her back and led her to the stairs.

They found a table in the corner away from the stairs and made themselves comfortable. Mia sipped her coffee while Detective Daniels went to the counter to order one for himself.

When he sat down with his cup, an easy smile sat on his lips. “So, Mia,” he said, producing a small notepad and pen from his coat pocket. “Where were you coming home from?”

She was a little taken aback by the question, feeling like it bordered on the edge of relevance and fishing. She sighed and let a shy smile come out.

“Well…” she began slowly, lightly biting her lip. “…I spent the night at my boyfriend’s place.”

Detective Daniels jotted down a few notes.

“Uh-huh,” he said, nodding as he wrote. “And may I ask his name?” Mia crossed her arms, feeling Aurelio’s shirt still on her. She gripped the fabric, smile fading.

“I don’t think that’s relevant, Detective.” She said after a moment, catching him looking at the shirt she was wearing. He cleared his throat, a soft apologetic smile on his lips.

“Oh, no, I suppose not,” he agreed, shaking his head. “More a personal curiosity I suppose. Sorry if I overstepped.” He looked to her and Mia gave a small nod.

“It’s okay.” She smiled again. “It’s still new, and we aren’t really sharing it with anyone yet.” The lie was easy, time was relative after all.

“Well, I hope things work out well between you.” His eyes met hers. “We all deserve a shot at happiness. No matter our pasts.” His tone was softer as he spoke, like it was a secret theyshared. Mia’s face shifted, unsure of what he was implying, but she couldn’t dwell on it now.

He cleared his throat lightly and continued, focusing on the notepad in front of him again.

“Anyway, any thoughts on who would want to break into your loft?” He sat back, notebook on his lap as he waited. Mia sipped her coffee before answering.

“Not really.” She paused, biting her lip as her mind drew up images of Domonick and Oliver. “I mean, no one I can think of.” She sighed, her mind wandering back to what she said to Aurelio on the phone. Oliver’s face flashing before her. “Unless….”

Detective Daniels lifted his gaze to hers again.

“Unless?” He raised a brow at her.

“I don’t want to overstep,” Mia looked to him, eyes meeting. “but Janet said the person she glimpsed leaving my loft was over 6 feet and had blonde hair.”

He seemed to catch her drift, nodding as his smile faded.

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