Page 69 of The Note

“And how precisely would you assure her presence?” he asked.

“She will stay with me, in New York City.”

The judge squinted at May with curiosity. If nothing else, she had surprised him.

“Mr. Nunzio?”

“I have to be honest, Your Honor. I have no idea what Ms. Hanover is even suggesting.”

“Seems fairly clear to me,” Knoll said. “Do you know her, by the way? Do you know Ms. Hanover as a lawyer?”

“Yes, Your Honor. We worked together on a matter when she was an assistant district attorney for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.”

“And did she handle that matter responsibly?”

“Yes, but that was more than three years ago, and I’ve heard things since then that—”

Knoll held up a hand. “I don’t like the direction you were about to take, Counselor. I’m not interested in whatthingsyou may haveheard.” His gaze shifted toward Detective Decker, his piercing eyes searching for insight. “Detective Decker, you were the one whose interview was interrupted by Ms. Hanover. Given that interaction, do you have any reason why I should question her good faith? Was there any indication she was attempting to hinder your investigation?”

If Carter noticed Nunzio’s glare, he ignored it as he rose to his feet. “I have no reason to question Ms. Hanover’s representations. While my initial encounter with her client was interrupted, I do not believe it compromises her dedication to upholding her responsibilities as an officer of the court.”

It was a perfect answer.

“So ordered,” the judge announced with a tap of his gavel. “My clerk will figure out a way to write it up. Ms. Ellis, I strongly advise you not to burn your attorney for sticking her neck out for you.”

“Absolutely not, Your Honor.” Kelsey couldn’t help herself and flung her arms around May’s shoulders with the best kind of Kelsey hug.

May glanced back at Kelsey’s father, whose stony expression radiated dissatisfaction. She felt a sense of vindication that both the prosecutor and judge had scolded him for trying to take overthe court proceedings. The schadenfreude was satisfying, but more importantly, she hoped his outburst proved to Carter Decker that William Ellis was the kind of man who was used to getting his way and would go to extraordinary lengths to protect his daughter.

As Ellis walked toward the courtroom exit, he did not say a word to either Lauren or Nate. Decker gave a slight nod in May’s direction before following him out the door.

39

As they emerged from the Midtown Tunnel, billboards and skyscrapers towered over the snarl of cars escaping the bottleneck to claim their chosen traffic lanes. May gripped the SUV’s steering wheel tightly, her gaze flickering between the lane she needed to force her way into and the screen of her phone, searching for a signal.

She had sent a text to Josh nearly two hours ago, asking him to call her as soon as possible. The tension in her chest expanded as she realized her fiancé might walk into the apartment to find a group of people he most certainly did not want to see in his home.

From the backseat, Kelsey leaned forward to rest her chin on May’s headrest. “Are you absolutely sure Josh is going to be okay with me staying at your place? I mean, a jailbird on your sofa is a special kind of cockblock.”

It was just like Kelsey to try to find the humor in her current situation. “Stop it,” May said. “One, you’re not on the sofa. I’ll put the Aerobed out, because we’re classy like that. And two, Josh is totally fine. You’ll finally get to know each other. It’ll be great.”

May hoped her lie would help ease Kelsey’s worries, but pretending that she had already spoken to Josh only deepened her own fears about his response.

“All I know is I am counting down the seconds to getting in the shower,” Kelsey said. “I stink like the sewer.”

Nate leaned toward his sister and pretended to sniff her. “Funk factor five.”

“Stop it,” Lauren said from the front passenger seat. “You don’t stink.”

“Well, try a jailhouse slumber party. It’s like my nostrils are filled with this stench and I’m sure it’ll never wash off. I never want to go back there again.”

The car fell into silence at the reminder of what was at stake. They had spent most of the ride from Long Island trying to convince Kelsey of the possibility that her father might have had Luke andDavid killed, but she wasn’t yet willing to look at the facts objectively. The furthest they had gotten with her was the chance that she might have to float the theory in her defense if she was eventually accused of murder. May could tell that Kelsey was mentally and physically exhausted, so that was as much progress as they were going to make for now.

Gomez was already wiggling with excitement when she unlocked the apartment door. At the sight of new visitors, he jumped up to give each one what she referred to as a “knee hug,” wrapping his front paws around any willing participant’s leg.

Kelsey plopped down on the floor cross-legged to give him a landing spot. “Hi, buddy. Do you recognize me from all our FaceTimes? Don’t get used to how I smell right now though. I’m usually clean. On that note, point me to the shower? I wasn’t kidding about wanting one ASAP.”

“Down that hall,” May said. “I’ll warn you in advance our bathroom’s super tiny. You can barely raise your arms to wash your hair. The only reason we don’t move is it’s the only thing we can afford with a terrace. Our landlord did finally break down and replace our leaky showerhead. We have one of those rainfall ones now.”

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