Page 21 of A Thin Line

He answered gruffly. “Of course, I don’t. I bring the limo to Leona’s events because she has the notion that all her other donors aspire to this kind of wealth—and she hopes seeing mine will somehow transform them into wanting to donate more than usual, hoping to display the appearance of having just as much money.”

And here I’d been thinking Dr. Rakhimov was smart. That sounded stupid—and I wondered if her real reason was that she hoped to be offered a ride in it sometime. Still, I was curious and knew I might be clueless. “Does it work?”

“I have no idea. But Leona always manages to come up with the funds she needs.”

“I thought those came from you.”

“Sometimes they do.”

We rode along in silence once more as I realized I hadn’t gotten his goat—not at all. Maybe I could figure out how to get under his skin after getting to know him a little better. But already I had the feeling that this man was not an open book. I’d have to puzzle it out without his help.

After a while, I asked, “Where are we going exactly?”

“To my house. In Denver.” So he wasn’t going to give me any more details than he already had.

“What will I be doing for you?”

“I haven’t quite figured that out yet. I’ll let you know in the morning.” I didn’t know if the fact that he hadn’t settled on a job for me yet was good or bad.

The car drove another couple of miles and I realized I still had an opportunity to plead my case. If he had any shred of decency in him, surely he would listen to reason. “Can I ask you a question?”

He kept his face focused forward, as if he couldn’t be bothered to make eye contact. “Isn’t that what you’ve been doing this whole time?”

I ignored the jab. “Why are you guys so convinced I was the one who destroyed the lab?”

“Do you really expect me to answer that?”

“Yes. Because I already told you I didn’t do it.”

Finally, he turned his head to look me squarely in the eyes. “There are thousands of criminals in prison who also claim their innocence, even when all the evidence points to them.”

“But you heard it yourself. The evidence you have against me is circumstantial.”

“But compelling. The evidence being circumstantial doesn’t negate its credibility. I saw with my own eyes the culprits enter the simulation lab and you walked in there not two minutes afterward. You stayed in there long enough to have a conversation and then you left, securing the door behind you.”

“What? I didn’t talk to anybody or see anyone in there. I walked in expecting to see Jenna and there wasn’t anyone.”

“Oh, there were people. Are you trying to say the cameras are lying?”

“No.” Pausing, I sucked down a deep breath, hoping to keep my emotions from getting out of control. “I’m saying I only walked into the first room. After I got back from retrieving the programs from the print shop, I walked into the lab and called for Jenna when I didn’t see her there. Before I could do anything else, Dr. Rakhimov called me on the walkie-talkie, telling me to join them at the auditorium—so I left.”

“That explanation is flimsy at best.”

“But it’s true. And that was when I ran into you. Did I look like I was in the middle of some big conspiracy when you saw me?”

Even in the soft lighting of the limo, the intensity of his gaze was enough to make me squirm. I felt like a bug under a microscope, one he was scrutinizing, prepared to begin poking and prodding for answers.

“You seemed quite flustered. That’s not inconsistent with committing a crime, afraid to be caught.”

The man’s obstinance was infuriating—but I kept my cool as well as I could. “Actually, that’s how I feel most of the time working for Dr. Rakhimov. She’s demanding and a perfectionist, and I tried my hardest to live up to her standards.”

His response was a clenching of the jaw as he turned his face forward again.

But I wasn’t about to give up so easily. “And here’s the worst part—Jenna left the lab without closing and locking the door when I was at the print shop. I didn’t see you guys grilling her, asking her why she left it unlocked.”

Again, he turned to me and at least seemed to be considering my words. “How are we to know you didn’t tell her to leave it open when she left?”

Frustrated, I simply shook my head and looked out the passenger window so I didn’t have to face him anymore. It was easy enough to pin it on me and convenient, considering our families’ history. Jenna didn’t fit his narrative and so she was easily dismissed.

---