Page 90 of Tessa's Trust

I sighed and walked over to her, still irritated that she’d shot the fish tank. “Why are you here?”

“Didn’t know where else to go.” Her sadness was palpable. “Please tell me that you understand I didn’t mean to shoot the fish.”

I placed a glass of water in front of her. “We all make mistakes.” Considering I’d broken and entered two different places today, I could kind of relate. But I hadn’t fired a gun in the vicinity of people, and I hadn’t risked tropical fish.

“I really screwed up.” She shook her head. “I love Bobbo, and it hurt when he dumped me. Then I heard he liked you and, well, I mean, look at you.”

At the moment, I looked like a complete mess. My hair was all over, and I had stains down my jeans. “Right,” I said. “Sometimes, things don’t work out.”

“All I did was spend a little of his money. I’ve never had any, and I wanted some is all. I just bought a new couch,” she blurted.

That wasn’t exactly what Bobbo had said. But then again, he did seem a little odd. “Maybe you’re better off,” I murmured.

“Maybe,” she said. “I would have given anything to be with him and be happy out at that farm. That’s all I’ve ever really wanted.” She plucked at a napkin. “Don’t you want to be happy and not alone?”

I was still trying to figure out what I wanted. “There are a lot of fish in the sea.” The pun reached her, and she gave me a small smile. Good. “Can I get you something to eat?”

“Yeah. What do you have for three dollars?”

“The burger special.” Sure, I’d have to give her a discount. But the woman needed to eat. She looked pretty thin, and there were dark circles beneath her eyes.

She sighed. “Have you ever been so in love you got lost in a guy?”

“Oh, yeah.” I scratched on the notepad. “Biggest mistake of my life.”

Danny Pucci had ended up dead on my floor, and it had almost put me in jail, even though I hadn’t been the one to kill him. In fact, was I still mad at Nick for charging me? I wasn’t sure. It seemed like he had only been doing his job, and I did appreciate that he didn’t really think I’d done it, even then.

“Sometimes, guys really screw you up,” I murmured.

“Exactly,” Louise said, her eyes wide. “I would have done anything for Bobbo, and he tossed me aside like I was nothing.”

We all hated to get dumped. “You can do better, Louise.” I wasn’t sure if she could or not, but it seemed the right thing to say.

She swallowed. “Will you testify on my behalf about the shooting at the restaurant? I’m pleading not guilty so we can at least have a trial.”

“I’ll tell the truth,” I said.

“You know I didn’t aim at you, right?”

I nodded. “Oh, you definitely aimed above me, and I don’t even think you meant to hit the aquarium.”

“I didn’t.” Her eyes widened. “I actually like fish. I helped save a few. Remember?”

I thought back. She had started throwing fish into the tank alongside me. “Yeah, I’ll tell the truth at your trial. Maybe you’ll be able to plea out. It was your first offense, right?”

She nodded and took a big drink of her water. “Of course, it was my first offense. I’ve only been in love once.”

I didn’t quite understand the connection between her first offense and being in love. But she apparently did. “I’m sure it’s going to be okay, Louise.”

“I hope so,” she said. “Rumor is you might be going to jail, too. Did you really murder those two guys?”

“You know I didn’t.”

She looked me over. “I don’t know that. But if you’re willing to believe me, I’m willing to believe you.”

“Fair enough,” I said. “Your dinner is on the house. This time.”

The door opened, and the bell jingled behind me. I caught sight of who entered before Louise could. There was no way to ward off what was about to happen, so I lowered my voice instead. “Listen, Bobbo is here. Stay cool.”

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