Page 44 of The Other Side

“Yeah. He came by the hospital, but I’d been on pain medicine. He wants a statement about what happened,” Thea said.

Hadley’s eyes widened. “Man, I bet it’ll be hard to talk about it.”

Brett sat on the couch beside Thea. “Are you sure you’re up to this?”

“I’ll be fine. I just hope I say the right thing.”

She’d been so focused on physical healing that pushing thoughts out of her mind had been easy lately. Had she thought about it enough? Too much? Would the information help or hurt her? The headaches from the concussion left a lot of confusion behind.

A firm knock at the door told them the officers had arrived.

Hadley jumped up and opened the door. “Come in, officers.” Her chipper tone held none of the uncertainty of a moment ago. She’d transformed into a welcoming hostess. “Have a seat. Can I get you something to drink?”

Asa held up a hand. “Nothing for me, but I appreciate the offer.”

“Same,” Jennifer said.

Thea scanned their badges, refreshing their formal names. Officer Scott and Officer Freeman. It had been a long time since she’d known them as acquaintances, and despite their kind visit at the hospital, she was still flip-flopping over whether they were friends or unknowing foes.

Thea tried to push up onto her good foot, but Asa held up a hand. “No need to get up. Just relax.”

She settled back into her seat, thankful she wouldn’t have to balance to shake hands. “Thanks for coming. I completely forgot to call you back.”

“It’s understandable,” Officer Freeman said. Her tone was direct but not unfriendly. “You’ve been through a lot, and we want to make sure you’re safe.”

Thea stretched her mouth into what was probably a ridiculous grin. Safety hadn’t been available to her for a long time, and she wasn’t sure it would come to her now. “I appreciate that.”

Brett and Hadley had moved to stand behind the couch, allowing the two officers to choose their seats. Asa took the recliner, and Jennifer took a seat beside Thea on the couch.

Jennifer rested a tablet on her lap, unfolding the attached keyboard. “I’ll be transcribing as you talk. We might interrupt with some questions, but feel free to start at the beginning.

“I’ll do my best.” Thea wrung her sweaty hands and looked over her shoulder.

Brett was standing behind her. “Do you want us to leave?” he asked.

“No. I think it’s good that you’re here. This involves you too, and Hadley needs to know what she’s getting into.” Thea gave her new friend a smile. “Feel free to change your mind about letting me stay here after you hear this.”

Hadley turned to Brett and jerked her thumb at Thea. “She doesn’t know me very well.”

Thea lowered her voice. “I’m serious. It’s okay if this is too much, I told Brett it wasn’t safe for you.”

Hadley patted Thea’s shoulder. “He told me enough. Consider me warned.”

Thea wrung her hands in her lap. “I grew up here, and almost everyone in my family has a criminal record. The ones who don’t are too young. My family has been in a long-standing disagreement with Brett’s family.”

“Can you state your family name and Brett’s family name?” Jennifer asked.

“Howard. And Brett’s family are the Pattons.”

Asa leaned forward. “I heard about the incidents that went on a while back. I was working at the jail, so I wasn’t part of the investigative team. Does that have anything to do with your current injuries?”

Thea shrugged. “It’s possible. First, Brett’s dad was shot. And killed.”

She swallowed the bile that crept up her throat. Brett had been confused. He didn’t have any love for his dad, but he’d been angry at the injustice. Everyone knew it was probably Bruce who killed Oscar, but no one had ever been convicted.

She’d been helpless. She’d been seeing Brett for months when it happened, and watching the man she loved struggle with anger and grief, despite his feelings for his dad, had permeated every corner of her life.

“They never found out who did it, but most people thought someone in my family was to blame.”

---