Angel numbers. Protection. Guidance. A sign that you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be.
But standing outside a police precinct with my ex-husband’s hand on my arm and a detective’s yet still echoing in my ears, “exactly where I’m supposed to be” feels less like reassurance and more like a reckoning.
Everything is about to come out.
I’m not sure I’m ready.
Chapter
Nineteen
Noah
Leaving now. Talk later.
* * *
I’m about five minutes away from the precinct when the text comes through.
Short. Clipped. Guarded.
A world away from how she was yesterday evening—and last night.
I dial Gabriel.
“Hey. We’re pulling into traffic now. She should be home in twenty-five minutes, barring gridlock.”
“What happened there?”
“No one would tell me anything. Tight-lipped. But Richard, her ex-husband, showed. Flashed his business card, seemed to know someone, and they escorted him up. Less than twenty minutes later they both came down.”
“Must’ve said he’s her lawyer.”
Which means she called him. Asked him to come down.
Makes sense, I suppose. They share a daughter.
Can’t say it gives me the warm and fuzzies—which is probably a warning sign, or as my sister might call it, a flashing red light.
“That’s my take,” Gabriel agrees. “They had a noticeable disagreement in the parking lot though.”
“Shouting?”
“Angry words. I was standing off to the side, couldn’t catch all of it, but I’d say something happened in interrogation that didn’t sit well with her ex.”
“That’s hardly her fault.”
“Oh, he’d argue otherwise. At least, that’s the gist of it. She brushed him off though. Told him it was nothing, he was reading into it, which is what the detective likely wants when they’re on a wild goose chase. She told Richard she’d talk to him later when she didn’t have a splitting headache.”
“Seems you heard a lot.”
“Well, that part. She spoke clearly. He got up right on her—talking into her ear. For a split second, I thought he might hurt her, but he backed off quickly. When she spoke, I was a lot closer.”
Based on his description, I can envision the scene. From what I’ve observed, there’s controlled tension between Alicia and her ex. They’d both be aware they were in public.
“If the cops had anything, they’d press charges. It’s got to be a fishing expedition.”
I say it like a fact.