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“The first doctor to examine her believed the arm break was a crushing injury, but if she hit one of those trees just right, then yeah,” Jesse agreed. “They could have been caused by the tree and not the car. But the fact that the driver never took their vehicle in for repair means they were aware of the accident or learned of it after the fact.”
“Yeah.” He didn’t dispute that.
But he wanted to go back and tell Emma once and for all that her accident was just that. For her peace of mind. And his.
“I just wanted to tie up loose ends before we close this chapter and move on,” he said, voicing his desire out loud. “I should have known we wouldn’t get this tied in a neat bow.”
Jesse squinted in one of the rare patches of sunlight. “Frustrating as shit, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.” He took a final look around and shook his head.
It probably was an accident. Part of him didn’t want to accept that because that meant he had no villain to fight. And he dearly wanted someone to blame—aside from himself.
Can you kick your own ass?
Shaking off that mental image, he turned back to the sheriff. “Did you remember to bring Emma’s phone?”
“I did.”
Jesse jerked his thumb at his SUV. “It’s a Motorola model commonly given away when you sign up for a phone plan. I had it dusted for prints and swabbed for DNA but got nothing that shouldn’t have been there. As for the data, I had it sent upstate to see if they could pull anything off it. But they weren’t able to get it to start, so fair warning your experts may not fare any better.”
“I know it’s a long shot, but I have seen Toya Almari, the specialist at Auric Security, work miracles.”
Jesse looked skeptical. “I doubt it will shed any light on the accident, but like I said on the phone, you’re welcome to it. It belongs to Emma, broken or not.”
There was also the fact the statute of limitations for a hit-and-run had come and gone well before he and Emma reconnected.
“I know. At best, I’ll see a string of my texts to Emma. But I need to cross every T.”
Jesse nodded, sticking his thumbs in his jeans pockets. “Well, if you discover any deep dark secrets on it, you’ll let me know.”
“I will,” Garrett promised. “Although, I suspect I know Emma’s biggest secret now.”
The sheriff stared at him for a second before nodding in understanding. “Ah. Yeah, of course. Stella. Wow, I hadn’t even stopped to think about the implications of her being yours—you’re probably going to take her with you.”
“Oh, hell yeah.”
That wasn’t even a question in his mind. His wife and daughter belonged with him in San Diego. He was already researching the best kindergarten schools near his place.
“What about Mariana?” Jesse asked. He cleared his throat with a slightly strangled sound. “She’ll be alone.”
“Oh, Mariana’s coming.” Garrett wasn’t about to split her and Stella up. “I’ve arranged for her to have one of the condos on the floor below our penthouse.”
Jesse’s lips parted. “You did?”
“Yeah, we all agreed that it’s best for Stella if we all stay together. Besides, I’m pretty sure Mariana is ready to put Colorado in her rearview.”
Jesse rocked back on his heels. “But what about her house and… and her relationship with that Bronson fellow.”
Well, shit.Garrett wasn’t going to get out of discussing his mother-in-law’s love life after all.
“Mariana hasn’t exactly said where she and Teddystand, but she did say she’d like to be out of here before he gets back from the Bahamas,” he confided. “So my guess is it’s not good.”
Jesse scowled. “What about her house?”
The sheriff’s effort at casual needed a lot of work.
“I don’t know where people got the idea that the house belongs to Mariana. Sherentsit from Teddy. Yeah, it’s a bit cheaper than market rate but she does pay him.”