Page 57 of The Locked Door

“Don’t worry about it.” That cat is the least of my problems. “It’s just… It’s been a long day.”

He gives me a squeeze. “Do you want to talk about it?”

No. I really don’t. I already talked to Brady about it and look what happened. I can’t bear for Philip to look at me that way too. “No. But thanks.”

“Is there anything I can do?” He offers me a smile. “A hug? A glass of water? A stiff drink?”

I don’t want a hug from Philip. I’m not a hugger, although I liked it when Brady’s arms were around me.Thatwill never happen again. “Actually, there’s one thing.”

“Sure, anything.”

“Do you have the name of a good lawyer?”

His eyebrows shoot up, nearly disappearing under his hairline. “Are you being sued?”

“No, a criminal lawyer.”

I hear him suck in a breath. “Nora, what the hell is going on? Does this have to do with those two girls who were killed?”

I just shake my head. “I can’t talk about it. Do you know anyone or not?”

“Yeah, I do.” He chews on his lip. “But if you’re in serious trouble, you need to talk to me about it. I mean, we’re partners.”

“It’s fine. I’m fine.”

He purses his lips. He doesn’t look like he believes me,but that’s too damn bad.

“Also,” I say, “I’m covering the trauma pager tomorrow morning after six but I need to be out of the hospital from nine-thirty to eleven-ish. Can you cover me?”

He thinks for a minute. “Yeah, I can.”

Thank God. I didn’t know how I was going to work around that and get to the police station. Of course, I have the added complication now that I don’t have a car because my tires are slashed. And I’m guessing Brady isn’t going to be willing to take care of that for me anymore. I curse myself for forgetting to get back my car keys from him.

“It’s usually not too busy in the morning. You probably won’t even get paged.”

“Yeah…” His jaw tightens. “I’m serious, Nora. Can you please tell me what’s going on?”

I take a deep breath, but it comes out shaky. I still can’t get the look on Brady’s face out of my head. I can’t tell anyone else about my father. It will ruin me.

“It’s not a big deal,” I say. “Just a stupid misunderstanding. I promise.”

He sighs, but he lets it go. Because the truth is, Philip and I aren’t friends. We’re partners and that’s it. And he’d rather not get involved with whatever is going on with me.

“What about the cat?” He glances around. “I don’t see it. Do you want me to look for it?”

Now that the cat is out of sight, I don’t feel as anxious about dealing with it. She’ll probably leave at some point anyway. A cat like that doesn’t want to be restricted to this house. Anyway, she’ll probably sense my evil and want to leave. Animals are good at that.

“It’s fine,” I say. “I… I just wanted her off my couch.”

Philip narrows his eyes at me. “Is this you having a nervous breakdown, Nora? Should I be worried?”

“I’m fine.” I lift my chin, trying to feel the confidence in my words. I just need to get myself a lawyer and this will be okay. I didn’t do anything wrong. I have to remember that. “Thanks for coming, but…”

“You want me to leave.” He flashes a crooked smile. “I get it.”

“But thanks for coming.”

He sighs and stands up from the couch. “If you want to talk to me, call me anytime. I mean it.”