Page 52 of Love in Overdrive

As she sat, Cade whispered, “At least we aren’t in cuffs.”

She rubbed her wrists at the thought.

“Before we begin, I would like to call in a fellow officer to assist with the questioning. You may stay here for the moment and then, when she arrives, we will start.” The door clicked when he left to make his call.

Nash tried the handle. “Locked.”

“I’m surprised they didn’t split us up.” Cade ran a hand through his hair.

Laney squeezed his thigh. “It’s a good sign. Maybe they trust us.”

He came back ten minutes later with a short brunette who looked to be about thirty-five. “Hello, I’m Lieutenant Jordan. I will be assisting Detective Simon this evening. If you will come with me, Mr. McBride, we will get started.”

Cade glanced back at Laney as he got up. He gave her a reassuring look. She could see right through the façade.

“Ms. Hunt.” The Detective stood and motioned Laney to follow him into the next room.

She glanced back at Addison. She, too, gave Laney a reassuring nod, but had the confidence to back it up. Laney hoped she was right.

“Would you care for a cup of coffee, Ms. Hunt?”

“No, thank you.” A slight tremble ran through her voice.

The detective was being nice. In an attempt to calm her nerves or butter her up before moving in for the kill, she didn’t know which, but every police show she’d seen had the good-cop-bad-cop strategy. Did it work with only one officer? She was about to find out.

She was innocent. So was Cade. All they had to do was tell them the truth and turn over the money. Then, she could go home and sleep like the dead for twelve hours. So why did she have a sinking feeling that this wouldn’t go that smoothly?

Simon set his coffee on the table and flipped open his notebook. “Okay, let’s begin.”

In the room across the hall, Lieutenant Jordan turned on a video recorder and set up the interview for the recording. She read him his rights, then added, “Mr. McBride came in of his own free will and is not under arrest at this time.”

A fraction of his nervousness subsided with her statement. He wasn’t under arrest… yet.

“Now that we have the precautions out of the way, let’s begin. Why don’t you tell me what happened yesterday afternoon?”

Cade took in the woman across the table. She was barely five-two and her curly, dark hair rested in a tight bun at the base of her neck. Know the enemy… or adversary. If ever there was a time to lean on his training, it was now. Cade controlled his breathing and slowed his heart rate. He wasn’t lining up a target in his crosshairs, but keeping his cool in this situation was just as important.

He leaned in, placing his hands on the table. “Dad asked me to run the deposit to the bank…”

She listened to him as he ran through the details of the carjacking. Her face remained stoic, and she occasionally scribbled a note or interrupted to clarify a point, but mainly, she watched him. She didn’t flinch when he told her about the gunman getting in his car, them barely missing the train, Cade’s attempt to subdue the robber, or the two of them being dumped on the side of the road.

“…then I fell out of the back door, along with the bag. We were walking down the road before Laney realized it wasn’t her bag.”

That sentence changed her whole demeanor. Jordan’s focus pinpointed on him. She straightened in her seat. “Wait. You mean, you have the money?”

He picked up the bag he’d set by his feet and placed it on the table. “Other than when Laney looked inside the first time, we haven’t opened it.”

Using a pen to hook the strap, she slid the bag across the table. Pulling a pair of rubber gloves from her pocket, she slipped them on and opened the bag.

Her gaze cut from the bag back to him. “You didn’t count it?”

“I didn’t touch it. You’ll find my prints on the outside of the bag only.” Cade folded his hands on the table. He was laying it all out for them. Now to see what the lieutenant would do.

She pulled off the gloves and picked up her pen. “Continue.”

Her stoic mask was back in place.

Cade’s knee bounced. Once. Twice. Hell, no. He slammed a hand on his leg, stopping the motion. He stared at the table, resetting his calm. When he had a grasp on it, he continued, finishing the story, only leaving out the personal parts between Laney and himself.