Page 58 of Ancient Obsession

“What?” Oliver practically shouted. He shrank in the booth slightly. “I just talked with her yesterday. When? How?”

“I don’t have those details.”

“But Oliver’s been here in town all day,” Dave said. “Working on papers for class.”

“Have you been with him all day?” Lucia asked.

“I…No, not every minute, but most of it.”

“I need to take him down to the station.”

“But they’ll arrest him,” Dave said, shaking his head. “And take him to Glenmont.”

“Retain a lawyer.” Lucia stood up and slid the chair back into place. “And a good one, not Dieter Reid.”

“This can’t be happening.” The words were strained. “I didn’t do anything.”

“Let’s get it all figured out,” Lucia said. “I will do everything I can to make sure Carter knows you’re not a threat.”

Oliver met Dave’s gaze. It broke his heart to see the fear there.

“I’ll find a really good lawyer,” Dave promised. “And I’ll be right behind you.”

“No, go home and start making calls,” Oliver said. “It’ll take a while for them to book me.” He nudged Dave slightly. “Come on. The sooner I go, the sooner we can see about bail and getting me out of there.”

Reluctantly, Dave slid out. When Oliver stood before him, Dave pulled him into a strong hug.

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Oliver handed Dave his messenger bag. “I’m going to hang onto my cell phone, just in case.”

“They’ll probably want it as evidence,” Lucia said. “Again, I’m sorry about this.”

“Yeah, I know.” Oliver tried to smile, but it appeared very shaky. “Don’t start those bachelor parties without me.”

“We’ll get you out in no time,” Demetrius said.

Oliver grabbed Dave’s hand, squeezed it tight, then followed Lucia out of the diner. He might as well have been dragging Dave’s heart along behind him on a string.

“What the fuck?” Dave whispered, crushing Oliver’s bag against his chest.

Cody hugged him from behind. “We’ll get him out. Let’s go tell Eileen and Dieter. He’ll know a good criminal lawyer we can retain.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

The jail cell in the back of the Parson’s Hollow sheriff’s department was small and quiet. Water dripped from a faucet somewhere, and a past resident had scratched LILA SUKS DIK in the yellow paint covering the cinderblock wall above the bed. He wrinkled his nose when the thought occurred to him that the mattress he currently sat on had probably been the same one where Cody had slept once or twice.

The heavy metal door that led to the detective bullpen opened and footsteps approached. The visitor wasn’t in his line of sight, and his pulse hammered in his ears as he stared out through the bars.

Oliver’s “Oh,” was little more than a whisper, but it carried well within the cinderblock walls, and he uncurled his fists.

“Just me.” Lucia gave him a gentle smile. “I’m sorry about this.”

“Thanks. I know it’s not your fault.” He cocked his head. “Is it?”

She snickered. “Not this time.”