Page 23 of One Night Years Ago

“Color me intrigued, Helen, but what are we doing here in your office?” Natalie asked.

She and Helen had known each other forever. Helen was only three years older than her. Though they’d been neighbors as children, it was only in their mid-twenties, once the population of single females of Sharp’s Cove had taken a steep decline, that they’d become friends. They sometimes went out together with Emma and Barbara on a girls’ night out. Not that Natalie drank. She hadn’t touched a drop since the day she’d been attacked and knew she never would again.

She often wondered what would have happened if she hadn’t had that beer that night. Would she have been better able to fight off her attacker? Would she have had the presence of mind to shout louder? She’d never know now. But she’d promised herself that she would always have her wits about her, no matter what.

“You know I love you, right, Natalie?”

“Is this an it’s-not-you-it’s-me conversation, Helen? What’s going on?” she asked impatiently. She had a lot of work to do. She had an appointment at the hospital with Dr. Ford in an hour to go over the autopsy.

Helen took a deep breath before speaking.

“Hunter Fowler came to see me this morning.”

Natalie nodded. As usual, the mention of the man’s name made her shiver, but she wasn’t feeling any of the usual rage she used to feel. She’d been thinking a lot about what he said that morning. It was difficult not to think of him now as a young man caught in a dreadful choice.

“Is he worried I’m going to drop his ass back in prison?” Helen didn’t laugh at the inappropriate joke.

“He’s not worried about himself, but he’s worried about his brother.”

“He told you the whole story, then?” Natalie asked.

“You know Hunter and I used to know each other.”

“In the biblical sense, right?” Natalie didn’t remember much about those days, but Hunter’s relationship with Helen had come up during the trial.

Helen continued as if Natalie hadn’t spoken. “He’s worried about his brother. I told him you’re not going to do anything to hurt him. But there’s something he needs to tell you.”

“Hunter?”

What else hasn’t he told me?

“Jesse. He and Hunter spoke today, and Jesse admitted to remembering something about another man. Hunter thinks it’s the man who attacked you.”

Natalie felt a shiver of excitement. This might be the break they needed to catch Lanie’s killer. She tried not to show it.

“Where’s Jesse now?”

“Hunter’s bringing him here. It was my idea. I thought he might be intimidated by meeting at the station.”

Natalie nodded. That made a certain amount of sense. Also, if Jesse remembered something, the fewer people who knew about this, the better.

“Are you acting as a friend, Helen, or as a lawyer?”

Helen maintained her stare. “Both. Is that going to be a problem?”

“We’ll have the chat with Jesse here. But tell Hunter I won’t hesitate to drag both of them to prison if he does anything to impede my investigation.”

Half an hour later, she understood Helen’s protective streak towards Jesse. It was hard not to like the softer, childlike twin.

While his brother spoke, Hunter stood by the window, his shoulders hunched.

Natalie tried not to show her disappointment that Jesse couldn’t give a better description of her attacker, just an impression of a tall man dressed all in black with a hat.

I’m looking for Batman.

She reminded herself it had been almost thirteen years. They were lucky Jesse remembered that night at all.

Natalie closed her eyes for a moment, and suddenly she saw the scene Jesse was describing, but from her point of view. The victim’s point of view.