My head turned towards the sound – a reflexive action. I didn’t know the man standing in front of me with the round face, blue uniform, and flak jacket. I’d never seen him before.
“Where’s Odin?” I asked.
“I’m going to read you your rights,” the man said.
The familiar words flowed from his mouth, and I was reminded of a thousand movies and television shows where similar words were spoken.
“Do you understand these rights?”
“There was a girl down there,” I told him. “Did you see her? She had a quarter around her neck.”
“He’s gone, sir.”
“Let’s just get him in.”
I was pushed through the opening and back into the apartment, through the bedroom, and into the living room. My breath caught in my chest as I saw the pile of white fur near the couch, but before I could react to the sight, Odin’s muzzled head came up and his tail began to thump against the floor. An officer had a leash around his neck and kept him from coming closer to me.
I gasped out a breath and nearly fell in relief as I was escorted across the room, through the open door, and into the hallway. The elevators were blocked open down at the end of the hall, and there was an officer arguing with a woman near the stairway.
Not a woman – the woman.
Lia stood with her hands on her hips and her hair pulled up into one of those ridiculous, lumpy buns at the top of her head. Strands fell all around her neck and moved with her as she turned to look towards me.
Her mouth opened, and she tried to take a step forward. The officer blocked her path, so we just continued to look at each other.
I remembered everything I thought about while driving back to the cabin after dropping her off at the bus stop. This was exactly why I didn’t want to bring her into my life, but here she was anyway – watching me get dragged to jail. She was damn lucky I didn’t shoot her.
My stomach tightened at the thought.
The officers on either side of my body urged me forward towards the elevators. It was the closest to her I would get.
“Evan?” My name was a plea on her tongue.
I could only stare at her in return.
“What…what happened?” she asked, as if I would have an answer that made any sense.
I didn’t. I probably never would.
I turned away from her as they started to shove me into the elevator. There certainly wasn’t going to be any kind of understandable reason for anything I did. I couldn’t even understand it myself, so how would anyone else? They’d be better off talking to the dog.
“Lia!” I turned back to Lia and caught her eyes with mine. “Take Odin – please. Please take him with you – make sure he’s okay. Please? Will you? Please?”
“I will,” she said quietly.
“Let her?” I begged the guy holding my left arm. “Let her take my dog, okay?”
He said nothing.
“What are you going to do with him?” I demanded as I was shoved towards the elevator. “Let her take him! Please!”
“It’s all good, Lieutenant,” the round-faced officer said as he came up in front of me. “The dog’s fine, and after a little processing, we’ll make sure he ends up in the young lady’s care. All right?”
I nodded.
My eyes met Lia’s again, and I saw a single tear escape her lashes and roll down her cheek. The need to wipe away the tear was overwhelming, but I couldn’t move.
“Sorry,” I whispered.