“Can I get you anything to drink?” I asked.
“No, thank you, I’m fine,” he replied.
“Please, take a seat.”
The officer sat down on the sofa and gestured for me to take a seat opposite him. I sat down, finding that my mind was running riot suddenly. Something about Brent’s behavior was not adding up and with his new disappearance, I was starting to smell a rat.
“I came to ask you a few more questions, ma’am,” Officer Manolo said.
“Sure.” I nodded nervously. “About Phil?”
“Uh…yes, about Phil.” He nodded. “And also about your brother.”
I felt goosebumps erupt on my skin. “Okay,” I said uncertainly.
“You said your brother and Phil were friends?”
“Yes.” I nodded.
“How did they meet?” officer Manolo asked.
“The truth is, I’m not sure,” I said, in embarrassment.
Officer Manolo raised his eyebrows. “You don’t know?” he asked. “Neither one ever mentioned it to you? And you never asked?”
“That’s not what I mean,” I said, hurrying to correct myself. “What I mean is, they both told me different stories about how they met. And I suppose…at this moment…I don’t know which one to believe.”
Officer Manolo looked interested instantly. “Why don’t you tell me both versions then, please?”
I took a deep breath. Even if Phil was guilty, I didn’t want him to get into worse trouble because I decided to run my mouth off to a cop. I still loved him, and I wanted him to be okay. And at the same time, I worried about my brother...though I had to admit that my concern for Brent was far less than my concern for Phil.
“Ma’am?” Officer Manolo said. “Please, this would really help.”
“Help whom?” I asked, without thinking.
He smiled kindly at me. Then he reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a tissue, which he handed to me. It was only then that I even realized I was crying. I accepted the tissue and wiped away my tears.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“That’s okay,” he said. “Take your time.”
Once I had composed myself, I looked up at him. “Phil told me that he met my brother through a mutual friend. A man named Harvey.”
I didn’t mention that Harvey was a dealer because that would undoubtedly get Phil into more trouble and the last thing I wanted to do was make things worse for him.
“Harvey?” Officer Manolo repeated.
“That’s right.”
“Any last name to go with that?”
“Sorry, no,” I said. “My brother told me a different version of how he met Phil though. He told me that…uh… Phil sold pot and that’s how they met.”
“Your brother used to buy pot from Phil?” Officer Manolo asked.
“Yes,” I said, realizing that I’d just outed my brother.
I felt like a complete idiot, but the officer seemed calm and unhurried. “Where is your brother?” he asked.