Free Body Of Truth by Deirdre Savoy Page B

for your time.”
    Burke rose, as did Mari. “If you need anything else.”
    He nodded, understanding Burke’s implication. Once he and Mari were on the elevator on the way down to the first floor, she said, “Don’t tell me we might have an actual lead in this freaking case.”
    â€œWho knows?” Jonathan opened the folder. The letter on top started with, DEAR BITCH, YOU DESERVE TO DIE, in boldface red caps. He closed the folder and checked his watch. They had more than enough time to make it down to One Police Plaza for the press conference.
    â€œYou know Shea expects us to have worked a miracle by now to make him look good with the big boss.”
    â€œI know.” But covering Shea’s ass was the last thing on Jonathan’s mind. “He’ll have to settle for what we’ve got.”
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    Seized by the same restlessness that had claimed her in the hospital, Dana prowled around her home, searching for something to occupy her. She’d never been much of a TV watcher and her mind wandered every time she tried to pick up a book. She’d cleaned her apartment thoroughly the week before, knowing she’d be away. Even if she’d found some household chore to do she’d have to let it slide since she was in no shape for cleaning.
    She paused at her brother’s room. Maybe she was just out of sorts at being alone, lacking anyone else to worry about. She’d called Tim to let him know what happened, that she was all right, in case some news story hit the tube. He’d offered to come back home, but she saw no reason to cut short his vacation simply because her own had been sidelined.
    If loneliness was her only problem she’d better get used to it. Tim would be leaving for Cornell by the end of the summer. He would be home for summers and holidays, or maybe she would visit him, but the day-to-day interaction she had known was over.
    She should be happy. It seemed as if she had been waiting for this day her whole life—time to breathe, to be, without first considering the needs of someone else. Not that she begrudged either Tim’s or her mother’s demands on her, but she couldn’t remember a time when she didn’t consider her own needs last. Now it was Dana time, time for her life to really begin, and in an odd way she wasn’t ready for it. Aside from her one ruined vacation, she’d never had much time to contemplate what she wanted.
    The phone rang for maybe the fifth time that day, but she made no move to answer it. She’d let the machine pick it up, considering it was probably Joanna calling again to check up on her. When Joanna and Ray dropped her off yesterday, it had taken a great deal of convincing to get Joanna to return home. It was enough that they’d not only given her a ride but bought her enough food to sustain her a few days since due to her planned vacation there was nothing in the house.
    Dana sighed. Maybe she should take a page from her friend’s book and find some decent man, have some kids and figure out how to be happy, not just survive. Perhaps she could find some man who wasn’t looking for a second mama, who could stand on his own feet and pull his own weight. Her days of catering to anyone were over.
    From her bedroom she heard the sound of Joanna’s voice, pleading but not as urgent as if she’d gone into labor. Since she didn’t feel like talking to anyone, Joanna included, she didn’t pick up.
    Her stomach growled, reminding her she still had to do such mundane things as feed herself. She checked her watch. It was almost six o’clock. Ray and Joanna had bought her some frozen dinners that she could heat up in the microwave. She settled on the lasagna, nuked it for the required seven minutes, and brought her meal and a bottle of beer into the living room.
    Settling in the corner of the sofa, she flicked on the TV and flipped around until she got the news. There