Free Dark Passing (The Ella Reynolds Series) by Liz Schulte

push me as hard as Fagan pushed Bryan? I felt sorry for the kid. Seeing him as he was then, I recognized the layers of bitter protection he’d since lined himself with. The person I spoke with today, the indifferent guy who didn’t want to help me find Mary’s killer, wasn’t the person in that interview room. The crime, probably the public’s perception of him, and who knows what else, had changed him.
    I phoned Gabriel. He answered in his usual manner, but I ignored any attempt at pleasantries. “When you interviewed me after Danny died, how hard did you push me?”
    There was a long pause. “As hard as I needed to.”
    “But I didn’t know anything, so at what point did you stop and think, ‘I’m not getting anywhere with her?’”
    “What’s bringing this up?”
    “I’m watching Fagan interviewing Bryan, and he’s belligerent in his questioning.
    Gabriel sighed. “Every police officer interviews differently, and every suspect will be approached differently.”
    “Did I seem scared or nervous?”
    “No. You seemed numb and lost. It was hard to get you to focus, especially right after.”
    “Can I see the tape?”
    He was quiet for a long while. I wasn’t sure he was even going to answer. I was about to say hello when he said, “Why would you want to watch that, El? What good can come of it?”
    “I’m just looking for perspective, I swear. Apart from movies, I have nothing to compare this interview to.”
    “Bring it home with you this weekend, and we can watch it together. I’ll analyze it for you.”
    I wasn’t supposed to remove evidence from the room, and Fagan would burn me for it if he caught me, but I couldn’t exactly explain why I wanted an outside opinion to him. “I’ll see what I can do.”
    “Are you still at the police station?”
    “Yeah. I have to meet some girl at a park at 8:00 p.m. She says I don’t know the whole story.”
    “What park? Who is she?”
    “Liberty Park. She never said her name.”
    “First off, never meet someone alone at night in a park unless you can bring someone with you—or, at the very least, get a name. Second, be careful and call me as soon as you’re finished.”
    “I will.” Gabriel was right. Had the girl looked imposing or like a strong wind wouldn’t knock her down, I probably wouldn’t have agreed to meet her at all, but she seemed so frail in her too-big coat. I tried to think of someone I could take with me, suddenly nervous. “Should I tell one of the patrolmen where I’m going?”
    “Does Fagan know about your meeting?”
    “No.”
    “Anyone you tell will tell him. You might as well bring him in from the start rather than burning a bridge.”
    I sighed. Obviously, the girl didn’t like Fagan or want to talk to him, given the way she ran out of the diner, but I also didn’t have a death wish. “I’ll figure something out. Are you still coming tonight?”
    “Depends on what time I get out of here. Regardless, call me when you’re done.”
    We said good-bye and I stared at my phone. What to do? What to do?
     

 
    Gabriel freaked me out enough that I brought Fagan into the loop. I stuck my head out of the office and Officer Duke was gone. I went to the front and asked Sergeant Jeffries for Sheriff Fagan’s phone number. He wrote it on a scrap of paper, and I called, worry twisting in my stomach.
    When Fagan answered, I jumped right in. “It’s Ella, hi. I’m meeting a potential witness in a park tonight, and I’d like it if someone could accompany me, but only to watch from a distance.”
    He sighed. “What time?”
    “8:00 p.m.”
    “And you’re at the station now?”
    “Yes.”
    “I’ll be there in a couple minutes.” He hung up without saying anything further.
    I tapped my foot and chewed on my bottom lip. I called Martha to let her know where I was and what was going on, just in case Fagan was the killer and decided I was more trouble than I was worth. She was her usual bubbly self, but told me to take