caught up with me.
“Hey, are you okay?” said Felicity.
I had reached the car, so I yanked open the back seat and slid inside. “Not really, no. I’ve been accused of murder and I just spent two nights in jail.”
Lachlan and Felicity both went around to the other side of the car.
Lachlan got in next to me. “We’re going to sort this out, you know.”
Felicity got in up front. “How are we going to do that?”
“We find the real murderer,” said Lachlan. “We can’t trust the police to do it, because they won’t be investigating anymore, since they’ve arrested us.”
“Hi there,” said Jensen. “How you guys doing?”
“So, you can do that?” said Felicity. “Because I thought you were suspended from the force.”
“Hi, Jensen,” I said.
He started the car. “Sorry to hear about the suspension, by the way.”
Lachlan shrugged. “Being suspended doesn’t mean I can’t do detective work. Just that I can’t claim to be doing it for the police.”
“Okay,” said Felicity. “So, it’s like you’re private investigators or something.”
“You could get fedoras,” said Jensen.
Felicity gave him a look.
“What?” he said.
“Drive,” she said.
He pulled the car out of the lot.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Lachlan was drinking whiskey on my couch in the apartment.
I, of course, couldn’t drink anything alcoholic, so I had to content myself with making copious amounts of food. I was in the kitchen, working on making jalapeno poppers. They were really complicated, and thus gave me lots to distract myself with. I still had a towel around my head, because I was fresh from the shower. I had wanted to wash all of Roxbone off of me.
I wanted to talk to Lachlan about everything, but I didn’t know how to bring it up.
He hadn’t said anything about my being pregnant yet.
I should say something. I’d kept it from him, and he was probably waiting for me to say something about it, and I didn’t know how.
And besides, I was terrified that the tranquilizer dart had done something to hurt the baby, and I didn’t know how I could even know if that was true.
The first step to making jalapeno poppers is to cut the tops off the jalapenos and hollow out the the peppers, discarding the seeds. That was what I was working on. I was wearing plastic gloves, because it was really hard to wash the spiciness off your skin.
I stood over the sink. In between finishing each pepper, I looked over my shoulder at Lachlan.
Sometimes he was looking at me. Sometimes he was just staring into his drink.
This time, he was doing the latter. But he spoke. “Penny,” he said in a hoarse voice, “you have to promise me that you’re telling the truth, that you didn’t kill Alastair.”
I whirled. “I thought we established that already.”
“Just… seriously, if there’s anything else you’re keeping from me, now is the time to let me know.”
I parted my lips. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I was pregnant.”
He looked up at me. “No, I get it.”
“You do?”
“You were afraid. You were in denial about it. You were horrified that it had happened, and you didn’t want to face it.”
“It’s not that,” I said, trying a small smile. “I don’t feel horrified about the baby. I feel… lucky and excited and glad. But to ask you to… well, it’s a lot to ask of you.”
“Of me?” He pointed at his chest. “I’m not the one who’s pregnant.”
“Yeah, but…” I shrugged and went back to the jalapenos. “I mean, I want a baby. I’ve always wanted one, and I guess it’s sort of… I mean, if the baby is okay, that is, because you said that the tranquilizer dart might—”
“You should make a doctor’s appointment,” he said. “It’s only that the darts haven’t been tested on pregnant women, not that they’ve ever been shown to have adverse effects.”
I turned.
He was on his feet, coming closer to me.
“You looked that up,” I said. “You
“Hey, are you okay?” said Felicity.
I had reached the car, so I yanked open the back seat and slid inside. “Not really, no. I’ve been accused of murder and I just spent two nights in jail.”
Lachlan and Felicity both went around to the other side of the car.
Lachlan got in next to me. “We’re going to sort this out, you know.”
Felicity got in up front. “How are we going to do that?”
“We find the real murderer,” said Lachlan. “We can’t trust the police to do it, because they won’t be investigating anymore, since they’ve arrested us.”
“Hi there,” said Jensen. “How you guys doing?”
“So, you can do that?” said Felicity. “Because I thought you were suspended from the force.”
“Hi, Jensen,” I said.
He started the car. “Sorry to hear about the suspension, by the way.”
Lachlan shrugged. “Being suspended doesn’t mean I can’t do detective work. Just that I can’t claim to be doing it for the police.”
“Okay,” said Felicity. “So, it’s like you’re private investigators or something.”
“You could get fedoras,” said Jensen.
Felicity gave him a look.
“What?” he said.
“Drive,” she said.
He pulled the car out of the lot.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Lachlan was drinking whiskey on my couch in the apartment.
I, of course, couldn’t drink anything alcoholic, so I had to content myself with making copious amounts of food. I was in the kitchen, working on making jalapeno poppers. They were really complicated, and thus gave me lots to distract myself with. I still had a towel around my head, because I was fresh from the shower. I had wanted to wash all of Roxbone off of me.
I wanted to talk to Lachlan about everything, but I didn’t know how to bring it up.
He hadn’t said anything about my being pregnant yet.
I should say something. I’d kept it from him, and he was probably waiting for me to say something about it, and I didn’t know how.
And besides, I was terrified that the tranquilizer dart had done something to hurt the baby, and I didn’t know how I could even know if that was true.
The first step to making jalapeno poppers is to cut the tops off the jalapenos and hollow out the the peppers, discarding the seeds. That was what I was working on. I was wearing plastic gloves, because it was really hard to wash the spiciness off your skin.
I stood over the sink. In between finishing each pepper, I looked over my shoulder at Lachlan.
Sometimes he was looking at me. Sometimes he was just staring into his drink.
This time, he was doing the latter. But he spoke. “Penny,” he said in a hoarse voice, “you have to promise me that you’re telling the truth, that you didn’t kill Alastair.”
I whirled. “I thought we established that already.”
“Just… seriously, if there’s anything else you’re keeping from me, now is the time to let me know.”
I parted my lips. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I was pregnant.”
He looked up at me. “No, I get it.”
“You do?”
“You were afraid. You were in denial about it. You were horrified that it had happened, and you didn’t want to face it.”
“It’s not that,” I said, trying a small smile. “I don’t feel horrified about the baby. I feel… lucky and excited and glad. But to ask you to… well, it’s a lot to ask of you.”
“Of me?” He pointed at his chest. “I’m not the one who’s pregnant.”
“Yeah, but…” I shrugged and went back to the jalapenos. “I mean, I want a baby. I’ve always wanted one, and I guess it’s sort of… I mean, if the baby is okay, that is, because you said that the tranquilizer dart might—”
“You should make a doctor’s appointment,” he said. “It’s only that the darts haven’t been tested on pregnant women, not that they’ve ever been shown to have adverse effects.”
I turned.
He was on his feet, coming closer to me.
“You looked that up,” I said. “You
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