Page 29 of Her Last Promise

She made her way to Interrogation Room B, where Novak had already settled Nathan Mitchell into a chair.The room was standard issue—bare walls, metal table bolted to the floor, uncomfortable chairs.A two-way mirror dominated one wall, though Rachel knew no one was watching from the other side.They hadn't officially brought Mitchell in as a suspect; this was still, technically, a voluntary conversation.There wasn’t enough solid evidence to make it anything else.

Rachel took the seat across from Mitchell, noting how his fingers were clasped tightly together on top of the metal table.He nervously tapped at the surface with the gathered knuckles of his pinky; the sound echoed slightly in the sparse room.

"Mr.Mitchell," she began, "we appreciate you coming in to talk with us."

He nodded, his eyes darting between her and Novak.“You didn’t really give me much of a choice.”

“Maybe not.But I assure you, it’s going to do nothing more than help you as we get deeper into this.”

“Deeper?Look…I already told Officer Ryan everything there is to know.I really don’t feel like going over it again.”His voice made it seem like he might break down in tears at any moment.Maybe for his mother, Maybe because he looked exhausted.Or maybe both.

"Let's talk about your mother's case," Rachel said, keeping her voice neutral as she did her best to subtly sidestep his objection."You were very involved in the legal proceedings, right?"

Mitchell's jaw tightened."Of course I was.The monsters at the hospital insisted she stay alive by that machine…even after I made it abundantly clear that was against her wishes."

“And you feel they didn’t honor those wishes?”

“They did not.The reasoning is because there is no living will, no instructions.My mother wasn’t very organized.And I guess fifty-eight was still young to her.She didn’t see the need for last wishes, a living will, that sort of thing.”

“So the hospital…they are stating their default position in a situation like that is to do their best to revive her?”

“Yes.They’ve said that when it becomes clear there is no hope at all, they’ll strongly consider pulling the plug.But she isn’t getting worse.She’s not gettingbettereither.Which is why….it’s why I know she’d want it this way.To live on a machine for however long and thenmaybebe saved only to live the rest of your life with all these complications…”

"They want to honor her life," Novak corrected gently.“Without any formal, written consent, they can’t—”

"Ah, Jesus, here we go again.I know!” Mitchell's voice rose slightly, then he seemed to catch himself.He took a deep breath."I'm sorry.It's just...it's still raw.And if you…if you think I killed anyone over it, you’re wasting your time while an actual killer is out there.All you have to do is look at my schedule.Work, the hospital, home.Over and over again."

Rachel watched his hands, now clenching tighter together."Tell us about your interactions with Judge Smith."

"I never spoke to him directly," Nathan said.His right eye twitched slightly."I...I did send some emails to his office.I was angry.I shouldn't have, but I was desperate."

"We'll need copies of those emails," Rachel said.They did need the emails and they could easily get them from Judge Smith’s computer.But she wanted to see how cooperative Nathan would be.

"Of course.I can forward them to you.They're...they're not nice, but I swear they weren't threats.I was just begging him to reconsider."

Novak leaned forward."What about Dr.Walsh?Did you have any contact with her outside of her testimony?"

Nathan shook his head."No.None.I wanted to...I wanted to ask her how she could be so certain about Mom's condition, but my lawyer advised against any contact.He said it would look really bad in court."

"And what about James Harrison?"Rachel pressed.“The prosecutor.”

Nathan’s laughter was bitter."No.He wouldn't even look at me during the proceedings.Treated me like I was some kind of monster for wanting to keep my mother alive.I really don’t know if it was the sort of guy he really is, but he came off as a dick."

Rachel studied his face carefully.There was anger there, certainly, but was it the kind of rage that would drive someone to murder?"Your daily routine seems very structured, Mr.Mitchell.Work from nine to five, hospital until visiting hours were over.Every day."

"Is that a crime?"His voice carried a defensive edge."I want to spend every moment I can with her.The doctors say she might be able to hear us, might be aware on some level.I read to her, tell her about my day..."

“Yet you insist she’d rather be dead?”

“Than be on life support?A machine keeping her alive?Yes, I know that with certainty.”

"Also, no one's suggesting it's a crime," Novak interjected smoothly."We're just trying to establish timelines."

Nathan ran a hand through his hair, mussing it further."Look, I know how this looks.The judge who ruled against me dies, then the doctor...I get it.But I'm not...I couldn't..."He took another deep breath."I'm trying to save a life, nottake them."And now thereweretears in his eyes.He wiped them away angrily and glared at them as if asking how much longer this really needed to go on.

Rachel exchanged a quick glance with Novak."Mr.Mitchell, would you be willing to provide us with your cell phone records?Credit card statements?"

"Whatever you need," he said quickly—almost too quickly."I have nothing to hide.I just want to find out who's doing this so I can focus on my mother.I’m sorry someone has died…truly.But I’m more concerned about my mother."More tears came, and when they trailed down his cheeks, he simply let them fall this time.

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