Page 18 of Shimmering Emeralds
Unable to just stand back and let this happen, I asked, “Prison? On what grounds?”
“I would think you’d be the first in line to make sure he got the punishment he deserves, considering what happened to your little girl.” Hank’s bushy eyebrows raised as he openly judged me.
“Harper doesn’t deserve this,” I admitted quietly before I realized the cop had distracted me, without answering my question. Raising my eyes to look at Levi as he stared at the floor, I said, “But neither does he. The crash was an accident, so you have no right to hold him.”
Honestly, I didn’t have any idea if they were within their rights or not, but it felt wrong for Levi to be taken to jail. It would be helpful if I could call Avery, my brother-in-law’s sister, for her legal advice on how best to handle this, but my relationship with her had been beyond strained ever since I’d ranted on the local news and publicly accused Alex of harming Claire.
Instead, I went the fake-it-until-you-make-it route, and acted like I knew exactly what I was talking about. Narrowing my most intimidating stare at the officers, I said, “You need to let him go.”
Hank shook his head, which made his beefy jowls jiggle. “He’s claiming that Kevin Durley was the cause of the accident, yet no one else saw Kevin and there’s no sign of him anywhere near the scene. Sounds like a pretty convenient lie to me.”
I had seen something run out in front of the bus from the side of the road. It had been big enough that I’d believed at the time that it was a moose, but it could have been a man. It had all happened so fast that I couldn’t be sure.
Looking at Levi’s cuffed hands, I surprised us all when I lifted my chin and said with certainty, “I saw him, too. Kevin Durley was there, and he ran out in front of us.”
16
Levi
My eyes darted to Meg’s. I couldn’t believe she was vouching for me––especially since her daughter’s life was hanging in the balance between life and the perilous, unconscious state she was currently in. I would have assumed that Meg would rather see me rot away in jail than stick up for me.
Hank looked incredibly disappointed that he didn’t get to make a big arrest and drag me into the station today as Jimmy worked the key in the lock to release my wrists from the metal handcuffs.
Meg slipped back inside her daughter’s room and let the door close quietly behind her as Hank gave me a firm warning to stay in town because they would be back to question me further. I nodded my acknowledgement, but couldn’t focus on anything except the fact that Meg had stood up for me to keep me from being arrested.
Hank grumbled as the duo ambled away. It was obvious that it had ruined his day to not be able to take me into custody––yet. I had little doubt that he would delight in doing so, if he could find any excuse that would make it permissible.
Once the officers made their way down the hallway to the swinging double-door exit, I turned to face the closed door that led to Harper’s room. Even though I knew Meg would probably prefer it if I kept my distance and stayed out here, I was drawn to her like the world’s strongest Neo magnet.
I hovered just outside the doorway for a long moment, telling myself that if I sensed Meg truly didn’t want me here, I would resume my vigil in the hallway as far from her as I could stand to be during this tragic time in our lives. Although I needed to be by her side, Meg’s desires took priority over my feelings––today and always.
After a light rap on the door, I went inside without waiting for her to respond. Although she quickly masked her initial reaction, I could have sworn that she looked relieved to see me for the briefest of moments. That flash of a warm expression was enough to give me the confidence to join her at Harper’s bedside.
Meg was seated in one of the room’s hard plastic chairs right beside Harper, so I brought the other chair over and placed it right beside Meg’s. Once I was seated next to her, I debated whether she would prefer I remain quietly by her side or if I should verbally offer to let her vent her frustrations in my direction.
Deciding to let her take the lead, I placed what I hoped was a comforting hand on her back and remained quiet. Meg had never been big on passive rumination, so it didn’t take her long to break the silence in the room.
“You better have truly seen Kevin Durley run out in front of us, or the police will be the least of your worries.”
She couldn’t have surprised me more if she’d taken off her clothes and ran around the hospital naked. I stared at her with my mouth hanging open. Finally, I regained my wits enough to speak. “You told the police you saw him, too.”
“I know, and I did see something. I’m just not completely sure what it was. If I find out you lied, and it wasn’t Kevin, I’ll strangle you with my bare hands.” Meg’s gaze was unflinching as she spoke, and I had no doubt she would do whatever she thought was necessary to avenge her daughter’s injury.
I held up my palms in mock surrender. “It was him. I’m sure of it. I saw the burn scars on his face in that fraction of a second as we stared at each other in absolute panic over the fact that I was getting ready to run over him with a bus.”
Meg nodded once, silently accepting my answer as the truth, before turning her attention back to her daughter.
The room was quiet, with the exception of the beeping and hissing of the medical equipment. I wasn’t sure how to express my extreme gratitude for this brave, strong woman. It didn’t seem like nearly enough, but I said in a quiet voice, “Thank you.”
She nodded to acknowledge that she’d heard me, but her gaze never wavered from Harper. I longed to reach out to comfort the woman that I’d loved since we were teenagers, but I sensed that she wouldn’t welcome my touch, and I couldn’t blame her for that.
Dani breezed back into the room, effectively eliminating the temptation to reach out to Meg. Even if Meg wouldn’t have shot down any of my attempts to console her, I was positive that Dani would step in and do so on Meg’s behalf.
Meg’s best friend proved that point by openly glaring at me before saying in a flat tone, “Oh, you’re back.”
I knew Dani was only trying to protect her friend, so I couldn’t get angry with her about her open rudeness aimed in my direction.
When she failed to get a reaction out of me, Dani angled around to focus her complete attention on Meg. “I have baby pictures!”
