Page 83 of After Everything
"Can he come in now?"
"Of course."
I opened the door. David was exactly where I'd left him, leaning against the wall across from the exam room, still in hisrumpled suit, phone in his hand but clearly not looking at it.
He straightened immediately when he saw me.
"How is she?"
"Three cracked ribs, extensive bruising, soft tissue damage consistent with her account." I kept my voice low, professional. "I'll have the full report ready in an hour or so. The documentation should be more than sufficient for the hearing."
Relief washed over his face. "Thank you."
"She's asking for you. You can sit with her while I finish the paperwork." I moved to step past him in the narrow hallway.
"Emma." He said it quietly, and I stopped. "I know this is… I know it's not ideal. Working together tonight. But thank you for staying. For helping her."
I looked up at him. We were too close in this hallway, close enough that I could see the exhaustion in his eyes, the tension in his shoulders. Close enough that I caught the faint scent of his cologne… the same one he'd worn three years ago, and somehow that small familiar detail made my chest tight.
"It's my job," I said.
"I know. But still." He held my gaze. "Thank you."
I nodded once and walked past him toward my office, very aware of the inches between us as I moved, very aware that I'd felt something when he said my name.
Not Ms. Peterson, no… Emma.
I was halfway through typing the report when David appeared in my doorway.
"How long until it's ready?"
I glanced at the screen. "Thirty minutes, give or take.”
He nodded, thinking. "Angela needs to get some things from her house before I drop her off at the hotel. Clothes, documents, her daughter's stuffed animal. Her husband's on shift until midnight, and now's the safest time. Can I take her and come back for the report?"
"Of course. I'll text you when it's done."
"Thank you." He started to turn, then paused. "You'll be okay here alone?"
"I work late all the time." I kept my eyeson my screen. "Go. She needs you more than I do."
A beat of silence. Then: "I'll be back in thirty."
I heard his footsteps retreat down the hall, heard him talking quietly to Angela, heard the front door open and close.
Then silence.
I sat back in my chair and let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.
He talks about you sometimes. Like you're someone important.
I shook my head and turned back to the computer.
Focus. Angela needed this report. The hearing was tomorrow. Everything else could wait.
I typed methodically, translating my exam notes into the formal language judges expected. Documented every injury in clinical detail. Included measurements, photographs, my professional assessment of the timeline and mechanism of injury. Everything needed to prove that Angela Torres had been assaulted and was at risk of further harm.
Twenty minutes later, I hit print and watched the pages emerge from the printer. Ten pages. Thorough. Damning. Exactly what David needed.
