Abby burst out of the house, reporters screaming out questions, camera flashes exploding, nearly blinding Eve from the doorway. Eve let her go, hoping she’d cool off. She’d called Wes, knowing he might see the news, hoping maybe he might be able to find Abby and calm her down.
She needed to go to bed, but Eve wandered the house, unable to relax. She cleaned the kitchen from top to bottom, but she couldn’t stay in this house for another second. Abby had taken Eve’s keys, which was why she found herself calling a cab. She gave him an address around the corner and made her way out through the backyard gate. Eve told herself that she was just going to the Belvedere, her local haunt, that she could drink enough to blot out her worry. But somehow Eve found herself standing outside the Lancaster Police Department. Eve had always hated coming back there, hated the memories dredged up by doing so, but she had to see Tommy and make sure nothing would come of that photo or Missy Hanson’s ridiculous claims.
Eve approached the desk, and saw Charlie, the desk clerk. He’d been here since that first night when she’d been questioned, but he never once treated her like a criminal. His kindness was something she hadn’t forgotten. He beamed when he saw her, reached out to shake her hand.
“Mrs. Riser, I can’t tell you how happy I was, how happy we all were to hear that Lily’s okay.”
“Thanks, Charlie. We’re overjoyed… beyond…”
Charlie’s smile faded. “Is something wrong?”
Eve’s brave facade was slowly crumbling but she couldn’t fall apart now.
“I was wondering if Sheriff Rogers was in. I had a few questions.”
“Yes, ma’am. I can take you to him…”
“There’s no need. I know the way.”
Eve hurried away from his probing gaze. She reached Tommy’s office and saw him through the window, hunched over a stack of paperwork, his hat off, a cup of coffee by his side. For a moment, Eve wondered if she should just turn around and go. But it was too late. Tommy glanced up and looked stunned to see her there. He jumped up to open the door.
“Evie, come in. Come in. Are you okay? I mean, I’m sure you’re not… I just wasn’t expecting you. What brings you here so late?”
“I needed… I needed…” She exhaled and sank into a chair.
He stopped and stared at Eve, realizing why she had come here.
“Look, Rick Hanson is crazy if he thinks those photos can explain away what we found in that hellhole…” Tommy trailed off, realizing he’d said too much.
Eve knew that she’d been a coward this morning. She had agreed to look after Sky because she didn’t have the guts to listen to Lily’s confession. But Eve realized if she was going to see Lily and Sky through this, if she was going to go up against Hanson, she couldn’t live in ignorance.
“I want to know what happened to my daughter. I need to know.”
Pained, Tommy rubbed his face, his hazel eyes rimmed with red, bags drooping beneath them.
“Eve, that’s not a good idea. There are things in her statement that a mother should never hear. Trust me when I tell you this.”
“Tommy, please…”
“I’d be going against protocol. Again.”
“But for me… for me, you’d break protocol?” It was an awful thing to ask, she knew that, and yet Eve didn’t care.
Tommy sighed, weighing his options, the responsibilities bestowed upon him. He slowly stood and moved over to close the blinds to his office, blocking out any prying eyes. He reached across the desk, and slid a file folder over to Eve.
“This is the FBI’s preliminary report, along with a catalog of the evidence we collected at the scene. I can give you some privacy, if you’d like.”
He went to leave and Eve reached out to stop him. She let her hand linger on his.
“Please. Don’t go.” Tommy didn’t say a word. He moved his hand away and settled back behind his desk. He sat quietly while Eve read the sixty-page report, a detailed account of her child’s sexual and physical abuse at the hands of a man she’d considered a family friend. She stopped several times, wondering if she’d made a mistake, wondering how she’d ever get these images out of her mind. When Eve finally closed the report, she thought she might actually throw up. How could someone do this, not just to her daughter, but to another human being? How could she live in a world where there were people capable of doing this? She looked up at Tommy, tears falling in a steady stream.
“Is he here?” she asked him. Eve couldn’t even say his name.
“He is. Got the shit beat out of him today, so he’s in protective custody.”
“Who beat him up?”
Tommy didn’t answer, which was answer enough. Eve wanted to shake the officers’ hands, thought about offering to make them a home-cooked meal so she could hear every sordid detail of how he’d suffered.
“How bad was it?”
“Not bad enough.”
“Nothing will ever be enough. You know that, right?” Eve asked.
“I know, Evie. Trust me, I know.”
Eve slowly pushed the report back to him and stood up. “Thank you.”