Peggy and Heath return and introductions commence again.
“How did you gentlemen know Ms. Moore?” Andrews addresses both of us.
“Heath didn’t know her. I mean, he just met her today when she came to see me on our tour bus.”
“Okay, so how did you know her, Mr. Armstrong?” I don’t like his tone.
“She was a groupie. We met last year, and I hadn’t seen her since then until today.” I snap back at him.
“How did she know where to find you?” he asks.
“We’re on tour. It’s not hard to know where we are.” This guy is pissing me off. Peggy moves through the kitchen and gets my attention. Her eyes tell me all I need to see. She wants me to hold it together.
“Did you have a relationship with her?”
“No. Like I said, we met once last year. I never heard from her again until today.”
Newman steps forward. “We’re trying to understand what happened today. Ms. Moore entered your bus and then died of a drug overdose within minutes. We’d like to know how this happened and where she got her drugs from.”
“How can I possibly know that?” I practically shout. “I haven’t seen her since last year. We didn’t even know each other. It was a one-time hook-up.” I run my hand through my hair and try to regulate my breathing.
“So you never saw the drugs that she took? You didn’t share any with her? Are you willing to submit a urine and saliva sample for drug testing?”
What the fuck?
Suddenly Heath speaks up. “I don’t see the need for Garrett to submit any samples to you for drug testing. He wasn’t hanging out with her. When she barged onto our bus, she was already wasted.” He pauses. “Do we need to get a lawyer here? My father is the District Attorney, and I’m sure he’ll have some recommendations.”
What?
Andrews and Newman back down for the first time and relief floods my chest. “No. No need to call the D.A., I mean, your father,” Newman says. “I think we have what we need regarding Ms. Moore.”
“Can I speak to Mr. Armstrong now?”
I turn toward the voice behind me and the social worker, Nicole Thomas, walks past us into the kitchen.
“We’ll be outside,” Andrews huffs, and the officers leave through the front door.
“Is there someplace more comfortable we can go?” Her tone is much softer than the two police officers, but somehow more serious.
“The den is in here.” I lead her through the kitchen into an open space toward the back of the house. She sits in one of the oversized chairs and I sit on the large sectional couch.
“Are you aware that Sadie gave birth to a baby boy about two weeks ago?” she asks.
I want to lie to her. Tell her that I have no idea what she’s talking about. Tell her to leave my house immediately and never come back. But I see Peggy standing in the kitchen with her arms crossed over her chest. She can hear everything we’re saying, and I don’t want to lie in front of her. I can’t.
“Yes,” I say reluctantly and pull the crumpled birth certificate from my pocket.
“Sadie showed me this right before she…”
Nicole reaches out and looks at the birth certificate and nods. Her expression changes and she looks upset. Her eyes glisten, and she places the paper on the table in front of her. “I’ve been working with Sadie for a long time. She was a drug addict. As soon as she tested positive for drug use after she gave birth to Kai, I was called to intervene. She refused care and left the hospital shortly after he was born. He was very sick as you can imagine. He also tested positive for drugs and has been in the neonatal intensive care unit for the past two weeks.” She pauses and wrings her hands together.
“Why are you telling me all of this?” I stand up and begin pacing back and forth. I feel every fiber from the rich rug beneath my still-bare feet. I imagine the carpet pulling me in, hiding me away. I need to escape.
“Kai has no one. He’s alone now.”