Sleep With Fear

Chapter 3

Lara stared at Que for a moment before shaking her head. She tried to sound calm, but her voice broke. "No, no, tha-that's not true."

"It is." Que held up the phone in the evidence bag. The plastic was crumpled, but Lara could see through it to the screen showing a photo of Tiffany Fox and Cole sitting at a restaurant table. They were kissing.

Lara reached out to take the phone and stared at the picture. The woman was clearly Tiffany and it looked like it was taken as a selfie because her arm reached up out of the frame. Lara recognized Cole. She even recognized the blue sweater she had gotten him on a few months ago.

Even though she knew all that, she said, "This can't be real."

Que leaned back in her chair. "That photo is on Tiffany's Fox's phone. It wasn't the only one. We also spoke to a couple of her friends, and they all said she was dating Cole Bradford. They've been seeing each other for the last six months."

Lara continued to stare at the photo. It was like her eyes saw it, but her mind didn't. "But that's not possible. He said he didn't know her."

"Well, obviously your husband lied. About a lot of things. Which brings us back to my original question. Did you know Cole and Fox were having an affair?"

Lara looked up at Que, and saw the smile the detective had given her before was gone, replaced by a calm but cold expression.

"No. I mean, assuming it's true, no. I didn't know."

Que stood to take her phone out of Lara's hand. "Assuming it's true, this puts things in a different light. Like I said earlier, I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt. Telling me you just woke up next to a dead woman is one thing. Telling me you woke up next to a dead woman who happens to be your husband's mistress is another."

She spread her hands. "Mrs. Bradford, do you wanna change your story?"

Lara swallowed, but her mouth felt dry. The shock from the morning now merged with the horror of her husband's infidelity, leaving her almost paralyzed. Yet she found the presence of mind to murmur, "I'm sorry, am I under arrest?"

Que sagged visibly. "Ma'am, right now, I'm just asking questions."

"Then I can't say anything more until I've spoken to my lawyer."

Que nodded as she slipped her phone into her coat. "All right, fair enough. If there's anything else you wanna add, you have my number. I'll let you know if I find more information."

Que and the other officer walked out of the office, leaving Lara sitting at her desk, staring into space.

Lara turned in her chair to look out the window of the office at the city below. Cars inched along the street below, across from the wide green of the park.

Her eyes burned as tears tried to force their way out of her, but she closed her eyes and held them back. When she felt like she had taken control of herself, she reached for her intercom on her desk.

"Meryl," she said, "call Harrow and James. I'll need to retain their services. It's urgent."

"Yes, Mrs. Bradford."

Harrow and James was a law firm that Lara had used for years, and she trusted them to have the best lawyers money could buy. She felt like she would need them.

Lara let go of the intercom, took a deep breath, and pulled her phone out of her pocket.

She had gotten a few text messages, including one from her friend Seline who just wrote "OMG, no way," and her husband who wrote, "Call Me, ASAP." She tapped on her husband's contact, took a deep breath, and tapped the icon to call his number.