“It’s one in the morning, Lark. What’s going on?”
“I know. I’m sorry. I wouldn’t have called if it wasn’t an emergency. Court has been arrested,” she got out in a rush.
“Arrested?” I gasped. “What for?”
“It’s complicated. Apparently, his girlfriend, Jane, is being booked for fraud, theft, possibly…I don’t know…grand larceny.”
“Holy shit!”
“Yeah. It’s, fuck—” She broke off, clearly shaken. “It’s horrifying. I knew her. I mean, we weren’t friends, but I’ve been to a lot of events with her. She was close with Natalie.”
“Who is Natalie?”
“Sorry. Penn’s girlfriend. I’m getting off track. We’re at the police station. It’s a fucking nightmare here.”
“Jesus, Lark,” I breathed. I could hardly believe this was happening.
“Yeah. Court claims he didn’t do anything and that the officer put him in cuffs because he’d mouthed off to him. But Penn said that he might be an accomplice because he was giving Jane money.”
Fuck. An accomplice to grand larceny. Yeah, that was going to be a fucking field day for the office.
“We’re waiting for the mayor to show up. And I’m totally freaking out. I feel worthless. I have a law degree. I’ve passed the bar here, but it was years ago. I’m not practicing.” She was beginning to ramble. Getting more incoherent as she went.
I knew what she wanted but hadn’t asked.
“I’ll come down,” I told her.
“Really?” she whispered.
“Yeah. It’s part of the job, right?”
“Right.” Her voice got this far-off quality. “The job. Yes.”
“Plus, I like Court. He doesn’t seem like the type of person to do this.”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I really don’t.”
“Look, hang tight. Shoot me the address, and I’ll grab a cab.”
“Thank you,” she told me sincerely. “I really appreciate it.”
“No problem.”
I hung up the phone and ran a hand over my face. What a night. Court and Jane arrested. This was going to be a nightmare. I couldn’t even imagine what the office would look like tomorrow. And I was in legal. I’d probably have to handle some of this shit. Fuck.
I slipped back into the bedroom and went to the small closet to grab one of my suits.
“What are you doing?” Claire murmured from the bed.
“That was Lark. The mayor’s son was just arrested. She asked me to come down to the station.”
Claire shot up in bed. “Oh my god! That’s horrible.”
“Yeah. You don’t mind, do you?”
“What? No, of course not. This is your job. You have to go.” She rubbed her eyes. “Do you want me to come too?”
I shook my head as I pulled on a suit. “That’s okay. You should sleep. You have rehearsal tomorrow. I’ll just go. I’ll text you when I’m done.”
“Okay,” she said, lying back down and getting comfortable again. “I hope it’s all just a misunderstanding.”
“Me too.”
Though I didn’t think it was.
I watched her already falling back asleep as I grabbed my phone, wallet, and keys. I hurried out of our apartment and out to our barely mediocre Brooklyn neighborhood. Thankfully, this was New York, and cabs were out at all hours. I flagged down the first one that I saw. It had been idling out front of a nearby bar. And I was in Manhattan and at the police station within a half hour.
I strode past a half-dozen people at the entrance, who appeared to either be reporters or paparazzi, and into the building. For one thirty in the morning, the station was pretty busy. I supposed they dealt with a lot of petty crimes on the weekends—underage drinking, turnstile jumpers, public indecency, et cetera. But there was a buzz in the room. As if what had happened with Court and Jane was something else altogether.
I found Lark in a poufy plum ball gown. Her dark red hair had been tamed and fell in soft waves almost to the middle of her back. I’d never have guessed it was that long when it was in those unruly curls. Her gaze shifted my direction, and I saw she had on heavy makeup, but her eyes were wide with alarm.
She stood abruptly at my presence, and I walked over to her.
“A little overdressed for the circumstances, don’t you think?” I asked with a smile, hoping to break the tension.
“What? A custom-made designer dress isn’t how everyone goes to a police station?” She brought her bottom lip into her mouth, betraying her unease. “Thanks for coming.”
“Of course.”
The person seated next to her sighed and then rose to his feet. He was nearly as tall as I was but trimmer through the shoulders. And he was in a tuxedo that probably cost more than my monthly salary. Even if I hadn’t known who he was, it was obvious right away because he almost looked like an exact replica of his older brother.
I held my hand out. “You must be Penn.”
Penn looked me up and down with the attention of someone who knew my history with Lark before he took my hand. “And you’re Sam. The Sam.”
My eyes flicked to Lark’s once, and she just shrugged guiltily.
“Yeah, I guess I am.”
Penn’s eyes darkened. Oh, he didn’t like me. He had definitely heard Lark’s side of the story.
“I hear that you’re working for the campaign now.”
“Legal counsel. That’s why I’m here.”
“And you’re just friends,” Penn said in a way that made it seem like Lark had told him that.
“Penn,” Lark said with a sigh, “it’s really not the time. We’re dealing with your brother.”
“We’re just friends,” I told Penn even though he didn’t believe me. “But I agree with Lark. We’re not here to discuss the past. We’re here because your brother was arrested. Have you heard what’s going on so far?”
“Leslie stormed back there a few minutes ago with another attorney,” Lark said. “They wouldn’t let Penn or me do anything. We’ve just been waiting.”
Lark had barely finished her statement when the door burst open, and Mayor Kensington sauntered out of the police station as if she owned the place. Which, as mayor…it wasn’t too far off.
Behind her was a diminutive man with almost completely white hair in a boxy suit, who must be their attorney.
And behind him…was Court. His shoulders were back, and he looked like he was on top of the world. But I could see the strain behind his eyes, the forced set of his shoulders, and the way he walked like he was going to collapse at any second. It was there, and it wasn’t. As if he were two people overlapped. The real Court and the fake Court.
The mayor stalked right over to where Penn stood with Lark and me. “We’re putting this ridiculous mess behind us. Court did nothing wrong, except perhaps act with some stupidity. They’re not going to file any charges. We’re leaving. Are you coming with us?”
Penn nodded. “Yeah. Of course.”
Leslie’s eyes shifted to Lark. They softened in a way they hadn’t quite for her sons. “Thank you for everything.” She reached out and gripped Lark’s hand. It was then I realized the mayor was trying to keep herself from trembling. “Could you call Shawn and get him caught up? We’ll need everyone in the office bright and early. This is going to be a circus.”