going to be, like, the coolest mom ever. I promise I won’t tell anyone, okay?”
She squeezed Beth’s shoulders. “I know you won’t because you want to borrow my Mustang for prom.”
“Not just that, but definitely that.” Beth pointed at Henry. “He’s the one who told me.”
Toni looked at Henry, who only grinned.
“I’m allowed to be excited about our baby.”
“Can you maybe be more quietly excited?”
It was useless. He was so adorable she had a hard time mustering up the annoyance she knew he deserved. She walked over, and Henry stood and opened his arms.
“You’re not to be trusted.” Toni leaned forward, rested her head on his chest, and allowed herself to melt as he rubbed her back and shoulders. “I don’t want to go to the police station.”
“Then we’ll take you home.”
“But I need to go,” she said. “If Danny wants to talk to me, I need to find out what he wants to say.”
Megan jingled her keys. “I’ll drive. You relax. Let’s get you a cold drink and get this over with.”
It was dark when they finally rolled into the Moonstone Cove police station, and Toni saw Drew’s car in the parking lot along with some black-and-white cruisers.
“I wonder where Nico is?”
Megan shrugged. “Maybe he just wanted to get home.”
They walked inside, and Toni walked up to the front counter. “Hey, Sharon.”
“Toni, how you doing? You here to see Max?” The receptionist at the police department was a sweet older woman named Sharon who’d worked in the high school office when Toni was a student there.
High school to police department. Toni imagined the police department was probably a little calmer.
“No, I’m not here to see Max.” Her younger cousin was probably at home with his new wife and baby daughter. “I was told that one of Drew’s suspects wanted to talk to me.”
“Let me call him.” She lifted the phone and dialed a couple of numbers. “Detective Bisset, Toni Dusi is here.” She nodded. “Uh-huh.” She frowned. “You sit tight; I’ll bring her back.” She hung up the phone and pointed to Toni. “Okay, you he wants in the conference room—I’ll walk you back—and anyone with you” —she turned her attention to Megan and Henry— “needs to stay out here. You got that?”
Henry squeezed Toni’s shoulder. “Megan and I can hang in the front.”
“Take your time,” Megan said.
“No idea what Danny wants to tell me that he couldn’t say earlier,” Toni said. “Sharon, lead the way.”
She walked back through a maze of cubicles to the small break room with glass walls where she could see Danny Barba eating something out of a white Styrofoam container. Drew spotted them through the glass and waved her in.
“Thanks, Sharon.” He pulled out a chair for Toni as Sharon shut the door. “Our man here has consulted with his lawyer” —Drew gestured to the whip-thin woman with tightly curled hair and flawless red lipstick— “and Ms. Aguilar has advised him to speak with us about his associates. Thank you, Ms. Aguilar.”
“I’ve already spoken with the DA, and my client is prepared to be forthcoming about his role in all this. We are hoping to avoid jail time due to my client’s perfectly clear record.” She turned her eyes to Toni. “I honestly don’t know why he wanted you here, Ms. Dusi, but thank you for coming.”
“No one was supposed to get hurt.” Danny shoved his to-go container to the side and leaned toward Toni. “You can tell them that. You know when I’m lying. You’re like a psychic or like one of those smart people on the TV who read people real well, right?”
Toni glanced at Drew, then back at Danny. “Uh… something like that.”
“So you’ll know. You’ll be able to tell Detective Bisset here that I’m not lying about this.”
Toni could already feel the tension in the room building. Danny’s lawyer did not want him talking to Toni. Drew really didn’t want her in the room at all, and Danny’s wild, desperate hope weighed on her like a lead backpack.
“Danny, I can tell him if you’re lying or not, but you need to just tell him the complete truth. Don’t try to hide—”
“Is Miss Marissa at the hospital still?” Danny asked Drew. “I heard you had a guard and stuff with her at the hospital.”
“She’s at a rehab center,” Toni said. “Why?”
“The rehab center?” Danny asked. “Do they have guards for that?”
“I honestly don’t know,” Drew said. “What are you trying to say, Danny? Is someone going to go after Marissa?”
“I don’t