As it turned out, Jeff had taken a few days off. Sarah gave Sidney his
home number. She prayed he was not out of town. Around three o’clock,
Sidney finally reached him. Her original plan had been to meet him at
the firm. However, now that was out of the question.
Instead, she made arrangements to meet him at his home in Alexandria.
It didn’t hurt that he had not been at the office the last couple of
days to hear all the rumors swirling around her. When Sidney told him
she had a computer problem, he was eager to assist. He had some
business to take care of but would be home around eight. She would just
have to wait it out.
Two hours later a knock at the door startled Sidney while she was
nervously pacing through the living room. She looked through the
peephole and then opened the door in mild surprise. Lee Sawyer didn’t
wait to be asked in. He strode through the foyer and sat down in one of
the chairs next to the fireplace hearth. The fire had long since gone
out.
“Where’s your partner?”
Sawyer ignored her question. “I checked in at Triton,” he said.
“You didn’t tell me you had paid a call there this morning.”
She stood in front of him, her arms crossed. She had showered and
changed into a black pleated skirt and white V-neck sweater. Her hair,
combed straight back, was still damp. She was in her stocking feet; her
pumps lay next to the sofa. “You didn’t ask.”
Sawyer grunted. “So what did you think of your husband’s little video?”
“I really haven’t given it much thought.”
“Like hell you haven’t.”
She sat down on the sofa, drawing her legs up underneath her before
responding. “What exactly do you want?” she said stiffly.
“The truth wouldn’t be bad, to start with. From there we might be able
to move on to some solutions.”
“Like putting my husband in prison for the rest of his life? That’s the
solution you want, isn’t it?” She slung the words at him.
Sawyer absently fingered the badge on his belt. His stern expression
faded. When he looked at her, his eyes were weary, his big body listing
to one side. “Look, Sidney, like I said, I was at the crash site that
night. I … I held that little shoe in my hand too.” His voice
started to break up. Tears appeared in Sidney’s eyes, but she continued
to look at him, even as her frame started to shake.
Sawyer resumed speaking, his voice low but clear. “I see photos all
over your house of a very happy family. A handsome husband, one of the
prettiest little girls I’ve ever laid my eyes on and…” He paused. “And
a very beautiful wife and mother.” Sidney’s cheeks flushed at the words.
Embarrassed, Sawyer hurried on. “It makes no sense to me that your
husband, even if he did steal from his employer, would have participated
in blowing up that plane.” A tear plunged from Sidney’s cheek and
stained the couch while she listened. “Now, I won’t lie to you and tell
you that I think your husband is completely innocent.
For your sake, I hope to God he is and this whole mess can be explained
somehow. But my job is to find whoever brought down that plane and
killed all those people.” He took a long breath. “Including the owner
of that little shoe.” He paused again. “And I’m going to do my job.”
“Go on,” Sidney encouraged him, one hand nervously gripping the hemline
of her skirt.
“The best lead I have now is your husband. The only way I know to
explore that lead right now is through you.”
“So you want me to help you bring my husband in?”
“I want you to tell me anything you can that will help me get to the
bottom of this. Don’t you want that too?”
It took Sidney a full minute to respond. When the word finally came, it
was buttressed by sobs. “Yes.” She said nothing else for several
moments. Finally she looked at him. “But my little girl needs me. I