“That you outranked him?”
“No.”
“That you were right?”
“Closer.”
Patricia waited.
Jessica smiled faintly.
“That I never needed him to believe me.”
Her mother studied her.
Then nodded.
“That would drive a man like him crazy.”
“It did.”
They finished the pie.
Outside, the afternoon light softened.
Jessica carried her cap to the car.
Patricia pointed at it.
“You going to put that thing on now?”
Jessica looked at the major insignia.
Then toward the highway.
“No.”
Patricia smiled.
“Still hiding?”
Jessica considered the question.
Then shook her head.
“No.”
She placed the cap gently on the passenger seat.
“Just done proving anything for today.”
Patricia opened the driver’s door.
“That I understand.”
Jessica stood beside the car for one final moment.
Far behind them, beyond trees and roads and ordinary neighborhoods, the memorial ceremony grounds were emptying.
The investigation would continue.
Crawford would face consequences.
Jessica’s bruises would darken before they faded.
