It seemed the elevator would keep going up until it pierced the building's roof. Shay braced herself against the back of the dingy box as it sputtered along its cables. Taking the stairs might have saved her this experience, but it was too late now. She had to get to the top floor and this rickety ride was going to have to take her there. Once she arrived, she'd figure out why she was there, but right now, all she could dwell upon was why her neighbor's long-dead cat was in the elevator with her, wearing a red fedora and matching velvet vest, both of which clashed against his ginger fur.

"Are you here to help me?" She asked the cat.

The cat made no indication he cared that she was speaking to him, but he did twitch an ear back as the elevator dinged. Shay had reached the top floor at last. The door squeaked as it opened. Shay peeked into the darkened room. It appeared to be an office space; a large work area contained rows of woodened desks, all facing away from where she stood on the elevator's threshold. The leaf of a potted palm that had been placed nearby tickled her nose as she leaned her head forward to see if anyone was burning the midnight oil at one of the faraway workstations.

Her cat companion took her close proximity as an opportunity to swipe at the bared skin on her shin.

"Oww!" She scooted away from him and the elevator's exit. "What was that for?"

The cat replied by stretching himself against the wall, his paws aiming for the elevator's close door button.

"Wait!" She said. "I came all this way. This is my floor."

The cat stuck out his claws, taking aim at the red button. She could have stepped out of the elevator then, but she didn't because the cat was in charge. If he wanted her to stay there, she'd probably have to.

He clicked the button and the door screeched itself closed again. Shay jostled back and forth as the box began its descent. "It's going to be like this forever, isn't it?"

The cat ignored her again.

"We'll keep going, but to nowhere."

"You're going where? Wake the fuck up, Shay."

Shay twisted away from the elevator door towards the side of her bed that faced the wall. "The cat won't let me go to my office."

The bed shifted as Dierdre sat down on it. "Wake up and form words that make sense. The police are here to see you."

She twisted again. "What?"

Dierdre's sky blue eyes appeared as though a storm was about to roll in. "The police. They say they want to ask you some questions."

Shay sat up, pushing Dierdre out of her way. "What did you say to them?"

"Um, I said, 'Come in. She's still in bed. I'll go get her.'"

"Just like that, you let them in?"

"What was I supposed to say, that you were indisposed, and did they want to leave a card in case you were inclined to speak with them at a future date?"

"Did they say if they arrested anyone yet?"

"Seriously, Shay, why would they tell me shit?" Dierdre threw a sweatshirt at her. "Put this on, make yourself presentable, and then go talk to them. Honestly, this is why you don't tar and feather people online."

"You think that's what this is about? Internet harassment?"

The storm morphed into a hurricane. "What else would it be about?"

"Nothing." She tied her hair back with a Goldie Golden scrunchy. "I'm sure all of this is nothing."

Five minutes later, and she was no longer so sure. She recognized the detectives from the night of Goldie's murder. A man with a stylish beard and the heavy eyelids of someone fighting exhaustion and a woman whose expression refused to give away the emotion she carried behind it.

"I'm not sure what to tell you," Shay played with the frayed edge of her shorts. "I'm so angry. I loved Goldie like a sister."

"So, you're saying you had a personal relationship with the victim?" The man asked.

"Absolutely! I'm her biggest fan. A lot of people say things like that, but it's because they're deluded, not because it's true. They don't have a clue what it takes to be someone's biggest fan."

"What does it take?" He took out a tiny notebook and flipped its pages.

"Everything. Complete devotion. Case in point: I led you to her murderer, didn't I?"

"Can you do that, Shay?" He stared at her as he tapped his pen against his notebook. "Can you lead us to Goldie's murderer?"

"I told you, I already have. Okay, I'm sorry I was mean to her online, but can you blame me?"

The female cop cleared her throat. "You're under the impression that we're here about Tam Martin."

Shay pressed her spine against the back of her chair. "Of course, you are. You're just talking around the core issue to see if I'll say anything you haven't thought of asking me about yet."

"I'll get to the point, then," she said. "Who's your source?"

Heat flooded her body, as though she'd been dropped into a lava flow. "My source? What does that even mean?"

"Why did you tell Jasper DeAngelis that you have a source who's been feeding you information?" She leaned forward, balancing on the edge of her chair like she was ready to spring from it if Shay gave chase. "How is this source contacting you?"

"I don't have a source! Do I look like a journalist to you?"

"What are they saying, Shay?" The woman's voice was steady, but a vein in her neck had begun to throb. "Did they tell you dox Tam?"

"Stop it! I can't tell you anything until you arrest her. If I reveal anything, Tam will kill me like she killed Goldie!"

The detectives exchanged a glance that Shay couldn't interpret. "Miss Donnelly," the man said, "Does the named Aiden Park sound familiar to you?"

The heat abated. Finally, a question that didn't require deception. "Not that I can recall. Is he my source?"

"Is he... Miss Donnelly, are you or are you not aware of who your source is? Now would be the time to tell us everything before the hole you've been digging for yourself becomes a canyon."

Shay wiped her sweaty palms against her sweatshirt. "I'm not digging a hole. I'm telling you the truth! I got these texts, but I don't know who they're from. They never revealed their identity."

What did they say?"

"That Tam was guilty and that she was there at Bacall Tower, in Goldie's apartment when it happened, when Goldie fell, which I already knew."

"How would you have known that?"

Shay pressed her lips together. Jasper had told them about her, but had he also given them the contents of her care package?

"Were you aware that Tam was part of a drug operation when she was a teen?" Shay straightened her back, lifted her chin. She could still help make this right. All they needed was to see the reason that she presented to them. "Her parents went to prison because of her. She informed on them, but you know what? I think she was the one who was mixed up in it and they took the fall for her. And now Goldie has too. Literally. She probably found out about Tam's past and wanted to fire her, so Tam killed her."

Detective Garcia shifted her weight, crossing her legs at the ankle. "Stick to the night Goldie was murdered."

Shay suppressed a scream. "Isn't that what I've done all along? I gave you so much to work with and now all you want to do is harass me!"

"Tam Martin was at the crime scene and you knew this before the general public because you were there too."

"So? Is it illegal to be outside a building?"

The detectives exchanged a glance before Detective Ryan said, "We're going to need to see your phone."

Shay crossed her arms. "And I'm going to need to see a warrant." 

_____

Finally, Shay is getting questioned by our detective duo! But is she guilty? Will she lead them to the truth or will she manage to throw them off track?

My apologies for being behind in responding to comments. I'm pushing up against a deadline at the end of this month and have lots of stuff happening, but that doesn't mean I appreciate you all any less! XOXOXO