Proof of Innocence

She put down her tea and pushed away the plate of food. “Okay.” Then she took a deep breath and tugged the big robe around her. After picking up her crumbled notebook, she opened it as if she were about to read a book. Then she slapped it shut and lifted her gaze to meet his.

“I had planned to break things off with Michael,” she began. “Our fathers pushed us together in our last year of college, but honestly, we never got past being friends. We had fun together and I guess you could say we looked good together, according to the tabloids anyway, but it was mostly for show.”

Chase took that in as he remembered Erin in flowing formal gowns and on the arm of the man known as “The Capitol Crusader.” Michael Jeffries had been a bit cocky and smug, but the man at least had a good heart since he fought for less fortunate people. He sure didn’t deserve to be shot even if he had made Chase jealous at times. Chase always told himself Erin was better off with someone who had as much money and clout as her father. That’s the way the senator saw things anyway.

“So you did see Michael on the night that he died?”

Erin took a sip of tea and then continued. “Yes, I did. That morning he called me and asked if we could go to dinner and...well, he was so upset when he picked me up I didn’t have the heart to break up with him.”

Chase jotted notes since this was a new development. “Why was he upset?”

She pushed at her still-damp hair. “He said he’d found out a young relative of his was stuck in foster care and possibly living at the All Our Kids home—you know the one that his father started years ago. Michael was determined to get the child out, but he wouldn’t tell me who the kid was or why doing this was so important to him.” She shrugged and looked down at her hands. “We parted at around nine or so, but later—not long after I saw you—he didn’t answer my calls and I got worried about him.”

Chase checked his notes. “You and I spoke around ten that night,” he reminded her. “I remember glancing at my watch and wondering why you were out walking so late.”

“I needed to think about things,” she replied. “I was worried about Michael’s frame of mind and I was upset that...I couldn’t make it work with him. I went to his condo to check on him and he wasn’t there. I figured he’d driven out to his father’s estate to possibly discuss getting the congressman’s help with this child he was so worried about. He told me he needed to talk to his father, so I headed out there.”

Chase held up a hand and decided he could tell her what he knew for a fact. “Let’s stop for a minute. We’ve confirmed that Michael was talking about a two-year-old boy who belonged to his father’s housekeeper, Rosa Gomez—”

She shook her head and held her hand toward him. “But then the child couldn’t be related to him.”

Chase hated to spill things to her in this way, but he had to get all the facts straight and he had to feed them to her one by one. “Erin, the little boy—Juan Gomez—is the son of the congressman. We’ve pretty much established that he’s Michael’s half brother.”

FOUR (#ulink_78f51cca-41c3-507d-9190-c76ab7aa7ad8)

Erin went still, her eyes widening. “I can’t believe this. Do you think...Michael went to his father’s house to confront him or to at least ask him to take Juan out of foster care?” Then she gasped. “They were in a heated argument when I came around the corner to the patio. What if that’s why the congressman shot Michael?”

It was Chase’s turn to be shocked. Leon Ridge had told them it was an accident. “Are you saying that’s what happened that night?”

She nodded, tears forming in her eyes. “Yes, Chase. I went there to find Michael and...I walked up on them arguing. The congressman said something about Michael ruining everything. He reached for a gun and then they were struggling, pushing and shoving, and the next thing I knew the gun went off and...Michael fell to the ground.” She put a hand to her heart. “Then blood went everywhere and...I screamed and ran toward Michael.”

Chase saw the terror in her eyes. “And then what happened?”

“I took off my jacket and tried to stop the bleeding. Congressman Jeffries stood there in shock, or so I thought. He tried to explain that it was an accident, but I saw him hold that gun to Michael’s stomach and pull the trigger.

“After that, I didn’t know what to say, but I kept begging him to call for help. He didn’t move and then he turned nasty and pointed the gun at me, telling me if I told anyone what I’d witnessed he’d swear that I shot Michael. When I took out my phone, he grabbed it from me and even threatened to kill my father.”

She gulped in a breath. “When I begged him to call 911, he said he’d ruin my father, that he’d frame him and destroy his career. He asked me if I wanted that on my conscience.” She put a hand to her mouth and shook her head. “I didn’t know what to do.”

Chase got up and came to kneel in front of her. “Hey, it’s okay. If you’re telling the truth and Michael did know about Juan Gomez, we have more than enough information to prove his father had a strong motive for shooting him.”

“I am telling the truth,” she said, pushing him away. “Why would I lie?”

Chase didn’t think she was lying, but he had to keep questioning her. “Why didn’t you call your dad or even me? Why did you run, Erin?”

She lifted her head and stared at Chase, her dark blue eyes still moist. “One of the congressman’s goons showed up when I was trying to help Michael. Leon Ridge—that creepy aide who was always hanging around. I asked him to help me and that’s when the congressman told his aide to rip off the starfish necklace Michael had given me for my birthday and to drop it near Michael’s body—and then he demanded that Leon shoot him in the shoulder so it would look like I’d done it. But before he let that stupid man shoot him, he told Leon to take care of me. He never wanted anyone to hear what I had to say about that night. He made it look as if I’d shot Michael and I’d run off. Only, he never figured I’d live to tell the truth.”

Chase could understand the fear in her eyes. Leon Ridge had pretty much told them a similar story. Funny that Ridge hadn’t mentioned that he’d taken Erin out to be shot. Ridge refused to even talk about Erin or her whereabouts. He said he had no idea where Erin was and he didn’t care.

When Chase thought about how close she’d come to dying, he asked the obvious. “But you got away?”

“Yes, but only after Leon Ridge put me in a car and took me out to the woods. The minute he dragged me out of the car, I kicked him and used one of my boot heels to dig into his foot. He shot at me and missed. Then I ran and ran and...I’ve been running since then, hiding out all around Maryland and Virginia.” She grabbed at Chase’s shirt. “Now do you believe me?”

Chase lifted her up and tugged her into his arms. “Yes, Erin. I believe you. And now that I’ve heard your side of the story, we’ll compare notes and I promise I’m going to do everything I can to clear your name.”

Erin nodded. “I’ve blocked out a lot of that night. Michael wanted to tell me something.” She closed her eyes. “He said something. He kept looking over my shoulder and he whispered a word.” She gasped and grabbed at Chase’s sleeve. “I thought he was trying to say gone. That he was telling me I needed to leave. But Chase, what if he was saying a name?”

“Juan,” Chase said, the horror in her words chilling him in spite of the hot summer night.

She bobbed her head again, tears falling down her face. “Juan.”

Chase drew back, deciding he needed to be honest. “We have Leon Ridge in custody and he told us Jeffries shot Michael, but we found that hard to accept. He claims the shooting was an accident, and that the congressman and he came up with an alibi. He said he shot the congressman to make it look as if an unknown assailant had done it, but he never mentioned that he saw you that night. And he refused to discuss Juan Gomez and the boy’s connection to the congressman.”

“What? Why didn’t you tell me that before now?” Her expression changed, an angry frown clouding her face. “Let me guess. You were waiting to see what I’d tell you, right?”

Chase tried to calm her down. “I had to be careful, Erin. I didn’t want to confuse you or upset you.”

“You don’t believe me after all.” She pushed him away. “You probably think I’m lying about him taking me out to kill me.”

Chase tugged her back around. “I told you, I believe you. Ridge never told us he’d even seen you. He clams up when we ask about you being there that night.”

“That’s because Jeffries will have him killed if he says anything else. I’m surprised he said that much, He was there when the congressman decided to pin the whole thing on me, but I got away from Leon. The congressman can’t be too happy about that.”

“Ridge is obviously the fall guy,” Chase explained. “We interviewed the congressman about Juan and the murder, but he denied any involvement. He tried to convince us that Juan was Michael’s child.”

“That’s not possible,” Erin exclaimed. “Michael couldn’t have children. It was...always a sore subject between us.”

“We know the child isn’t Michael’s for that very reason. Leon tried to convince us of that, too. We reminded Leon of the opinion piece Michael wrote for one of the local papers, promoting foster care and adoption. The congressman got tripped up in his own lies on that one. He’s wanted on corruption charges, but...now we’re talking murder, too.”

“I asked you to trust me,” she reminded him. “You have to trust that I’m telling you the truth. The congressman shot Michael and Michael was trying to tell me why. It’s all about that little boy. That makes sense now that I know he’s the congressman’s son. Leon Ridge planned to kill me, but he won’t admit that. And since he failed, Congressman Jeffries will keep sending people to do the job.”

“You don’t need to convince me anymore,” Chase said. “We’ve all been concerned about your safety. That’s why I asked my captain to let me get you somewhere safe for the night.”

“Are you sure? Or is that a ploy to take me into custody?”

“Listen, Erin. If we do take you into custody, it will be for your protection. You won’t be safe out there on your own. You have to see that.”

“I do,” she said on a weary voice. “I... I don’t know who I can trust, who I can turn to. The congressman obviously always finds me. Jeffries’s reach is far and wide.”

“So is General Meyer’s power,” he reminded her. “Let me do my job. Let me help you.”

“Thank you,” she said on a soft sigh. “I don’t have any choice. If I can’t trust you then I’m doomed already.”

Chase held his hand to her chin. “I’m here and I’m doing everything I can for you.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and held tight. Chase guided her toward the love seat and pulled her down and back into his arms. He believed Erin’s story completely, but...he wasn’t sure how to go about proving her innocence to the world. They were fighting a very powerful enemy. He couldn’t let his emotions and his involvement with Erin get in the way of his job.

So he held her tight and prayed to God to give him the strength to keep the promise he’d made. And he remembered that with God on his side, he could fight all enemies.