Never Sorry: A Leigh Koslow Mystery Read Online Free PDF Page A

Just a little bit?"
    "No."
    Leigh sighed. She was in no position to quibble about the slight to her character. "You're coming then? Thanks. And if it isn't too much trouble—could you bring me a change of clothes?"
    "No problem."
    Leigh began to explain, but didn't get a chance. Maura had already hung up.
     
    ***
     
    Twenty-three minutes later, Maura Polanski's six-feet-two, 210-pound frame filled the doorway of the waiting area. "Here," she said gruffly, holding out a pair of sweats. "Are they done with you?"
    Maura had on her best countenance of disapproval, which could scare the pants off anyone under six feet tall and unarmed. Leigh knew better, however. When the policewoman wasn't trying to intimidate, she had a baby face that was absolutely cherubic—and the heart to go with it.
    Leigh ducked into the restroom and quickly traded her prison togs for the sweat suit. Reemerging, she wondered if she should have bothered. Maura's pants were so baggy she had had to tie the waistband in a knot just to keep them up, and constant vigilance was needed to keep the gaping collar from exposing her bra straps. Leigh couldn't help but wonder if Maura had picked out this outfit on purpose, given how easily she could have borrowed clothes from one of her more normal-sized aunts. But protesting now seemed unwise.
    Maura didn't speak until they were in the car headed home. "All right, Koslow," she began, sounding resigned. "Start talking. You've got half an hour. I go on duty at six."
    Leigh's eyes narrowed. Maura clearly assumed that she was somehow responsible for her own predicament, which was insulting. On the other hand, given Leigh's record as a magnet for calamity, Maura could hardly be blamed. Leigh tried not to bite the hand that was feeding her. She swallowed, then told her story once again. A specialized version—conveniently vague on matters relating to Mike Tanner, yet heavy on the disconcerting actions of Detective Frank. Maura listened without any visible reaction.
    "Well?" Leigh asked when her story was finished. "Don't you think I've been treated rather shabbily in all this?"
    Maura cleared her throat, then twisted her mouth into a grim line. "What I think," she said firmly, "is that you need a lawyer."
     
     
     
    Chapter 4
     
    As Leigh trudged up the four floors to her Ross Township apartment, her mind spun with worrying thoughts of circumstantial evidence, bloody legs, and something disturbing that Tanner had said that she couldn't quite remember. Maura had insisted on asking around about a good lawyer, which wouldn't have been so alarming if the policewoman were the fretting type. But Leigh knew her friend too well to delude herself. Overreacting was Leigh's forte—Maura was into stoicism.
    She fumbled with her key in the lock, stumbled into the bedroom, and collapsed on the made up bed. She couldn't think—or worry, anymore. Her brain cooperated by slipping into self-preservation mode, convincing her as she drifted off that the last few hours had been a bad dream.
    Her slumber was deep, but not long. The phone at her bedside rang at the tender hour of 6:30 AM—and rang, and rang. Leigh had trained herself to ignore phone calls, letting the answering machine pick up on the second ring whether she was home or not. For the last week, however, her machine had been on the fritz, and after the eighth ring she gave up on it.
    "Hello?" Her head was still fuzzy, but for having less than an hour's sleep, she felt surprisingly rejuvenated.
    "Leigh, it's me. Sorry to wake you, but I need a favor. A big one."
    The pleasant tone of her old friend's voice was soothing, despite the hour. It seemed a nice distraction from whatever bad thing it was that her brain didn't want to remember, but that was making a pit in her stomach anyway. "What is it, Warren?" she yawned. "Nothing that can't wait a few hours, I hope."
    "Sorry—I need you now. Right now . Can you come down? I'll explain later."
    She sighed. She would have had to