Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 106422 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 532(@200wpm)___ 426(@250wpm)___ 355(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106422 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 532(@200wpm)___ 426(@250wpm)___ 355(@300wpm)
Unable to forget how she’d cried and cried, powerless to stop, I knew the doctor was right—she needed to talk to a professional. “Look, I have a feeling her parents pressured her into getting medicated, so whoever you find, make sure it’s not someone who’s going to push drugs on her. She won’t be receptive. Not now.”
“I’ll talk to them myself to drive home the fact that it’s to be a therapeutic conversation only.”
“Thanks.” Unfolding my arms, I pushed my hand through my hair. “My sister-in-law, Shumi? She’s still not conscious?”
He shook his head. “It’s worrying since she appeared to be waking, but with the near drowning…it’s difficult to judge her true status. We have to wait and see.”
* * *
—
The day passed as slow as molasses. Diya slept for large portions of it, while I kept her company and went for occasional walks around the hospital. My wife was to be moved out of the ICU the following day, her status stable enough that she no longer needed the same level of care, but Shumi would remain for the time being.
Ackerson came in at around two to interview Diya and had to deal with me there because Diya wouldn’t let go of my hand. As it was, she didn’t remember anything more than that there’d been a fire, and that she’d been afraid.
The detective attempted to nudge her memory using various methods, to no avail. She finally gave up when Diya said she was tired and needed to sleep.
I wasn’t surprised when Ackerson asked me to step into the outside hallway with her.
“Ngata,” I said the second we were alone. “Seriously, if you want to talk to me, wait till I can get my lawyer here.” I just wanted to be with my wife, not answering questions I’d already answered ten times over.
“It’s not about you.” Ackerson’s mouth was tight. “Were you aware that your father-in-law wouldn’t permit your wife to move out, even after she reached adulthood? That it wasn’t strictly her choice to remain at the Lake Tarawera property?”
Another truth Diya hadn’t yet shared with me, our relationship too new, the two of us yet learning each other. “No, but honestly, that’s not unheard-of with some Indian fathers,” I said with a shrug. “And how could he stop her anyway? Yeah, he could turn on the parental guilt, but she runs her own business, has her own income.”
She tapped her pen against the notebook she’d pulled out when talking to Diya. “That business is barely breaking even. Most weeks, she can’t cover even her most basic expenses. Her parents funded her entire life—and used that money like a leash. They threatened to cut her off if she tried to move out.”
A storm of nothingness in my head, a buzz. “Don’t you dare try to pin this on her. Even if they were controlling her before, she has me now. We were actively looking for a rental place of our own, and regardless of what you might think of my prospects, Detective, I can support both of us.”
Hands on her hips, she tapped her foot. “So you don’t know anything about the threat of financial disownment?”
“No—and even if they said that during a fight, they’d never have gone through with it. She was too precious to them.” Never would Rajesh and Sarita have allowed their daughter to stumble through life without a safety net. “Who told you that nonsense?”
“A reliable source.”
“Fuck that. My wife’s best friend is currently in the next unit over, and her family is dead. And Diya’s not the kind to blab family business to just anyone. Whoever told you is shit-stirring.”
I could see her struggling to decide something. Finally, she said, “Do you know Kalindra Renata?”
“Diya’s old school friend?” I snorted. “She wasn’t even at our engagement party. If she’s passing on that so-called threat, it must’ve been from back when Diya was a teenager.”
A deep furrow between her eyebrows. “Ms. Renata says she and Diya talk every week on the phone for at least an hour, and have since Diya returned from the States and reinitiated contact. She wasn’t at the party because Sarita and Rajesh Prasad didn’t like her. She got caught smoking in high school, was suspended.”
“I’m calling bullshit on long heart-to-heart calls,” I said, because protecting Diya was a primal compulsion—but the truth was that I had no way to know for sure. We hadn’t been attached at the hip. She’d gone out for hours at a time to talk to suppliers, check venues, all the things an event planner needed to do.
“Even if there was some threat,” I added, my face hot, “I hope you’re not implying Diya murdered her family because of it. She was stabbed, and those weren’t self-inflicted wounds.”
“I’m just trying to get my finger on the intricacies of the family.” Ackerson showed no signs of backing down. “It’s difficult. The parents don’t seem to have been close to anyone—friendly, yes, well-liked and respected professionals, but so far, I haven’t managed to unearth a single deep friendship.