After Death

CHAPTER 4- AFTER DEATH? OTHERS EXAMINE HOW WE LIVED.

Steve stared at the clock, it read:
10:30a.m

It was the exact time the police had received the call.

It had been three days since he buried his wife and best friend and his unborn child.
He was a shadow of himself. If he knew he would have insisted on driving her.

He looked at the time again. He had only five minutes before the detective he was supposed to meet came around.
He had seen Jesse Gareth only yesterday. A friend of his and Owen's. He looked sad and angry but Steve didn't want to push him. Maybe he was still grieving Owen.

He hadn't heard from Adeline Cassidy in a longer while. Was she aware that his wife and Owen were dead?

He was still reminiscing in his thoughts when he heard the soft ring of the doorbell.
He looked up and checked the time. It was exactly, ten forty on the dot.
It was time to get the interview done with once and for all.

He picked himself slowly from the chair and walked towards the door wearing a frown.
When he opened the door, he wasn't ready for who he saw.

"Adeline?!" He exclaimed, his eyes wide as saucers.
He could recognize her anywhere in the world. Dark glasses on or not.

"The one and only." She said with a beautiful smile reserved for only him as she took off the dark glasses to reveal her green and sunken eyes.

He was speechless. She looked brighter and more beautiful than before his wedding three years ago. He wondered if her moron of a husband actually allowed her cross over to come visit him or if she came to visit her mother.

Throwing all caution to the wind, he flung his arms around her and hugged her.
They stood in silence as they hugged. No tears, nothing but friends who hadn't seen each other for years.

"You were expecting someone else, weren't you?" Adeline asked as they detached from the hug.

"Yeah. A certain detective Drummond. Funny it sounds like your surname." He said but stopped when he saw a certain look in her eyes.

"You are that detective Drummond, aren't you?" He asked a new edge to his voice.

She nodded slightly not taking her small eyes off from his.
Steve marched inside muttering things and she took it as her cue to follow him.

"How are you Drummond again and what are you doing in Britain? Cassidy allowed you take a case far from home?"

Adeline sighed but said nothing.
Steve looked at her then to her fingers and there were no rings his heart started beating faster on its own accord and he didn't know why.

"You're not going to say anything are you?" Steve asked in defeat.

Adeline finally found her voice, "I'll tell you once we're done with the interview okay? It's almost as traumatizing as your case and I really do not want to be upset before my job."

Steve nodded meekly and settled despairingly on the chair he had been seating on. He looked up at her.

"Are you waiting for me to ask you to take a seat, Adeline. Come on?"

She smiled and took the seat opposite him and took out a pen and notepad.
She took a deep breath and looked at Steve.

"I don't want you to feel I'm a stranger or enemy or friend. Take me as someone who is a professional to know the difference between an accident and a murder. But as your friend I'll tell you that whatever you say to me would be between me and my partner, which in this case is Jesse."

Steve nodded and Adeline was grateful that he didn't ask questions she wasn't ready to answer yet.

"So, my first question is how was everything with Ada before she went out that morning?"

Steve's eyes grew distant as though he was trying to relive that day.

"Normal I'll say. We woke up, I made breakfast while she was trying to sort some things for her office since she wasn't supposed to be there for a few days. She was a little unstable emotionally-"

"Why if I may ask? Did you have any idea why?" She interrupted politely.
Steve swallowed a bug lump in his throat and tears began to brim in his eyes before he dropped the bomb.

"She was pregnant."

"Oh."

Adeline's hands began to shake as she tried writing something down. Tears began brimming in her eyes too as she watched Steve's tears roll down shamelessly.

She carefully put her hand into her pocket and brought out a recorder instead of writing any longer.

"You know I haven't cried in front of anyone since she died. I'm sorry this is supposed to be an interview not an emotional moment."
Steve said and started wiping his tears away.

"It's in our nature as humans to get emotional at specific moments and I believe this is one of them. Steve and I'm not complaining at all. I believe I need it too."

"But we would talk after." She added. "I need to put this on, so be firm and sure of what you're saying but I promise you no one except me and Gareth of course would listen to it."
Steve nodded.

Adeline pressed a button on the recorder and it began to tape.

"She was meant to meet with her doctor then her sister."

"Did you know what time this appointments were supposed to be held?"

Steve nodded, "yes. Her doctor's appointment was fixed around eight thirty and she was supposed to see her sister by ten or ten thirty. Can't really remember."

"Has Ada had any international passport under a difference name before you married her?"

Steve frowned, "no. She's been Ada Linton since I knew her."

"Have Ada and Owen Gardner ever been on very friendly terms?"

"Not necessarily. Just because he's my friend. They respected each other." Steve tried to defend.

"Final question, how close were Ada and Brielle Schield?"

"They used to be friendly but for some reason they suddenly disliked each other."

"You never found out why?" She asked.

"It's a women affair. There are some things not to get involved with."

With that she clicked the recorder off. "That would be all for now." She told him.

They sat in silence for a while before Steve spoke up, "why all those questions?"

She shrugged her eyes revealing nothing. "It's part of the investigation."

"Investigation?"

"Yes investigation. It became an investigation once we discovered Ada was poisoned."

Steve looked at her in shock.

"I'm not even supposed to say anything but whoever did it was planned and prepared to detail."

"The person's fight was with Ada, Owen was caught in the crossfire and I don't need to tell you what I think because you may have been thinking about it too."