Changing Lanes

Strong Black Coffee

"Take a seat please, Mr Canmore."

Gareth exhaled heavily, exhausted from everything that had been happening. Tonight was the breaking point.

He practically fell into the chair, trying his hardest not to cry.

She would rub his nose in it when Nicole got word of this, it would be another excuse to continue to turn their teenage boys against him.

"You look like a strong black coffee is what you need right now, Mr Canmore" The officer smiled at him. "Can we get you one?" 

Trying his hardest to keep a straight face, devoid of all emotions, especially weak ones, Gareth nodded, his voice clear "Yes please, that would be great."

Not long after, another officer placed a styrofoam cup full of steaming hot, black coffee in front of him.

"Thank you." He wasn't a lover of straight black coffee, but he knew he needed it to help him sober up.

"Now, Mr Canmore" the lead police officer began as Gareth took his first sip. "I'll need to ask you a few questions, just answer them to the best of your ability. You blew an alcohol reading of 0.09 when we tested you at the site, can you tell us how many drinks you had?"

"We will test you again shortly, Mr Canmore" a second police officer chimed in, this one a young female, sitting next to the leading interrogator.

"Uh, I know I had about seven or eight" he answered truthfully "and the majority of them were beers but I did have a couple of rums, with coke and ice."

"Bad day in the office, Mr. Canmore?" 

"You could say that" 

"Can you tell me your full name, your current address and your occupation?"

Shit.

"Gareth Leon Canmore, 708/500 Flinders Street, Melbourne, Victoria and I am a commentator in motor racing." He said. "I recently moved into my apartment that I currently rent, due to my marriage break up."

"Wife got the house huh?" The female officer asked, with a smirk on her face.

"Yes, I didn't want my children homeless" Gareth said calmly, he wanted to smack some sense into her but knew it would end badly for him. That, and Nicole was already enjoying taking over half of what he had.

"You're up here for the Gold Coast race?" The male officer asked.

"Yes, that's correct"

"I'm not going to lie, you were always one of my favourite drivers Gareth, But what you did tonight was stupid, and illegal and you should know better. If you knew you were going to drown your problems at a bar in Burleigh Heads and then drive back to your accommodation in Broadwater without thinking, knowing you'd be over the legal limit and drunk..."

He couldn't look at the retired champion for a moment.

"How is the condition of the woman I hit? Is she pressing charges?" Gareth knew he had messed up but wasn't about to bury his head in the sand like an ostrich and hope it would just blow over.

The female interrogator had set up another blood alcohol test.

"Can you blow until you hear it beep?" She asked, holding it to his lips.

He took a breath and steadily blew into the portable machine. Hearing the beep he pulled back.

"It's gone down, but you're still over, blood alcohol reading of 0.07" 

"The woman that you hit, is conscious and is being kept in overnight for observations" the male interrogator informed him. "She has already called her legal team."