All I Need: Rod & Daisy (All Of Me Duet Book 2) by A.D. Justice (electric book reader txt) 📕

everything I remember from earlier in the day until when I woke in the emergency room, disoriented and scared. He stops me frequently to ask clarifying questions, then waits for me to pick back up where I left off. By the time he’s finished interrogating me, my mind feels like mush and I’m ready for a nap, despite the adrenaline flowing through my veins like river rapids.

Then he asks me to sit outside his office while he repeats the process with Rod. When they’ve finished, he asks me to rejoin them.

“I’m sorry for putting you through the wringer. This person has been on my radar before, but I was never able to get enough evidence to make the charges stick. Before pursuing him again, I had to make sure your case would be different. Justin brought me a lot of beneficial information and solid leads, but some of what he shared is potentially circumstantial evidence. I’ll take every piece apart and put it back together again. I’ll interview every person and turn over every stone. It’s up to the district attorney if charges ultimately are filed, but you have my word I’ll do everything I can to put this guy away.

“Once I’ve investigated and can present enough probable cause to obtain a warrant, I’ll let you know we’re ready to proceed. One of those warrants will be for DNA samples. Are you willing to provide a sample from your son to prove paternity?”

“Yes, absolutely. Whatever you need—cheek swab or hair sample. I’d rather avoid needles if possible. I don’t want to traumatize him during this process if you don’t absolutely need his blood.”

“A cheek swab shows exactly the same result as DNA collected from the blood. We shouldn’t need more than that simple procedure to prove a match. Do you have any other questions for me before I get started?”

“Do you have an idea of how long this process will take?” I hold my breath, afraid of his answer either way.

“I’ll move on this as quickly as possible, aggressively investigating every lead and interviewing everyone with any firsthand knowledge. But I can’t say how long that process will take. Every case is different and presents its own challenges. When I know more, I’ll give you a call.”

We leave the police department weary and wondering, but also with a renewed sense of purpose. The first step is often the hardest. If the detective can piece together enough of the puzzle to get a DNA warrant, that should be enough to corroborate my story.

I hope.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Rod

“It’s been four weeks since we met with your detective friend and we haven’t heard a single word on this case yet. What is he doing? Is he even taking this seriously?” I bellow into the phone at Justin. I’m beyond frustrated.

Every day, I’ve watched the love of my life repeatedly check her phone for missed calls. We’ve been back to the doctor for another prenatal visit. I’ve marveled over how much the twins have grown and how well Daisy takes it all in stride. But I cannot take knowing that fucker is still running loose and wreaking havoc on innocent women.

“He’s doing his job, Mr. Stone. He’s investigating every potential lead and talking to everyone the guy knows. He’s thorough and has a great arrest record. He won’t let your boy walk on a technicality. When he slaps the cuffs on him and reads him his rights, it’ll be because he knows he has an airtight case to present to the DA’s office.” Justin patiently explains the process to me again. I may have called him with the same complaint a couple of weeks ago. “Give him time to do his job right.”

We disconnect just before Daisy walks into my office and sits down across from me. The grimace on her face and the hand on her side give me immediate cause for concern.

“What’s wrong, babe?”

“These twins are stealing all my energy. It’s getting harder to be on my feet all day. I feel as big as a house. Every day I wonder if I’ll make it through the doorway or get wedged in.” She laughs, but even her eyes look tired.

“Maybe it’s time to go out on maternity leave so you’ll have time to rest before they get here. You don’t want to go into labor already exhausted.” I’ve been encouraging her to leave her job for weeks. Not because I think she shouldn’t work, but because I want her here with me.

“Maybe you’re right. Then I’d have time to get the foundation up and running before the delivery date.”

“I’m going to take that as a firm yes and hold you to it. Let’s fill out the paperwork now.”

She laughs and shakes her head at me—par for the course—then her phone rings. Her eyebrows draw downward as she stares at the number for a moment before answering it.

“Detective Knox, hello. Let me put you on speaker so I don’t have to repeat all this for Rod.”

“I wanted to bring you up to speed on what’s going on with the charges against your attacker. The case has moved rather quickly here after I took your statements and started investigating. The judge issued warrants for both his arrest and to allow us to collect DNA samples from him.

“Corroborating statements from multiple people who were at the party, who were in the fraternity with him, and who have worked with him in the past few years were enough to convince the DA’s office to press charges. We brought him in for questioning and leaned on him pretty hard. Seems that scared him enough that he started making calls to old friends, pressuring them to lie for him. They didn’t though. We arrested him and were able to obtain a full confession from him using much of the information we’d collected to date.

“The assistant district attorney reached a plea deal, so you won’t have to testify against him. They agreed to three years in prison, suspended