Page 78 of Hell Hath No Fury

She glared at him. “I haven’t had any dizziness or double vision in the last four days. I’m fine.”

He didn’t reply. To be honest, he preferred that Emma not be present for his next encounter with Tina Neidermeyer. He was ready to deal with Jones’s assistant head-on rather than soft-playing it the way he would if Emma was with him. “We’ll pick him up, and I’ll drop both of you at the police garage.” He’d also wait around until he was certain the car was indeed being released. “Once I’m done with Neidermeyer, I’ll meet you back at Eric’s house.”

“You sure you don’t need me with you when you talk to Tina?”

Matthias gave Emma a grin and a wink. “I think I can handle it.”

* * *

Emma stood outside the open driver’s door of Eric’s Prius and watched Matthias drive away.

“I’m perfectly capable of driving myself home, you know,” Eric grumbled from the passenger seat.

“You’re under the influence of pain medication,” Emma said.

“And you have a concussion.”

“Had.Hada concussion. I’m fine now. You, on the other hand, have been through hell and deserve to relax.” She slid behind the wheel and stared at a high-tech instrument panel that only reminded her of how old her Subaru was. “How does it start?”

Eric gave her a side-eye. “You depress the brake and push the button markedStart.”

She did. The dashboard lights came on, but nothing else happened. She held both palms open in a silent plea. “It’s not doing anything.”

“Are you waiting for the roar of a gas engine? It’s hybrid, and right now it’s running on electricity, remember? Does it sayReady? Put it in drive, and let’s go. Or you can let me do it.”

“I got it.” She studied the diagram on the console, figured out how to put the car in gear, and pulled out. “Do you want to talk about it?”

He grunted. “About what?”

“You know exactly what. The arraignment.”

“Apparently I have a very good lawyer. I’ll have to send a thank-you gift to my corporate attorney for the referral.”

“What happened?” she prodded.

“My lawyer pointed out all the holes in their case. The judge agreed.”

Emma shot a quick glance at him. “Matthias seemed surprised that they aren’t holding your car for evidence.” She patted the steering wheel.

“Yeah.” Eric dragged out the word. “My lawyer had a harder time convincing the judge of that part. But the forensic techs have been all over it and found nothing to link it or me to Sonny. No hair, fiber, or blood. Except for what was inside the trash bag. The prosecutor argued, but he was no match for my legal warrior.”

Emma snickered at the mental image Eric’s words stirred.

Twenty minutes later, she made the turn into his driveway and coasted down the slope to the rear of his house. She pressed the button on the garage door remote and eased the Prius inside. Eric immediately climbed out, but Emma stared at the dashboard. “How do I shut it off?”

“Press theParkbutton. Then press theStartbutton again,” he said and slammed the door.

Emma complied, and the car played a little tune and displayed a message about her fuel economy. She assumed that meant it was no longer running. Her phone buzzed, distracting her from Eric’s high-tech vehicle. She checked the notification, expecting to find news from Matthias. Instead, it was a text message from her credit card company. The card Nell stole from her had just been used.

Emma’s pulse quickened. She clambered out of the car and said, “Nell’s used my credit card.”

Eric wheeled toward Emma. “Oh? Where is she?”

Emma read the rest of the text and nearly choked. “The charge is for a budget motel in Akron, Ohio. The Shangri-La.”

Eric came around the car, holding out a palm. “Let me see.”

She handed him the phone.