Chapter 42
"Iknow you're upset," I said.
"You don't know shit!”
"How do you see this working out for you?”
Nova hesitated for a moment.
"I know you're in a lot of pain right now. I wish it could have gone down another way. I wish your brother hadn't made the choice he did. Do you think your brother would want you to go down the same path?"
Nova's eyes filled.
The barrel still shook in her trembling hands.
"How about we let Ariel walk away?” I said. “She's got nothing to do with this.”
Nova readjusted her grip.
"Ariel’s going to walk away slowly,” I said in a calm, soothing voice. “I want you to keep your gun focused on me.”
I motioned for Ariel to head back to the boat.
"I'm not going anywhere,” she said. “If she's going to shoot you, she has to shoot me, too. That will make her a double murderer.”
The tears spilled over Nova’s lids and rolled down her sculpted cheeks.
I had to hand it to Ariel—she had guts. She'd already proven that with the shark. After dealing with an apex predator like that, everything else seemed manageable.
"Nova, I know you don't want to kill anybody,” I said.
“I know you don't want to spend the rest of your life in prison.
You know Shane was Mason's accomplice. They both tried to kill me. If you want to be mad at anybody, be mad at the person who hired them. That's why your brother is dead. He got caught up with some bad people. He made some bad decisions. You’ve got a chance to make a good decision now.”
She trembled, and more tears flowed.
"Help me get the people who are really responsible for your brother's death,” I urged.
"How do I do that?" she cried.
"It starts with you putting the gun down on the ground, carefully. I know you can do that for me. I know you can do that for yourself. For Mason."
Her face contorted with sorrow, and the gun shook even more. At this point, I wasn't convinced she could even hit me from 10 feet, but I certainly wasn't going to take the chance.
Nova finally knelt down and set the pistol on the asphalt.
I told her to take a step back, turn around, and place her hands behind her back.
She complied.
I advanced, kicked the pistol out of the way, and gently placed handcuffs around her wrists as she broke down into sobs. Her chest heaved and jerked.
I told Ariel to get Jack, then I called dispatch.
I read Nova her rights and told her, "If you work with me, I'll make sure you get a fair shake.”
She nodded.
Ariel returned with Jack a few moments later.
Mendoza pulled into the parking lot and drove the squad car around to join us. I stuffed Nova in the back and told Mendoza we'd be down at the station shortly.
He drove away.
Nova was processed and printed. She was put into an interrogation room, where she sat for a while.
We collected her pistol and bagged it.
I took Ariel back to her apartment as originally planned.
She grabbed more clothes and necessities, then I brought her back to the Avventura.
I didn't mind her staying another day or two, strictly for medicinal purposes.
With the combination of a concussion and the bends, she needed close observation. I was more than willing to observe.
I told her to make herself at home and take it easy. “Don’t do anything strenuous.”
Telling Ariel anything was a suggestion at best.
I tossed the keys back to Jack. We hustled to the Porsche, and he climbed behind the wheel. We drove down to the station, logged Nova’s pistol, and I filled out a report. Then we paid her a visit.
She was a mess before she went into the interrogation room. She was worse now. The gravity of her actions had set in.
JD and I took a seat across the table from her.
Nova still sobbed. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying, and her sinuses thick. "I'm so sorry. I don't know what I was thinking.”
"I'm thinking you have an impulse control problem," I said.
It seemed to run in the family.
"You're looking at some pretty serious charges right now,” I continued. “Aggravated assault of an officer. You’re looking at 15 years with a mandatory minimum sentence. Possession of a firearm while in commission of a felony. You’re gonna spend the next 25 to 30 years of your life in prison if the charges run consecutively.
” I let that hang there for a moment. “If you agree to cooperate and testify, maybe that gets knocked down to simple assault. Maybe you do three to five years’ probation. ”
It was up to the state’s attorney, but I was sure I could influence the outcome of the deal.
Nova sniffled, took a deep breath, and sat tall. "What do you need me to do?”