I was still stunned by what had happened. “I can go?”

“You’re not under arrest,” Laraya said. “You are most certainly free to go.”

Both cops wore the expressions of cartoon characters who’d been run over by a truck. We walked out of the room.

“Let’s get out of here before we have a proper chat,” Laraya said. “The walls have ears in places like this.”

We went out to Fifty-First Street and crossed Third Avenue. Half a block down was Greenacre Park. The name was a bit misleading—it was a fraction of an acre—but it was a green oasis. We sat on a concrete bench and watched the cascading waterfall at the north edge of the park in companionable silence for a minute.

“I don’t understand what just happened,” I said finally, after I felt calm enough. “Theodore Thraxton gave me your card. I never thought I’d use it. How did you know all that about Aubrey?”

“I did a quick search on the taxi ride down here,” Laraya said. “Mr. Thraxton called me, probably just after he spoke with you. He’s sort of a strange bird, but he has a tendency to take certain people under his wing.”

“It was hard to hear you call me a victim,” I said. “I knocked Aubrey on his ass, and he deserved it.”

“In the eyes of the law, it’s essential that you acted in self-defense. It doesn’t look kindly at vigilante justice.”

“What do I do now?”

“We need to talk about what happened yesterday,” Laraya said. “Then I’ll have a word with the ADA. We’ll file a police report about what happened to you . . .”

“But I don’t want . . .”

“You need to do it,” Laraya said firmly. “Don’t worry—I’ll be able to handle most of it on your behalf. But since he’s trying to have charges filed against you, you need to get your side on the record.”

“I also told Jude Lazare. She’s my sister’s friend. She works for the mayor’s office—she’s in communications. I didn’t know where to go after Aubrey slimed on me. I was kind of dazed afterward. He lives a block from City Hall Park, and Jude’s office was right there.”

“You went there immediately afterward? That’s perfect.” He looked delighted. “Every witness, every detail is invaluable.”

It was helpful, having someone else jog my memory. Through his questions, I remembered I’d told Reagan as well. Then Laraya turned his attention to Snapp.

“You can sue them, you know. They knowingly put you in a dangerous situation.”

“They did, but the police just raked me over the coals about some things in my past. I don’t want that being dredged up.”