It seems like a non sequitur at first. Then I make the connection: Gabriel Velasquez must be Ella Broden’s boyfriend. I’d heard she was dating the cop who handled the investigation into her sister’s murder, and I remember Richard mentioning last night that they were meeting Ella and her boyfriend for dinner.

One of the cops, the taller, African American guy, Lucian, looks at Gabriel like a priest who’s just heard blasphemy. “What did you say?”

Gabriel quickly explains. “My girlfriend is Ella Broden. She used to work for Lauren Wright, as her deputy. They’re still friends, and last night the four of us . . . Ella, me, Lauren, and her husband, Richard Trofino . . . we all had dinner together.”

“Jesus,” Johnson says.

The Chief of Detectives, Calimano, asks, “What time did you leave the restaurant?”

Gabriel considers this for a moment. “Dinner was at seven, so I imagine we left by nine thirty, nine forty-five.”

“Anything happen at dinner?” McKenney asks.

His tone is sharp. Like he’s cross-examining a hostile witness.

“No, not anything of any consequence. Some marital bickering. Lauren thought her husband was drinking too much. There was some eye-rolling, that kind of thing.”

“How much did he drink?” McKenney asks.

“I honestly wasn’t counting, but he had a scotch before we ordered a bottle of wine. Maybe two, come to think of it. My guess is that he had two glasses of wine, and then an after-dinner drink.”

“So, at least five,” McKenney says, as if no one else in the room can do the math.

“Was he drunk?” asks Calimano.

“Not that I could tell. The restaurant was near their apartment. They walked home after dinner, so I wasn’t that focused on his level of inebriation.”

“He could have had a few more pops once they got home,” says Lucian.

“Has anyone spoken to Richard?”

I startle myself with the sound of my own voice. Sometimes when I’m the only woman in a situation—which isn’t infrequent—I end up being merely a spectator.

“The man’s in shock,” Calimano answers. “He’s in Interrogation Two right now. Keeps saying that he didn’t even know his wife wasn’t in bed with him until we called.”

There’s a momentary lull. It’s broken when Lucian asks, “Does Gabriel’s personal connection change anyone’s view that he ride point on this?” He looks over at Calimano for the answer, which reminds me of their ranks—Calimano is the Chief of D’s, Lucian’s boss.

“Your case, your assignment,” Calimano says.

“Thank you, sir,” Lucian says. “I hesitate to say this in his presence, but Gabriel is the best we have. So if there aren’t any other objections, I want him on it.”

The Commissioner nods. All eyes turn to the DA.