Chapter Sixty Seven

[Stephen’s POV]

After the bombshell Benji and Arlo dropped during Clint's hearing, the case was put on hold for lie detector tests. It was clear to me how determined Benji was to get justice for what happened to Maddie. Even though he was officially out of the legal proceedings, we all knew he was the one pulling the strings behind the scenes.

Yesterday, Lachie and Benji had prepped the three of us. They didn't know the exact questions we'd be asked, but they helped us understand the pattern that would be used. Lachie explained that they'd start with obvious truths to establish a baseline before diving into the real questions. They'd then return to safer territory to control the flow of the conversation before hitting us with the questions they really wanted answers to.

Their goal was to catch us off guard and elicit a genuine response. That's what they were after.

I woke up before my alarm this morning, my mind racing with the upcoming questions. I lay in the dark, holding my wife, replaying that night over and over in my head. I had to remember to listen to the question exactly, not to give more information than necessary, and not to implicate us in any other potential charges, like being an accessory.

My thoughts were interrupted when I felt my wife's hand move down my body, her nails lightly grazing my stomach before reaching lower. When her soft fingers wrapped around me, I sank further into the mattress. This seemed to confirm to her that I was awake, and she rolled over and slid down between my legs.

The moment her mouth enveloped me, my head tilted back into the pillow and my mouth fell open. I was never quite prepared for the pleasure her mouth brought me, and each time it hit me like a wave of pure ecstasy. As I managed to regain some composure and look down, I was struck by a memory.

There was my beautiful wife, crouched between my legs, her gorgeous ass in the air, her hand firmly gripping the base of my cock, her mouth moving up and down on me. But what struck me most were her eyes, staring back at me with an intensity, a passion, and a love that still burned brightly after all these years.

I was reminded of the first time she ever did this to me. Our first trip together, our first night truly together. The resort was called Breathless, and that perfectly described the tone of that evening. Even now, seeing my wife so focused on my pleasure stirred something deep within me.

I watched her face as she pulled away slightly, her hand moving up and down me. She turned her head to rest it on my thigh, pulling my cock closer to her cheek, letting it rest against her face as she played with it.

Trinity - You know, you had that same expression on your face the first time I did this.

Stephen - I did?

Trinity - You did, except I had to call you out for staring at my ass the whole time.

Before I could respond, she took me into her mouth again, pulling me deeper. Overwhelmed by a mix of anxiety, stress, lust, love, and passion, I came in my wife's mouth not long after. She crawled back up next to me, and I turned to her, stroking our baby bump before kissing her softly.

Stephen - Thank you, baby. You always know how to pull me out of my head and give me just what I need.

Trinity - I can't wait to have all my memories back with you.

Stephen - Me too, beautiful. Lay with me, let's start our morning before the alarm goes off.

And that's what we did. We held each other, ignoring the outside world for our little slice of peace, just like we always did. I stroked my wife's stomach, feeling our baby growing inside her, as she wrapped her arms around mine on her stomach. Between soft kisses and gentle caresses, it wasn't long before the alarm went off and I had to get ready.

After my shower, I saw that Trinity had fallen back asleep. I put our youngest in bed with her on my side, and she sleepily rolled over and cuddled him. I leaned over, kissed my wife, and whispered, “I love you.” I heard her reply, “I love you more,” before I stroked her beautiful face.

I quickly got dressed and downed a coffee before heading off to meet Clint and Mia at the station. Once we arrived, we were quickly separated and taken to different rooms. We were told the tests would be administered by three separate polygraph examiners at the same time to avoid any chance of contaminated evidence. We were fine with this, as it was what Benji had told us to expect, so the prosecutor couldn't keep finding excuses to drag this out.

I waited for about twenty minutes before they finally came in and explained the process of the test and asked if I had any questions before they started.

Examiner - Can you please state your full name for the record?

Stephen - Stephen Luciano Gotti.

The basic questions continued, including the expected ones about my date of birth, occupation, family status, and so on. After about fifteen minutes, the examiner said he wanted to start asking some questions about the victim in the case.

Examiner - How did you know Daniel Rodriguez?

Stephen - I didn't.

I watched as he examined the polygraph closely and saw that it stayed smooth. I wasn't lying. I didn't know Daniel Rodriguez. I watched as his colleague showed him something.

Examiner - How did you know Mike Suarez?

Stephen - Through a mutual friend.

Examiner - How long did you know Mike for?

Stephen - Over two years.

Examiner - Why did you stop seeing each other?

Stephen - He moved away.

Examiner - Where to?

Stephen - Overseas is all I know.

Again, I don't know where he is. But I know who does.

Examiner - Was he alive when you last saw him?

Stephen - No.

Examiner - Do you know who killed him?

Stephen - Yes.

Examiner - Who killed Mike Suarez?

Stephen - My wife.