by Robin James
“Oh yeah. Part of his fan club, for sure. He came into Mickey’s the other day asking about Aubrey. He wanted to know what I thought. You know … did I think she did this?”
“And what did you say?”
Kaitlyn shrugged. “I said no. I said I couldn’t believe it. I mean ... you’ve met her. You’ve seen her. Aubrey’s just a little thing and Coach D was …”
Kaitlyn’s color went paler. She clasped her hands together and rubbed her thumb against the palm.
“Kaitlyn, do you know if Aubrey kept in touch with the coach after high school? Or recently?”
Aubrey’s texts hadn’t been released to the press. I was doing my best to try to keep a lid on all of it, but Delphi was Delphi. That said, Kaitlyn Taylor’s eyes went wide at the suggestion.
“No. God, no.”
I believed her ignorance. Kaitlyn had no idea Aubrey had basically begged Coach D to meet her in that park the night he was killed. It didn’t help her case one bit. If she kept something that important from her best friend, what else was she hiding?
“I heard someone saw her with him in the park. That was in the paper,” she said. “But that’s nothing. I mean ... she ran into him. So what? I just don’t get it.”
“Well, that’s what I’m trying to figure out as well. You said you usually texted with Aubrey several times a day. But on the night of the 22nd, there was just the one text from you at 10:22. Did you see her that day? Talk to her in person?”
Kaitlyn shook her head. “I saw her the day before. We went out to the quarry for a swim. Whenever we have a mutual day off in the summer and it’s hot, that’s where you’ll usually find us. I worked a day shift on the 22nd. Aubrey goes in at two, I think. I just didn’t have time to talk to her.”
“How did she seem to you at the quarry? Was she normal? Was she upset about something?”
Kaitlyn put her hands on her thighs and rubbed up and down. She was nervous. It didn’t mean she was lying. No matter what else was going on, her best friend was charged with murdering someone they both knew well. This had to be strange for her.
“I told you. Aubrey’s high strung. She’s always having a meltdown over one thing or another.”
“Did she have a meltdown at the quarry?”
Kaitlyn bit her lip. If she was trying to protect her friend, she wasn’t helping one bit. If a jury saw her like this, she’d do more damage than good.
“Kaitlyn, you have to be honest with me. And with the police and everyone else. If this case goes to trial, you’ll have to testify. You were with Aubrey the day before the murder. You texted her within an hour of Coach D’s death.”
“I don’t have anything to say!” she shouted. Just like that, she broke. Her eyes welled with tears. “I don’t know anything. God. I wish I did. I wish I’d been with her that night. Then I could say I was. I should have texted her again. I usually do. Hell, we’re usually going back and forth until after midnight most nights.”
“But not that night,” I said. “Why not?”
“There was no particular reason. I was just tired. I think I was asleep by eleven. Miss Leary, she didn’t do this. She couldn’t have done this. But that’s not what everyone else is saying. You do realize that, right?”
“I do,” I said, reaching for her. I put on a kind smile and touched her knee. “And I know this is a lot for you to process and you’re trying to help your friend. I also know that attitude puts you in a precarious position around town. You just have to tell the truth. That’s all.”
“That’s all,” she snorted through a sob. “That’s really fucking easy for you to say. That man walked on water in this town. This is like somebody murdering Jesus.”
I resisted the urge to remind her someone had murdered Jesus, but it seemed beside the point.
“They’re going to kill her,” she said. “If you can’t help Aubrey, she’s going to fry for this.”
“Well, she’s not facing the death penalty. Let’s just clear that up right now.”
“It won’t matter,” Kaitlyn said. She shifted her weight away from me. “If they don’t catch who really did this, she’ll go down for it. Even if you’re really good at your job, Miss Leary. If you get her out of this mess, they’ll come after her anyway. It’s all over town. It’s all over social. People want Aubrey to pay, one way or the other.”
“You’ve seen actual threats? Online?”
“Hell, yes.”
“Well, we’ll do what we can to protect her ... if …”
“You should have just let her stay in jail.”
I blanched at Kaitlyn’s harsh tone.
“I mean it. She’d be safer there. And it’s not fair. She doesn’t deserve this. Nobody’s perfect. Nobody.”
“I understand. I really do. And I am doing everything I can for Aubrey. In the meantime, if you think of anything that might help her. Anything. Another friend. A witness who might have seen her that night. If you hear anything that just doesn’t sit right with you, I want you to call me. Can you do that for me?” I took out my business card. Kaitlyn took it and put it on the end table beside her.
“Yeah,” she answered, calmer now. “It’s just …”
“Just what?” I rose to my feet and slid my bag over my shoulder. Kaitlyn looked up at me.
“I just hope you’re really, really good at this. You should also know what everyone’s saying about you.”
“Oh?” I raised a brow.
Kaitlyn stood up. “Matty and Evangeline were a few years ahead of me in school, but I know everyone thinks your family is trash. They’re saying the county gave Aubrey the shittiest lawyer they could.”
I put a hand on her shoulder. “Well, thanks for that. I stopped worrying about what people say about me a long time ago. It’s good advice for you too.” I shot her a wink but Kaitlyn didn’t smile back. She showed me to the door and gave me a weak wave goodbye as I left.
I got to my car and sat in front of the wheel for a moment before starting it. Kaitlyn would be a neutral witness at best. But it would be months before this case went to trial. A lot could happen in that time and she already seemed to be buckling under the pressure. I needed something more concrete to help Aubrey and fast.
As I pulled out of the apartment complex back on to Granger, my phone rang. It was Miranda again. My pulse quickened. She wouldn’t be calling me again so soon unless there was another fire I had to put out. I was about to find out this was a full-out conflagration.
“Hey, Cass,” Miranda said. My phone dinged as texts came in rapid succession.
“What’s going on?” I asked, stopping at the same red light.
“Honey, you’re going to want to get down to the jail,” she said. “Aubrey Ames is there. Her father just called.”
“She’s what?”
“It’s bad, Cass,” Miranda said.
Chapter 9
The Delphi P.D. enjoyed office space about four miles away from downtown. After some wrangling, I stormed my way to the second-floor detective bureau. Once there, I lost my shit.
The desk sergeant was Mark Ramos. I knew at least one of my brothers had had run-ins with him back in his beat cop days. His face fell as I cleared the elevators and headed straight for him.
“I need someone to produce my client, Aubrey Ames, now!”
Ramos put his hands up. He was in his mid-fifties with the trim build of a runner. As he rose from behind his desk, he towered over me. I said a small, silent prayer that he was too old to be one of Coach Drazdowski’s players. He probably had a kid or two who worshipped the man though.
“Just hold on. No one’s keeping you from her. If you give me two seconds, I can arrange for you to have a room.”
“Here? Are you kidding?”
I was about to launch into a blistering rant about the Sixth and Fourth Amendments. Hell, I had my brief and motion already written in my head. But first things first. I needed to get Aubrey out of this building and put duct tape across her mouth if that’s what it t
ook.
Two detectives headed toward me from the hallway to my left. I knew one was Tim Bowman, the lead investigator in Coach D’s murder. He shot me a smug look as he adjusted his tie and came straight at me. He held a thin file in his left hand.
“Was it you?” I asked. “Tell me you did not just interview my client outside of my presence.”
He raised a brow and turned to his partner. More doors opened deeper in the hall. I looked over Bowman’s shoulder, but Aubrey didn’t appear.
Bowman smoothed a hand down his tie. He made the gesture twice in the span of sixty seconds. I filed that away in the corner of my mind. It was a tell, I just wasn’t sure of what yet.
“Your client contacted me, Miss Ames.”
“What the fuck, Bowman? Are you serious with this? She’s represented by counsel. Pretty sure they taught you what that means week one in the academy.”
His look turned smug. “She just confessed to murdering Larry Drazdowski.”
He had the decency to lower his voice on the last part, but I knew it didn’t matter. If the news got to Miranda, half the town already knew.
“Unbelievable,” I said.
“Oh, she was pretty credible.” He lifted the file in his left hand and held it out to me. “I’ve made you a copy of her handwritten statement. She signed a waiver of counsel. Twice. And I told you, she contacted me. It wasn’t the other way around.”
I took the file but didn’t dare open it in front of him. “Where is she?”
“She’s collecting herself.”
“I’ll bet. Goddammit. This is meaningless and you know it. Though I suppose I should thank you. You’ve probably blown your whole case.”
“She wasn’t coerced,” he said, calmly. “You’ll see on your copy of the tape we made. I asked her repeatedly if we should wait for counsel. She was pretty clear on all of it. You don’t scare me, Miss Leary.”
I hated the way he said my last name, as if it tasted bad in his mouth. I’d heard it like that before. All my life, really. Bowman was a good ole boy. Through and through.
“She’s a kid,” I said. “Where are her parents?”
Bowman got in my face. The move seemed to startle even Ramos. He came around the bench. I straightened my back and kept my eyes locked with Bowman’s. He had a beefy face with a crooked nose with at least one old break through the bridge. His mouth turned down as he raked his eyes over me. Pure contempt.
He was a bully. He puffed out his chest and looked down at me, narrowing his eyes. Was it because I was a Leary? A defense attorney? A woman? Maybe all three.
I hate bullies.
It triggered something in me and I had to check myself. This wasn’t about me. This was about Aubrey and a justice system that had to work in this case, no matter who the victim was. Every nerve ending in me simmered with rage.
“Your client is nineteen years old. An adult. She doesn’t need her mommy or daddy here to hold her hand and she knew exactly what she was doing.”
I went back down, flat-footed, and took a step back. “And I’m still her lawyer. Unless you’re planning on charging her with something else, it’s time for her to go home.”
Bowman flinched. He shot a look to Ramos.
“Bring her out,” Ramos said.
“No way she gets to leave, she just confessed to …”
“She’s been granted bail,” I said. “Nothing changes.”
There was movement behind Bowman. A female detective walked briskly down the hallway. She had her arm around Aubrey as the two of them made their way to the main bullpen.
Aubrey’s face was purple and swollen from crying. She kept her head down and crossed her arms in front of her. It was the most submissive, defensive posture she could make short of curling up on the floor in a fetal position. What in the hell had happened back there?
Part of me wanted to shake her myself for the decisions she just made. But this was a broken soul in front of me. And if everything I’d just been told was true, she was also a killer. For now though, she was still my client.
“Aubrey?” I said, brushing past Bowman. He opened his mouth to protest, but a quick gesture from Mark Ramos stilled him.
“She’s ready to go,” the female detective said, her voice devoid of emotion. She was about my age. She introduced herself as Megan Lewis. She was tall, with sharp features and bleached-blonde hair pulled back into a severe bun. Aubrey leaned on her, practically curling herself against the woman. So this was good cop to Tim Bowman’s bad cop.
“Come on,” I said, putting an arm around Aubrey. “I’ll drive you home.”
Jack LaForge stepped off the elevator just as I headed toward it. His face fell when he saw us.
“Cass,” he started. I held a hand up.
“Don’t. Not now,” I said. “I’m taking my client home. You can expect my motion to suppress just about immediately.”
“It won’t matter.”
“Did you put them up to this?” I asked. I knew damn well LaForge was probably on the other side of the two-way mirror the entire time Aubrey was here. What I couldn’t fathom was how he let it go on. No matter what they claimed about Aubrey waiving her rights, this was as messy as it got.
“I’m not going to dignify that with an answer, Cass. You may have been born in Delphi, but you’re new around here as far as I’m concerned.”
“Save it,” I said, ushering Aubrey toward the elevator. I needed to get her the hell out of here and fast. Then I’d have to figure out what to do with her.
We got downstairs quickly. Aubrey folded herself against me just like she’d done to Detective Lewis. We made it three steps toward the curb and my waiting car before hell broke loose.
It came from three sides. Camera lights blinded me. Two live news trucks parked at odd angles further down the street. A handful of reporters shoved microphones toward us and barked questions.
“Is it true Miss Ames has confessed to killing Coach Drazdowski? Will you be making a statement?”
Son of a bitch. It felt like a setup. Surely Jack LaForge couldn’t be that much of a dick. It could just as likely be the rumor mill always churning. I hugged Aubrey to my side and whispered in her ear, “Do not say a damn word.”
The bigger danger came from my left. In a split second, I went from anger at the reporters to relief. If they hadn’t been there, things might have turned out vastly different.
“Bitch!”
A rock sailed above my head and bounced off the building behind us.
“Fucking murderer!”
“Aubrey,” I said, keeping my voice low and steady. “We have about thirty steps to take. You stay glued to my side and when I say, I want you to get into the back seat of my car and lay on the ground.”
She nodded her understanding but her entire body trembled and fresh tears spilled down her cheeks.
Another rock flew over us. There were cell phones out, recording everything. Several police officers came running at top speed, pouring out of the building. A cup flew in front of me, spilling hot coffee at my feet. I jumped back but a few scalding drops hit my ankle. “Jesus!”
My car was maybe twenty feet away. Three uniformed officers threw themselves in front of us, trying to form a wall against the next thrown object and flying fists. I struggled to find my keys at the bottom of my messenger bag.
It was mob mentality. If not for those brave men and women in uniform, I have no doubt in my mind they would have ripped us to shreds. And it would all likely be posted to social media within the hour.
“Cass!”
A hand shot out, grabbing my shirt. I let go of Aubrey and flailed against it. Adrenaline shot through me and I shoved Aubrey toward my car, trying to get her out of the way.
“Cass!”
I stumbled, pitching forward. Two hands tightened on my shoulders and lifted me off my feet. I looked up.
Joe had me by the arm, sweat pouring down the side of his face. He looked just as terrified as I felt, but he moved with singular
purpose. He grabbed Aubrey and shoved me down the nearest alley.
“No!” I shouted. “They’ll corner us.”
No sooner had I said it when truck tires screeched to a halt at the opposite end of the alley. My heart stopped for an instant, then blood rushed to my head as Matty threw open the passenger door and waved us forward.
I ran for all I was worth. Aubrey was right behind me. We threw ourselves at the truck. I scrambled into the passenger seat. Joe got in behind me and Aubrey got in next to him.
Joe slammed both doors shut as Matty peeled away from the curb and ran the light at the next intersection. I put my face in my hands, not brave enough to look back.
Chapter 10
My house was the safest place to go. Matty parked the truck at an angle and was the first one to get to me, opening the door. I nearly collapsed against him. My whole body felt like rubber.
“You okay?” he asked, his eyes wild.
“Yeah,” I said. “How in the hell did you know to come for me?”
“Rumor went down ... she ... was at the police department.” Joe stepped forward. “I was over at Mickey’s, working on an exterior paint job. Heard some of the loudmouths in there stirring up trouble. I knew you’d head straight into it.”
“Thanks,” I said, peering up at him. I went up on my tiptoes and planted a sloppy kiss on my brother’s cheek. Feeling steadier, I slid out of his arms and did the same to Matty. My brothers. My protectors. Matty had been angry when I came back to town. But at the first sign of trouble, he had come running. My heart ached with love and gratitude as we went inside.
I didn’t have to tell them. My brothers knew I needed a minute alone with my client. They made themselves scarce.
A myriad of emotions swirled through me as Aubrey sat down on the couch. She cried silently, worrying her hands together. She glanced out my front bay window as my brothers took positions up and down the dock. They were already laughing and easy with each other.
God, I’d missed them like that. A million years ago I went out there with them to keep the little ones out of trouble while Joe tried to catch dinner. Vangie had always been better keeping her line from getting tangled. Matty would bring his to me along with his sheepish grin. I’d unsnarl everything quickly before Joe even knew what was happening.
