Player

by DeLuca, Laura

  Josh moved aside. “Come on in and make yourself at home,” he said sarcastically.

  “Well, thank you, Mr. Hanover. Don’t mind if I do.” Josh made sure to slam the door closed once the man’s rather large derriere had made it across the threshold. He continued to scowl as Detective Gibula placed his whale of a body on the sofa. “Aren’t you going to offer me a drink? A glass of water would be nice.”

  Josh’s reply was to plop himself down on the chair opposite the cop and cross his arms.

  “That’s okay.” He flashed Josh a big smile filled with coffee stained teeth. “I wasn’t thirsty anyway,” he admitted with calm indifference.

  “What are you doing here so late?” Josh asked him again. “Did it ever occur to you that someone might be sleeping at this hour?”

  “I know that your parents are both working double shifts at the hospital tonight, and at best, they won’t be home until four,” he said thoughtfully, all the while stroking the stubble on his chin.

  “How do you know my parents’ work schedule?” Josh demanded.

  “You’d be surprised how much I know about you, Mr. Hanover. I figured you wouldn’t be getting much sleep tonight after all the excitement over at the school. I was proven right when I saw the lights on in your bedroom window. I figured since you were up, you wouldn’t mind if I stopped by for a little chat. By the way, what’s Mr. Grant doing upstairs?”

  “I was trying to sleep until you got here.”

  Josh startled at the sound of Bryan’s voice from the stairwell, but the detective seemed unfazed. Bryan sauntered into the living room, glaring at the cop. He pulled the other easy chair over and sat next to Josh, trying to portray a united front. Detective Gibula wasn’t impressed.

  “I’m not contagious.” He chuckled. “You boys don’t have to be afraid of me.”

  “Believe me, we aren’t,” Josh retorted. “We have no reason to be. After all, we’re on the same side. We all want the same thing.”

  “And what would that be?” Detective Gibula asked innocently. “What do we both want?”

  “Oh, for Christ’s sake.” Bryan erupted. His nerves were too strained for this type of confrontation. “We all know why you’re here. Stop beating around the bush and just get to the point!”

  “Maybe I’m just here to pay my friend Josh a little social call.”

  “Social my ass!” Bryan spat.

  For the first time, the detective looked annoyed. “Watch your mouth, kid. Remember who you’re talking to and show some respect.”

  “Sir, you really need to tell us why you’re here or get out. As you already pointed out, you don’t have a warrant. And maybe I should remind you that we’re both still legally minors. Isn’t there some kind of rule about interrogating us without our parents knowing about it?”

  “All right, all right! I’ll get to the point.” He waved his hands in mock exasperation. “Like you said, we all know why I’m here. I just want to ask a few questions, completely off the record. There’s no interrogation.”

  “What kind of questions?” Josh narrowed his eyes. He thought about calling his parents for backup, but realized it would just make him look worse—to them as well as to the cop.

  “Were you boys at the dance tonight?”

  “I’m sure you already know the answer to that, but yes,” Josh replied. “We were there.”

  “Did you have a nice time?” the policeman asked pleasantly.

  Bryan’s face almost turned purple he was so agitated. “We watched someone die right in front of us! Do you think we had a good time?”

  “Some killers get a great high off their work,” Detective Gibula told them, finally serious. “And Nadine Morris, DOA, suffered an excruciating death. Our killer is probably in a great mood tonight.”

  “That’s really cold, man.” Josh shook his head and tried to block out the horrible memory of Nadine’s body convulsing. “You must know she was a friend of mine.”

  “Yes, I did know she was a friend, and perhaps a little bit more than a friend. Why do you think I’m here?” he asked. “You know, I don’t normally like to repeat myself, and I know I’ve said this before, but it’s very coincidental how all of your friends are having these strange and unusual accidents.”

  “So, of course, you suspect me,” Josh said flatly. “You think I killed Nadine?”

  “You said it, not me,” the detective replied. “Do you have a guilty conscience, son?”

  “Josh didn’t kill Nadine,” Bryan declared. “He couldn’t have. I was with him all day.”

  “What makes you think I’m going to believe any alibi you supply, Mr. Grant?” Detective Gibula asked. “Maybe you didn’t like your little sister. Maybe the two of you were working together to off the girls.” Josh wasn’t sure if Bryan was going to weep or scream, but he didn’t have a chance to do either before the detective charged on with his questions. “Why don’t you tell me what you were doing in the hours that led up to the incident?”

  “After school, we came here to get changed,” Josh told him. “And this may come as a huge surprise, but while we were at the dance, we danced. That’s about it. We didn’t plan any murders or anything like that. Sorry to disappoint you.”

  The middle-aged man was revealing some annoyance. “Don’t get sarcastic with me, kid. You’re only going to make things worse for yourself.”

  “Detective Gibula, I just want you to be straight with me. Are you accusing me of Nadine’s murder or not?

  “Who said it was murder? Maybe there were technical difficulties.”

  “Come on. I know it was murder just as well as you do. Quit playing games, Detective,” Josh told him. “I want to know where I stand.”

  The cop leaned in close and blew his stale breath directly in Josh’s face. “There is nothing in this world I would like more than to see you behind bars,” he said with pleasant sarcasm. “I’m working on it, but I can’t prove it yet. You do some neat work for a novice. But I’m not worried. Somewhere along the way, you messed up. When I find that one little mistake. . . .” He clapped his hands together suddenly and Bryan and Josh both jumped. “It will all be over for you.”

  “But he didn’t do it, you blind f—”

  Whatever Bryan was going to say was cut short by the ferocious stare of detective. For the first time, he seemed truly intimidating. Bryan’s mouth snapped shut. “You keep telling yourself that, Bryan. Maybe you’ll convince yourself, but you sure as hell won’t convince me.”

  “Fine. Go ahead and look for your proof,” Josh told him. “Even though you’ll never find anything, since I didn’t do anything. Not to mention the fact that you’re letting the real killer get away with it while you waste time harassing me. You’ve said what you came here to say, so you can just leave.”

  “What’s your hurry?” he asked. “Do you have another date tonight?”

  “Very funny,” Josh said bitterly, but the fight was going out of him. “If you don’t mind, it’s been a hard night for us. We’d like to get some rest. Please, just go.”

  “Not so fast. I have one last question or you.” He leaned forward in his seat. “My man saw you run up to the stage just before the incident. What happened, Josh? Did you have a change of heart at the last second?”

  “I can’t believe this crap!” Josh rubbed his temples. “I saw the wires spark. I tried to warn her. That’s all.”

  “Good eyes.” The cop huffed sarcastically. “You saw the wires? Did you realize they had been purposely frayed or that someone had conveniently drenched the seat of the throne with water probably minutes before the homecoming queen was crowned?”

  Josh recalled the little puddle of water he had seen on the ground, but he didn’t bother mentioning it. No matter what he said, the fat cop always had a way of turning his words around. He just shut his mouth and stared at the floor, even though he knew that probably made him look guilty.

  “Well, if the cat’s got your tongue, I guess we’re done for the night.” De
tective Gibula pulled himself up from the couch and wobbled over to the door. Before he walked out, he turned to the boys one last time, his expression stern. “I’ll be watching you,” he said, and flicked his colorless eyes from one to the other. “I’ll be watching you both.”

  Detective Gibula finally made his exit. Once he was sure the cop was gone, Josh picked up one of the pillows from the couch and tossed it across the room. He knocked over the framed pictures of his parent’s wedding, shattering the glass that covered it. He knew his father would be furious, but he didn’t even care.

  “Great!” he exclaimed. “Just great! As if my day didn’t suck enough, I find out that I’m only a step away from a warrant for my arrest. Well, at least I won’t be lonely since apparently we’re plotting these murders together. Just think, we can be cell mates!”

  “No one is going to jail,” Bryan told him. “Except for the one person who deserves to be there.”

  “What makes you so sure? That cop sure seems ready to throw the book at me.”

  “I’m sure because I think I know now who the real killer is,” Bryan announced. “And I’m going to prove it.”

  Chapter 31

  “I can’t believe Bryan wouldn’t tell you who he thinks the killer is.” Andrea shook her head and tapped her fingers on the dashboard absently. “Are you sure he’s not going to accuse you? Maybe this whole friendship thing was a big cover up so he could try to put the blame on you.”

  “I doubt it,” Josh told her. “But you never know. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the last few weeks, it’s that I’m not the best judge of character. Obviously, someone I care about is out to get me. Maybe it’s Bryan.” He shrugged. “I just don’t know. But one way or another, I hope it all ends today.”

  Josh took a sharp right around a corner and his tires actually hit the sidewalk. He didn’t realize how nervous he was about the big reveal until he almost hit three pedestrians. Beside him, Andrea was clutching the handle on the car door and giving him dirty looks, while the older people he nearly collided with shook their fists and cursed at his taillights. They were on their way to pick up Rosa before meeting up at Bryan’s house. Elena and Jim both agreed to meet them there as well. They even convinced Kevin to come when Elena promised to drop the charges against him if he showed up.

  “Do you have any idea what’s he planning?” Andrea asked.

  Josh shrugged his shoulders. “Nope. He just told me he was going to make someone confess, and asked me to gather all the suspects.” He made quotation marks in the air with his hands and almost drove through a stop sign. His tires squealed as he slammed on his brakes.

  “Okay, I can see that talking about this is making you nervous. Before you cross at least two suspects off his list, I’m going to shut up about it.” Andrea exhaled, and moved onto another topic that was no less nerve wracking. “I still can’t believe what happened to Nadine. I feel so awful about it, but I can’t help but be grateful that it wasn’t me. Is it horrible for me to think that way?”

  Josh gave Andrea’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “Of course it’s not horrible to be grateful that you’re safe. I’m grateful too. That doesn’t mean I don’t hate what happened to Nadine, but we can’t feel guilty for being alive, Andy. At least that’s what I keep trying to tell myself.”

  “I know, but it’s just so hard to believe so many terrible things have happened.” She dabbed at her eyes with a tissue she pulled from her handbag. “Let’s hope that Bryan really does put an end to it. I’m just so tired of always having my guard up.”

  “Me too. I want this over,” Josh agreed. “Before anyone else gets hurt.”

  Josh glanced in his rearview mirror while they were stopped at a light. He happened to see Kevin idling behind them. He was smoking a cigarette, something Josh had never seen him do before. Josh realized there were lots of things he had never known about Kevin, and that put him way up high on Josh’s list of suspects. Josh turned off to get Rosa and watched as Kevin’s car headed straight in the direction of Bryan’s house. Andrea noticed him too and shuddered, so Josh knew he wasn’t alone in his suspicions.

  Josh pulled his Mustang into the driveway and honked his horn. Rosa peeked out a few minutes later and jogged to the car looking grim. Since Andrea was already in the front, she climbed into the backseat silently.

  “Are you ready?” Josh asked her.

  She fiddled with the ends of her long braid. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

  A few minutes later, they arrived at Bryan’s house and found the rest of the guests were already there. With the appearance of the final three, whom Bryan grimly pointed out were a few minutes late, they settled in and prepared for the big revelation. It was the weekend, but luckily Bryan’s parents didn’t work the normal nine to five grind, so they were conveniently absent. The mismatched living room was in much the same condition as it had been the last time Josh was there. Lily’s windbreaker was still carelessly tossed on the arm of a chair, as though no one had the heart to move it from that final resting place. The coffee table was still minus one leg, and the whole house was still in need of a good dusting.

  It was the tension and not the dust that made the air in the room thick. There was a killer in that room and everyone knew it. Each person looked accusingly into the eyes of the others, trying to pick out the guilty party. Each person was ready to point the finger of blame at someone else.

  The group had spread out as much as possible. Josh and Rosa were sharing the lumpy couch with Elena. Jim and Andrea had pulled a few chairs in from the dining room, while Kevin sunk into the ugly, stained recliner in the corner of the room. Bryan was pacing nervously back and forth with a cigarette in his mouth as he contemplated his plan. Josh wished for the hundredth time that Bryan had shared his strategy with him so he had some idea of what to expect. He was starting to wonder if maybe Andrea was right and Bryan was trying to frame him.

  “Everyone here is aware of the reason for this little get together,” Bryan announced, and dropped his smoldering cigarette into an ashtray. “We’re here to find a killer. And we will find them. One way or another, someone is going to confess today. I don’t suppose anyone has a problem with that?”

  His tone was deadly serious. His face was grim and shadowed. Still, Josh blanched and very nearly fell off the couch when Bryan reached into the waist of his jeans and pulled out a shiny silver pistol, which until that moment had been well hidden beneath a bulky sweatshirt. That was something he had never expected. Around them, there were cries of shock and dismay, and he felt Rosa squeeze his knee.

  “Whoa, man!” Josh threw up his hands. “I never agreed to this.”

  “Sorry, Josh. I knew you wouldn’t, but it had to be done.”

  “All right, Bryan,” Jim said, always the voice of reason. “No one is going anywhere, and I know you aren’t going to hurt anyone. Just ask your questions and let’s get this over with.”

  “Don’t be so condescending, Jim.” Bryan pointed the gun in his direction. “I can smell a phony a mile away and you’re stinking the whole place up.”

  “Bryan, just put the gun down,” Josh told him. “This isn’t going to solve anything. You’re only making things worse!”

  Bryan shook his head. “I disagree. I think it’s a lot harder to lie when your life is on the line. So what do you say, guys, should we get started?” When no one answered, Bryan charged on. “Let’s start by going back to the day this all started. The day Josh broke up with Elena, because that was when things got strange.”

  “You already know all this, Bryan,” Josh said, frustrated and a little afraid. “What good is it going to do to rehash it?”

  “This time we’re going to get the answers straight from the horse’s mouth. No guessing games. So tell me, Elena, how did you feel when Josh dumped you? Were you angry? Upset?”

  “A little of both,” she admitted, her voice calm. “I wasn’t expecting it and I was a hurt that he rejected me.”

  “All of the gir
ls were upset when I broke up with them,” Josh interrupted. “Especially when they found out about each other.”

  “Yes, but Elena is the only one left,” Andrea pointed out.

  “Elena had the best motive,” Jim chimed in. His voice was a little shaky, and everyone knew he was trying to hurry things along. “She was jealous and angry.”

  Elena was starting to lose her ever-present cool. She looked a little distraught when she realized everyone was ganging up on her.

  It was Rosa who finally came to her rescue. “Elena could have easily been crowned homecoming queen. We were all pretty certain it would be her. It seems to me that she was the intended target of the last murder. Not Nadine.”

  “Plus, Elena had no idea who Lily was,” Josh added. “Or where to find her.”

  Bryan shook his head. “As much as I’d like to eliminate Elena, those aren’t good enough reasons. The online votes could have been fixed and I told her about Lily myself. How hard would it be to look up our address online? I don’t think anyone can lie when they’ve got the barrel of a gun in their face.” Elena didn’t even blink as her new boyfriend turned to her with a pistol in his hand. “Elena, did you kill Lily and Nadine? Did you try to kill Jazz?”

  “No.” Elena’s voice was unwavering.

  “Josh.” Josh very nearly jumped out of his skin when Bryan turned toward him, even though he lowered the gun, wordlessly announcing to everyone that he still didn’t consider Josh a suspect. “What was the first thing that happened that we know is tied to the killer?”

  Josh was thoughtful for a moment, trying to pin down the exact order of the events. “I guess it was the rat poison. I started to feel sick the same day that we got into that fight, and I found the first note in my mailbox when I got home. That was also the day my tires got slashed.”

  “We already know it was Kevin who slit your tires,” Jim reminded them.

  Up until that point, Kevin had been trying to disappear into the armchair, but the mention of his name, coupled with Bryan turning in his direction, finally got his attention. “Man, I already told you I didn’t have anything to do with those girls getting hurt. Yes, I slit the tires. Yes, I was a total ass when it came to Elena! But I didn’t kill anyone. And if I was going to kill someone, it would have been Josh, and not his stupid lineup of adoring chicks.”