“I don’t want to think that, not at all. I just don’t know what to think. I called Detective Carlson though, told him you tossed that bag. In my head, I know you’re innocent.”
“So it’s the heart that can’t trust.” They came to her car and Marsh turned her to face him. “Have I been rushing things too fast, Karissa?” Please say no.
She paused to consider. “No. You’ve been great, but I’m having a hard time. And that’s not your fault. It’s mine.”
Funny, but he felt responsible anyway. “Do you mind if I come talk to you tonight while you’re at work? Maybe we can try to hash it out between deputies radioing in for driver’s license information and 911 calls.”
She smiled, easing his stress. “I’d like that. But you can’t.” She let out a sigh. “Until they drop the charges against you, I can’t have you in dispatch. Protocol. Can you come earlier?”
Disappointment shot through him. “I’ll try. If not, I’ll call you tonight and set something up for tomorrow.” He moved in and pressed a kiss to her forehead. He wanted more, but it just seemed like too much when things were so up in the air. “Talk to you then.”
He watched her get into her car and pull out of the parking lot before turning to his parents, who were walking toward him.
The hall phone’s ringing woke Karissa from the half-sleep she’d been dozing in and out of for the past two hours. Marsh hadn’t come by. She tried not to take that seriously as the ringing stopped and she rolled over. Maybe she could still sleep a little.
A moment later there was a knock at her door. “Honey, sorry to bother you, but there’s a young man on the phone and he seems really upset. He insists on talking to you.” Her mother extended the phone to Karissa.
She sat up, still confused and disoriented. “Thanks.” She greeted the caller and heard a jumble of words on the other end. She didn’t follow the whole conversation but managed to get that it was Craig, that he had something to tell her, and that he wanted her to meet him at the school parking lot. She glanced at the clock and saw it was already after four in the afternoon and that she had less than two hours before work.
She wasn’t really sleeping though, so she said, “I’ll pick you up in front of the jaguar statue in fifteen minutes.”
“Are you sure?” her mom asked when Karissa crawled out of the covers.
“Yes. He says he might know something that will help Marsh. I don’t know, but I’ll take anything at the moment.” Her mind was more alert now as she considered what he might want to say.
She dressed quickly, anxious to get through this before it was time for work. She kissed Paul goodbye, knowing she might not get back tonight.
The roads were clear, nearly empty. Next week the place would be filled with holiday revelers ready to live it up after a day on the slopes.
Karissa found a spot near the gym but far enough from the building to see someone coming, and checked her watch. She still had three minutes. The wait was interminable, but after nearly ten minutes, Karissa saw Craig coming around the building, his fists buried deep in his coat to ward off the cold.
She stood from her car and beckoned to him as he looked her way. “Over here.”
Craig nodded and moved faster in her direction. He scanned the empty parking lot several times on his way there, as if making sure that no one was watching him, then climbed into the car beside her.
“Okay, here’s the thing,” he said as he turned to her. “I know Coach Willmore didn’t sell the drugs to the other kids, but I don’t dare go to the cops myself. I’ve had a few problems in the past and I’m afraid they’ll hold me or something. And you know Gloria; she’s strung so tight right now, I’m afraid she’ll go postal if she finds out I want to talk to the cops.” He mentioned his older sister, who was a couple of years younger than Karissa. She had recently moved home to help when their mom got sick.
Karissa considered what he was saying. What did he want exactly? “Do you want me to take you, Craig? I can help you talk to the right people. What do you want to say?”
He fidgeted for a moment, considering. “I know who was selling the drugs. Or at least I think I know. Can you tell them?”
“If I take the rumor to them, that’s all it’ll be. They’ll end up knocking on your door anyway. It’s best if you go in and talk to the detective. I’ll be happy to go with you.”
His breathing seemed to grow heavier for a moment, as if the thought made him really nervous. “Yeah. I guess. If they’re going to ask me questions anyway, better if my sister doesn’t hear about it until afterward. Save her the heart attack.”
It was telling that he didn’t care if his mom found out in advance, even though she was the one who was sick, and Karissa wondered what was going on at home. “Okay. Let me call to have the detective meet us there.” It only took a few minutes for dispatch to put her through to the detective’s cell phone, and soon she had arranged for him to meet her at the sheriff’s office.
Karissa started the car and put it into gear, heading out of the lot. She wasn’t sure what to think of Craig’s revelation, what little there was of it, but it gave her hope. If he was right, if he could point the detective in the right direction, that might be all she needed to get Marsh clear.
Craig drummed his thumbs against his lap while they drove, nervous energy practically sparking off of him. Karissa had heard he’d had a few minor scuffles with the law, though he was pretty much clean at the moment. Getting caught for underage drinking was the last thing she’d heard—small towns were full of gossip, and the station was a virtual hotbed.
She tried to interest Craig in a conversation, asking about his mom’s condition and his older sister Gloria.
Craig was mostly unresponsive, as if afraid to speak at all.
By the time they reached the station, Karissa was getting frustrated with his tight-lipped attitude. She didn’t really know the detective. He worked days and she worked nights, so they rarely saw each other, which made it harder to gauge what he would do or what he would think, even if she did have some clue what Craig was actually going to say.
The entryway echoed when they walked into the building. She went over to the speaker and pushed the button to alert the dispatcher that they had arrived. “We’re here to speak with Detective Carlson when he gets here. He’s expecting us.”
“I’ll let him know,” Terrance said from dispatch.
It took nearly ten minutes, but eventually Detective Carlson came through the door and tugged on the blue blazer that wrapped around his portly figure. “You got something for me?”
“Craig says he does. Is there somewhere we can talk more private?”
He nodded and led them down the hall to an interrogation room. Great, Craig isn’t going to be the least freaked out about talking now. She tried not to roll her eyes. So predictable. Didn’t they ever teach the man about making people comfortable, especially informants?
Craig’s face went white as he entered the room and took a seat, though he obviously tried to act as if it didn’t bother him at all.
Karissa worried he would clam up and they would learn nothing.
“What’cha got for me? I have a lot of work to do, you know.” Detective Carlson sat across from them in the interrogation room and drummed his fingers on the table.
Chris wet his lips. “It’s not Coach Willmore who gave the others those drugs. I think it’s Coach Barney. I can’t prove it, but I’m sure it’s him.”
“You can’t prove it? You think it’s Barney.” Detective Carlson gave him a doubtful look. “How did you come to think it’s Barney, then? Did he try to sell to you?”
Craig shook his head a little too fast. “No. He never approached me. As far as I can tell he only approached Gavin. Gavin’s been talking to the other guys. But I’ve seen Coach Barney talking with Gavin, coaching some of the guys who were using. And I heard a couple of them talking about their supplements. I swear Gavin mentioned Coach Barney.” He stammered a little as he got it
all out.
Karissa worried that he was going to pop a vein or something on his forehead, he was so tense. Even his hands were fisted to nearly white on his lap. “That’s a pretty serious thing to say,” she kept her voice soft, not wanting to make him more nervous. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, you can’t think Coach Willmore would ever sell drugs to kids.” Craig gesticulated wildly, trying to make his point. “He practically reamed me out for getting caught drinking a few months ago and I wasn’t even playing yet for the season. No way would he want me to take something like that. Or any of the other guys. He just wouldn’t.”
The detective’s fingers slowed a little on the tabletop as he gave Craig an appraising look. “Are you sure about that?”
“Completely. Look, I know you don’t trust me because I’m a screw-up, but you’ve got the wrong guy.” Though Craig was still pale and nervous, he said that comment with utter certainty.
Detective Carlson nodded. “Thanks for the tip. I’ll look into it. It’s hard to come forward like you did. I appreciate it.”
Craig nodded. “Sure.” His voice was a little weak.
The detective stood and looked at Karissa. “You stay for a second while I walk Craig out to the hall.” He sent her a hard stare.
Karissa wasn’t sure what the deal was, but she nodded and waited. Finally the detective returned.
He shut the door behind himself then turned to her, his arms crossed over his chest. “Did you put him up to that?”
“What? No! Of course not. He saw me at the school.” Hardly believing that he would think she’d get the kid to perjure himself, she explained the sequence of events.
His lips were a thin line by the time she finished. “I know you and Willmore have something going on, but I’m not going to let you interfere in this investigation. This isn’t about you, and even if you were a terrific cop in Pueblo, you aren’t one here. You’re just a dispatcher.”
That ticked her off and she put her hands on her hips when she stood so he wasn’t looming over her. “I didn’t ask you to share all of the gory details of your case. It would be wrong for me to ask and wrong for you to tell me. The kid asked for a ride and I gave it to him. End of story, okay? Don’t you believe him?”
Carlson shrugged. “He’s not exactly a reliable witness. He’s had too many run-ins with the law for that. And I’ve arrested him myself, though it’s been a while.” He tacked the last bit on as an afterthought.
“Look, it doesn’t hurt you to expand your search to include Rex Barney. Maybe you find something, maybe you find nothing. Maybe you lean on this Gavin kid with the coach’s name and he gives something up. Might as well see where it leads, right?” Inside she was hoping with everything she had that he’d decide to take her suggestion.
He didn’t say yes or no but slid away from the door and opened it for her. “We’ll see what happens. That’s all I’m promising.”
Karissa tried to accept that as enough as she walked out to take Craig home. Discouraged.
Karissa dropped Craig back at home then returned to work for the night. She watched the cameras in the front entryway, smiling when Gavin entered with his parents and Detective Carlson met them, leading them back to an interrogation room. The tip from Craig hadn’t been enough to arrest Rex, but if they could present the new information to Gavin, maybe he’d give up something useful. She sure hoped so.
The building emptied as all of the office staff left for the night—even those who worked late as a rule—and the interrogation continued.
Karissa provided information to officers for four traffic stops, fielded calls from three people who thought the smoke coming from the smokestacks over the rise was a fire, and took a complaint from someone staying at the new resort in town, who was sure they had experienced ghostly activity. Someone’s imagination was working in overdrive.
Everyone emerged from the interrogation room and she watched them make their way to the front door, where the detective showed them out. Then he headed to his truck and tapped his radio, telling the other officers on duty to check their instant messages.
Karissa was dying to know what was going on. Detective Carlson must have learned something useful or he’d be checking off for the night and going home, right? Not calling in the troops.
She watched her monitor, waiting for news of their destination, and did a little boogie in her seat when she got an IM from the detective saying which officers he was taking with him and providing an address. Rex’s address, she was sure of it. She created an incident number in the system and marked the time each unit notified her of their destination.
The assistant coach lived quite a distance from town, and Karissa watched the clock obsessively, wondering how long until someone radioed in that they’d arrived at his house.
Eight-thirty. Why hadn’t Marsh called yet? They had a lot to talk about, including everything that had come up during the meeting with Craig. Was he mad at her now that he’d had a chance to talk with Hank and find out how much she’d doubted him?
Karissa pushed those thoughts back and told herself not to be an idiot. He promised to meet with her tonight. He was probably just catching up with his parents. It had been a while since he’d seen them, after all. Virginia wasn’t exactly next door to Colorado.
The officers radioed in one by one, saying they had arrived at the destination. She acknowledged it and noted the times in the computer.
Trent said he was going around back. The detective radioed in on a secure channel that he was ready in front.
Tension pulled and stretched all of Karissa’s muscles as she waited impatiently for word that they had Rex in custody. Three minutes passed and she heard nothing. She radioed in to ask the officers to check in and all three confirmed that they were fine. She waited another three minutes and requested another update on their status, and again heard that they were fine. But that was all.
She wanted to scream, but forced herself to be cheerful and professional when a call came through asking if the storm that weekend would make it hard to drive up the mountain for the holidays. Idiots thought she was the weather service. She paged an ambulance for a suspected heart attack and was relieved several minutes later when Detective Carlson radioed that they were leaving the house and to check her IM.
As he said it, an IM popped up with a request for her to send a CodeRED message to the sheriff’s posse to meet at the shed for a suspect search. Apparently they hadn’t found Rex.
She logged onto a website for CodeRED. Hank, who was part of search and rescue, the posse, and the volunteer fire department, would be getting the call along with the others. The county used the database of resident numbers that had agreed to be contacted for emergencies, and it had sub-groups for things like the sheriff’s posse. Usually it was used to warn residents of searches for missing children or to call search and rescue for lost or injured outdoor enthusiasts. She selected the group to send the message to, then called in a recorded the message.
The feeling she got from Carlson’s message and the little radio traffic she’d picked up was that they were getting ready for a man hunt. The only reason they would institute a man hunt at this time of night was if Rex had threatened the boys as she and Marsh had theorized. He had to be a threat or they’d just put out an Attempt to Locate notice to all officers, deputies, and highway patrolmen who were on duty.
The posse assembled and went in different directions. She wasn’t involved in the search anymore but heard regular reports as they spoke with each other, checking out various properties in the area.
Karissa looked at the clock again and realized it was nine-thirty. Marsh still hadn’t called. Fear squeezed her chest. Had she blown things with him? Or worse, had Rex gone after Marsh?
The phone rang and Karissa snatched it up, half of her attention still on the hunt being broadcast through her radio. “Dispatch, this is Karissa.”
“Hey, it’s me,” Marsh’s voice came on the line. “How is it going?”
/> Karissa wanted desperately to tell him about the search for Rex but didn’t want to speak before things were finalized. For all she knew they were just bringing him in for questioning. Did they have anything concrete on Rex or just what Gavin said? “Things are fine here. A little busier than usual but not too crazy. Have you been up talking to your parents for all of this time?”
“Yeah. I get the feeling my mom was more upset than she let on to everyone else. She said she had a good discussion with you last night though. What exactly did you tell her about us?”
Karissa flushed and was glad he wasn’t there to see it. “She asked about our dates and if you were being a gentleman.” She really hoped he didn’t ask for a play-by-play of the conversation.
“She pried, in other words. I’m sorry.”
“Not too much, actually. And I didn’t answer all of her questions as fully as she would have liked.” She kept one ear on the radio as different groups checked in with the command center, making sure no one radioed to her.
“Good. If you’re going to keep me guessing about us, it might as well be the same for her.”
“Marsh.” Karissa felt her stomach clench at his reference.
“Sorry, that wasn’t fair. This isn’t the right way for us to discuss our relationship, and I barely slept last night, so I’m tired and cranky. I know you have to work again tomorrow night, but can we get together before that, talk about things?”
Though she wanted to get through the discussion and have it over with, now was definitely not the time. “Tomorrow, four o’clock?”
“Works for me. Meet at my place and we’ll talk before dinner.”
Before dinner. Did that mean he didn’t want to feed her before he broke up with her? She pushed that thought away, reasoning that four was too early to eat and she had to be to work by six, so she shouldn’t read things into his comment. “See you tomorrow.”
They said goodbye and she hung up, leaving her hand on the receiver for a moment as she steadied her nerves. Had she screwed up everything?
Second Chances: Love in Juniper Ridge (Carver Ranch Book 1) Page 15
