Faithless

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Lena sat at the kitchen table, staring at her cell phone. She had to call Terri Stanley. There was no way of getting around it. She had to apologize, to tell her she would do everything she could to help her. What she would do beyo nd that was a mystery. How could she help her? What could she do to save Terri when there was nothing Lena could do to save herself?

In the hall, Nan shut the bathroom door with a click. Lena waited until she heard the shower running, then Nan’s pained rendition of some pop song that was playing on every radio station, before she flipped the phone open and dialed the Stanleys ’ number.

Since the altercation at the gas station, Lena ’s mind had turned the number into a mantra, so that as her fingers worked the buttons, she had a sense of déjà vu.

She put the phone to her ear, counting six rings before the phone was picked up. Her heart stopped midbeat as she prayed that the person on the other end wasn’t Dale.

Obviously, Lena’s name showed up on the Stanleys ’ caller ID. “What do you want?” Terri hissed, her voice little more than a whisper.

“I want to apologize,” Lena said. “I want to help you.”

“You can help me by leaving me alone,” she replied, her voice still low.

“Where’s Dale?”

“He’s outside.” Terri sounded increasingly frightened. “He’ll be back any minute. He’ll see your number on the phone.”

“Tell him I called to thank you for coming in.”

“He’s not going to believe that.”

“Terri, listen to me-”

“It’s not like I’ve got a choice.”

“I shouldn’t have hurt you.”

“I’ve heard that before.”

Lena winced at the implication. “You need to get out of there.”

She was quiet for a beat. “What makes you think I want to?”

“Because I know,” Lena said, tears coming into her eyes. “Jesus, Terri. I know, okay? Trust me.”

Terri was silent for so long that Lena thought she had hung up.

“Terri?”

“How do you know?”

Lena ’s heart was thumping hard enough to press against her ribs. She had never admitted anything about Ethan to another person, and she still found herself unable to come right out and say it. She could only tell Terri, “I know about it the same way you do.”

Again, the younger woman was quiet. Then Terri asked, “You ever try to get away?”

Lena thought about all the times she had tried to make a break: not answering the phone, avoiding the gym, hiding out at work. He always found her. He always found a way back in.

“You think you can help me?” Terri asked. An almost hysterical note was threaded through the question.

“I’m a cop.”

“Sister, you ain’t nothin’,” she said, harshly. “We’re both drowning in the same ocean.”

Lena felt her words pierce like daggers. She tried to speak, but there was a soft click on the line, then nothing. Lena waited, holding out hope, until the recorded voice of the operator bleated through the receiver, advising her to hang up and try the number again.

Nan came into the kitchen, her natty pink robe tied around her waist, a towel wrapped around her head. “You going to be home for dinner tonight?”

“Yes,” Lena said. Then, “No. I don’t know. Why?”

“I thought it would be nice to talk,” she said, putting the kettle on the stove. “See how you’re doing. I haven’t talked to you since you got back from Hank’s.”

“I’m doing okay,” Lena assured her.

Nan turned to look at her closely. “You look upset.”

“It’s been a rough week.”

“I saw Ethan riding his bike up the driveway just now.”

Lena stood so quick she was dizzy. “I should get to work.”

“Why don’t you invite him in?” Nan offered. “I’ll make some more tea.”

“No,” Lena muttered. “I’m running late.” She was always nervous when Ethan was around Nan. He was too volatile, and she was too ashamed to let Nan see the kind of man she had ended up with.

Lena muttered, “I’ll see you later,” tucking her cell phone into her jacket. She practically ran out the front door, stopping short when she saw Ethan standing at her car. He was pulling off something that had been taped to the driver’s-side window.

She walked down the steps as if her heart wasn’t in her throat.

“What’s this?” Ethan asked, holding up a mailing envelope. She recognized Greg’s handwriting from ten feet away. “Who else calls you Lee?”

She grabbed it from him before he could stop her. “Just about everybody who knows me,” she told him. “What are you doing here?”

“I thought I’d come by to see you before work.”

She looked at her watch. “You’re going to be late.”

“It’s okay.”

“Your parole officer told you that if you were late again, she’d write you up.”

“That dyke can kiss my ass.”

“She can send you back to jail is what she can do, Ethan.”

“Chill out, okay?” He made a grab for the envelope, but again she was too quick. He frowned and asked, “What is it?”

Lena saw she wasn’t going to get out of the driveway until she opened the envelope. She turned it over, pulling the tape carefully like she was an old lady trying to save the wrapping paper on a present.

“What is it?” Ethan repeated.

She opened the envelope, praying to God there wasn’t something inside that would cause a problem. She slid out a CD with a blank white label on it. “It’s a CD,” she said.

“A CD of what?”

“Ethan,” Lena began, looking back at the house. She could see Nan peering through the front window. “Get in the car,” she told him.

“Why?”

She popped the hatch so he could stow his bike. “Because you’re going to be late for work.”

“What’s the CD?”

“I don’t know.” She started to pick up his bike, but he took over, the muscles on his arms flexing against his long-sleeved T-shirt. Back in his skinhead days, he had tattooed himself all over with Aryan Nazi symbols, and now he seldom wore anything that would expose them- especially at his job bussing tables at the university coffee shop.

She got into the car, waiting for him to secure the bike and get in. Lena tucked the CD over the visor, hoping he would forget about it. Ethan pulled it out as soon as he settled into the seat.

“Who sent you this?”

“Just a friend.” She told him, “Put on your seat belt.”

“Why was it taped to your car?”

“Maybe he didn’t want to come inside.”

Lena realized she had said “he” about a second after the word left her mouth. She tried to act like it hadn’t happened, putting the car into reverse and backing out of the driveway. As she turned back around, she chanced a look at Ethan. His jaw was so tight she was surprised his teeth didn’t start cracking.

Without saying anything, he turned on her radio and pressed the eject button. His Radiohead CD slid out. He held it by the edges, forcing in Greg’s CD as if it was a pill he wanted to shove down somebody’s throat.

Lena felt herself tense as a guitar was strummed, followed by some feedback. The intro took a few seconds, heavy guitar and drums leading up to the unmistakable voice of Ann Wilson.

Ethan wrinkled his nose like there was a bad smell. “What’s this shit?”

“Heart,” she said, trying to keep her emotions flat. Her own heart was beating so fast she was sure he could hear it over the music.

He kept scowling. “I’ve never heard this song before.”

“It’s a new album.”

“A new album?” he repeated, and even though she kept her eyes on the road she could still feel him staring a hole into her. “Aren’t they the ones who were fucking each other?”

“They’re sisters,” Lena said, disgusted that old rumor was still around. Heart had made a huge impact on the rock scene, and invariably, the boys in charge had felt threatened enough to spread nasty rumors. Being a twin, Lena had heard every filthy male fantasy about sisters there was. The thought of it made her sick.

Ethan turned up the volume a notch as she coasted through a stop sign. “It’s not bad,” he said, probably testing her. “Is this the fat one singing?”

“She’s not fat.”

Ethan barked a laugh.

“She can lose weight, Ethan. You’ll always be a stupid bastard.” When he just laughed again, she added, “Like Kurt Cobain was so hot.”

“I didn’t like that faggot.”

“Why is it,” Lena asked, “that every woman who doesn’t want to fuck you is a dyke and every guy who isn’t cool enough to be you is a faggot?”

“I never said-”

“My sister happened to be a lesbian,” Lena reminded him.

“I know that.”

“My best friend is a lesbian,” Lena said, even though she had never given much thought to Nan being her best friend.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?”

“What’s wrong with me?” she echoed, slamming on the brakes so hard his head nearly banged into the dashboard. “I told you to put on your fucking seat belt.”

“All right,” he said, giving her a look that said she was being an unreasonable bitch.

“Forget it,” she told him, taking off her own seat belt.

“What are you doing?” he asked as she reached over to open his door. “Jesus Christ, what-”

“Get out,” she ordered.

“What the fuck?”

She pushed him, screaming, “Get the fuck out of my car!”

“All right!” he screamed back, getting out of the car. “You’re goddamn crazy, you know that?”

She pressed the gas pedal to the floorboard, making his door slam from the momentum. She drove maybe fifty feet before hitting the brakes so hard the tires squealed. When she got out of the car, Ethan was walking up the road, his body vibrating with rage. She could see his fists were clenched and spit flew from his mouth as he yelled, “Don’t you ever drive away from me again, you stupid bitch!”

Lena felt amazingly calm as she pulled his bike out of the back of the car and dropped it on the road. Ethan started running to catch up with her. He was still running when she glanced up in her rearview mirror as she turned the corner.

“What are you smiling about?” Jeffrey asked as soon as she walked into the squad room. He was standing by the coffee machine, and she wondered if he was waiting for her.

“Nothing,” she told him.

He poured her a cup of coffee and handed it to her.

She took it, feeling cautious, saying, “Thanks.”

“You want to tell me about Terri Stanley?”

Lena felt her stomach drop.

He topped off his own cup before saying, “In my office.”

Lena led the way, sweat dripping down her back, wondering if this was finally the last straw for him. The only job she had ever known was being a cop. There was nothing else she could do. Her hiatus last year had proven as much.

He leaned on his desk, waiting for her to take a seat.

He said, “You weren’t at the picnic last year.”

“No,” she agreed, clutching the arms on the chair much as Terri Stanley had done two days before.

“What’s going on, Lena?”

“I thought…” Lena began, not able to finish her sentence. What did she think? What could she tell Jeffrey without revealing too much about herself?

“Is it the alcohol?” he asked, and for a moment she had no idea what he was talking about.

“No,” she said. Then, “I made that up.”

He didn’t seem surprised. “Really?”

“Yeah,” she admitted. She let some of the truth come out, a thin stream of air escaping from a balloon. “Dale hits her.”

Jeffrey had been about to take a sip of coffee, but his cup stopped in midair.

“I saw bruises on her arm.” She nodded her head, like she was confirming it to herself. “I recognized them. I know what they look like.”

Jeffrey put down his cup.

“I told her I’d help her get away.”

He guessed. “She didn’t want to go.”

Lena shook her head.

He shifted, crossing his arms over his chest. “You think you’re the right person to help her?”

Lena felt the heat of his stare. This was the closest they had come to talking about Ethan since she had started seeing him last year.

“I know he uses his hands on you,” Jeffrey said. “I’ve seen the marks. I’ve seen you coming in with makeup covering the bruises under your eye. I’ve seen the way you cringe when you breathe because he’s hit you so hard in the gut you can barely stand up straight.” He added, “You work in a police station, Lena. You didn’t think a bunch of cops would notice?”

“Which cops?” she asked, feeling panicked, exposed.

“This cop,” he said, and that was all she really needed to hear.

Lena looked at the floor, shame pulsing through every inch of her body.

“My dad used to hit my mom,” he said, and though she had guessed this a long time ago, Lena was surprised that he was confiding in her. Jeffrey seldom talked about anything from his personal life that didn’t connect directly to a case. “I used to get in between them,” he said. “I figured if he was beating on me, he’d have less for her later.”

Lena traced her tongue along the inside of her lip, feeling the deep scars from the many times Ethan had busted the skin. He had broken a tooth six months ago. Two months after that, he had slapped her so hard on the side of the head that she still had trouble hearing things out of her right ear.

“Never worked that way,” Jeffrey said. “He’d get mad at me, beat me to the floor, then he’d haul off on her just as hard. Used to be I’d think he was trying to kill her.” He paused, but Lena refused to look up. “Till one day I figured it out.” He paused again. “She wanted him to,” he said, no trace of emotion in his voice. He was matter-of-fact about it, as if he had realized a long time ago that there was nothing he could do.

He continued, “She wanted him to end it. She didn’t see any other way out.”

Lena felt herself nodding. She wasn’t getting out. This morning was just part of an act she used to convince herself she wasn’t completely lost. Ethan would be back. He was always back. She would only be free when he was finished with her.

Jeffrey said, “Even with him dead, part of me still thinks she’s waiting for it. Waiting for that one hit that knocks the life out of her.” Almost to himself, he added, “Not that there’s much life left.”

Lena cleared her throat. “Yeah,” she said. “I guess that’s how Terri feels.”

Jeffrey was obviously disappointed. “Terri, huh?”

She nodded, making herself look up, willing tears not to come into her eyes. She felt so raw that it was a struggle to even move. With anyone else, she would be breaking down, telling them everything. Not Jeffrey, though. She couldn’t let him see her like this. No matter what, she couldn’t let him see how weak she was.

She said, “I don’t think Pat knows.”

“No,” Jeffrey agreed. “Pat would haul Dale in if he knew. Even if they are brothers.”

“So, what are we going to do?”

“You know how it is.” He shrugged. “You’ve been on the job long enough to know how it works. We can bring a case, but it won’t stick unless Terri steps up to the plate. She’s got to testify against him.”

“She won’t do that,” Lena said, remembering how she had called the woman a coward. Called herself a coward. Could Lena stand up in court and point out Ethan? Would she have the will to accuse him, to send him away? The thought of confronting him sent a tingle of fear straight up her spine.

“Something I learned from my mama,” Jeffrey said, “is that you can’t help people who don’t want to be helped.”

“No,” she agreed.

“Statistically, an abused woman is most likely to be murdered when she leaves her abuser.”

“Right,” she said, flashing on Ethan again, the way he had chased after her car this morning. Had she thought it would be that easy? Had she really thought he would let it go at that? He was probably planning his revenge right now, thinking of all kinds of pain he could bring down on her to punish her for even thinking she could get away.

He repeated, “You can’t help people who don’t want to be helped.”

Lena nodded. “You’re right.”

He stared at her for another moment. “I’ll check in with Pat when he’s back, tell him what’s up.”

“You think he’ll do anything?”

“I think he’ll try,” Jeffrey answered. “He loves his brother. That’s the thing people don’t understand.”

“What people?”

“People who aren’t in it,” he said, taking his time to explain. “It’s hard to hate somebody you love.”

She nodded, chewing her lip, unable to speak.

He stood. “Buddy’s here.” He asked, “We okay?”

“Uh,” Lena began. “Yeah.”

“Good,” he said, all business as he opened the door. He walked out of the office and Lena followed, still not knowing what to say. Jeffrey was acting as if nothing had happened between them, flirting with Marla, saying something about her new dress as he leaned down to buzz Buddy into the squad room.

The lawyer hobbled in on a single crutch, his prosthetic leg nowhere to be seen.

Jeffrey’s tone seemed forced to Lena, like he was trying his damnedest to pretend everything was right in the world. He joked with Buddy, “Wife take your leg again?”

Buddy wasn’t his usual avuncular self. “Let’s just get this over with.”

Jeffrey stood back, letting Buddy go ahead of him. As they started to walk, Lena saw that Jeffrey was limping almost in exact time with Buddy. Buddy noticed this, too, and gave a sharp look.

Jeffrey seemed embarrassed. “I cut my foot last night.”

Buddy raised his eyebrows. “Don’t let it get infected.” He tapped his stump to reinforce the warning. Jeffrey’s face turned almost completely white.

He said, “I had Brad put Patty in the back room.”

Lena took the lead, walking back to the interrogation room, trying not to think about what Jeffrey had said in his office. She forced herself to focus instead on his conversation with Buddy about the high school football team. The Rebels were looking at a tough season, and the men recited statistics like preachers reading from the Bible.

She heard Patty O’Ryan before she even opened the door. The girl was screaming like a banshee in heat.

“Get me the fuck out of here! Get these fucking chains the fuck off me, you goddamn motherfuckers!”

Lena stood outside the door as she waited for the others to catch up. She had to section off the part of her brain that kept going over Jeffrey’s words. She had to stop letting her feelings get in the way of her job. She had already fucked up the interview with Terri Stanley. There was no way she could screw up again. She wouldn’t be able to face herself.

As if sensing her thoughts, Jeffrey raised an eyebrow at Lena, asking if she was ready to do this. Lena gave him a curt nod, and he looked through the window in the door, telling Buddy, “She’s having a little problem with withdrawal this morning.”

“Get me the fuck out of here!” O’Ryan screeched at the top of her lungs. At least, Lena hoped that was the loudest the girl was capable of screaming. As it was, the glass was shaking in the door.

Jeffrey offered to Buddy, “You wanna go in there and talk to her alone before we start this?”

“Hell no,” he said, shocked by the suggestion. “Don’t you dare leave me alone in there with her.”

Jeffrey opened the door, holding it for Buddy and Lena.

“Daddy,” O’Ryan said, her voice husky from yelling so much. “I’ve got to get out of here. I’ve got an appointment. I’ve got a job interview. I need to go or I’m gonna be late.”

“You might want to go home and change first,” Lena suggested, noting that O’Ryan had torn her skimpy stripper attire.

“You,” O’Ryan said, focusing all her rage on Lena. “You just shut the fuck up, you spic bitch.”

“Settle down,” Jeffrey told her, sitting across from her at the table. Buddy’s spot was normally on the other side with the defendant, but he sat in the chair by Jeffrey. Lena would be damned if she would put herself within the girl’s reach again, so she stood by the mirror, arms crossed, to watch the proceedings.

Jeffrey said, “Tell me about Chip.”

“What about Chip?”

“He your boyfriend?”

She looked at Buddy for the answer. To his credit, he didn’t give her an inch.

O’Ryan told Jeffrey, “We had a thing.” She jerked her head back to get her hair out of her eyes. Under the table, her foot was bobbing up and down like a rabbit in heat. Every muscle in her body was tensed, and Lena guessed from all this that the girl was jonesing for a fix. She had seen enough junkies going through withdrawal in the cells to know that it must hurt like a motherfucker. If O’Ryan wasn’t such a bitch, she might feel sorry for her.

“What’s a ‘thing’?” Jeffrey asked. “That mean you slept with him some, maybe got high together?”

She kept her focus on Buddy, as if she wanted to punish him. “Something like that.”

“Do you know Rebecca Bennett?”

“Who?”

“What about Abigail Bennett?”

She gave a disgusted snort that made her nostrils flair. “She’s a Jesus freak from over at that farm.”

“Did Chip have a relationship with her?”

She shrugged, the handcuff around her wrist banging into the metal ring on the table.

Jeffrey repeated, “Did Chip have a relationship with her?”

She didn’t answer. Instead, she kept tapping the handcuff against the ring.

Jeffrey sat back with a sigh, like he didn’t want to do what he was about to have to do. Buddy obviously recognized the play, and though he braced himself, he didn’t do anything to stop it.

“Recognize Chip?” Jeffrey asked, dropping a Polaroid on the table.

Lena craned her neck, trying to see which of the crime scene photos from Chip Donner’s room he had led with. They were all bad, but this one in particular- the close-up of the face showing where the lips had been practically ripped off- was horrendous.

O’Ryan smirked at Jeffrey. “That’s not Chip.”

He tossed down another photo. “Is this him?”

She glanced down, then looked away. Lena saw Buddy was staring at the only door in the room, probably wishing he could hop the hell out of here.

“How about this one?” Jeffrey asked, tossing down another.

O’Ryan was beginning to understand. Lena saw her bottom lip start to tremble. The girl had cried plenty of times since being taken into custody, but this was the first time Lena thought her tears were real.

Her body had stilled. She whispered, “What happened?”

“Obviously,” Jeffrey began, dropping the rest of the Polaroids on the table, “he pissed somebody off.”

She pulled up her legs on the chair, holding them against her chest. “Chip,” she whispered, rocking back and forth. Lena had seen suspects do this often. It was a way they had of soothing themselves, as if over the years they had realized no one was going to do it for them, so they had to adapt.

Jeffrey asked, “Was somebody after him?”

She shook her head. “Everybody liked Chip.”

“I’d guess from these pictures there’s somebody out there who wouldn’t agree with you.” Jeffrey let that sink in. “Who would do this to him, Patty?”

“He was trying to do better,” she said, her voice still low. “He was trying to clean up.”

“He wanted to get off drugs?”

She was staring at the Polaroids, not touching them, and Jeffrey stacked them together, putting them back in his pocket. “Talk to me, Patty.”

Her body gave a great shudder. “They met on the farm.”

“The soy farm in Catoogah?” Jeffrey clarified. “Chip was there?”

“Yeah,” she said. “Everybody knows you can hang there for a couple of weeks if you need to. You go to church on Sundays, pick a couple of beans, and they give you food, give you a place to sleep. You pretend to pray and shit and they give you a safe place to stay.”

“Did Chip need a safe place to stay?”

She shook her head.

Jeffrey’s tone was conciliatory. “Tell me about Abby.”

“He met her on the farm. She was a kid. He thought she was funny. Next thing you know, he’s busted for holding. Goes up a few years. When he comes back, Abby’s all grown.” She wiped a tear from her eye. “She was just this goody-two-shoes bitch, and he fell for it. Fell for all of it.”

“Tell me what happened.”

“She’d come to the Kitty. Can you believe that?” She laughed at the absurdity. “She’d be in her ugly, plain clothes and Mary Janes and she’d say, ‘Come on, Chip, come on to church with me. Come pray with me.’ And he’d go right with her without even telling me good-bye.”

“Were they sexually involved?”

She snorted a laugh. “There’s not a crowbar been invented could pull those knees apart.”

“She was pregnant.”

O’Ryan’s head snapped up.

“Do you think Chip was the father?”

She didn’t even hear the question. Lena could see the anger building in her like a kettle about to boil over. She was like Cole Connolly in that they shared the same quick temper, but for some reason, Lena felt more of a threat from the girl being out of control than the older man.

“Stupid bitch,” she hissed through her teeth. She was clanging the handcuff against the metal ring again, rapping out noise like a snare drum. “He probably took her to the fucking woods. That was our fucking spot.”

“The woods over in Heartsdale? The forest?”

“Stupid cunt,” she spat, oblivious to the connection he was trying to make. “We used to go there and get high when we were in school.”

“You went to school with Chip?”

She indicated Buddy. “Till that fucker kicked me out,” she said. “Threw me on the streets. I had to fend for myself.” Buddy didn’t stir. “I told Chip to stay away from her. That whole fucking family is crazy.”

“What family?”

“The Wards,” she said. “Don’t think she’s the only one’a them been to the Kitty.”

“Who else has been?”

“All of them. All the brothers.”

“Which ones?”

“All of them!” she screamed, slamming her fist into the table so hard that Buddy’s crutch clattered to the floor.

Lena uncrossed her arms, ready to respond if O’Ryan tried to do something stupid.

“They pretend to be so high and mighty, but they’re just as disgusting as the rest of them.” Again, she snorted, this time sounding more like a pig. “That one had an itty-bitty cock, too. He’d come in about three seconds, then start to fucking cry like a girl.” She used a whiney tone: “‘Oh, Lord, I’m going to hell, oh, Lord, I’m gonna burn with Satan.’ Fucking made me sick. Bastard didn’t care about hell when he was grabbing my head, forcing me to swallow it.”

Buddy paled, his jaw slack.

Jeffrey asked, “Which brother, Patty?”

“The short one,” she said, scratching her arm so hard she left red streaks. “The one with the spiked-up hair.”

Lena tried to think which one she meant. Both Paul and Lev had been as tall as Jeffrey, both with a full head of hair.

O’Ryan kept scratching her arm. Soon, she would draw blood. “He’d give Chip whatever he wanted. Smack, coke, weed.”

“He was dealing?”

“He was giving it away.”

“He was giving away drugs?”

“Not to me,” she snapped angrily. She looked down at her arm, tracing the red streaks. Her leg started bobbing under the table again, and Lena guessed the girl was going to lose her shit if she didn’t get a needle in her arm soon.

O’Ryan said, “Just to Chip. He’d never give anything to me. I even offered him cash, but he told me to fuck off. Like his shit don’t smell.”

“Do you remember his name?”

“No,” she said. “He was always up there, though. Sometimes he’d just sit at the end of the bar and watch Chip. Probably wanted to fuck him.”

“Did he have red hair?”

“No,” she answered, like he was stupid.

“Did he have dark hair?”

“I don’t remember the color, okay?” Her eyes flashed, more like an animal needing to feed. “I’m done talking.” She told Buddy, “Get me out of here.”

Jeffrey said, “Hold on there.”

“I’ve got a job interview.”

“Right,” Jeffrey said.

“Get me out of here!” she yelled, leaning over the table as far as she could to get into Buddy’s face. “Now, goddammit!”

Buddy’s mouth smacked when he opened it. “I don’t think you’re done answering questions.’”

She mimicked him like a petulant three-year-old. “‘I don’t think you’re done answering questions.’”

“Settle down,” Buddy warned.

“You settle down, you one-legged piece of shit,” she screamed back. Her body was shaking again, vibrating from the need. “Get me the fuck out of here. Now!”

Buddy picked up his crutch off the floor. He wisely waited until he got to the door to say, “Chief, do whatever you want with her. I’m washing my hands.”

“You fucking cocksucking coward!” O’Ryan screeched, lunging for Buddy. She had forgotten she was still chained to the table and she was yanked back like a dog on a short leash. “Bastard!” she screamed, going into full meltdown. Her chair had been upturned in the scuffle and she kicked it across the room, then yelped from the pain in her foot. “I’ll sue you, you fucking bastards!” she yelled, clutching her foot. “Motherless fucks!”

“Patty?” Jeffrey asked. “Patty?”

Lena fought the urge to put her hands over her ears as the girl wailed like a siren. Jeffrey was scowling when he stood, sticking to the periphery of the room as he made his exit. Lena quickly followed him into the hall, keeping her eyes on O’Ryan until there was a solid door between them.

Jeffrey shook his head, like he couldn’t believe a human being was capable of acting that way. “This is the first time in my life I actually feel sorry for the bastard,” he said, meaning Buddy. He walked down the hall to get away from the noise. “Do you think there’s another Ward brother?”

“There has to be.”

“Black sheep?”

Lena remembered their conversation with the family two days ago. “That’s Paul’s job, I thought.”

“What?”

“Paul said he was the black sheep of the family.”

Jeffrey opened the fire door into the squad room for her. She could see Mark McCallum, the GBI polygraph expert, sitting in Jeffrey’s office. Across from him sat Lev Ward.

She asked, “How the hell did you manage that?”

“Got me,” Jeffrey told her, looking around the squad room, probably for Cole Connolly. Marla was at her desk, and he asked her, “Did Lev Ward come in alone?”

She glanced out through the lobby window. “Far as I can tell.”

“When did he get here?”

“About ten minutes ago.” She smiled helpfully. “I figured you’d want me to go ahead and call Mark over here to get started before lunch.”

“Thanks,” he told her, walking back toward his office.

Lena offered, “You want me to get Brad and go fetch Cole?”

“Let’s hold off on that,” Jeffrey said, knocking on his office door.

Mark waved them in. “Just getting set up,” he told them.

“Thanks for staying in town, Mark.” Jeffrey shook the man’s hand. “I hear you’ve been enjoying the room service over at the Dew Drop.”

Mark cleared his throat and went back to twisting some knobs on his machine.

“Chief,” Lev said, looking as comfortable as anyone can with their body wired to a polygraph machine. “I got your message this morning. I’m sorry I couldn’t make it yesterday.”

“Thanks for coming in,” Jeffrey said, taking out his notebook. He wrote as he talked. “I appreciate you taking the time to do this.”

“The family is getting together at the church in a few hours to pay tribute to Abby.” He turned to Lena. “Good morning, Detective,” he said quietly, then focused back on Jeffrey. “I’d like as much time as I can to prepare my remarks. This is a very difficult time for us all.”

Jeffrey didn’t look up from his writing. “I was expecting Cole Connolly to come with you.”

“I’m sorry,” Lev said. “Cole didn’t mention anything to me. He’ll be at the tribute. I’ll tell him to come by directly after.”

He kept writing on the pad. “You’re not having a funeral?”

“Unfortunately, the body had to be cremated. We’re just doing a small fellowship with the family to talk about her life and how much we all loved her. We like to do things simply.”

Jeffrey finished writing. “Outsiders aren’t welcome?”

“Well, it’s not a regular service, more a family gathering. Listen-”

Jeffrey tore off the sheet of paper and handed it to Mark. “We’ll get you out of here as quickly as possible.”

Lev eyed the note, not hiding his curiosity. “I appreciate that.” He sat back in the chair. “Paul was against my coming here, but I’ve always believed it’s better to cooperate.”

“Mark?” Jeffrey asked as he sat down behind his desk. “It’s not too cramped with all of us in here, is it?”

“Uh…” Mark hesitated for a split second. Normally, he was alone in the room with the subject, but it wasn’t as if polygraphs were admissible in court, and Ward hadn’t been arrested. Lena suspected that, more than anything else, lie detector machines were just meant to scare the crap out of people. She wouldn’t be surprised to open one up and find mice inside scurrying on wheels.

“Sure,” Mark said. “No problem.” He fiddled with more dials, then uncapped his pen. “Reverend Ward, are you ready to begin?”

“Lev, please.”

“All right.” Mark had a notebook beside the polygraph that was hidden from Lev by the bulk of the machine. He opened it up, tucking Jeffrey’s note into the pocket. “I’d like to remind you to stick to yes or no answers, if you could. We don’t need you to elaborate on anything at this point. Anything you feel needs an explanation can be discussed with Chief Tolliver later. The machine will only register yes and no responses.”

Lev glanced at the blood pressure cuff on his arm. “I understand.”

Mark flipped on a switch and paper slowly scrolled from the machine. “Please try to relax and stare straight ahead.”

The colored needles on the page twitched as Lev said, “All right.”

Mark kept his tone flat as he read from the questions. “Your name is Thomas Leviticus Ward?”

“Yes.”

Mark made a notation on the paper. “You live at Sixty-three Plymouth Road?”

“Yes.”

Another notation. “You are forty-eight years of age?”

“Yes.”

And another. “You have a son, Ezekiel?”

“Yes.”

“Your wife is deceased?”

“Yes.”

The questioning continued through the mundane details of Lev’s life to establish a baseline for the veracity of his answers. Lena had no idea what the bouncing needles signified, and Mark’s marks were hieroglyphics to her. She found herself zoning out until they got to the important parts.

Mark’s voice remained flat and disinterested, as if he was still asking about Lev’s educational background. “Do you know of anyone in your niece Abigail’s life who might wish her harm?”

“No.”

“Has anyone to your knowledge ever expressed sexual interest in her?”

“No.”

“Did you kill your niece Abigail?”

“No.”

“Has she ever expressed interest in someone you might find inappropriate?”

“No.”

“Were you ever angry at your niece?”

“Yes.”

“Did you ever strike her?”

“Once on the bottom. I mean, yes.” He smiled nervously. “Sorry.”

Mark ignored the interruption. “Did you kill Abigail?”

“No.”

“Did you ever have sexual contact with her?”

“Never. I mean, no.”

“Did you ever have any inappropriate contact with her?”

“No.”

“Have you met a man named Dale Stanley?”

Lev seemed surprised. “Yes.”

“Did you go into his garage with him?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have a brother named Paul Ward?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have any other brothers?”

“No.”

“Do you know where your niece Rebecca Bennett is?”

Lev gave Jeffrey a surprised look.

Mark repeated, “Do you know where your niece Rebecca Bennett is?”

Lev returned his focus straight ahead, answering, “No.”

“Was there anything in Dale Stanley’s garage that you took away with you?”

“No.”

“Did you bury Abigail in the woods?”

“No.”

“Do you have any knowledge of anyone who might mean to do harm to your niece?”

“No.”

“Have you ever been to the Pink Kitty?”

His lips frowned in confusion. “No.”

“Did you ever find your niece sexually attractive?”

He hesitated, then, “Yes, but-”

Mark stopped him. “Yes or no, please.”

For the first time, Lev seemed to lose some of his composure. He shook his head, as if to admonish himself for his answer. “I need to explain myself.” He looked at Jeffrey. “Could we please stop this?” He didn’t wait for a response before tugging the pads off his chest and fingers.

Mark offered, “Let me,” obviously wanting to protect his equipment.

Lev said, “I’m sorry. I just… This is just too much.”

Jeffrey indicated that Mark should let Lev unhook himself from the machine.

“I was trying to be honest,” Lev said. “Good Lord, what a mess.”

Mark closed his notebook. Jeffrey told Lev, “We’ll be back in a second.”

Lena moved out of their way, taking Jeffrey’s chair as the two men walked out to talk.

“I would never hurt Abby,” Lev told her. “What a mess. What a mess.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Lena said, leaning back in the chair. She hoped she didn’t look as smug as she felt. Something in her gut had told her Lev was involved. It would only be a matter of time before Jeffrey cracked him.

Lev clasped his hands between his knees and bent over. He stayed that way until Jeffrey came back into the room. He started talking before Jeffrey could take Mark’s seat. “I was trying to be honest. I didn’t want some foolish lie to make you… Oh, good Lord. I’m sorry. I’ve made such a mess here.”

Jeffrey shrugged like it was a simple misunderstanding. “Explain it to me.”

“She was…” He covered his face with his hands. “She was an attractive girl.”

“Looked a lot like your sister,” Lena remembered.

“Oh, no,” Lev said, his voice shaking. “I have never been inappropriate with either my sister or my niece. Any of my nieces.” His tone almost begged them to believe him. “There was one time-one time- Abby was walking through the office. I didn’t know it was her. I just saw her from behind and my reaction was…” He directed his words toward Jeffrey. “You know how it is.”

“I don’t have any pretty little nieces,” he answered.

“Oh, Lord.” Lev sighed. “Paul told me I would regret this.” He sat back up, clearly troubled. “Listen, I’ve read my share of true crime stories. I know how this works. You always look at family members first. I wanted to rule that out. I wanted to be as honest as I could.” He rolled his eyes up at the ceiling, as if hoping for an intervention from on high. “It was one time. She was walking down the aisle by the photocopier, and I didn’t recognize her from behind, and when she turned around, I almost fell on the floor. It’s not that-” He stopped, then continued, treading carefully. “It’s not that I was thinking it through, let alone considering it. I was just staring into space, and I thought, ‘Well, there’s a nice-looking woman,’ and then I saw it was Abby and, I promise you, I couldn’t even talk to her for a month afterward. I have never felt so ashamed about anything in my life.”

Lev held out his hands. “When the officer asked that question, that’s the first thing that popped into my mind- that day. I knew he’d be able to tell if I was lying.”

Jeffrey took his sweet time revealing, “The test was inconclusive.”

All the air seemed to go out of Lev. “I’ve messed things up by trying to make them right.”

“Why didn’t you want to report the fact that your other niece is missing?”

“It seemed-” He stopped, as if he couldn’t find the answer. “I didn’t want to waste your time. Becca runs off a lot. She’s very melodramatic.”

Jeffrey asked, “Did you ever touch Abigail?”

“Never.”

“Did she ever spend time alone with you?”

“Yes, of course. I’m her uncle. I’m her minister.”

Lena asked, “Did she ever confess anything to you?”

“That’s not how it works,” Lev said. “We would just talk. Abby loved reading the Bible. She and I would parse the scriptures. We played Scrabble. I do this with all my nieces and nephews.”

Jeffrey told him, “You can see why this sounds strange to us.”

“I am so sorry,” Lev said. “I’ve not helped this along one bit.”

“No,” Jeffrey agreed. “What were you doing on the Stanley place?”

He took a moment to shift his train of thought. “Dale called about some of our people using his property as a cut-through. I spoke to him, walked the property line and agreed to put up a fence.”

“Odd that you did this personally,” Jeffrey suggested. “You’re pretty much in charge of the farm, aren’t you?”

“Not really,” he answered. “We all run our various areas.”

“That wasn’t my impression,” Jeffrey said. “You seem like the man in charge to me.”

Lev seemed reluctant to admit, “I’m responsible for the day-to-day operations.”

“It’s a pretty large place.”

“Yes, it is.”

“Walking Dale’s property line, talking about building a fence, that wasn’t something you’d delegate?”

“My father is constantly on me to do just that. I’m afraid I’m a bit of a control freak. It’s something I should work on.”

“Dale’s a big guy,” Jeffrey said. “It didn’t bother you to go out there alone?”

“Cole was with me. He’s the foreman on our farm. I don’t know if you had time to get into that yesterday. He’s one of the original success stories at Holy Grown. My father ministered to him in prison. Over two decades later, Cole’s still with us.”

Jeffrey said, “He was convicted of armed robbery.”

Lev nodded, saying, “That’s right. He was going to rob a convenience store. Someone turned him in. The judge didn’t take kindly to him. I’m sure Cole made his bed, just as I’m sure he lay in it for twentysome years. He’s a very different man from the one who helped plan that robbery.”

Jeffrey moved him along. “Did you go into Dale’s shop?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Dale Stanley. Did you go into his shop when you went out there to talk about the fence?”

“Yes. I’m not normally into cars-that’s not my thing-but it seemed polite to oblige.”

Lena asked, “Where was Cole during all of this?”

“He stayed in the car,” Lev told her. “I didn’t bring him for intimidation. I just wanted to make sure Dale knew I wasn’t alone.”

“Cole stayed in the car the whole time?” Jeffrey asked.

“Yes.”

“Even when you walked back across the fence line between your property and Dale’s?”

“It’s the church’s property, but yes.”

Jeffrey asked, “Have you ever used Cole for intimidation?”

Lev looked uncomfortable. He took his time answering. “Yes.”

“In what way?”

“Sometimes we have people who want to take advantage of the system. Cole talks to them. He takes it personally when people try to exploit the church. The family, really. He has an extraordinary loyalty to my father.”

“Does he ever get physical with them, these people who try to take advantage?”

“No,” Lev insisted. “Absolutely not.”

“Why are you so certain?”

“Because he’s aware of his problem.”

“What does that mean?”

“He has- had- a very bad temper.” Lev seemed to be remembering something. “I’m sure your wife told you about his outburst last night. Believe me, it’s simply a matter of him being passionate about his beliefs. I’ll be the first to admit that he went a little overboard, but I would have handled the situation if the need arose.”

Lena wondered what the hell he was talking about, but she knew better than to interrupt.

For his part, Jeffrey skipped it completely, asking, “How bad was Cole’s temper? You said he had a bad temper. How bad was it?”

“He used to get physical. Not when Papa knew him, but before.” Lev added, “He’s a very strong man. Very powerful.”

Jeffrey fished out some line. “I’m not trying to contradict you, Lev, but I had him in here yesterday. He looks like a pretty harmless guy to me.”

“He is harmless,” Lev said. “Now.”

“Now?”

“He was special ops in the army. He did a lot of bad things. You don’t start using a thousand dollars’ worth of heroin a week because you’re happy with your life.” He seemed to sense Jeffrey’s impatience. “The armed robbery,” Lev added. “He probably would have gotten a lighter sentence- he didn’t even make it into the store- but he resisted arrest. An officer was badly beaten, almost lost an eye.” Lev seemed troubled by the image. “Cole used his hands on him.”

Jeffrey sat up. “That wasn’t on his record.”

“I can’t tell you why,” Lev said. “I’ve never seen his records, of course, but he isn’t ashamed about admitting his past transgressions. He’s talked about it in front of the congregation as part of his Testament.”

Jeffrey was still on the edge of his seat. “You said he used his hands?”

“His fists,” Lev elaborated. “He made money from bare-knuckle boxing before he was thrown in jail. He did some serious damage to some people. It’s a part of his life he’s not proud of.”

Jeffrey took a moment to process that. “Cole Connolly’s head is shaved.”

Lev’s change in posture showed that was the last thing he was expecting. “Yes,” he said. “He shaved it last week. He used to keep it in a military cut.”

“Spiky?”

“I guess you could say that. Sometimes the sweat would dry and it stuck up a bit.” He smiled sadly. “Abby used to tease him about it.”

Jeffrey crossed his arms. “How would you describe Cole’s relationship with Abby?”

“Protective. Honorable. He’s good to all the kids on the farm. I would hardly say he singled Abby out for attention.” He added, “He watches Zeke for me all the time. I trust him completely.”

“Do you know a Chip Donner?”

Lev seemed surprised by the name. “He worked on the farm off and on for a few years. Cole told me he stole some money from petty cash. We asked him to leave.”

“You didn’t call the police?”

“We don’t normally involve the police in our affairs. I know that sounds bad-”

“Stop worrying about how things sound, Reverend Ward, and just tell us what happened.”

“Cole asked the Donner boy to leave. The next day he was gone.”

“Do you know where Cole is right now?”

“We all took the morning off because of Abby’s tribute. I imagine he’s in his apartment over the barn, getting ready.” Lev tried again, “Chief Tolliver, believe me, all of this is in his past. Cole is a gentle man. He’s like a brother to me. To all of us.”

“Like you said, Reverend Ward, we need to eliminate family first.”