Harm's Reach

29

Kristen Faule kept Ren and Janine waiting for over twenty minutes in the lobby of The Darned Heart. Eventually, a short, smiling blonde with legs like a wrestler appeared from behind the front desk and led them to the office. The introductions were awkward. Kristen sat at her desk with Ren and Janine on stiff wooden chairs facing her.

Pass to the comfortable sofas: revoked.

‘I’ll call Conor to the small meeting room when you’re ready to speak with him,’ said Kristen.

‘Thank you,’ said Ren.

Kristen clasped her hands and leaned toward them. ‘You have to understand, we were under strict orders to keep Conor’s presence here confidential. Our aim is very simply to help the teens who stay here. You know we’re bound by confidentiality, and it’s unfortunate under these circumstances, but I’m protecting the residents — not because they’ve committed a crime, but because they are in treatment. That’s why they’re here. They need time away from disruption and dysfunction.’

‘It’s not as straightforward as “resident X didn’t commit a crime”,’ said Ren. ‘Resident X may have seen something that will help find the killer of a pregnant young woman. There are all kinds of possibilities. Conor got in a bar fight — who knows what could have happened as a result of that? They could have found out where he was, decided to get their own back on him... This is our job, Mrs Faule. This is what we do best. We cast our net wide. And we need your help.’

‘I want to help,’ said Kristen. ‘But you know my hands are tied... unless you have something more concrete.’

‘Has Conor spoken to you about the death of his aunt?’ said Janine.

‘No,’ said Kristen. ‘He may have spoken to one of the counselors, but obviously, those conversations are strictly confidential.’

‘Does Conor have any particular friends here at the ranch?’ said Janine.

‘We don’t really encourage the kids to break away like that,’ said Kristen. ‘We like them to be supported in a group fashion. If they’re branching off in ones or twos—’

‘Mrs Faule, I get what you’re saying,’ said Ren, ‘but I think we both know that it doesn’t always go the way the grown-ups plan. These kids don’t exactly have a good track record with rules. It would help if you could point us in the direction of someone who knew Conor a little better than the rest of you.’

‘Excuse me,’ said Kristen. ‘I did nothing wrong. You know that the children who stay here are entitled to privacy. Unless you have a warrant, I can’t do anything. I’m not trying to be difficult here. Please understand that—’

‘I’m sorry, but I can’t,’ said Ren. ‘I’m at a loss as to how, when something like this happens, you don’t throw every single bit of information at me that you possibly can, just to help. You’re a helper, Mrs Faule. That’s why you chose to do something like this, right? That’s why I chose to be an FBI agent. I love helping. So does Detective Hooks here. I’m having a hard time with all this...’ She shrugged. ‘With your attitude... not to sound like a camp counselor about it. I’m repeating myself when I say how important your co-operation in this investigation is...’

‘I really do understand that,’ said Kristen.

‘There’s a killer who is still out there,’ said Janine. She paused. ‘Or in here.’

‘Come on,’ said Kristen. ‘There is hardly—’

‘You don’t know that,’ said Janine.

‘And I am co-operating,’ said Kristen. ‘Like I said — it’s down to confidentiality.’ She let out a breath.

‘Can I talk to you about your approach to rehab here?’ said Ren. ‘You use an outside facility, Wellness Partners, based at the Denver Tech Center?’

Kenneth Faule burst into the room, his arm outstretched. He paused mid-stride.

‘Oh,’ he said, looking at Janine and Ren. ‘Welcome.’

‘Thank you,’ said Ren. Welcome?

Kenneth went to Kristen’s desk and set a cell phone down on it. Kristen shook her head, weary. She took a sticker from a box in her letter tray and stuck it to the back of the phone. Kenneth wrote something on it, handed it back to her and she put it in a drawer.

‘Cell phones are forbidden here for the teens,’ said Kristen, ‘but someone always gives it a try. They get it back on their way out the door. And it’s not always the kids doing it. Sometimes it’s the parents sneaking a phone to them, giving in to their demands. I wonder sometimes do the parents actually miss the disruption in their home? Is the silence too much for them...?’

Or the lack of dramz.

‘Sorry for interrupting,’ said Kenneth. ‘I’ll let you get on with it.’ He left.

‘We were talking about rehab,’ said Ren.

Kristen nodded. ‘Yes, when we started out, running a rehab facility was not part of our plan. I didn’t want to go down that route, I saw it as a very dark world that I knew nothing about. I hope that doesn’t sound terrible. I saw the ranch as... I was naïve, I admit it... I saw the ranch as kind of a go-back-to-your-roots type of place, an innocent place. Of course, a lot of these kids have no such roots. And so many of them have addiction problems — illegal and prescription drugs. I never would have believed it was that bad. So, we outsourced the rehabilitation elements on a day basis. Kids who need that kind of care are brought there for a few hours every morning, then return here for the rest of their treatment.’

‘What time are these sessions at?’ said Ren.

‘They leave at nine and usually get back between eleven thirty and twelve,’ said Kristen. ‘I spoke with Detective Kohler, so did our bus driver. They didn’t see anything that day.’

‘Do you have plans to introduce rehab facilities here?’ said Ren.

Kristen frowned. ‘Well... yes,’ she said.

Ren waited.

‘Is that an issue?’ said Kristen.

‘No,’ said Ren. But I’m venturing you could do with the withdrawal of the long arm of the law. She stood up and shook Kristen’s hand. ‘Thank you for your time.’

You strange, competitive, faux-serene oddball. What are you hiding?

‘Let me take you to Conor,’ said Kristen.