Harm's Reach

42

Ren arrived into Safe Streets, beaming.

‘Hasn’t your boyfriend gone home this morning?’ said Cliff.

‘Yes,’ said Ren, ‘he has.’ She leaned in to Cliff and whispered, ‘But not before I told him that I loved him...’

‘And how much Valium have you taken as a direct result?’ said Cliff.

‘Collapsing in five, four, three...’

‘Well, good for you,’ said Cliff, patting her arm. His lip started to quiver.

‘OK, I know that’s not about me,’ said Ren. She tilted her head. ‘Did you have a fight with Brenda?’

He laughed. ‘I did not,’ he said. ‘But I am very happy for you. Ben is a good guy.’

‘With poor judgment.’ Ren fired up her computer. ‘Speaking of good guys, here comes Everett King!’

‘Well, what a welcome,’ said Everett. ‘I might need to hear that every morning.’

‘Do not expect consistency from Ren Bryce,’ said Cliff.

Ren nodded. ‘And that’s one of my lines.’ She looked around. ‘Who’s here?’

‘Everyone,’ said Cliff.

Ren waited until the team had gathered and Gary had arrived. She called Janine, put her on speaker and told them all Terry Ragland’s story.

‘So, Jesse Coombes is a violent evangelical car-torcher?’ said Janine.

‘Firestone and brimstone...’ said Cliff. ‘So, we’ve got one kid in there who has a history of carjacking, hotwiring and beating the shit out of people... and we’ve got Conor Gorman, a kid with a history of beating the shit out of people...’

‘Oh, and he crashed a Lotus, didn’t he?’ said Ren.

‘And they’re just the kids we know about,’ said Janine.

‘But there’s a big difference between messing around with cars, beating kids up and shooting dead a pregnant woman...’ said Ren. ‘I mean, it doesn’t sound good for Jesse Coombes, but it could be just that he wanted to run away from the ranch, took Kendall’s car, is driving down Stoney Pass Road, comes across Laura Flynn being shot at, panics, returns to the ranch with the car, lights it on fire, tells the Faules, they handle it, believing that he wasn’t responsible for the murder and not wanting the murder to be in any way associated with the ranch — whether that’s just the publicity in general or the fact that it’s revealed that one of their teens was in a position to escape in the first place... or set a car on fire.’ Pheeew.

‘Option two,’ said Cliff, ‘is Jesse Coombes comes across Laura Flynn, tries to carjack her, kills her, panics—’

‘Where does he get the gun, though?’ said Ren.

‘Maybe it was her gun,’ said Cliff.

‘If she had a gun, a young Irish girl like that... she must have really felt that her life was in danger,’ said Ren. She paused. ‘That’s why she drove back from Chicago! She had a gun. She wouldn’t have gotten through security at the airport...’

‘You think she went all the way to Chicago for a gun?’ said Gary.

‘No,’ said Ren, ‘but it was part of the plan. Who else do we know she had contact with there?’

‘I can check that here,’ said Janine.

Ren sat forward. ‘Hold on. Didn’t Laura Flynn stay in the Ramada Bolingbrook during her trip there?’

‘Yes,’ said Janine.

Ren Googled it. ‘That Ramada is not far from Stateville prison. Seven miles. I’ve even got hits here from a forum recommending it as a good place to stay if you’re visiting someone there. Holy shit.’ She stood up. ‘Derrick Charles — the NFL buddy of Kenneth Faule who’s supposed to have strangled his wife. Isn’t he in Stateville? Could there be a connection that way?’

‘Cue: me,’ said Everett. ‘Robert Prince donated fifty thousand dollars to Derrick Charles’ appeal fund back in September.’

‘No fucking way,’ said Ren.

‘All the fucking way,’ said Everett.

Gary looked like he was regretting the union of Ren Bryce and Everett King.

‘When did you find that out?’ said Ren.

‘First thing this morning, I just didn’t get a chance to say it,’ said Everett.

‘Robert Prince is like some kind of stealth donor,’ said Ren. ‘If this didn’t all happen before the murder, I would think he was paying everyone off...’

‘Go talk to the Faules,’ said Gary.

Woo-hoo!

Kristen Faule was in the stables when Janine and Ren arrived at The Darned Heart. She kept them waiting in reception, before taking them to her office when she arrived, her hair wet from the shower.

‘Mrs Faule,’ said Ren, ‘did you know that Robert Prince had made a donation to Derrick Charles’ appeal fund?’

Kristen Faule’s eyes went wide.

Ooh. You did not know. You are shocked by this.

‘No,’ said Kristen. ‘Kenneth deals with the appeal fund.’

‘Were you aware of a connection between Robert Prince and Derrick Charles?’ said Ren.

‘No,’ said Kristen. ‘Let me call Kenneth in here.’

She pushed each button of her husband’s extension number with ill-contained anger. ‘Kenneth, can you come in here, please? The detectives are here again.’

Again.

Kenneth came in and sat down. ‘How can I help you?’ he said.

‘Do you know why Robert Prince was donating to Derrick Charles’ appeal fund?’ said Ren.

There was an irritating tapping sound.

He paused. ‘How did you know about that?’

I choose the meaningful stare in response to your bold question. No words.

‘Well, like anyone else,’ said Kenneth, ‘because he believes in his innocence.’

‘Did he know Charles before the case that you’re aware of?’ said Ren.

‘Not that I know,’ said Kenneth. ‘From what Mr Prince told me, he read about Charles’ case in the newspaper, thought that it didn’t ring true, and he decided to put some money toward the campaign to have him released.’

‘So you spoke to Mr Prince personally?’ said Ren.

‘Yes,’ said Kenneth.

I wonder why Robert Prince didn’t donate totally anonymously?

‘He wanted to keep this absolutely private,’ said Kenneth. ‘He was insistent, because of his position, that it may not look good to some people.’

Like the OCBLA.

He turned to his wife. ‘I signed a confidentiality agreement,’ he said. ‘Sorry, but I couldn’t say anything, even to you.’

‘It’s just that there are many people in the spotlight who’ve been found guilty of crimes, while protesting their innocence,’ said Ren. ‘Why do you think Derrick Charles’ case caught Robert Prince’s attention?’

‘Maybe he was a Broncos fan?’ said Kenneth. ‘Maybe Derrick Charles had carried out charity work for one of the Princes’ favorite charities? I really don’t know. You should maybe ask him.’

He said it politely, but there was a tone.

Ren realized the irritating sound was Kristen Faule’s fingers tapping on the table. She noticed Ren noticing and she stopped.

‘Has Robert Prince gone to Stateville to meet with Derrick Charles?’ said Ren.

‘Not that I’m aware of,’ said Kenneth. He turned to Kristen. ‘You?’

‘No,’ said Kristen.

‘Does that strike you as odd?’ said Ren to Kenneth. ‘That he donates money, but he hasn’t even met the man?’

‘No,’ said Kenneth, ‘should it?’

‘It’s just...’ said Ren, ‘if I was handing over a large donation, because I believed in someone, I’d want to meet them, because... well, I would venture that, although the money is of a huge help to the accused, the fact that a stranger is standing before them, looking them in the eye and telling them that they believe in them would be what mattered.’

Kristen shrugged. ‘I guess so.’

‘Robert Prince is a busy man,’ said Kenneth.

‘Do you know anything about Laura Flynn and a visit to Stateville?’ said Ren. Could Robert Prince have sent her there?

‘Laura Flynn?’ said Kristen. ‘The murder victim? No.’ She frowned. ‘Kenneth?’

He shook his head. ‘No. Certainly, Robert Prince never mentioned her.’