Page 93 of Commit

I frown. “A community center. Seems like an odd spot to put one.”

Atlas starts typing again, then stops and starts scrolling.

“It was an old church that was split into two when it was renovated. Half of it is the recruitment center. The other half is the community center. They offer a bunch of different programs, activities, and services, like fitness classes, counseling.”

“Wait, counseling?” I tap my fingers on my leg while I think. “What if the recruitment center is irrelevant and they used the community center instead?”

Atlas nods. “It’s possible.”

“And if that’s the case, we have a bunch more people we can question.”

“You think they’ll remember seeing the twins?”

“Maybe. But I’m hoping they might have also seen the killer. They just don’t know it.”

The counselor stares at the photo and nods.

“Yeah, I recognize them. That’s Kyle and Conner. Why?”

“They were found dead a few days ago.”

“You’re sure it was them?” I nod, and he sighs. “What a shame. Nice guys. Intense though. But you see that a lot with soldiers who’ve seen active duty.”

I look at the small guy in front of me who runs some of the counseling programs here at the center. He’s probably around five-five at the most and built like a prepubescent teen going through that awkward phase most of us grow out of.

“How well did you know them?” Kenzo asks.

He purses his lips in thought. “I saw them once every two weeks for about two years, but I haven’t seen either of them in eight months.”

The guy looks at me, then at Atlas. “I’m sorry, who did you say you were again?”

“I’m Atlas. This is my associate, Pete. Pete served with them.”

“Oh man, I’m sorry for your loss. Like I said, good guys, but a little lost. They got out around three years ago, which you probably know. Not only did they have to readjust to civilian life, but they also had to deal with the fact that both their parents and their sister had died in a freak accident while they were overseas. Luckily, they had a lawyer to take care of things on this end until they completed their term.”

“When we last spoke to the cops, they hadn’t officially identified them yet. They were waiting for family. But if there’s none…”

“I’m not sure. Oh, wait, Kyle had an ex-wife. She could have made the identification. From what I understood, they remained friends after the divorce.”

“I was unaware they were still in contact,” I lie smoothly. I didn’t even know he’d been married.

“Do the numbers fourteen and four mean anything to you?”

He shakes his head, confused. “Should they?”

“No, don’t worry about it. Alright, thanks. We’d better be going. I appreciate you talking to us.” I hold out my hand for him to shake, which he does, followed by Atlas’s.

Atlas pulls out a business card and hands it to him. “If you think of anything else, give me a call.”

“Shouldn’t I call the police first?”

“Unfortunately, with the lack of evidence, cases like these turn cold quickly and end up in a file somewhere behind a dozen other active cases. We want more for them than that. They fought for our country. The least we can do is fight for them.”

“On that, we can all agree.”

“One last thing, do you remember seeing them speak to anyone or argue with anyone the last time they were here?”

He frowns. “They were never here.”

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