Page 46 of Crosshairs

“I don’t think you killed Hannah,” Linc said softly, shifting into the “good cop” role.

Drew jerked his head toward him, suspicion in his eyes.

“I think you’ve gotten caught up in a bad situation. Now’s the time to tell your side of the story.”

The boy should never play poker. Suspicion and the desire to set the record straight played out in his face. “I...” He licked his lips. “I saw this kid we go to school with when I peeled out of there. He was standing on the road that goes to the church.”

“What’s his name?” Ainsley asked.

Drew scrunched his forehead. “Colby?” He shook his head. “No ... he’s a nerd, hangs out with the weirdos.” He snapped his fingers. “Colton. That’s who it was, but I don’t know his last name. Maybe that’s who killed her.”

Linc hoped not. While he’d only met Colton today, he’d felt sorry for the kid.

“Do you think he was going to meet Hannah?” Linc asked, still keeping his voice soft.

“I don’t know. Maybe.” Then he shook his head. “Even Hannah wouldn’t mess around with Colton.”

“Do you know anyone else Hannah was dating?” When he gave her a blank stare, Ainsley added, “How about hanging out with?”

Red crept up Drew’s neck and into his face. “She, uh, might’ve been hanging with some of the other guys on the football team.”

Great. The suspect pool just grew substantially.

“Could you make us a list of guys she might’ve been friends with?” Linc asked.

Drew flinched. “I’d rather not.”

“And the reason would be ...” Austin’s stare bore into his son.

“I’m not snitching on my friends.”

“I admire your loyalty,” Linc said. “But it wouldn’t be snitching.”

“Maybe not to you,” Drew shot back, folding his arms across his chest. “Ask around. Someone else will tell you. Or look at her TikTok page.”

“I’ll get you that list,” Austin said, his voice tight. The jut of the teenager’s jaw promised a battle.

“Can you tell me if Hannah had any enemies?” Ainsley asked.

He shifted his gaze to her, his chin relaxing. “Some of the girls at school didn’t like her, but they wouldn’t have killed her.”

Linc looked over the list of questions he had in his notebook. Drew was shutting down, and they wouldn’t get much more from him. “Do you know if she was involved in anything illegal other than marijuana?”

Drew’s hesitation was followed by a quick shrug, but no information was forthcoming.

His grandfather cleared his throat, and the boy jumped. “Answer the question.”

“Just the weed, but—” He looked up at Linc, his eyes pleading. “I just knew her from school, that’s all, I promise.” Drew sagged against the back of the chair. “Hannah was really smart and was just helping me with my math class.”

Linc waited to see if the boy would add any other information. When he didn’t, Linc glanced at Ainsley, and her expression mirrored his feelings. They were done here. She stopped the recording.

“Can I go now?” Drew asked.

“As far as I’m concerned, we’re through for today.” Ainsley plucked a card from her backpack and wrote on the back before she handed it to the boy. “I’ll probably be back with more questions as the investigation progresses. If you remember anything, no matter how insignificant you think it is, give me or Linc a call. I wrote his number on the card.”

Drew hadn’t told them all he knew, and the threat of them returning should keep the teen’s anxiety level up. Might even loosen his tongue a little when they did. The boy shot out of the chair and out the door without giving a backward glance. At least he hadn’t thrown the card on the table but tucked it in his back pocket.

Ainsley stood and Linc followed suit. “Thanks for talking to us,” she said.

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