Page 43 of So Twisted

“I don’t know. The kid’s… Well, she’s still a kid. Half the time, she’s shrewd and sharp and half the time she does stuff that’s so stupid it boggles the mind. This is one of the latter. Either way, the news media has your face all over tvs talking about how you’re dodging questions about the West case that could suggest West might be innocent or might have come to justice through illegal means.”

Michael swore softly. Faith paled. “And if people out here recognize me, they might tip the media off.”

“Yes. We’re pulling you out of the field for a while. Sorry, Faith. I know you didn’t want things to get this far, but we’ve got no choice. I need you on the next flight to Philadelphia. Prince, are you there?”

Michael cleared his throat. “Here, sir.”

“Prince, I’m sending Ralston out to finish this case with you.”

Faith flinched. “What?”

"You heard me, Bold. You're coming home, Ralston's flying out. His K9 will join him, so you're not down a team member, Prince."

“That’s bullshit, sir! You can’t take me off of an active case!”

“I can. I have to. I did. I’m sorry, Faith. We tried.”

“That’s…” she pursed her lips. “Sir, I’m sorry. I think there’s a connection issue. I’ll call you back when I have an update on the case.”

“Bold, don’t be a child. I’m no happier about this than you are, but I’ve got my hands tied behind my back.”

“I’ll talk to you later, sir.”

“Bold, don’t you dare hang up! Prince, did you understand my instructions?”

Michael looked at Faith. He hesitated for a moment, then sighed. “Sorry, sir. You’re breaking up.”

“Bold! Prince! God damn it, I—”

Faith ended the call and looked at Michael. Her partner met her eyes and said, “If you get me fired for this, I will move into your place in Allentown and be the loudest, most annoying, most obnoxious roommate you’ve ever had.”

She smiled softly. “Thank you, Michael.”

“Fuck you. Sincerely.” He sighed. “All right. So what’s it gonna be? Are we looking into their personal lives, or—”

Faith’s phone buzzed again. Cuthbert this time. She lifted an eyebrow and answered. “Hello, Detective.”

“Got something for you. Not sure how much yet, but it’s the only angle from this Knights of Nature thing that might turn into something.”

“Give it to me.”

“One of the kids we talked to tipped us to a man they had a run-in with last year. I guess he thought they were kicking their dog. The kid managed to stop the fight before anything happened by showing him the ball, but he said the rage in the man’s face scared the hell out of him.”

Faith raised an eyebrow. “Did the kid give you a name?”

“Yes. A former Animal Control officer named Nathan Reed. He shows up in our records as being fired for assaulting a dog owner when he got a call to her residence and found the animals in a severely malnourished state. Guess who the dog owner was?”

Faith’s eyes widened. “Alison Chen.”

“Yep. Split her lip and gave her a black eye. Better yet, security cameras at a convenience store a mile away from the Big Wilderness Zoo picked him up ten minutes after Dr. Vasquez was murdered. There are visible stains on his coat that could be blood. He lives across town from Big Wilderness Zoo.”

“Well, that’s interesting.”

“It gets better. Marcus Reeves trespassed him from the Wild World Adventure Park years ago because he was being, quote, ‘abusive to the zookeepers.’”

Faith grabbed a notebook and pen. “We’re on our way. What’s the address?”

Cuthbert provided it, and Faith said. “Thank you, Detective. We’ll keep you posted.”

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