Page 13 of Having HIs Back

She paused. “I see.”

“We’ve been trying to contact the father so we can speak with him, but he hasn’t seen fit to make himself available.”

“I’ll make a note in the case file so the legal staff is aware of the situation. You’ll need to contact us with a resolution.” She typed in the background.

“Thanks, Linda. I figured you all would want to know.”

Linda hummed a second while she continued working. “How did you know about this so quickly? Besides this being your case?” She seemed to be able to do two things at once.

“I got a call from the guardian of the children involved,” Brian answered her, cutting himself off from telling her anything further. He and Linda went way back, but they were not drinking or even coffee buddies any longer. Linda was good at her job, but outside of work, she tended to forget that she shouldn’t talk about things, and the last thing he wanted was anyone telling tales out of school. It would be bad form and could get him into trouble if anyone suspected that his professional objectivity had gotten a little stretched. “Thank you for everything.”

“Be sure to keep us updated,” Linda told him, and Brian promised that he would and ended the call. He had done what he could and hurried out of the station.

Kerry was nearly frantic when he arrived. Brian stepped inside, and Kerry wrapped him in a hug, pulling him close. Without thinking, Brian closed his eyes and inhaled deep, taking in Kerry’s rich scent—tinged with soap and a touch of worry. He returned the hug, knowing that Kerry needed comfort and reassurance. But the hold quickly went beyond that, and Brian didn’t mind for a second. His emotions were quickly getting pulled closer to Kerry and the boys. He knew he should step away, but he couldn’t bring himself to do that. “It’s going to be all right.” His professional judgment and feelings quickly jumbled into a kind of soup that he hoped to hell he was going to be able to sort out somehow… maybe…. God, he was so screwed,because all he wanted to do was hold Kerry forever and keep all the bad things at bay.

The boys were outside playing, and when Kerry released him, he returned to watching through one of the windows. “How can they allow this to happen?” Kerry asked.

“I’m no expert on these sorts of things. I’m a cop. I solve crimes. Have you been in contact with a lawyer?”

“Not yet. The papers just arrived this morning.” He went to the coffee table and handed Brian the white envelope they came in. “I’m really not sure what I should do. The thought of Phillip going with someone he has never met, regardless of whether this guy is involved in Caroline’s death….”

“Do you have Caroline’s will where she names you as the children’s guardian?” Brian asked, and Kerry nodded. “Then that’s your main weapon. If Charlie hasn’t been in his kid’s life, and you can prove that you have, and that you as guardian was the mother’s wish, then I’d say you had a chance since Caroline had sole custody. But I’m no expert, and you’ll need to get a lawyer.”

“I will.”

“And I need to get this case resolved. If he is the one who killed Caroline, then that nullifies his claim, not least of all because he’ll be in prison, but you can’t benefit from murder. We need to find out what Henry saw… if anything.”

Kerry nodded. “I’ve been giving that some thought. It’s best if things like this are done in a safe space, so I thought Henry and I could speak in his room. I’ll contact Karen to see if she can watch Phillip for a few hours. Then we’ll gently sit Henry down and ask him. You can’t be in the room, but I’ll record the session, and you can listen from the hallway. I know it isn’t ideal, but I don’t think we can wait.”

Brian knew it would be best if it was done with cameras and stuff, but this latest development added an extra time crunch,and it wasn’t like they were going to put Henry on the stand. He just needed to know what he saw.

“Okay. Set up what you can. I need to make a few calls to the station.” He stepped out of the house to give Kerry a chance to set things up the way he wanted them. Brian reported to the captain about what he’d planned and checked in with Janine to see if anything had come in.

“No test results yet,” she told him. “When I called, they said that we should have results in a few days. What happened? You bugged out of here like a bat out of hell.”

“One of the suspects is trying to sue for custody of one of the kids. We need to get to the bottom of this fast or else a possible murderer is going to put this family through even more hell.”

“Let me check. I can add pressure because this involves family court, and those cases always have tight timelines.” Brian was grateful for her quick thinking. Janine was a smart one, and he was pleased he got to work with her.

“Great. Look. I’m going to need you here. We are going to see if we can learn anything from the oldest boy. Can you come? Don’t use sirens and make as little noise or fuss as you can. Any hope we have of getting information from him relies on Henry feeling unpressured and as safe as possible.” He wanted more than just himself to witness anything that happened here.

“Okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Brian explainedto Kerry that his partner was coming as well and that she would wait outside the room with him. “How do you see this working?”

“Well, Henry and I are going to have a talk in his room. I’m hoping that I can get a conversation going between us and that he’ll open up. I don’t know if he will, but if he does, we may get something. If not, we can keep the appointment we alreadyhave and maybe the therapist at the children’s psychological center can help. I know this is going to be hard on him, so no matter what he says, you and Janine must stay out of the room. I will record the session because you’ll need it, but that’s all. No cameras or cell phones,” Kerry cautioned, speaking softly.

“And Phillip?” He wanted to make sure that all of them were safe.

“He’s going next door. Karen will watch him. He likes going over there because Karen is a baker and she makes lots of cookies. She’s aware of what is happening and told me that she will keep Phillip inside with all the doors and windows locked.” Kerry was still nervous.

“Go ahead and take Phillip over to Karen’s and get him settled. Once Janine arrives, she and I will wait for you. Then you can relax and get yourself prepared.” He placed his hands on Kerry’s shoulders, looking into his incredible eyes. “I know you can do this better than some stranger in an office. He knows you and trusts you. And you have done this before?” He phrased it as a question, but he already knew the answer.

“Many times. I just need to get my head in the game.” He stayed where he was, and Brian held his gaze, trying to give him all the confidence he could. “Let me get Phillip settled and then we’ll do this.”

“What about Pebbles?” Brian asked as the dog rolled onto his back, looking for belly rubs. Brian knelt and gave the happy guy what he wanted.

“He’s going to be part of the session.” Kerry got Phillip from his room, while Henry was in the bathroom, and spoke to him quietly. Then he came out holding Phillip’s hand, a stuffed rabbit under his arm. “Miss Karen will have cookies for you.”

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