Page 124 of Not Quite Dead Yet

‘No one today.’

‘Perfect.’ Gerry grinned. ‘Let’s get to the agenda.’

Jet leaned forward this time, pausing the video, freezing them all.

‘Next?’ Billy asked.

But it was something else.

‘I just realized something,’ Jet said, mind aching as it reeled back, her eyes fixed on Mom’s pixelated face, staring across at the new chief. ‘The vote for the police chief, it’s a secret ballot, right? At the Halloween Fair, I heard Gerry telling your dad that he voted for him, not Lou. And obviously David Dale would have voted for your dad; he and Jack and Luke play golf together, like, every weekend.’

‘Right?’ Billy said, bending it into a question.

‘Well, for Lou to have won, that means my mom must have voted for Lou, not your dad. There are five trustees.’

‘Oh.’ Billy turned back to the screen.

‘Why would my mom vote for Lou Jankowski?’ she said. ‘She probably didn’t even know Lou before, and she’s known your dad for over thirty years, been neighbors all that time. I just assumed it was Mom and David for your dad and the others voted against him. Why would Mom vote for Lou instead?’

Billy shrugged. ‘Maybe she thought he’d do a better job.’

‘Seems like a bit of a dick move,’ Jet said. ‘They’re friends. Anyway, not relevant – we’re looking for a cat.’

Jet exited the video, on to the next.

‘Doesn’t look like they had a meeting in December, so we’re into November 2024 and –’

Gerry Clay spoke over her, from the speakers.

‘– This is Chair Gerry Clay, calling to order this Village of Woodstock Board of Trustees meeting. It is 6:30, November twelfth, and present we have …’ Jet skipped ahead, dragging the cursor to the end of the names.

Lou Jankowski was gone, replaced with the old police chief. Much older, in fact, hair snow white and so thin it almost looked like it was floating above his uncovered head.

Jet circled his face with the on-screen arrow, poking him in the eyes. ‘Can’t wait to retire,’ she said, putting on an old-man voice. ‘These meetings are so fucking boring.’

‘Yeah,’ Billy joined in. ‘Can’t wait to do all that old-people shit. Puzzles. Gardening.’

‘Bang so many bitches,’ Jet added. ‘ThatI used to be a police chiefline works every damn time.’

‘Gonna eat so much ham.’

‘Ham?’ Jet’s old man asked Billy’s old man.

‘Yeah. I really like ham.’ Billy’s accent had slipped, somewhere between surfer and stoner.

Gerry stopped the fun, as usual.

‘OK, let’s get this meeting started,’ he said.

‘Milly, do we have any citizen comments today?’ Jet asked before Gerry could, parroting her a few seconds later.

Milly’s disembodied voice floated through the speakers. ‘Yes, there’s someone in the waiting room. I don’t actually have a name; their screen name saysAnon.Shall I let them through?’

Jet leaned forward, holding her breath. Billy too, right beside her.

‘Yes, let them through.’ Gerry waved his pixelated hand.

The screen fractured into two, and not because of Jet’s eyes this time. Town Hall halved, shrinking all the people inside it.