Page 5 of 2nd Strike
The kid slumps back. We’re stuck here. As much as I’d love to have Ann Marie enter his results into GenCo, I can’t. Morally, it’s not right. Not without his parents. They all deserve the truth, but at what cost?
“Ethan, I know you don’t want to tell them about this, but I think you have to. It’s their life, too. And they can help you work through this. If you were my son, I’d want to know.”
He whips his head back and forth. “No. I won’t. Ican’t. Mom will freak. She’s crazy right now. I don’t know what she’d do and if something happens it’ll be my fault and—”
“—whoa.” I put my hands up to silence our visitor. The energy in the room explodes and my already frayed nerves crackle. Ethan’s anxiety, if left unchecked, will escalate. Having suffered from panic attacks, I know the insanity that comes with them. The hell of raging, irrational thoughts that leave the sufferer gasping for air and terrified. “Take a breath, Ethan. In through your nose and out your mouth. Nice and easy.”
I keep my voice low and even and soon he’s breathing in sync with the cadence of my words. After a minute, he lifts his chin and pushes his shoulders back.
“Are you okay?”
He nods. “Sorry.”
“Don’t apologize. This is a horrible situation for someone your age. An adult would struggle with this. Believe me.”
“What do I do now?”
I check my watch. Almost ten. We have to get him home. “It’s late. I think you should go before your parents start to worry. In fact, let’s throw your bike in my van and I’ll drive you.”
“No. They can’t see me getting out of your car.”
He whips his head back and forth again. I’m losing him. I reach over, squeeze his arm. “Relax. I’ll drop you off down the street. They won’t even see me.”
He pauses, obviously considering my suggestion. There’s no way I’m letting him trek home on his bike in the dark. Not in this condition. He’s distracted and worried and if something happened to him, I’d never forgive myself.
“Okay,” he finally says.
A chime sounds. After a recent break-in, my sister upgraded our security system and now all the entrance doors make a different sound. The chime is our back door.
Seconds later, Charlie appears in the doorway. “Hi. Sorry.”
“No problem. Is the Emperor gone?”
JJ’s nickname in the world of D.C. law enforcement is the Emperor of Cold Cases. I’m not sure there’s been one yet he hasn’t thrown every ounce of his energy into. There’s something in him that won’t let a victim go without justice. He isn’t always successful, but it doesn’t keep him from trying.
Charlie snorts at my use of his nickname. “He just left.”
“You’re sure? I told Ethan we’d put his bike in my van and I’d take him home. If JJ is out there, you need to get rid of him before he sees us with a kid and starts asking questions.”
My sister gives me the bitch-face she’s perfected over the years. “Meg, I watched him drive off. Believe me, he’s the last person I want getting wind of this. We don’t need the U.S. attorney involved until we know more.”
“Perfect.” I hold up the reports Ethan just handed me. “I’m about to copy these and then we’ll go.”
“Okay. If we can get Ethan’s parents to agree to another test, I’ll reach out to a couple private labs and see if they can put a rush on those hairbrushes. With any luck, we’ll have an answer in a few days and can compare the new results with the old ones.” She turns to Ethan. “And then we should know.”
3
Charlie
“Assuming the DNA test results are legit and the lab didn’t make a mistake, I may need a lawyer,” I tell Meg after we drop off Ethan and meet back at our duplex.
We face each other from across our respective front porches, the matching outside lights illuminating our faces.
Hers is tight with fatigue and concern. She’s a few inches shorter than me, about the same weight, but she has curves. Me, not so much.
Concern for me and Ethan shows on her features. Before she can say anything, I continue. “First, we have to decide if we’re taking him on as a client. Legally, we can't call him that. Minors can't hire investigators without their parents’ consent. They can't enter into legal contracts, and since he's my problem, it may be better if I handle this situation alone. I can shield you from the fallout as much as possible.”
Her fatigued face is sharp with sudden anger. “Charlize Lauren Schock, what the hell is the matter with you?”
