Page 80 of Inside Silence
It’s silent for a moment before she asks the question I knew would be inevitable.
“What happened?”
I’m not sure I want to get into the whole sordid story, so instead opt to keep things simple.
“I messed it up, and I’m incredibly lucky to get a second chance at doing it right this time around.”
She nods, her eyes fixed on her hands, picking at the banana peel.
“I like her,” she finally says. “I like her for you. Much better than some of those other women you used to hang out with.”
I wince at the reminder my judgment wasn’t always the best…obviously.
“I’m glad, because if I have my way, you’ll be seeing a lot more of her. Now, about you and Carson,” I change direction, venturing into another potential danger zone. “I know you like him, and I believe he’s a decent kid but, Tate, I need you to be smart. Don’t put yourself in situations that could turn into something you’re not ready for.”
“I know, Dad. Which is why I was going to ask you if it’s okay that Carson drives Naomi and me to the church hall this afternoon to practice the dance before the youth group meets tomorrow morning? There’s a whole group of us going, including the youth leader,” she quickly answers.
I chuckle. Clever girl, twisting the conversation to suit her own needs. I take a moment to think about it, but there really is nothing to object to. It’s not like she’ll be alone with him, and although I’m not a fan of church, I do like the fact Tate seems to have found a group of kids to connect with.
“Yeah, sure thing. But I expect you back by six at the latest, because you and I are going to have corndogs and funnel cake at the park for dinner.”
“Sweet. Thanks, Dad.”
She gets up and comes over to kiss my cheek, and then I watch as she skips off inside.
Chapter 24
Savvy
* * *
“And what is this for?”
Lloyd McCormick, who’s been with the sheriff’s department since long before I came on board, is annoyed when I ask him to take his boots off. Chris, the crime tech Tessa showed up with earlier, prefers to take prints that way.
“It’s just for elimination. There were boot prints found in both these recent cases and we want to know which ones belong to law enforcement so we don’t waste time on those. We’re collecting prints, even from those who weren’t at either of the sites. They’ll be handy to have on record for everyone, like we do with fingerprints. Makes life a lot easier for forensics,” I spin him the spiel I’ve used on everyone else.
So far the story seems to do the trick, although Lloyd still looks a bit put out.
After his boots are printed and handed back to him, he walks out on his socks, boots in hand, mumbling something about needing a shoehorn.
“Is that all of them?” Tessa inquires.
Thanks to Hugo, we have the prints of most of my deputies. He made sure the parade was covered by rotating through all the guys he had on his schedule—including the volunteer deputies—sending them back to the office to get printed. I got a hold of one of the guys who is off this weekend, and he showed up twenty minutes ago to get his done, which in itself makes me think he can be scratched off the list.
“Almost,” I inform her. “I haven’t been able to get a hold of KC Kingma yet, but he may be out of reach. He likes his outdoor activities, so he could be out of cell phone range. I could swing by his place to see if he’s home, otherwise, we’ll be able to find him tomorrow morning at the New Horizons Church. He’s a youth group leader there.”
“Sounds like a wholesome guy,” she observes, but she says it with a detectable edge. “Tell me about him. Young? Older? Married? Single? Straight? Gay?”
It’s clear what directions her thoughts are going in, but I’m having a hard time seeing KC in that light. He’s like a little brother to me.
And yet…
“Young. Our youngest deputy. Single, and I’m pretty sure he’s straight. He’s a good kid. Like I said, he runs the youth group at the church, I mean…”
“Surely you recognize religion isn’t necessarily a deterrent for depraved behavior,” she challenges. “Not when we have men of the cloth who turn out to be pedophiles and predators.”
I get her point, but I still find it difficult to consider KC as a violent killer. Although, he was with me that last encounter with Ben Rogers.
