Page 99 of The Edge

“Yeah, but I oversee each one. Give me ten minutes. I can meet you at the Brew.”

“It’s not open.”

“Why not?”

“I guess you didn’t hear. Earl Palmer’s dead. I actually took Annie to stay at your house last night. I thought you knew.”

Dak looked stunned by the news. “I...I didn’t go home last night. I stayed in town. At a friend’s place,” he added hastily. “What the hell happened? Did he have a heart attack or something?”

“Annie and I found him hanging in his wife’s art studio.”

Dak looked like he might be sick. “Hanging? He killed himself? Earl?”

The customers and the other tattoo artists were staring now, so Dak motioned Devine to follow him into a small office at the back of the shop. Dak closed the door and sat behind the desk, while Devine took a seat across from him.

“We’re not sure yet what happened,” said Devine. “Still investigating.”

“What is going on around here? First Jenny, now Earl?”

“When was the last time you saw Earl?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe a week ago, just seen him driving through town. He didn’t come around much, not after Bertie died.” He looked up at Devine with an expression of hope, which Devine could partly understand. “Maybe that’s why he did it, because of losing Bertie?”

“It’s possible, certainly.”

Dak shook his head. “So what did you want to ask me?”

“You said you had investors from Boston backing you.”

“That’s right.”

“Who are they?”

“Why does it matter to you?” asked Dak sharply, evidently not pleased at all about this change in the conversation.

“Knowing more is better than knowing less.”

“My business isprivate.”

“If that’s how you want to play it. So how goes the negotiation on selling Jocelyn Point?”

“It’s going well, actually.”

“And Alex is all on board?”

“When the time comes she will be.”

“You sound confident.”

“You may think you know my baby sister after meeting her a few times, but you don’t. She wants out of this place even more than I do.”

“Really? I thought she saw it as her safe space. And she likes teaching the kids.”

“She can teach kids anywhere. Putnam is where someone raped and nearly killed her. Do you really think she wants to be reminded of that every damn day?”

“Interesting choice of words, since she doesn’trememberthe attack.”

“But people have told her what happened. Every time she passes by that spot she probably has all that horror rushing back to her, even if she can’t technically ‘remember’ it.”

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