“Mom would hire you at the diner in a second.”
Aaron somehow looked down his nose while looking up at Luke, He still had a few inches on the kid. “I’m not working for peanuts when this is so much more lucrative.”
He pushed past Luke, but he’d had enough. “I had to call an ambulance for Mikey Blair today.”
Aaron stopped, then shrugged, his face blank and cold. “So?”
“He was your best friend in elementary school. And he overdosed inMom’s fucking diner!”
“What’s that got to do with me?”
“Did you sell it to him?” Luke stepped forward, willing Aaron to turn around.
“That’s none of your business.”
“Did. You. Sell. It to him?” Luke roared.
Now Aaron spun to face him. “You can’t prove nothin’. What are you gonna do about it huh?”
He couldn’t hold back his rage now. “Ifound him nearly unconscious in the bathroom.Ihad to call his mother and listen to her sob when I told her where her baby boy was and why. He could havedied, Aaron.” His breaths came fast and hard, as he got right into Aaron’s face. “You’re nothing but a death dealer.”
“Well, this town is killing us either way. So, you can go to Hell.” Aaron stomped up the stairs, forgetting to step over the fourth one that squeaked. Luke put his shoes back on and left the house, slamming the door in his frustration. He needed to go for a drive and figure out what he was going to do.
Lukehadthenextmorning off, so he popped in at a photo printing place in the next town over to get prints of the evidence on his phone. He looked up the address he’d pinned as well, then headed back to Hawthorn Hills.
His stomach clenched at what he was about to do.
But their confrontation the night before had proved Luke no longer knew his little brother. He still had Mom’s blue eyes, and his hair was the dark blonde hers had been before it went gray. Yet when they’d gotten into their screaming match over what happened to Aaron’s childhood friend… that had been a different person entirely.
Unfortunately, it didn’t make this any easier.
He pulled into a space in front of the municipal building, armed with photos and a printed map. The three-story stone monolith housed the town hall, the mayor and other government offices, and the police station. Luke sat in the carand buried his face in his hands. He saw Mikey’s listless face flash before his eyes, heard his parents’ sobs. Taking a deep breath, he knew what he had to do. His honor, his pride, his very soul, demanded it. Even though he knew Mom’s heart would break all over again.
I’m sorry, Mom.
Luke gathered the envelope with the evidence and exited the car, then marched across the sidewalk, up the limestone steps, past the Grecian inspired columns, through the wide double doors. He nodded at the security officer then took the main staircase down, following the signs for the police station.
A fire door sat in the cement brick wall next to a window. The officer at the window looked like she’d been here since his first-grade field trip. “Good morning. How can I help you?”
Luke stepped to her and lowered his voice. “I witnessed a crime and I need to talk to someone.”
She tilted her head at him and popped her gum. “I don’t recognize you. You local?”
“I grew up here. My name is Luke Graham. I’m Deb Graham’s son.”
At his mother’s name, her eyes lit up in recognition. “Oh my God, Luke! I never would have recognized you.”
He gave her the smile that made old ladies melt since he was ten years old. “Yes, ma’am. This is very serious, though. Is there someone I can talk to?”
“Sure, honey, just pass me your ID and I’ll get you a visitor’s pass.”
He pulled his wallet out of his pocket and slid his driver’s license through the slot in the window.
“You were in Maryland?” she asked as she scanned it through a small black box.
“Yes, I’ve been working there.”
“You visiting your mom and brother?”
