“No, it could be evidence, and—”
Suddenly Courtney broke past him and bolted to the short trooper.
“Court!” Julia ran after her, and the short trooper edged away as they reached him, followed by Trooper Sylvester. Mona and Susan hustled after them.
“I want to see the gun that killed my grandmother!” Courtney reached the short trooper, whose nameplate readARROYO.
“I need you to back away, Miss.” Trooper Arroyo frowned.
Julia interjected, “Trooper Arroyo, if you don’t let her see it, I’m going to post that the state police trampled the rights of a victim’s family on her own family farm.”
Trooper Arroyo glanced at Trooper Sylvester, who nodded slightly.
“Fine.” Trooper Arroyo held up a large, transparent baggie holding a small black gun that looked like a toy.
“Is that evenreal?” Courtney squinted at the gun.
“It’s a ghost gun,” Susan pointed, and the troopers turned to her in surprise.
Julia looked over, surprised. “What?”
Susan cleared her throat. “It’s a gun made with a 3D printer. You buy the frame and print the parts. There’s no serial number, so it’s untraceable, like a ghost.”
Courtney turned to Trooper Sylvester. “Is she right?”
“Yes,” Trooper Sylvester answered, blinking.
Susan smiled slyly. “I taught physics at Ashland High for forty-one years.”
Courtney turned to Trooper Sylvester. “How typical is a ghost gun around here? How many do you usually see in a year?”
“You’d have to ask Buckley PD.”
“Okay. What does that mean for the manhunt? You continue it, don’t you?”
“We’ll await orders from Buckley. Now, please return to your vehicle.”
Another trooper stepped forward, raising his hand at Susan. “Ms. Turner, remember me from Physics Club?”
13
Julia, Courtney, Mona, and Susan pulled up in front of the house, noisy with chatter about the murder weapon. They parked behind an old white van that readSHERMAN’S HOME SERVICES, and their mood changed instantly, their yakking subsiding.
“That’s the rug guy.” Courtney cut the ignition, turning to Julia. “We called him while you were outside.”
“Good.” Julia wanted to spare Courtney the heartbreaking task. “How about you go in the kitchen while I take him into the living room?”
Courtney nodded, grateful. “Thanks, I want to call Detective Kowalski.”
Susan nodded. “I’ll do some research on ghost guns.”
Mona chimed in, “I’ll help Julia. We’ll put everything back the way it was.”
Courtney winced, an expression that said nothing was going to be back the way it was, ever again.
Julia and Mona stood silently by while Sherman rolled up the bloodied rug, wrapped it in a blue plastic tarp, and dragged it to his van. The blood had stained the floorboards, but Sherman replaced them with new floorboards that almost matched.
After he’d left, Mona nodded. “Let’s whip this place into shape.”
