Page 41 of The Scent of Happiness

“Who filed the complaint?” Theo asked again.

Uche crossed his arms and looked at the sky.

Theo waved past the neat lawns and unblemished sidewalks to the rows of well-kept homes. “What in this neighborhood seems unsafe to you?”

Uche ignored Theo and leaned past him to talk to the Nesbitts. “We understand you’re storing hazardous materials in your garage.”

“Who’s we?” Theo stepped into Uche’s line of sight, making it clear that he was the one to talk to. This was some class-A bullshit. The police didn’t randomly check people’s garages. They’d gotten a tip from someone, and he had a good idea who.

Uche put one hand on the hood of his cruiser, the other on his belt. “You got something to hide? Because this doesn’t look great.”

“Doesn’t matter how things look,” Theo said. Frame the debate. Always frame the debate. “It matters whether you have a legal right to search or not. I’d say not.”

And thank goodness for that, because he was nearly certain that Uche was looking for large quantities of lye. Theo had done enough research to know that lye was an ingredient in meth, and that bulk purchases were a red flag. Did Ohio have a meth problem? Sure. Were people manufacturing it in a family-friendly neighborhood in a college town? Not likely. But cops didn’t think like that. Uche was looking for something specific, and if he found it, he’d act. Theo couldn’t let that happen.

Uche continued to talk to Brooke’s mom. “This will only take a moment, Sharon. It’s all about safety.”

“It’s very safe,” Brooke said, once again diving into her bag. “I can show you. The only thing I store in there is—”

“Don’t.” Theo took a step forward, standing in front of her. “My clients wish to remain silent and they don’t consent to a search.”

“We don’t?” Mrs. Nesbitt asked. “Why?”

Theo turned to her. “If the police come back with a warrant, then you’ll have to let them in. But no one should ever give consent for a warrantless search.”

Mrs. Nesbitt scoffed. “We all know what he’s looking for, and we all know it’s stored safely, and we all know it’s not a problem, so why don’t we—”

“Please,” Theo interrupted. “You shouldn’t say anything else.”

Brooke’s dad returned from the house, his palms outstretched. “Where’s the key? Brooke, honey, I remember you lost yours and borrowed the spare. Did you ever return it?”

“You won’t be needing it,” Theo said.

“So that’s how you’re playing it?” Uche asked.

“Not playing.” Theo made his expression as hard and unyielding as Uche’s.

“You’re handling this, Theo?” Mr. Nesbitt asked him. “Legally speaking?”

“I am.” Theo caught his eye and tried to project calm reassurance.

“Then I’ll let you handle it.” Mr. Nesbitt nodded, moved closer to Brooke, and put his arm around her.

Neighbors were starting to gather in twos and threes on the sidewalk. Theo took a step toward the patrol car and positioned himself to block their line of sight. It wasn’t much, but he hoped to shield the Nesbitts from all but the nosiest neighbors. He held his arms out from his sides, trying to appear as large as possible. “Our friend Officer Uche doesn’t have a warrant. He doesn’t have a case. He doesn’t have any reason to be here.”

“So I can just ask him to leave?” Mr. Nesbitt sounded like he’d never considered the possibility. People got weirdly passive around the police, which was what the police counted on. Cops liked being obeyed, and they liked it even more when people obeyed in advance.

“Now hold on,” Uche said. “My concern here is public safety. If there’s a problem with hazardous chemicals—”

“What kind of chemicals?” Theo asked, all innocence.

“Hazardous ones.”

“If you can’t tell us what you’re looking for, I’m afraid we can’t help you,” Theo said. “But thank you for stopping by. We feel safer with you on the job. And as you can see, Officer, the neighbors here watch out for one another. I’m sure they’d be the first to know about any problems.”

“Great,” Mrs. Nesbitt mumbled. She lifted her voice. “Hi, Marci.”

“Is everything okay?” a woman called from the sidewalk.