Page 62 of Done Dirty

The food came and the table split into smaller conversations.

“You know what doesn’t make sense to me,” Cole said. “Is the flag.”

“Yeah,” Jack said. “The violence of the initial blows, the knife in the groin. That’s a crime of passion. But the flag is ceremonial. Someone took the time to set him up, pose him, and place the flag.”

“It’s like its own memorial,” I said, thinking about what it could mean.

It was after ten thirty when we left the Purple Pig and walked back to the sheriff’s office. The party was still going behind us—the bars were full and the whole block was lit up for the holiday weekend crowd. Jack had patrol units posted at each corner with lights flashing to keep people in check. It felt strange to be walking away from all of it toward something quiet and dark.

“It’s at least a thirty-minute drive to VantageCore,” Jack said.

“Don’t remind me,” I said, stifling a yawn.

“I can take you home first,” he said. “I keep forgetting that you need more rest, and you’ve pushed hard this week.”

“I’m fine,” I said. “I want to go with you.”

He unlocked the Tahoe and I got in and pulled the door shut. Jack pulled away from the Towne Square and toward Newcastle and I leaned my head back and watched the county go dark out the window. It’s the last thing I remembered.

“Jaye,” Jack said against my ear. I felt his hand warm on my arm and wanted to snuggle deeper into dreams, but he didn’t let me and shook me awake. “We’re here,” he said.

My eyes snapped open and I looked around, trying to orient myself to a new place. I didn’t recognize the area. It was not a part of Newcastle I was familiar with. The area was wooded, and there was a high security fence and a guard gate around the property. I guess Jack had spoken to the guard without waking me up.

The building was rough gray stone with Edwardian embellishments and black narrow windows lined up like soldiers. It looked intimidating in the yellow glow of the parking lights. I could see the cameras on each corner of the building. They weren’t even trying to hide that they were a protected facility.

“If there was a red phone booth out front I’d think we were going to the Ministry of Magic.”

“That must have been some good sleep,” Jack said, helping me out of the Tahoe.

There weren’t many cars in the parking lot, and when we got to the front doors Jack pushed a button so we could be buzzed in.

The lobby guard was a heavyset man in his fifties who looked like he wouldn’t be super effective if Death Eaters stormed the building. He checked our IDs and then picked up the phone to call someone, but the elevator doors opened and who I assumed was Matt Brown stepped out.

He was mid-thirties with dark hair and a broad build that said he’d been an athlete once and hadn’t entirely let it go. His face was cute more than handsome, but his eyes were a nice rich chocolate that made him more attractive than he was. He was in jeans and a quarter-zip, and there was a weariness on his face when he saw us.

“Sheriff Lawson,” he said, shaking Jack’s hand. He looked at me briefly and held out his hand.

“I’m Dr. Graves,” I said. “I’m the county coroner.”

“Ahh,” he said. “Come on up. The control center is pretty empty this time of night, so we should be able to sit in my office without interference.”

“How long have you been working nights?” Jack asked as we stepped into the elevator.

“About six months.”

“How’s the adjustment?”

“I hate it,” Matt said. “My body still hasn’t gotten used to it. But the money is great.”

“I worked nights my first year as a rookie,” Jack said. “It’s brutal. We appreciate you seeing us.”

“Zoe told me you came by the house,” he said. “I don’t know what I can tell you that will help your case.”

The control center was a dark room with monitors and different stations everywhere. Matt led us past them to a row of offices with glass fronts so anyone inside could see what was happening on the floor.

“Sorry, I don’t have a lot of space,” he said. “I don’t get a lot of visitors.”

There were two narrow chairs across from his utilitarian desk. Two computer screens took up most of the desk space, so he moved his chair so he could see us.