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BEFORE BERRY AND CAROLINE COULD ABSORB DODGE'S shocking statement, their attention was drawn toward the sound of loud and uncontrollable sobbing. A middle-aged couple were seated on a bench against the wall. A younger man wearing a clerical collar was hunkered in front of them, speaking softly, his arms embracing their shoulders in a group hug.
Out of respect, Dodge spoke softly, but his voice vibrated with barely contained fury. "Mr. and Mrs. Coldare. Their sixteen-year-old son, their only child, was shot and killed a few hours ago. By Oren Starks."
Dizziness and nausea swept over Berry. She swayed. Dodge caught her arm. "Hey, steady."
"Sit down," her mother said.
Berry, looking at the grieving couple, gave her head a hard shake. "I'll be all right. They lost their son tonight."
Across the large room, Ski emerged from a smaller office. His and Berry's eyes connected immediately and held as he wove his way through the maze of desks. When he reached her, he said, "I owe you an apology."
"What for?"
"For not taking you seriously enough. I thought that too much was being made of Starks, his threats. I was wrong. I'm sorry."
Berry tamped down a surge of emotion, which would have to be dealt with later. But not now.
He continued, "Anyway, thank you for coming. I thought if you listened while the girl gave her--"
"Girl?"
"I haven't had time to fill in the details," Dodge informed him.
Ski bobbed his head once. "Davis Coldare was with a friend when he was shot. She's okay. Shaky, but uninjured. She picked Starks out of a group of pictures. No question, she said."
"He got away again?"
"The boy fell dead at the girl's feet. She ran for her life. Called 911 from the motel office."
"Motel?" Caroline asked.
"A hasty-tasty." Dodge compressed his lips with regret. "Coupla horny kids just looking for a mattress."
Ski said, "By the time the first responders arrived, Oren Starks was long gone."
"What provoked the shooting?" Berry asked.
"Not a damn thing."
"He just shot this boy for no reason?"
"Wrong place, wrong time for Davis Coldare." He spoke in a tight, angry tone similar to Dodge's.
"My God," Caroline whispered. Berry couldn't bring herself to say anything.
Ski said to her, "I thought if you listened to the girl--Lisa Arnold is her name--if you listened in while she gives us a recorded statement, you might pick up something about Starks. Hear something that might help us. I don't know. Worth a try."
"Of course. Whatever you think."
Apparently he thought she needed assistance walking, because as they retraced his path through the squad room, he kept his hand on the small of her back. "Get her some coffee, Andy," he said as they passed the wide-eyed deputy that Berry recognized as the one who'd been at the lake house the night of the shooting. "Do you take anything in it?" Ski asked her.
"Cream. Milk. Whatever."
"Some of that half-and-half stuff," he told the younger deputy. "Ms. King?"
"I'll get hers. I gotta go smoke anyway." Dodge peeled off with the deputy.
Ski escorted Caroline and Berry into a small room. She missed the warmth of his hand when it was withdrawn.
