AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Marcus?”
“He bought drugs from the Doc. Everyone in town knows the Doc is the guy to go to for weed.”
The Doc really was a man of many talents, Barbara thought. And, although marijuana wasn’t illegal in Alaska, selling it to minors was.
“So why didn’t Marcus do the blood-running? Why get you involved?”
“He did it for a bit. But he’d almost got caught by his folks a couple of times. That’s why he wanted to make the video. Seemed like easy money.”
No such thing as easy money, Barbara thought. A damn shame Marcus wasn’t alive to learn that lesson. She glanced at Jess, who was sitting, arms still folded, face grim. Barbara guessed she was wondering if Stephen knew about all of this. How deep in was he? How many more secrets was her son keeping from her?
“Have you any idea why Dr. Dalton wanted to incite a cull?” she asked Jacob.
“No. He never said.”
The more Barbara thought about it, the less sense it made. Why would Dalton want a cull when he was selling blood to the Colony? He’d be cutting off his own cash flow.
The pieces didn’t fit together. And then there was the ring that Tucker had found. How did that tie up with what Jacob had told her about Dalton and Marcus?
“Are we done here?” Jess asked. “Are you going to charge Jacob?”
Barbara looked at Jacob. Was she going to charge him? He hadn’t actually broken into Dalton’s, and the incident with Nicholls was really an accident. But then, running blood was an offense and the boys had also lied and obstructed a murder investigation.
“For now, I’m going to release Jacob under investigation.” Barbara spoke into the tape recorder: “Interview terminated at 4:23 p.m.” She clicked it off.
“So I can go home?” Jacob asked.
Barbara sighed. “Jacob, you’re a minor. Without knowing when or if your dad is coming home, I can’t just let you go.”
“It’s fine,” Jess said. “Jacob can stay with us tonight. It’s not the first time.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Garrett.”
Jess turned to Barbara, and she braced herself, half expecting another diatribe.
“Could I have a word, in private?”
“Of course.”
They stepped outside into the corridor. Barbara pulled the door to.
“I owe you an apology, Detective,” Jess said.
“You do?”
“The boys lied. I was wrong about that.”
“Well, thank you.”
“But don’t think it changes anything. Marcus is still dead, killed by a vampyr. We still need a cull.”
“Ma’am, I can only authorize a cull if the whole colony poses a threat.”
“So, we’re just supposed to sit around, waiting for another attack?” Jess barked out a humorless laugh. “You have any idea what it’s like living in a colony town?”
“Yes, ma’am. I grew up in one.”
The woman faltered, the wind momentarily taken out of her sails. Then she sneered. “And I suppose you’re going to tell me you all lived peacefully, in harmony?”
