“It was his ghost. I'm telling you. It was his ghost.” Kerry was sitting on the tailgate of Addison's truck. He had a rough flannel blanket wrapped around his shoulders and he was shivering despite the relative warmth of the night.
“Whose ghost?” David asked. The ambulance had just left with Meg on the stretcher and Makinsley holding her hand.
“His. Curtis.”
“You were attacked by Curtis Heinstein's ghost?” Addison made no effort to keep the skepticism out of his tone.
“I heard him in there. He was talking about-.” Kerry caught himself mid-sentence. “Never mind. It was him.”
“It was not Curtis. He's dead and ghosts aren't real.”
“Are you sure?”
“Dead. Autopsied. Buried just outside his hometown up North. I think it was in Michigan. Or was it Maine? I don't remember. One of those 'M' states. Trish went to his funeral.” David eyed Kerry unhappily. The scrawny deputy had made some effort to wash up, but the combination of urine and blood that was stuck to his clothes wasn't the sort of substance that could be wiped off with a few swipes of a cheap paper towel. “Besides, don't you think that Curtis would haunt me if he were going to anyone?”
“It was him. I'm telling you. Curtis was the only person who knew about... No. Wait. He wasn't the only person, was he?” Kerry narrowed his eyes and pointed one bony finger at David. “It could have been you.”
“Oh hell no.” David stepped back away from Kerry and held up his hands in the air. “You are not pinning this one on me. I've been with Addison and Cal all night.”
“Maybe it was all three of you,” Kerry said frantically, his voice climbing higher in pitch with every syllable. “It was all of you, wasn't it? You want your jewelry back, don't you?” He was looking directly at David.
“What the hell is he babbling about?” Frank Chasson walked up from the side of the building. He had fleece pajama pants and a long-sleeved t-shirt on. His eyes were still blurry with sleep and he'd run his dually clear over the sidewalk and curb on his way into the parking lot. He'd missed turning the fire hydrant into a geyser by less than two inches.
“Sheriff, I know you don't want to hear it, but I think Addison and David were the ones who broke into the jail tonight. This all part of whatever sick trick they're trying to pull on me. First they put the head in the trunk of my car. Once they knew they had me trapped, they broke into the jail and attacked me. They're trying to intimidate me into giving them the jewelry back, but I don't have it.”
“Jewelry?” Sheriff Chasson raised one eyebrow at Kerry. “Son, are you sure we don't need to call for a second ambulance? I think you might have taken another bad knock on the noggin. Maybe given yourself another concussion?”
“Sheriff, it makes sense.”
“No. It don't.” Frank glared at Kerry. “For starters, I ain't never heard anything about any jewelry. What jewelry do you have in your possession that would make a sworn officer of the law bash an innocent girl in the head? Tell me, Kerry. Convince me.”
Kerry's eyes widened. “I'm talking about the jewelry Curtis stole from Trish.”
“What jewelry?” Frank asked. He looked over at David. “I ain't never heard nothing about Curtis stealing jewelry from Trish.”
“Me neither,” David lied without missing a beat. He was careful not to show any emotion as Frank Chasson tried to read his expression. “If Curtis took jewelry from Trish, it must have happened a long time before I met her. She's never mentioned it to me.”
Kerry's jaw fell open.
“What about you, Addy?” Frank turned his attention to his nephew. “You know anything about any stolen jewelry? It sure as hell wasn't mentioned in none of your reports.”
“No sir. First I've heard of it.” Addison offered his uncle a charming smile. Too pretty with too many teeth, David thought. Not that it mattered, Frank was hearing exactly what he wanted to hear and he wouldn't dig any deeper.
“They're lying!” Kerry nearly dropped his cup of coffee into his own lap.
“Are we?” David asked him. “Maybe you better tell us how you know Curtis stole jewelry from Trish?”
“Yeah, Kerry. I'd be interested in hearing what you know about this supposed crime.” Addison's grin never faltered.
Kerry paled. “You bastards.”
“Now Kerry, there ain't no need for profanity.” Sheriff Chasson shook his finger at Kerry disapprovingly. “Nor is there any need for you to continue accusing upstanding citizens of crimes without any evidence. The county is fixing to pay out an awful lot of money because of your unprofessional behavior. I'd sure hate for any more zeros to be added onto that settlement. I wanted to give you a chance to tell us what happened to you, but I can't justify letting you accuse David of nothing else. He ain't done it.” Frank shot Kerry a warning look.
David bared his teeth at Kerry in what he hoped passed as a very nasty smile.
Kerry swallowed visibly. “I don't...I can't... You don't understand.”
“Kerry, do yourself a favor and go find a change of clothes. You smell like piss.” Frank gave his mustache a yank, pulling several of the hairs loose. Anyone who knew the sheriff personally knew that it was always a bad sign when he started plucking his facial hair out one strand at a time.
“Fine. You're obviously not going to listen to anything I have to say. Whatever. I think I have spare clothes in my locker. Can I go get them and change?” Kerry grimaced as he got down off the tailgate of Addison's truck. Frank nodded at him and he scurried off in the direction of the front door.
Frank turned to Addison just as soon as Kerry was out of hearing distance. “You get any actual evidence from this clusterfuck?”
“Not really,” Addy admitted with a shrug. “Front door was unlocked. Whoever came in probably attacked Meg right off. I think she tried to run. She was halfway back in the main room by my desk when we found her.”
“You have any idea what they did after they hurt Meg?”
“I don't know if they tampered with anything in our office, if that's what your asking.”
“I was.”
“Haven't had a chance to really look around yet. I'll be able to better tell you in the morning. I can tell you that someone broke down the inner door between the main office and the jail.”
“That door shouldn't have been locked,” Frank said.
“I don't think it was.”
“Great.” Frank shook his head with disgust. “Kerry ain't given you any useful information either, has he?”
“He apparently thinks we did it. We didn't. We were at Leon's. Just ask anyone in the whole damn bar.”
Frank sighed. “I know y'all didn't do it. I'll see if I can get Sully to talk with Kerry. He's in Silver City right now, but maybe he can convince Kerry to give a real witness account when he gets back.”
“Why is Sully in Silver City?” Addison asked.
Frank let out a bitter laugh. “He took the severed head to the crime lab up there. He wanted to get a full evidence work up on it, just in case Kerry's wrong and you didn't put the head in his car.”
“Would you believe me if I said I honestly have had nothing to do with any of this?” Addison asked. He held his right hand up in the air as if he were swearing his word in court. “I don't have the slightest idea how the head got into Kerry's car and I didn't break into the jail and cover him in blood. I also didn't leave that severed arm in his cell.”
“Me neither,” David offered. “Though I'm willing to bet money that the arm belongs to the same body as the head.”
“No bet. Sadly, I do believe y'all. Kind of wish I didn't. I guess Kerry has more enemies than we thought.” Frank gave his mustache another yank. “And lucky me, I get to investigate this clusterfuck myself. I can't have you on any case involving Kerry because of all his complaints against you. I don't really want to use David as a witness because of his history with Kerry. Y'all are really putting me in a damn pickle with this shit. Come to think of it, what were y'all doing at my jail anyways? You weren't on duty.”
“Um.” Addison and David exchanged slightly guilty glances.
“Spit it out.”
“Addy forgot his favorite pen.”
“What?” Frank glared at David.
“Addison forgot his favorite ink pen at work. He really wanted it. He was afraid Kerry would steal it if he left it here overnight, so we came back by to pick it up,” David explained.
“That is the biggest crock of horseshit I've ever heard in my life.”
“Would you rather hear that we thought we'd come by and mock Kerry for being locked up?” Addison asked.
Frank groaned. “Son, I'm going to buy you a whole pack of those favorite ink pens of yours. Just so you never run out. I ain't never seen you without that ink pen. Ever. Your grandpa gave it to you, right?”
Addison laughed. “Sure. He's only been dead since before I was born.”
“Left it to you in his will,” Frank said. “It must mean a hell of a lot to you.”
“Sure does,” Addy replied.