Like a Bad Penny by Harper Crowley

Author:Harper Crowley [Crowley, Harper]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harper Crowley
Published: 2019-05-19T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Police tape waves in a light breeze, yellow against the coming dawn. The police officer in charge, who introduced himself as Officer Fontaine, stands with his back to me, his thumbs hooked into his belt and his gut bulging against the confines of his dark-blue uniform. The stiff set to his shoulders paints a picture of how happy he is to be here. I imagine he’s probably scowling too—at least he was when he found out who we were. Graham’s father stares stonily at the sight.

Off to my left, Graham holds his sister, and both of them stare empty-eyed at the six-foot-long hole at the base of the house, their mother’s prized rose bushes lying in a crumpled heap next to the trellis. Shelley alternates between leaning into his embrace and pulling away, as if she can’t quite make up her mind what to do. I know the feeling. I wore it myself, as did Jess, for about six months after our parents died.

One of two crime scene techs crouches at the edge of the hole, talking quietly to the other one, who is inside. After noticing me standing there, Graham leaves his sister to join me.

“I’m sorry you got roped into all this,” he says. He runs a hand through his hair. “I don’t... I don’t know what to do right now.”

I reach out and touch his arm. “I hear you.”

“Where are Russ and Jess?” He glances at the house, where flashlights illuminate the kitchen through the windows.

“They took Bear inside and are packing up. We can’t leave until the cops say we can, so we’re kind of stuck here until then.”

The wind picks up, sharper this time, cutting through my clothes. It’s the perfect time of night and the perfect weather to find a body.

My phone buzzes, so I pull it out of my pocket and glance at the screen.

How much longer do you think it’s going to take? Russ texts.

I don’t know. The cops haven’t said anything. I’ll let you know ASAP.

“Yeah, I don’t know how long we’re going to be, either,” Graham says, looking over my shoulder. He flushes at my raised eyebrows. “Sorry.”

I wave off his apology. “It’s fine. We’ve both had a long day, night, et cetera. Hopefully we don’t have to wait up too much longer.”

As if on cue, Graham stifles a yawn. “I know what you mean.”

An hour later, Officer Fontaine finally says we can go back to our hotel room. “But don’t leave town,” he says with a smirk. He seems to be the type who relishes being in control, like a lot of small-town cops we’ve run into in the past. This may be our first dead body, but it’s not our first encounter with the police.

“We wouldn’t dream of it, officer,” I reply. Internally, I groan. It seems like the fates aren’t going to let us escape Oak Cliff that easily.

After leaving Shelley with his father, Graham walks me back to the house. “Don’t sound so enthusiastic,” he says.

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