“No, sir. My doctor told me I could keep gradually increasing the time between doses. I’m due for another at three. I can make it.” Her smile was probably a ghost of what it once was. “In fact, being here takes my mind off the clock.”
“Did you know Matt Wentworth?”
“No, sir. I mean, I know he got killed this weekend, but he was a freshman and…” She hesitated. “Not to say something ugly about someone that just died, but he really wasn’t anybody who…”
She looked to Jessica for help.
“He ran with a different crowd,” Jessica said smoothly.
“Yes.”
“What about Mallory? Did she ever go out with him?”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No. He told his stepmother that she was his girlfriend and that he gave her a necklace for her birthday last weekend and took her to a movie.”
“
Her eyes filled with tears as she realized what she had said. She brushed them away impatiently. “Besides, her birthday’s in June, not December.”
“How old are you, Joy?” Dwight asked abruptly.
“Eighteen. Why?”
“Legally you’re an adult now, but before I go further, I need to tell you that you have the right to counsel.”
“A lawyer?” Her eyes widened even more. “Do I need one?”
“I don’t know and I can’t advise you on that.”
“Anything I say can and will be used against me?” In a wry voice, she said, “Isn’t that what they say on all the cop shows?”
He did not return the smile. “That part’s accurate.”
“Uncle Dwight!” Jessica protested.
“I’m sorry, Jess, but this may be a murder investigation and she has to be warned.”
“Murder?” said Jessica. “It was an accident. She swerved off the road and wrecked her car. How could that be murder?”
“Jess, honey, I think you ought to wait outside.”
“No, please, let her stay,” said Joy.
Until then, Mayleen Richards had been silent. Now she placed a calming hand on the girl, who was becoming increasingly distraught. “He’s right, Joy.”
“But shouldn’t I be here as her witness or something?” Jessica asked, reluctant to abandon her friend.
“Not unless you’ve suddenly acquired a law degree, Jess. There’s a bench out there in the hall. Go sit on it, please, and close the door when you leave.”
Half angry, half scared, Jessica did as she was told.
Once the door was closed, Dwight again reminded Joy that she was entitled to an attorney.
“I don’t want a lawyer,” Joy said. “I want to get this over with.”
“As you wish. Do you see that camera over the door?”
She nodded.
“We’re going to record your statement. Richards?”
In a quiet voice, the deputy recited the date and time, the people present, then gave the girl a formal reading of her rights. “Do you understand that, Miss Medlin?”
“Yes.”
“And you waive your right to an attorney of your own free will?”
“I do.”
“Do you wish to make a statement at this time?” Dwight asked.
“Yes, please.” She took a deep breath. “I want to confess to causing Mallory’s death.”
“How did you do that?”
“I put a Vicodin tablet and some vodka in a Coke and switched cans with her when she wasn’t looking.”
“When was that?”
“About ten or fifteen minutes before she left the party.”
“Was it your pill or Mrs. Crowder’s?”
“I’m not sure. I think it was mine, but I lost count when they got mixed up.”
