narrow, bumpy dirt road. “How much did Tyrone tell you about Kinitra’s condition?”
“She’s pregnant is all I know.”
“The trooper tells me certain things in confidence…”
Clarence studied him curiously. “What things?”
“Kinitra’s claiming that she’s been in a consensual relationship,” Mitch said. “But she’s all scarred up down there. The sex has been very, very rough. She says she likes it that way. Do you buy that?”
“No way. She’s strictly the dreamy romantic type. Love songs. Nothing but love songs.” Clarence fell into thoughtful silence for a moment before he said it again. “No way.”
Mitch approached the bluffs now and pulled up at the barricade next to Rondell’s Porsche.
Clarence didn’t budge. Just sat there looking across the water at Big Sister Island. “She picked herself a nice spot to wash up.”
“She was very lucky. Next time she might not be.”
“Next time?”
“People who want to kill themselves usually keep trying.”
“You think that little girl tried to kill herself?”
“I don’t have a doubt in my mind.”
Clarence ran a hand over his face. “Man, that is so wrong. She’s truly gifted. If she ended her own life, it would be a horrible crime.”
“You can do something about it, you know.”
“Me? What can I do?”
“Tell me who’s been raping her.”
“I think we’re all done here.” Clarence abruptly opened his door and climbed out, slamming it shut. But then he lingered there by the open window, jangling Rondell’s car keys in his hand. “What was Rondell drinking?”
“Grey Goose. A whole bottle of it.”
“I’ve never seen him down more than a half a beer. Poor little man’s totally blown away, I guess. He’s so loyal to his brother. Tyrone is everything to him. That’s why he can’t deal with the plain truth of it.”
Mitch leaned across the seat toward him. “Which is?…”
Clarence gazed out at the water for a long time before he turned back to Mitch and said, “The big dog takes what the big dog wants. Law of the jungle, man. Always has been. Always will be.”
CHAPTER 11
There was a white Escalade parked in her driveway when Des got home. When she went inside the house she heard voices out on the back deck. Found the Deacon seated out there at the umbrella table having lemonade with Jamella and her father, Calvin. The Deacon had already gotten dressed for dinner with the Bergers in his customary charcoal flannel suit, crisp white dress shirt and muted tie. It was the first time Des had seen him wearing normal clothes since his surgery and it thrilled her beyond belief. Calvin had on a No. 54 Tyrone Grantham football jersey and a showy oyster gray cowboy hat with a feather stuck in its band. Kid Rock sat in his lap padding at his big belly. Jamella was dressed in the same yellow shift that she’d been wearing all day long. She looked wilted, bleary eyed and distraught. Her lower lip was fastened so firmly between her teeth that it was a wonder she didn’t draw blood.
“Ah, here she is,” the Deacon said brightly as Des joined them. “I told you she’d be right on time. If there’s one thing I taught Desiree it was punctuality.” He not only looked like his old self, he seemed much more animated and engaged.
A few kayakers were out on Uncas Lake enjoying the late day warmth. Thin gray clouds were moving in, dimming the hazy sunlight a bit.
Des sat down at the table and said, “How may I help you folks?”
“Not so much me, miss,” Calvin responded politely. “It’s my oldest girl Jamella here. She wanted to speak with you on your home turf. Got herself a bit emotional after what’s happened to our little girl Kinitra.” He paused so that Jamella could take it from there. She just sat there in guarded silence, so he kept on going. “I felt she was too upset to drive over here by herself, especially being seven months along. So I offered to drive her.” He sipped his lemonade, his face creasing with concern. “It turns out I’m an even worse father to my girls than I thought. Little Kinitra’s got herself pregnant, too. And here I’ve been under the same roof this whole time and didn’t even know anything was going on.”
“Nobody did,” Jamella said in a muted voice. “Don’t blame yourself, Popsy.”
“I wanted to visit her up at that hospital,” Calvin added. “But Jamella said Kinitra don’t want to see nobody or talk to nobody. You think she’ll be coming home soon, miss?”
Des nodded. “Assuming she doesn’t develop a lung infection.”
“I imagine she needs a little time alone to sort this whole business out, too.” Calvin let out a huge sigh. “I sure wish her mama was still around. She made sure both of my girls were quality young ladies. And they never gave her no cause to worry. Got good grades. Came right home when she told them to. My girls knew better than to hang around on street corners with trash. I’m the one was always in trouble,” he confessed. “But those days are behind me now.”
“That’s right, Popsy,” Jamella said reassuringly.
Des glanced over at the Deacon. His face revealed nothing. Never did. “So what did you want to talk to me about, Jamella?”
“I just thought that, I mean, I wanted to…” She broke off with a ragged sob. “God, this was a terrible idea. We should just go, Popsy. Stop bothering these people.”
“You’re not bothering us. What’s this about?”
Jamella reached for her lemonade and took a small sip, the glass shaking in her hand.
“She’s gotten herself all worked up,” Calvin explained. “Wondering if it could be her Tyrone who fathered Kinitra’s baby.”
“Why would you think that?”
“I don’t,” Jamella insisted. “I’m just wondering -which I know is so unbelievably terrible. Not to trust the man who I love. But knowing what I know about his life before we met. All of those other women having his babies and…” She bit down hard on her lower lip again, her eyes puddling with tears.
“She did speak to Tyrone about it,” Calvin said. “The man swore to her he’s never touched Kinitra. But I could still see the doubt in her eyes. So I said, let’s go talk to the resident trooper about it. She’s investigating the case. She knows facts, not fears.”
“Speaking of facts…” The Deacon gazed at Des with chilly disapproval. “I understand from Jamella that Lieutenant Yolanda Snipes and Sergeant Toni Tedone of the Major Crime Squad have launched a criminal investigation.”
“That’s correct,” Des said, meeting his stern gaze before she turned back to Jamella. “Do you honestly believe Tyrone is capable of doing something like this?”
Jamella shook her head. “I don’t know. I-I just don’t…”
Calvin put his hand over hers. “Now don’t get all upset again. Just ask the lady what you came here to ask her.”
Jamella took another sip of her lemonade, her hand a bit steadier now. “I was wondering if Tyrone is a target of your investigation.”
“Technically? No. Because, technically, no crime has been committed.”
“How can you say that?” Calvin demanded. “Kinitra was raped.”
“She insists she wasn’t.”
“But you know she was!” Now Calvin was the one getting worked up. “Jamella said the doctors found awful scars and suchlike.”
“Kinitra’s still your little girl,” the Deacon put in, his voice calm and gentle. “But as far as the law is concerned, she’s a grown woman. If she says no crime took place then no crime took place. We see this all too often with domestic abuse cases. A neighbor will call us up and tell us that the man in the apartment next door is
