Charlie stormed into the interrogation room. The door slammed against the wall and bounced back to whack him in the arm.
I slapped a hand against my forehead.
Face reddening, my brother closed the door with a little more care and stepped up to the table. All the while the Smiths watched with renewed interest.
Uncle Victor ran a hand down his face and kept it over his mouth. Whether he was nervous or embarrassed on Charlie’s behalf, I couldn’t tell. I crossed my arms to keep my hands from shaking.
Charlie pulled out the chair our uncle had been sitting in moments before and dropped into it. His face was hidden from view. I didn’t like that. Why couldn’t we have multiple cameras in there?
“Hello,” Angela said with a hesitant smile. “Where is the girl?”
“She can hear you,” Charlie said, already on the defensive. “That’ll have to be enough.”
I cringed. That was no way to build rapport.
“You can press that button there to speak,” Uncle Victor said, pointing at the strange-looking keyboard before the computer monitor. “Go ahead and introduce yourself.”
“Thank you,” I said with a grateful sigh. Leaning forward, I pressed the button and spoke at the screen. “Hello, Smiths. Please, forgive my brother. He’s wary of strangers. I’m Jasmine. It’s very nice to meet you.”
Angela sat up and peeked behind Charlie as if looking for me there.
Charlie scowled over his shoulder before turning back to the Smiths. “You wanted to talk, so talk.”
Jerald raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth—probably to tell Charlie to watch his attitude—but Angela spoke up before he could get a word out. “How do you know our mother?”
Uncle Victor held his hand out to stop me from responding. “Don’t take over the conversation. This is good for Charlie.”
I grudgingly stepped back.
“Just so we’re clear,” my brother said, the discomfort evident in his voice, “when you say ‘our mother,’ you’re talking about a lady with an…underworld vibe…right?”
Angela sighed and glanced at her husband with a relieved smile. “We haven’t had much contact with her but yes, that does sound like our mother.”
“I’ve never actually met her. Jasmine is the one who visits her regularly, but not by choice. Our…guardians made a deal with our mother to spare us from death when we were babies,” my brother said, choosing his words with care. “The abilities we gained as a result of that deal were too much for them in the end. We were brought here to live with our uncle. We use our abilities to help him solve murders.”
“Our mother gave you abilities?” Angela leaned forward, her eyes alight with excitement. “What kind?”
Even Jerald seemed interested. He regarded Charlie with a look which said, “Oh really?”
“I see things. Jasmine feels. But I can’t tell you anything else,” Charlie said, his voice hardening into a kind of warning. “We keep the details secret for our own protection.”
Angela nodded. “Yes, of course. Fascinating. We’d love to talk more about these abilities…” Her gaze darted up to the camera before lowering back to Charlie’s face. “Elsewhere.”
Charlie scoffed quietly as if to say, “We’ll see about that.”
I couldn’t help tapping the button this time. “Be nice, Charles.”
He glared at the glass behind him and spoke through gritted teeth. “Will you stop interjecting, please?” Turning back to the Smiths, he said, “Your eyes. Are they naturally brown?”
“Yes,” Angela said, sharing another look with her husband. “Aren’t yours?”
My brother shifted uncomfortably in his seat before changing the subject. “So, how do you guys know our mother?”
“That is a long and rather painful story.” Angela’s voice was soft. “One we can’t tell here.”
“Oh.”
“But if you wish to know everything we know about our mother and the Wards, you can read my journal.” Angela used her pointer fingers to draw a rectangle in the air. “It’s a brown leather notebook about this big. Your uncle will find it among our confiscated possessions. It’s for you and your sister only.”
I pressed the button one more time. “That’s very generous of you. Thank you.”
My brother gave a short, frustrated exhale.
Angela smiled at the mirror. “You’re most welcome, Jasmine. I do hope to speak to you face to face one day.” Looking back at Charlie, she said, “It was a grand coincidence that we passed into your state at this time. We truly had nothing to do with those murders. As my husband said, we’re pacifists and have no desire to hurt the Wards or their associates. The journal will prove that as well. But we’ll do as your uncle asked and stay in the city, in a hotel close by. If you have questions about anything you read in my journal, please don’t hesitate to come find us.”
“Thanks. We’ll keep that in mind.” Charlie stood, tucking his hands into his pockets. “Sorry we, uh, interrupted your sabbatical.” Then he hunched his shoulders and left the interrogation room.
◆◆◆
The Smiths were released. Uncle Victor went to find Vanessa to tell her everything he could tell her about the interrogation. Charlie and I were headed back to our apartment, arguing about how we’d each handled our meeting with the Smiths, when Anthony came around the corner.
The sight of him made me want to hide. Ever since meeting his kids and attempting suicide, things had been awkward between us. I felt even guiltier for taking up so much of his time. The thought of not seeing him every day was painful but I wanted him to be happy. So I kept trying to convince him it was okay to leave the precinct. The problem was...he was my doctor, teacher, and friend. He knew me. He could tell something was wrong but he wasn’t
