“Not really. They wanted to stand out. Be heard. But they weren’t hard-core, bomb- making idiots. They were just holier-than-thou idiots. They should’ve done a spot on Sesame Street about taking care of pets and it would have been more effective.”
“But you were the only one who got hauled off to jail,” I said.
“Yeah, a real bummer, and you know what the irony was? The guy who took me there was the same one who told me Rosemary could help me. Those campus cops are a bunch of doofuses.”
“This campus officer who helped you find these so-called friends took you to jail?” I said, incredulous. Not such a nice guy after all. And pretty suspicious. I wondered whether Candace was thinking the same thing.
“This was a public incident,” Evan said. “He didn’t have much choice.”
“Rosemary’s last name?” Candace said.
“Why do you want to know?” Evan said, looking cautious.
“Because I’m going to talk to her and find out exactly how unradical this girl is,” she said. “Did you ever get the sense she knew about your father, knew about the cats in the lab? That she set you up because of what your dad did?”
Evan sat straight up, and this made Syrah leap from his lap and scurry into the kitchen. “Rosemary? That’s crazy.”
“She could have been more of an activist than you realized. Maybe she discovered where your dad went after leaving Denman,” Candace said.
“She got close to me to find out about him? No way. She never even asked me questions about Dad,” Evan said.
“Maybe I’m wrong,” Candace said. “Lots of leads turn out to be dead ends, but we have to go down those roads, following the evidence.”
But though Rosemary might be a lead, I was still stuck thinking about that campus cop. He seemed way too involved, and this whole “Let me lead you to some friends” thing seemed pretty contrived to me, even though Evan obviously hadn’t thought so.
“Please don’t bother Rosemary. She’s just a weird girl who has nothing to do with anything.”
Candace stared at him. “Prove to me you want to help us.”
He hung his head. “ Bartlett,” he said. “Rosemary Bartlett.”
“Now,” Candace said. “Besides Rosemary, were there any other new friends who-”
But the sound of the back door opening made her stop. I was hoping it was Kara, but Candace wasn’t taking any chances.
She stood and put a finger to her lips and reached into her waistband for her gun.
Twenty
Evan’s eyes grew wide when he saw Candace’s weapon. Meanwhile, my stomach tightened as it does every time she pulls that thing out.
But I already knew who was at the back door. I was sure Candace did, too, which was why I was so bothered about seeing that gun appear. It had to be Kara.
And it was.
But she wasn’t alone.
I was relieved to see that by the time she and Brandt VanKleet walked into the living room, Candace had already hidden the gun.
They were laughing, and then Kara turned to me and said, “Hi, Jillian. You know Brandt? He and I have-”
“What the hell are you doing here, Evan?” Brandt said. “Have you lost your mind just like Dad?”
“I could ask what you’re doing here, too, bro,” Evan said. “Hooking up with a new one?” He glanced back and forth between Kara and Brandt.
All of this afternoon’s derision seemed to have returned full force. No brotherly love lost here, I thought.
Though I didn’t want to disturb Merlot, who was alert but apparently wanting to stay close to me, I hoped to turn down the hate meter, reduce that tension that seemed to envelop the room. I stood and said, “I’m glad you’re back, Kara. Can I get anyone something to drink?” I looked at Evan. “Bet you could use a Coke.”
“Yeah, that would be good.” He set his jaw and looked toward the picture windows.
“Nothing for me,” Brandt said.
“Thanks but no thanks,” Kara said, settling next to a purring Merlot.
“Tea for me,” Candace said.
Unfortunately, the seating was limited, and with Kara now in her father’s chair, Brandt could only sit on the sofa next to his brother. He took a seat as far from Evan as he could get.
I went to the kitchen thinking that I didn’t want to be a family therapist, but maybe I should take a course or two.
I heard Candace say, “Where have you two spent the day?”
Good question, I thought. Wherever Kara could best pump Brandt for information was my guess.
“We drove all over,” Kara said. “Stopped a couple times to eat. I wanted to get to know Mercy. We found the property Brandt’s father bought. Of course that farm and the house next door still have all that crime-scene tape to keep people away.”
“And did you?” Candace said.
“Did we what?” Brandt said.
He sounded hostile enough to upset even the unflappable Dame Wiggins, I thought, as I retrieved a Coke from the fridge door. No wonder his brother can’t stand him.
“Did you stay away from the crime scene?” Candace said, enunciating each word.
“We took pictures of both houses. Brandt tells me that’s not intrusive or against the law,” Kara said.
Brandt said, “Those run-down farms are a sign of the times, and the crime-scene tape just made it all the more interesting.”
I poured myself and Candace glasses of tea, wondering exactly how much information Kara had shared with Brandt. Had she told him she planned to write a book? Brandt didn’t seem like the type who’d enjoy publicity, especially a story about his mentally ill father’s murder. I brought the drinks into the living room and gave Evan and Candace theirs. I sat on the floor near Candace, and Syrah immediately climbed into my lap.
Brandt turned to me and said, “Kara tells me you alerted the police to go to my father’s property. Seems he had accumulated a large number of cats.”
I glanced up at Candace, not sure what to say. Kara must have told him that much. Did she also tell him I now needed protection?
Candace didn’t look at Brandt. Kara had her entire attention. “You discussed parts of this case with one of the victim’s relatives?”
“Everyone in Mercy is discussing these crimes,” Kara said. “We’ve been doing our homework concerning Mercy. What about you?”
Oh boy. Catfight coming, and not between the four-legged variety who lived here. Kara had no idea what button she’d just pushed.
Candace’s fair skin reddened. “My job is none of your business. And if I found out you disturbed even an inch of crime-scene tape, you’re in for trouble.”
Brandt pointed at me. “What about her, Deputy Carson? She’s the animal lover. Did you consider the possibility that she took my father’s treatment of those cats very seriously and decided to release them? And what about her contact with the exterminator who ended up dead?”
I think my jaw dropped six inches. But before I could sputter a response, Evan was on his feet.
He pulled Brandt up by his shirt front so they were eye to eye. “Do they teach Asshole 101 in law school?” He then shoved Brandt back down onto the sofa.
I realized I’d been holding my breath, but I took a gulp of air when I saw that Syrah had decided he’d had enough of humans acting wacko in his house. But he went after Brandt, not Evan, leaping onto the arm of the sofa and hissing his displeasure.
