Buried in Secrets (Carly Moore #4) - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,66
the guilt. He tried to kill himself, and when that didn’t work, he tried to lose himself in drugs.”
“Orrrr…” he said, drawing out the word. “He got hooked on painkillers after his accident. From what I can tell, he was just a normal guy, living his life. He had a job with a small metal fabricator in Ewing. It’s not uncommon for people you wouldn’t suspect of becoming drug addicts to get hooked on them after a major injury.”
“So you don’t think there’s a connection?”
“I didn’t say that,” he said, tilting his head. “But it’s not clear cut.”
I swirled more spaghetti on my fork. “So we need to talk to him. Did you get an address?”
He hesitated. “Yeah. He’s at the Northeast Correctional Complex in Mountain City.”
I paused with my fork halfway to my mouth. “What’s that? A drug rehab center?”
“No, it’s prison.”
“Oh,” I said, then took a bite.
“His last arrest was for breaking into a house and stealing their electronics and jewelry to pay for his drug habit. At least he got sent to Northeast. They have a substance abuse counseling program.”
“Maybe he’ll get his life together.”
“Yeah.” But he didn’t sound convinced.
“So talking to him is out.”
“Not necessarily. We could make a request to meet with him, but he might refuse us, not to mention it will likely take a whole day to get up there, meet with him, and then get back. It could be a wasted effort. Plus, it’s going to look suspicious as hell if word gets back to my department.”
“Which means you can’t go, Marco,” I said insistently.
Disgust washed over his face. “I’m not letting you go alone, Carly.” But then his face softened. “Honestly, I don’t think either of us should go. It’s likely a wasted trip, and his credibility is shot to hell. His word against Bart’s?” He shook his head. “We’d be better served to turn our attention elsewhere.”
“So what did you find out about Thad’s accident?”
“Fifteen months ago, Thad and his friend Spencer Gensler were hanging out at the overlook, drinking. They took off toward town in Thad’s mother’s minivan and hit Karl Lister in his Subaru head on. The boys’ tox screens were positive for marijuana and their blood alcohol levels were .16 and .10. Lister’s tests were all negative. All three had significant injuries, but Lister’s were the worst. He was life flighted to Greeneville.”
“And the boys went to the same hospital.”
“Yes. The friend—Spencer—was charged with underaged drinking, but Thad faced multiple charges. Felonies. And the prosecutor was considering trying him as an adult.”
“Why didn’t he?”
Marco shrugged. “He changed his mind? Thad was only thirteen, and it would have been a harder sell since no one died. I suspect the DA considered it because he was up for reelection, and there’s a lot of public disgust for the booming drug trade in these parts, especially in Ewing. He might have thought it would make him look tougher on drugs. But while the boys had pot in their systems, the crash was due to Thad being drunk. As you’ve probably figured out from the large numbers of customers at the tavern, drinking is considered acceptable around here. And yeah, he was much too young to be drinking, but the good people of Hensen County are much more forgiving about DUIs.”
“Except for Wyatt’s DUI,” I reminded him. “He was sent to prison.”
“Well,” he said with a sigh, “we both know that was different. Whether it was a judge bringing the Drummonds down a peg, or Bart convincing a judge to teach Wyatt a lesson, it was not the norm.”
“So the DA dropped all the charges against Thad?”
“Oh, no. He still threw the book at him, but Thad was charged as a minor. Then, all of a sudden, everything got dropped except for a much lesser charge of reckless driving and the civil lawsuit. Thad only got twenty hours of community service.”
“And his friend? What did he get?”
Marco rubbed his forehead. “I haven’t found out yet, but I hope to tomorrow.”
I nodded and then took another bite of food.
“Another thing…Pam’s pleading guilty.”
“What?”
“She entered an innocent plea at her arraignment, but I suspect it was only because her attorney was hoping for a bargain from the DA. Rumor has it she’s planning to change her plea at her next hearing.”
I set my fork back down on my plate.
“Look, Carly, I know you feel bad for her, but she pulled the trigger. Three times. She killed a man in cold blood.”