Fearless The King Series Book One - By Tawdra Kandle Page 0,131

her father choked me. Nell’s crimes fell at least partly at his feet. How could he abandon her yet again? I couldn’t reconcile these two reactions, not yet.

“So you see, most of what I would normally ask you really becomes superfluous. No need to waste time setting down all the details. Not that I don’t have questions, because I do. I’m curious about how you came to know what Nell was planning. And if there were a case here, I’d have to ask you those questions.” Detective Lawrence raised his eyes to meet mine levelly. “But since it seems there’s no case, since that’s all been taken out of my hands by powers way above mine, I guess I don’t have to do that. I’m just here to wrap up paperwork. Unless, of course, you want to tell me about it.”

I didn’t blink. “No, I don’t think so. As you say, there’s no case, no need.”

He stared at me deeply for another few seconds before he exhaled and leaned back. “All right then. Seems like that’s all I have for you. If you think of anything else you feel I should know, your parents have my card. Just get in touch.” He rose to his feet, and then turned back to me abruptly. “Is there anything I can answer for you before I go?”

Something had occurred to me in the last few minutes. “What about Ms. Lacusta?”

I sensed his surprise at my question, and he looked down at me, eyebrows raised. “What about Ms. Lacusta? I talked with her. Said she knew Nell from some chemistry club at school. She told us Nell’s behavior lately had been more and more erratic, and that she’d been worried. Nothing else. Is there something we should know?”

I shook my head slowly. There was nothing I could say; I had no proof of the teacher’s involvement in Nell’s actions, only Nell’s own word.

“No, nothing,” I murmured. “I just… wondered. She seemed pretty close to Nell.” It sounded lame even to my own ears.

Sam Lawrence eyed me thoughtfully. “I’ll keep that in mind. Not much I can do right now, but I can keep my ears open.”

“Thank you.” This interview could have gone much differently, I realized. I was grateful that I hadn’t had to reveal anything, grateful that the detective hadn’t satisfied his own curiosity at my expense.

“Okay, then.” He turned again toward the door, and this time I stood and followed him. As he stepped out, he looked back over his shoulder at me. “Try to keep your head down. King’s a good town, a decent place. You don’t ruffle too many feathers, and you’ll get along. Call me if anything else comes up. Don’t try to handle everything on your own again, you hear?”

I heard the not-so-subtle chastisement, and meekly I nodded. He met my eye for one more instant and then he was gone.

Michael came over after school, and I filled him in on the meeting with Detective Lawrence.

“So he didn’t ask you directly how you knew about Nell’s plans?” he asked, frowning.

“No. He made it clear that he was curious, but he also gave me the option of not telling him. And obviously I took that option.”

Michael was silent, thinking. I picked up some of it, a few random, incomplete thoughts.

“What is it?” I prompted, puzzled by what I was hearing.

“I just remembered that Sam Lawrence’s daughter was in Lela’s class. They weren’t really good friends, but she came over every now and then. She was very proud of the fact that she came from one of King’s original families.”

Things were falling into place. “Which carnie member did she come down from?” I asked, and then nodded before Michael could answer out loud. “Ah, I see. So how closely is he related to Nell?”

“Not too close. Maybe third or fourth cousins? But they’re in the same family.”

I sucked in a deep breath. “That explains a lot. I almost got the feeling…” I trailed off, thinking about our conversation. “I think he might have known more about me than he let on. But he was cool about it—like he didn’t really want me to say it.”

“It would have complicated matters for him to have been forced to pursue that angle. As it stands, Nell’s been quietly put away, and it’s all very tidy.”

“All the loose ends tied up,” I agreed somberly. “Just like with her mother.” I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against Michael’s arm. “I know she