Kiss Me, Curse Me - By Kate Shay Page 0,30
gazing out at the darkening trees.
Watching him, Doby swore he saw a color change in the boy’s eyes. He looked over at the sun that was just about to dip below the tree line and glanced back at Ahanu, who behaved as if he could see right through them. Doby dropped his eyes, feeling out of sorts somehow, “You need to come with us.”
“Sure,” the boy said.
They trekked back through the forest, through the sleepy old Indian village, and back through the night to the sheriff’s station. The three of them never uttered a word among them.
The secretary was long gone. She had closed up shop for the night. Doby shuffled through his pockets for the key, stopping only when Ahanu handed them to him. “You dropped them,” he said, giving the sheriff half a smirk.
Doby saw the same flash of color again from the boy’s pupils. Was it green? He couldn’t tell. All he knew was that he was damn tired. Patty wasn’t looking any better after the long day. The three of them entered the station and Doby turned the light on to the interrogation room. “I’m not holding you on anything yet,” he said. “Take a seat.”
The room was small with no windows, a metal table, and one chair in the center, the walls whiter than the whites of any eye.
Ahanu did as he was asked and sat with his hands flat against the warm metal.
“We know you were seeing Coreen.” The sheriff dragged a grey chair from the lobby and placed it directly in front of the boy. Patty leaned against the wall, perspiring under the heat of the unaired room and his anger.
“Coreen?” Ahanu asked. “Coreen who?”
Patty exhaled, realizing that that was all he wanted to hear.
“Coreen Healy—you don’t know her?”
“No.” Ahanu leaned back on the chair, looking bored.
“We have a witness saying that you do.”
“Who?”
“Ed Turner.”
“Don’t know him.” Ahanu’s tone didn’t change. He didn’t move. It was like he wasn’t even breathing.
“I don’t believe you,” said Doby. “I’m keeping you here for the night if you don’t cough up something.”
They waited for him to speak, but Ahanu didn’t.
“That’s it. You’ve bought yourself a barred bed, son.”
“Sure.” That’s all Ahanu said as he was locked up into the stifling cell with just a toilet and a simple bed frame barely holding a mattress. Doby brought him a glass of water. “You think about this. You tell us what you know in the morning. I can hold you here as long as I like.” Ahanu gave the sheriff a wink.
Doby stopped, “What the hell was that? You think this is some kind of game? What game are you playing here? This girl is dead, murdered, and you’re winking at me? I don’t think so.”
“You never said she was dead,” said Ahanu, with no inflection.
“You watch it there.” Doby shook his head and walked off.
“We need this Ed guy back here, and I need some more Indians. I need a lineup,” said Doby to Patty, who was lying flat out on the brown leather couch in the corner of the office.
“I’m sleeping here tonight,” said Patty.
“You do that. I’m going for Ed. I know where he hangs out. That place on D where the sun don’t shine.”
“Oh, it shines,” said Patty.
“What? Is that where you were last night? You hound.” Doby smirked.
Patty chuckled.
***
The needle was inserted, the blood drawn back, and the fluid injected. Doc pulled the needle out and taped gauze over the hole, “Hold this, would you?”
Betty sat and put pressure on Coreen’s arm, “She’s so small.”
“She needs a dose of this every day for a week. Did you see what I did? You have to be careful with this medication. Can’t believe we have it.”
“Yeah. I got it. Inject the same amount of air into the bottle before I draw it up. I get it,” repeated Betty. “And release the tourniquet before I inject.”
“You could be a nurse, you know.”
“Pfffff. And leave this lovely place? I don’t think so,” said Betty. “Too much consumption out there anyway.”
“Not much here. More in the city,” said Doc, closing up his bag and wiping off the sweat on his forehead. “I’m going. I’ll be back in a few days. I have to tend to the others. I have another down.”
“How many is that now?” Betty released her grip and stood. She was dressed in a black-and-white corset dress decked in shiny, black beads on the corset line. Her waist was even thinner than normal. She could feel