School of Fish (Fish Out of Water #6) - Amy Lane Page 0,37
deadly Siren Herrera.
A guard stood in one corner of the room, arms crossed disapprovingly, and next to Ellery at the table was a barely grown teenager in an oversized orange jumpsuit, staring ahead with giant gray shell-shocked eyes. One side of his otherwise paste-white face was black and blue, and his eye on that side was brick red. He was shaking even as he sat.
“Mr. Rivers,” Herrera said, nodding to Jackson.
Jackson nodded back and then pulled his chair on the other side of Tage. “Hey, kid,” he said softly.
Tage actually looked at him, his eyes growing wider and shinier as he did. “Jackson?” he whispered.
“Yeah. How’s Sascha?”
Tage’s lower lip trembled, and he cast a watery look at Herrera. “I….”
“Ms. Herrera,” Ellery said, his voice hard. “We need a few moments alone to confer with Mr. Dobrevk. You have my paperwork on not trying him as an adult, on setting bail, and on keeping him in the infirmary until he’s transported immediately out of here.”
Herrera nodded. “You do—”
“I’ve also given you a motion to dismiss because there was no evidence—none—that my client was even capable of the murder he’s accused of.”
“Lieutenant Chambers felt like there was enough evidence—”
“Lieutenant Chambers didn’t know what she was looking at,” Jackson interceded. “Her two beat cops were there, they briefed her on the scene, and she looked at Tage and said, ‘He’s here, he must have done it.’ There is nothing to indicate this arrest can stand up in court, and if we put the first officers on the scene up on the stand, they’ll tell a jury exactly that.”
Herrera’s eye twitched. “They were the first on scene?” she asked, her voice squeaking.
“Yes. Chambers was called in because of the severity of the crime.”
Herrera closed her eyes. “I hate you guys,” she muttered. “If this was in the PD’s office, they would have pled this down by now!”
“Well, we got the same police report you got,” Jackson said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “What didn’t you see?”
Herrera glared at him, and then glared at Ellery. “Where’s the other guy? I liked him better.”
Ellery raised his eyebrows. “The other guy is training. Wait until he gets his wheels off. He’ll be just as obnoxious, trust me.”
She snorted. “Look, we can’t just let the kid out of jail after he’s been charged.”
Jackson stared at her. “Of course you can. That’s why there’s such a thing as dropping charges.” He glanced at Ellery. “Look, we’ve got how much longer here?”
“Fifteen minutes,” the guard said behind them.
“Could you go outside and argue with her?” Jackson begged. “Me and Tage will stay here and chat.” He looked at Tage and nodded. “He knows I’m not his lawyer, and nothing we say here is confidential.”
Tage blinked and shuddered. “I understand.”
Herrera let out a long breath. “God. Nothing’s easy with you two, is it?”
“I keep telling you,” Ellery said mildly. “If Arizona kicks a case to you with our names on it, it’s going to be a pain in the ass that she’s tired of dealing with. Just kick the case downhill.”
Herrera’s eyes sharpened. “That’s making an awfully big assumption about me,” she said. “I care if I’m prosecuting a guilty person or not.”
“Then stop complaining,” Ellery said simply, and then he stood, gesturing toward the door. “And now, if we can give Jackson some time with the victim—”
“Accused,” Herrera snapped.
“He had a concussion,” Ellery told her. “Oh my God, Siren, you need to start reading the police reports with a better eye for detail.”
“I really fucking do,” she murmured as they left, and Jackson grinned. Well, even good students had to learn the same lesson once or twice. When the door shut behind them, Jackson turned toward Tage.
“How you holding up?” he asked quietly.
Tage’s lower lip started the full-on wobble. “Sascha called his friends in prison, and word got here. They’ve been protecting me mostly, but….” He squeezed his eyes shut, and Jackson took in the damage to his face.
“Nobody’s there twenty-four seven,” he said softly.
Tage nodded, entire body shaking. “I don’t know what to do,” he breathed.
Jackson leaned his head closer to hear, and the guard behind him—a giant slab of beef with a ruddy face and thinning brown hair—said, “Sit back, please. We need to see space between you and the prisoner at all times.”
Jackson nodded at the guard and pulled back. “Okay, buddy, I’m going to tell you what we think happened, and then you can blink twice if I’m right, how’s that?”