Rogan straightened his tie as he stared into the mirror above his bedroom dresser. He clenched his jaw, angry at the ridiculous strip of fabric that refused to cooperate with him. Battling the striped blue accessory was like fighting a suspect who’d rather die than go to jail.
He let out a loud sigh, then bunched his fists, using them to prop himself up against the dresser. The tie was an innocent party. What truly enraged him was the man whose funeral he was about to attend.
Cam.
How one of his best buddies, a guy he’d known since high school, had ended up being the Kink Killer was beyond him. Sure, a large portion of his anger was directed at Cam—the fucking prick. But he wasn’t letting himself off the hook entirely. No, he held himself accountable too. If a guy who’s been a cop for almost two decades can’t tell when one of their closest friends is a murderer then maybe he should get out of the game.
Rogan started as his phone rattled on the dresser next to him. As he gave his face a quick scrub with one hand, he snatched up his cell with the other.
“Hey, Lenny. I’m almost out the door. I should be there in about ten minutes.” When Lenny didn’t respond, Rogan wondered if the call had dropped. “Lenny?”
“I can’t do it, man. I’m sorry.”
Rogan straightened. “What do you mean?”
He knew what the guy meant. But he was damned if he was going to face this mess alone.
“Fuck. I gotta spell it out?”
“Look, I get it. My stomach hasn’t been right all morning. But we’ve already been through this. His mom needs our support. No one’s going to be there for her, she can’t even go to Mass anymore. Everyone’s treating her like she trained a serial killer instead of simply raising a child the best she could on her own.”
“I dunno…”
They’d all been part of the same crowd back in high school, had played sports, been popular. They were even the goofballs the faculty would always turn to if a prank was played—and rightfully so. They’d executed many creative hoaxes during their time at Watertown High.
And Cam had always been the instigator behind the elaborate jokes.
Rogan’s gut twisted again, tightening the way it had all morning and making him wonder if he should bail too. But he’d never do that to Mrs. LeBlanc. During high school, she’d been like a second mom to them all. They were always welcome at her home, the place she and Cam had moved to in Watertown after Cam’s dad had abandoned them.
“So, I’ll be there in ten, okay?” He wouldn’t let Lenny off the hook that easy.
“I’m sorry, man. I really am.”
The line went dead and Rogan shoved his phone into his pants pocket, his teeth gritting at how everyone in their circle had crapped out. He supposed he couldn’t blame them, but he would anyway. As long as he was giving himself a mea culpa, he might as well condemn the other players in the game.
Rogan glanced up, scowling at the stubborn tie that refused to bow to his will.
Fuck it.
He’d been so concerned about showing respect to Cam’s mom, intent on wearing the suit he kept shoved in the back of his closet—a weddings and funerals costume he rarely wore—that he’d forgotten the truth of what he was about to face.
Mrs. LeBlanc wouldn’t give a shit whether his tie was straight, or even that he wore a suit. Instead, she’d be lost in the horror of her own fate. Mrs. LeBlanc would forever have to face that her only child was a vicious killer who’d tortured and murdered a dozen young men, that she’d given birth to a monster who’d taken so many innocent lives.
For the rest of her life, she’d have to struggle with whether to love or hate her own son.
The gravel crunched under the tires of Rogan’s pick-up as he drove into the old mortuary’s parking lot in Framingham. Mrs. LeBlanc had been forced to find a private facility because the church had refused to hold the service. As it was, the mortuary had only agreed to accept the body if she paid extra and there was no announcement in the papers.
The service would begin shortly, and Rogan had been mentally kicking himself on the drive over. He should’ve offered to pick up Mrs. LeBlanc. But of course, Lenny and Mitch were supposed to have been in the truck with him. He grunted. That