School Days - By Robert B. Parker Page 0,60

breasts at me. Both barrels.

"You think it's impossible?" she said.

"Few things are impossible," I said. "I think it is improbable."

"So what would be your explanation?"

"I'd guess some sort of psychosexual pathology on your part," I said.

"That's disgusting."

"So what happened?" I said.

"Happened?"

"To the relationship."

"Garner made me break it off," she said.

"He refused to share?"

"That, too, is disgusting," she said.

"But true?"

"Yes. He said I had to stop seeing Jared or he'd destroy me professionally."

"With the picture," I said.

"Yes."

"Did you tell Jared?"

"I tried to be as kind as I could be," she said. "I told him the school knew of our relationship, and we would have to stop seeing each other for a while."

"How'd he take it?"

"How do you think he would take it. He was devastated."

"Do you suppose that made him go off on the school?"

"I don't know what to think," she said.

"You didn't rush to his rescue when he did go off," I said.

"What could I do?"

"You might have shared what you knew."

"How could I help him by destroying myself?" she said.

Her whole bearing had intensified, as if she had been rehydrated. I had a private bet with myself where we were going.

"You might have avoided describing him to me in terms of a classic school shooter. Isolated. Bullied unmercifully. That kind of thing."

"He'd already confessed and been arrested," she said.

She was starting to breathe more heavily, and her breasts moved as if rebelling against the sweater.

"I didn't see what good it would do to call attention to myself."

"You know anything about Wendell Grant?" I said.

"Nothing," she said. "I don't believe I ever spoke with him."

I picked the photograph up off the table and put it back in my inside pocket.

"What are you going to do?" she said.

"I don't know," I said.

"Do you suppose you could make Royce give me back my picture?"

"Probably," I said.

"Would you give me back your copy?"

"No."

"It's all I have of Jared," she said.

"You've probably had too much of Jared already," I said.

Her eyes widened and her voice softened. I could hear her breathing.

"I need your help," she said.

"You do," I said.

"Can't you help me," she said.

"Probably not," I said

"I don't like my arrangement with Royce," she said. "But I do it because he makes me."

"Uh-huh. "

"I want to escape from him," she said.

"Uh-huh."

"I would like an arrangement with you," she said.

"I need time to work on my poetic depth," I said and stood up. "I'll get back to you."

Chapter 60

"SO SHE WAS fucking this guy to keep him from telling everyone that she was fucking this kid?" Cleary said.

"Well put," I said.

"And the kid was underage when she was fucking him?"

'Almost certainly," I said.

`And you can prove this?"

"Whoops," I said.

"You can't prove it," Cleary said.

"I can probably prove it. I got the naked photo."

"Evidence of a possible felony," Cleary said. "I'll have to examine it closely."

"Yeah," I said. "Take a number. DiBella's already got first dibs."

Cleary smiled.

"The photo's pretty good leverage."

"With her," I said. "I have only her word with Garner."

"But you know they were spending the night together."

"Yes."

"So why do you want to talk with the kid again?" Cleary said.

"I need to know where the love affair with Beth Ann fits in to what he did."

"And I should help you with this?"

"In the interest of justice?" I said.

"Justice?" Cleary said. "This office wants convictions, not justice."

"You'll convict him," I said. "But maybe the circumstances would mitigate the sentence."

"His sentence gets mitigated and the fucking community will be in open rebellion," Cleary said.

"Lot of heavy stuff happened to that kid," I said.

"A lot of heavy stuff happened to other kids, in the school, when he killed them," Cleary said.

"I need to know what happened," I said.

"Spenser, get away from me," Cleary said. "His lawyer's already conceded. Nobody wants the sentence mitigated. His parents even want him long gone."

"I might be able to do something about the lawyer," I said.

"Well, wouldn't that work out good for me?" Cleary said. "If I am really cooperative, I can turn this case into a major headache for myself."

"The woman may have caused this," I said.

"Even if she did," Cleary said, "even if he had a better lawyer, he's going away."

"We need to know," I said.

"They don't want a better lawyer. They want him gone."

"Maybe I could persuade them," I said.

"You got another lawyer in mind?"

"Rita Fiore," I said.

"The best defense attorney in the fucking state," Cleary said. "And you want me to help you bring her on board?"

"Exactly," I said.

Cleary looked at me. I looked back.

"You're going to get your