Latent Danger (On the Line #2)(11)

Shauna frowned, her gaze following the boys. “But, it’s May. Wouldn’t the season have ended in March?”

Zach remembered that Shauna came from a boisterous Irish family with four brothers and wondered if they either played or watched hockey. He should know the answer to that. Or, at the very least, he should know her brothers’ names. A little more about her family than that they were Irish and her mom and dad owned a pub. Sadly, that had been all he’d found out about them when they were together. Most of their “dates” had been hopping into bed or stripping down wherever they were that was handy. Any talk had taken place lying naked in the sheets after they’d had sex. And that had usually been cut short when he rolled her under him to start again.

The counselor nodded. “They train all through the school year. It’s a serious sport here. All our sports are, but hockey is a big deal. Several of our board members are big supporters of the hockey team. Geoff Edwards spearheaded the fundraising for the update of the hockey facility four years ago. He’s pretty passionate about the project.”

“Geoff Edwards?” Zach and Ronan exchanged a look. “Adrienne’s uncle?”

Mrs. Davis nodded at Zach. “That’s right. I’m sure he’s devastated by this loss. He was close to Adrienne.”

Zach wondered why Adrienne’s uncle hadn’t mentioned his connection to the school. “So, Mr. Edwards is a board member?”

“Mm hm. One of our most generous and active. He’s been on the board for years.” She seemed thoughtful for a minute. “In fact, he also helped enlist several of our other board members. It’s not always easy to get the kind of commitment from people that we need, but he has a knack for talking people into it.”

“Why is Geoff a board member and not Adrienne’s mother or father?” Zach didn’t have a clue how these things worked, but didn’t it make more sense for a student’s parents to want to be involved in their school?

Mrs. Davis didn’t seem to think anything of it as she continued to lead them across the lawn and up the front steps of a building with the words Geiger Library on a plaque by the entrance. “Alumni make up a fair portion of our board of directors. Geoff and Camden Edwards are both alumni. Camden is a donor, but he’s just not as outgoing as his brother.”

Zach could see Shauna watching him and he realized she hadn’t been there for the interview with Adrienne’s uncle. She had no idea who he was or why he and Ronan had honed in on his connection to the school. He’d have to fill her in on it later, though. For now, they were walking into a bright open room that wasn’t at all like what he’d expected for the school library. Somehow, he’d thought they would enter a dark room with packed shelves and dusty old books.

This room held tables at the center and stacks of books, but there were also couches and armchairs. There were USB ports and outlets built into the center of each table and the room looked like it was set up for technology as much as it was for books.

Mrs. Davis beelined for a girl at the back of the room sitting in front of a laptop at one of the tables.

“Liz,” she said in a low murmur. “These detectives are here to talk to you about Adrienne Edwards. Mr. Carville asked that I sit with you during the interview.” She didn’t say anything about the fact Liz’s parents weren’t there for her, but the sentiment seemed to hang in the air.

The girl looked up, a crease in her brow at first, but she shrugged and began shutting down her laptop. Somehow, Zach didn’t think the kids at this school would rebel when told by an adult what to do, but maybe he just had an overly-rosy idea of the student body. They were, after all, high schoolers. Didn’t they all rebel at some point?

After Liz shoved her laptop into a messenger bag and hung it across her body, Mrs. Davis led them all to one of several small rooms that lined one wall. The rooms reminded Zach of the interview room at the station in terms of size and the lack of furnishings other than table and chairs. This room was brighter, though. He supposed they were for quiet study or maybe for small study groups of students to meet.

Liz dropped her bag on the table and slumped into a chair. “Sooo, why do you need to talk to me?” Her look said they were stupid for singling her out and Zach was reminded of how good teenagers could be at looking at adults like they didn’t have half a brain rolling around in their skulls. Naomi had given him that look on more than one occasion.

Zach didn’t miss the counselor’s tight smile, but he jumped in, a shoulder shrug of his own as he took a seat across from Liz. “Mr. Carville gave us a list of Adrienne’s close friends.”

This earned him a dropped jaw and then a snort. “Adrienne and I haven’t been close for years. Our families are friends. My mom and Adrienne’s mom are close and we live up the street from Carrie and all that, but I...” She looked around the room at each of them. “I just don’t think I can help you at all.”

“Do you have any idea who Adrienne might have been dating, or any other friends of hers we should talk to?” Zach asked. He wanted to figure out if she really knew as little as she said. She was hard to read. She wasn’t quite like the other girls. She was what he supposed people meant when they said someone was awkward. She was tall and thin, and even an unpracticed eye like his could see she stood out as less fashionable, less into hair and makeup.