For You (The 'Burg #1)(173)

Sully was throwing the photos back into the box and flipping back the flaps, muttering, “Helps, sometimes, knowin’ what drives ‘em. Not all the time, mind, but sometimes.”

Colt’s eyes went to Evelyn. She was cracking, plain to see.

Norm’s hand was firm on his frozen wife’s arm. He’d slipped up, bringing her to the Station. She’d either demanded to come, which was unlikely, or she’d been so undone by the news, and thus so fragile, Norm didn’t know what to do with her and he’d made the mistake of allowing her to come, thinking he could keep her under control.

Then again, a mother’s love, even if her son had gone bad, was hard to control. Colt’d seen it over and over. Pete Hollister’s mother was a prime example. That woman knew what her son did to Feb, putting Feb in the hospital, and she stood by Pete, badmouthing Feb along the way.

Sully knew this too and he was going to play it.

Norm saw his wife breaking and his voice was a warning when he said, “Evelyn.”

“Also helps us,” Sully cut in, “if we know, to figure a way to bring ‘em in, you know, safe like. Get ‘em help.”

“You don’t want to help my son,” Norm accused, casting doubt on Sully, hoping Evelyn would rise to the bait.

Sully looked at him and asked good-naturedly, “You know me, sir?”

“I –” Norm started but Sully cut him off.

Good-natured gone, colder than steel and firmer than concrete in its place, Sully said, “You don’t know me, Mr. Lowe, so you can’t say that about me.”

“He was touched,” Evelyn whispered and the observation room went electric.

“Evelyn,” Norm snapped.

Sully turned fully to her, she had his complete attention. “Touched?”

“Touched.”

“Evelyn!” Norm’s voice was sharper and his hand on her arm gave her a quick but vicious shake.

“Mr. Lowe, due respect, but I’m thinkin’ you shouldn’t handle your woman like that in front of a cop,” Sully warned quietly, but quiet or not, that steel was still in his tone.

Norm instantly dropped his wife’s arm but declared, “We’re leaving.”

“When he was a little boy. Norman’s brother,” Evelyn said softly.

“Quiet now, Evelyn,” Norm hissed at his wife, leaning toward her. “You don’t know that.”

She turned her head to him, still talking softly, finding her way, uncertain of her footing and downright scared, she whispered, “I know it.”

“You don’t.”

“Denny told me.”

Norm threw out a dismissive hand. “I think it’s clear by his behavior that Denny tellin’ you anything can be taken with a grain of salt.”

Still soft, Evelyn said, “Not then, not then, Norman.”

“Ehv.”

“He was five,” she whispered and Colt closed his eyes.

“Jesus, sick, f**k, Christ,” Sean muttered and Colt opened his eyes.

Evelyn looked back at Sully, squared her shoulders and sucked in oxygen through her nose, counting on it giving her strength. “Far as I reckon, it’d been happenin’ since he was a baby.”

“No, now it’s Jesus, sick, f**k, Christ,” Mike remarked.

“Evelyn, you be quiet, you hear?” Norman warned.

She didn’t take her eyes off Sully when she replied, “Been bein’ quiet a long time.”

“No use dredgin’ this up,” Norm told her.

For some reason those words were Norm’s mistake. Evelyn’s body visibly locked but her eyes sliced to her husband.

“No use dredgin’ it up.” Her voice was still soft but it held an angry hiss. “No use takin’ him to see a psychologist when he had those dreams, would draw those pictures. No use havin’ him talk to someone when he killed our dog,” Evelyn returned, building her backbone with every word.

“Holy f**k,” Merry muttered.

“Classic case. Christ,” Mike noted.

Norm looked at Sully and declared, “Denny didn’t kill our dog.” “So, Sparky fell on a hatchet?” Evelyn asked, unpracticed sarcasm in her tone but still, it worked.

“Evelyn, I hardly think –” Norm started but Evelyn interrupted him.

She looked back to Sully and said on a rush, “Norm’s brother liked babysitting. He did it for us a lot. A lot. Kept tellin’ us to go to movies, out to dinner, have a break from our boy. Felix had no wife, no girlfriends, no interest, never did, but he liked babies, he liked little boys, he liked them a lot. Used to go to the park just to watch them. I’d take Denny on the weekend, he’d always be there to come with me. I thought it strange, thought he was a bit peculiar, but it was more than a bit peculiar.”

“Denny told you he touched him?” Sully asked.

“Told me, yes, told me how too,” Evelyn answered.

“Dennis couldn’t know –” Norm started but stopped when Evelyn looked at him again.

“If he didn’t know, if you didn’t know, why’d you send Felix away?”

“He got a position out of state,” Norm reminded her.

“You arranged for him to get a position out of state.”