Sergeant Jeffries shook his head and motioned me to follow him. There were no handcuffs or searches involved as we hustled down the hallway. He led me through a door, which took us outside. He pointed to a cruiser and said, “Jump in the passenger seat.”

I didn’t ask any questions but could tell he was headed back toward the Budstop, where my car was parked.

Sergeant Jeffries said, “I don’t exactly know what’s going on here. You weren’t officially booked. I’m not asking any questions about it, but you’ve made some enemies in the Newburgh police department. You need to get out of Newburgh and stay away from this case. Let your brother’s lawyer do what she’s good at.”

“Come on, Bill. You know my mom. You think she’d let me drop this case?”

The sergeant chuckled and said, “Then you better start watching your ass more closely. There are a lot of bad people in this town.”

Chapter 18

Chapter 18

BEFORE SERGEANT JEFFRIES even dropped me off at my car at the Budstop, my phone rang. I was surprised to hear Katie Stahl asking me to meet her. I raced through Newburgh, or, at least, drove as quickly as I could in my beat-up station wagon, to where Katie had told me she was waiting: Lise Mendez’s office.

As I stepped through the front door, Lise called from her office, telling me to come in.

As soon as she saw me, Lise said, “Is everything all right? What happened to your head?”

My hand rose to the giant Band-Aid on my forehead and reminded me I still had a slight headache. “Just clumsy.”

Katie smiled and patted the chair next to her. “We need your signature on a couple of forms for Natty.”

“What kind of forms?”

“I’m moving the retainer Pete had with Miss Mendez over to cover some of the expenses for Natty,” Katie said. “She wanted to make sure there was no question if anyone asked where the money came from. I’m also trying to get a fix on my cash situation in case Natty gets a bond hearing so I can help him out.”

Lise said, “There are a couple of businessmen in town that will help with Natty’s bond as well. He’s very well respected here in Newburgh.”

“By businessmen, do you mean drug dealers?”

“Does it matter?”

I thought about it and shrugged. I couldn’t believe how lucky my brother was to have two people like these women in his life. An attorney who was going above and beyond the call of duty and a young woman who trusted him enough to post a bond on a homicide charge. Whatever choices my brother made, he was doing all right in at least one department.