As I struggled to get out of the car, Ruby came toward us, screaming. Her shrill panic set her baby crying, too. One of our mutual high school friends emerged from inside the house and rushed to take Ruby’s son from her. At that point, Ruby collapsed, wailing as she knelt in the dew-damp grass.

“He’s dead! He’s dead! Who did this? What am I going to do?”

Darrell helped Ruby back to her feet. I felt terrible for what she was going through, but I also felt awkward, standing there with no real role to play. I still didn’t understand why Darrell needed me. The pregnant office secretary. If Ajax was the victim, there were other deputies who could have come here with him to start the investigation.

“Ruby, let’s go inside,” Darrell told her softly. “Tell us where to go.”

She had her face buried in his chest, and she was making incoherent whimpering noises. He let her cry for a while longer, and then he took her shoulders gently and held her until she was able to focus.

“Ruby? I know this is hard, but take us inside, okay? You don’t have to show us the body. You can stay with your friends and wait for us. Are the other kids here?”

She shook her head. “A friend took them to her house.”

“Good. We’ll need to talk to you, but we have to see—we have to see what happened first. Okay?”

“It’s horrible. It’s horrible. It’s unbelievable.”

“I know.”

Then, like a snake’s head whipping around, Ruby’s gaze shifted to me, and her entire face contorted from grief into simmering hatred. “What the hell is she doing here?”

“I wanted her help.”

“She’s not even a cop anymore. Get her out of here.”

“Ruby, please. This isn’t the time. Take us inside.”

She stalked away from us with quick, angry footsteps. We followed, with me slowing down the pace. I hadn’t seen much of Ruby this year, and when I had, she’d been cold and distant, but this reaction was beyond anything she’d shown me before. I didn’t think she’d forgotten the incident between me and Ajax months earlier in the bathroom of the 126, but this seemed over the top for something like that.

We entered the house, and without a word, Ruby simply pointed at an oak door that led down to the basement. After that, she went into the living room and took her baby in her arms again. There were three other women inside who gathered around her. I knew all of them, but they shot me looks that mirrored Ruby’s disgust.