“Yeah, well, to recap, you’re all a bunch of fucking liars.”Jem pointed to Dean and Sawyer.“You told me the guys were all studying their scriptures together.”
“We were,” Dean mumbled.
“Not Tafton.Tafton was with Stephen.That’s called a lie, motherfuckers.”
“Maybe Taftondidkill President Fitzpatrick.”Aiden’s voice had a high-wire optimism.“Maybe he was telling the truth in that note.He couldn’t live with what he’d done, and he was going to use the gun, only he fell.”
“Yeah, well, Tafton didn’t push me into that tree well,” Jem said.
“Tafton didn’t kill Gerald,” Nora said.“He never would have hurt anyone!Tafton was the kindest, most wonderful person I’ve ever known in my whole life!”
“Aiden,” Mckell said, “I know you’re trying to help, but be quiet, please.”
“What about Stephen?”Aiden said with that same manic desperation.“Why aren’t we talking about Stephen?”
“Dude,” Sawyer barked, “shut up!”
“Something happened Friday morning,” Tean said.“Something that set the rest of this in motion.From what I understand, several of you met with Gerald that morning.”
Dean glanced at Mckell and then at the floor.
“Tafton talked to him,” Quinn said.
Nora glared at him.
“Don’t look at him like that,” Beckett said.“You want me to rip out those extensions right now?”
Quinn put a hand on Beckett’s thigh, but all he said was “Nora, it’s not like it was a secret.He met with Tafton.”
“And Tafton thought he had found a way to get around Stripling,” Beckett said.“Which, obviously, he couldn’t, and that’s what he and President Fitzpatrick argued about.We heard them yelling.”
“No,” Nora said.She was crying again, pressing the tissues against her eyes.“I would have known.President Fitzpatrick would have told me.”And then, a beat too late: “Tafton wouldn’t have done something like that.”
“I don’t know if it’s helpful to focus on Tafton right now,” Tean said.“Who else met with Gerald that morning?”
“Dean,” Sawyer said.
Dean hunched his shoulders and dropped his gaze to the floor.
“You were in there a long time,” Sawyer said.
“How do you know that?”Jem asked.
“Because I was after Dean.”For the first time since Jem had knocked him down, Sawyer offered that flat smile again.“I’ll tell you all about it after Dean confesses.”
“There’s nothing to confess,” Dean said.His voice was low, and he was talking to the floor.
“What did you and Gerald talk about?”Tean asked.
“He doesn’t have to tell you that,” Mckell said.“It’s private.I mean, it’s sacred.”
“It’s part of a murder investigation,” Jem said.“If he doesn’t tell us, he can tell the sheriff.”
“He knew something was wrong,” Dean said.His shoulders, if anything, rose higher.“He could tell.He kept asking me.”
“What’d you do?”Beckett asked.“Play spanky with Little Dean?”
Quinn shushed him.
