Page 57 of Deadly Forever

James made a face. “I’m going to spank your bottom blue later. Just be aware of that.”

“I’m looking forward to it.”

Lee Kaspar, or rather Doug Fisher, had a blank look on his face when he answered the door. It took him a moment to place James and Jake, and when he did, he didn’t look happy. When his eyes swept back to Mandy and Ally, his dour expression momentarily brightened. Then confusion took over. “Can I help you?”

“I certainly hope so,” James said. “We’re here to talk to you, Mr. Fisher, about why you’re working at a high school despite your sex offender status.”

Kaspar’s confused expression shifted to outright panic as he tried to shut the door. James shoved his foot in the opening and ignored the pain as the door slammed into it. He kept his face impassive as he stared down Kaspar.

“You can either talk to us or the police,” James warned. “Which do you prefer?”

Kaspar tried to slam the door one more time, even going so far as to nudge James’ foot with his toe. When that didn’t work, though, he heaved out a dramatic sigh and opened the door. “I guess I don’t have a lot of choice in the matter, do I?”

“Not even remotely,” James replied.

Kaspar trudged through the house, letting the foursome follow at their own pace. James kept his eyes on Kaspar to make sure he didn’t make a break for it – or try to grab a weapon – while Mandy and Ally walked behind him. Jake brought up the rear, remaining focused on the girls as James took control of the situation.

“What do you want?” Kaspar asked once everyone was settled in the living room. “How did you even find out about that?”

“At least you’re not denying it,” James said. “I thought for sure we would spend fifteen minutes with you claiming it was a case of mistaken identity.”

“What’s the point?” Kaspar challenged. “You clearly know the truth. Denying it isn’t going to do any of us any good.”

“That’s great,” James said. “That allows us to ask our questions and get out of your hair relatively quickly. How does that sound?”

“Like pure torture,” Kaspar replied, refusing to mince words. His eyes traveled to Mandy and Ally, who sat on the couch together, and his expression darkened. “I’m betting you two were the bait to get my fingerprints, huh? Is that why my glass went missing? The bartender asked me about it after you disappeared while I was in the bathroom and I couldn’t figure out what happened. I guess now I know. How much did these guys pay you?”

“They only pay us in kisses,” Ally replied sweetly, winking at Jake and causing his cheeks to flood with color.

“This is my wife and sister,” James said. “We asked them to help us secure your fingerprints. They were happy to do it.”

“With their boobs hanging out and everything,” Kaspar said, blasé.

James narrowed his eyes. “I would watch yourself.”

“Fine,” Kaspar said, rolling his eyes. “What do you people want? If you’re not here to turn me in, then you must want money. You should know that I rent this house and I work on a teacher’s salary. I have no money for you.”

“We’re not interested in money,” James said. “We’re interested in justice.”

“I … don’t know what that means,” Kaspar hedged. “I did my time.”

“And then you ran out on your parole,” James added. “That’s really neither here nor there, though. We’re here to talk about Darcy Sweetin.”

Mandy watched Kaspar closely for his reaction and she wasn’t surprised to see the color drain from his face as his jaw tightened. It wasn’t an overt reaction, but it was definitely suspicious.

“She’s one of my former students,” Kaspar said. “What about her?”

“We know she was gang-raped at your home after being administered a drug,” James said, adopting a firm tone. “We know that the boys who raped her are now dead. What we don’t know is how you play into this.”

Kaspar was on his feet quickly. “You can’t possibly think I had anything to do with what happened at that mall. That is just … ridiculous.”

“I notice you’re more worried about being tied to the mall shooting than the rape,” James mused. “Why is that?”

“I have no ties to any rape,” Kaspar spat. “I wasn’t even here the night that supposedly happened … and I say supposedly because a lot of people think that girl is lying.”

“Not the important people,” James said. “The important people believe her. The police believe her. I believe her.”

“I do, too,” Mandy murmured.

“My very intuitive wife believes her,” James said, momentarily wishing he’d sat closer to Mandy so he could reassure her. He wanted to place himself between Kaspar and the girls should the man attack, though, and that’s where he remained. “I’m going to be very straight with you, Mr. Fisher. We know you’re a rapist. We know you like young girls. We also know that a young girl was attacked in your home when you were supposedly out of town.

“I’m going to guess you weren’t really out of town,” he continued. “I’m betting you were here. I’m betting you supplied the boys with the drug. I’m betting you participated in the rape. What I haven’t gotten a feeling for is why those boys went into that mall when they knew it was a suicide run.

“I looked Nate Graham in the face that day,” he said. “I saw the … defeat … reflected there. That boy preferred holding a gun on my wife and goading me into killing him than risk talking to the police. There has to be a reason for that, and I think you know the reason.”

Kaspar locked gazes with James in a challenging manner. “You think you know a lot and yet you really know nothing. You’re not nearly as smart as you think you are.”

“And neither are you,” James said, getting to his feet. He sensed this interrogation was over even though they’d gotten absolutely nowhere. There was no way Kaspar would cooperate now. “I’m not letting this go until I know exactly what happened. You should be very clear about that.”

“And I’m not involved,” Kaspar gritted out. “You should be very clear about that.”

“I guess we’ll have to wait and see how things go,” James said, pressing his hand to the small of Mandy’s back and ushering her toward the door. “This won’t be the last time we meet.”

“Oh, I’m sure of that,” Kaspar sneered. “In fact, you can count on seeing me again very soon.”

James was fairly certain the man meant it as a threat, but he wasn’t remotely afraid of him. “I’m looking forward to it.”