BURDEN OF AN ANCIENT OATH by Joshua Brown (early reader books TXT) 📕

her nose into the air. “A famous one at that. Did you know that a story he wrote was featured in a magazine?”

I couldn’t tell if she was oblivious to how the writing world worked or if she was just a complete moron. So far, however, all the boxes were being ticked.

Oscar left his mother a letter. He was a writer, which might’ve explained the ability to write in calligraphy. The car was in his hands. I couldn’t believe it, but I felt like Aaron helped make the first break in this case, and I felt relief washing over me already. Was this the start and end of all our problems? I had to hope so but expected the road to be far more winding than just that.

“Ma’am, I’d like to show you a picture now. Can you let me know if it’s Oscar?” I asked, drawing a crumpled sheet of paper from my pocket. From Aaron’s investigation into the footage, it was the clearest picture of the culprit he could find.

I handed it over to Delores and she brought it close to her chest. Her face sprawled with strange emotions of absolute joy at the sight of it.

“Yes, that’s my babe,” she said, her face glowing with delight. “Isn’t he just the most handsome young man?”

Delores’s face suddenly turned sour as she eyed me down. She set the half-eaten treat atop the other that already sat on the counter. Looking at the sheet again, I supposed it finally clicked that I wasn’t here asking about her boy. I couldn’t believe it took her this long to figure it out.

“What’s this all about, detective?” she asked, her shrill voice turned threatening.

“Your son, Oscar, is threatening the lives of not only myself but multiple other families at the same time. I would urge your co-operation moving forward on this case. However, I’d understand if you’d like to exercise your right to remain silent,” I replied, reaching for my recorder.

Delores snatched it up before I could get it. I didn’t expect such agility and speed from such a rotund woman.

“I won’t let you have it,” she said, clutching the recorder. “If you don’t have this, there’s no admission of guilt.”

She turned her nose up again as if she had the upper hand in the situation.

“You know that’s not how this works, right?” I asked, cocking a brow. “I just came here to confirm what I already knew. That recorder isn’t going to change a thing.”

I couldn’t take my eyes off my recorder. Though I was acting strong, I didn’t want anything to happen to that thin slab of metal. In some peculiar way, it became my best friend over the years. I was never good with people, and though I wasn’t a shy person, I never cared much for social interaction.

She eyed it, looking at the red blinking light, just the same as I did. I saw, from the corner of my eye, as her face twisted across a spectrum of varying emotions—rage, denial, grief, depression, and finally, acceptance that this was done. They all displayed across her face in a matter of seconds, and she dropped the recorder onto the counter.

Delores collapsed to the floor, the whole store shook at her weight, hitting the ground. She burst out into tears.

I collected my recorder, leaving it on but pocketing it.

“Delores…”

She wept into her cupped hands that barely covered her eyes and cheeks.

“I’m sorry about this,” I said. I was too. Delores was still a mother, trying to be proud of a son who undoubtedly lied through his teeth about where he was in life. But her obviousness to the situation would be his ultimate downfall, so I understood the emotions she faced. “Really, I am. I know what it’s like to feel lost and alone, abandoned by the world. But I want you to know that you’re not alone. Your son has committed these crimes and brought this onto himself. But you don’t have to think about it again, nor do you have to worry. You’re stronger than you could ever imagine.”

I didn’t know if my fortune cookie wisdom would help Delores through whatever anguish she felt. But I also didn’t have much else to give.

She stayed there, sobbing behind the counter. Saying nothing more, either because she was too afraid of the implications, or because this was practically over.

I left her there, knowing that I had something to go on now. And with a quick call to see where Gwen was, I prepared to bring Oscar Carlisle to justice.

Chapter 14

Jack

“So, Aaron pulled through after all?” Gwen asked, sitting smugly in the passenger seat of my Dodge Charger. She had her window cracked, letting out the smoke from my cigarette while we drove through the late evening streets of New York.

“I did, and if I didn’t know any better, that boy might think it’s his time to shine in the field,” I chuckled, ashing out my window. I hated the thought of letting him join me, a little bit more than having Gwen beside me that night.

It was so easy for something to go wrong, for someone to get hurt out in the real world, and I don’t know what I would’ve done with myself if something happened to someone because of me. But I wasn’t one to have a partner anymore, either. The idea of having someone else who relied on me was terrifying.

If it was just me, I was the only one in the firing line.

“You know, maybe it’s time to give him a shot. He’s clearly got the fundamentals down, and he’s not going anywhere behind that desk,” Gwen replied.

“And what, having him run off like you did after I got you into the field?” I teased.

“Well, look at what I’ve become since. Somehow, I even manage