High Risk by G.K. Parks (books for 10th graders TXT) 📕

You’re still not 100%, the voice in my head reminded me. But I was on to something.

When I returned to the observation room, I found Lt. Winston waiting for me. “Well?” he asked.

“Diego and Tarelli were cellmates. That’s how they hooked up.”

“Brilliant deduction,” he said sarcastically.

“Carter doesn’t connect to Diego. He connects to Tarelli. I’m not sure where or how, but I’m guessing Carter’s fondness for pot and Tarelli’s use of CBD oil is how they met. It’s possible Tarelli picked some up in the grocery store where Carter works. It’s also possible they initially crossed paths at the dispensary. Since CBD doesn’t have THC, it’s legal in most places and doesn’t require a prescription.”

“Which means there’d be no record if they sold it to Tarelli. And that might explain why they had to kill the shop owner. Good job, DeMarco. Let’s see if your assumptions pay off.” Winston turned on his heel and entered the interrogation room.

I leaned against the table and watched the lieutenant take over. Within minutes, he convinced Carter Moore that we knew more than we did and it was just a matter of time before we could prove it. And while Carter tried to wait it out, the man who masterminded the entire thing would continue with his plan, kill more people, and escape to some tropical island with his ill-gotten gains.

“You attacked two cops,” Winston said. “You put them both in the hospital. One of them nearly went to the morgue. You spoke to her. Twice, if I’m not mistaken. Both times you apologized, but sorry’s not going to cut it. Right now, you’re the only one we can prove has been violent. We have two cops who’ve pointed the finger right at you. So unless you give us something to indicate you aren’t behind this entire thing, like you insisted by apologizing to the detective you almost murdered, I’d say we’re done here. I’m sure your buddy, Diego, will have a lot more to say. He’s been inside. He doesn’t want to go back. He’ll deal. And all it’s going to take is for him to point the finger at you and it’s game over.”

Carter swallowed, his leg jittering up and down as sweat dripped down his temple. I almost felt bad for the guy. Almost.

The defense attorney came back with an argument of his own about wanting to see the evidence and the list of potential charges Carter might be facing, but Carter would have none of that. Despite the warning to remain silent and not incriminate himself, Carter’s conscience won out.

“Brandon Tarelli. That’s who you want. That’s the guy who wanted me to shoot that cop lady. He,” Carter swallowed, “he said he’d kill me if I didn’t do it. He put a gun right to the back of my head.”

“That changes things,” his attorney said. “My client was acting under duress. Forced to participate while fearing for his life.”

“Save the arguments. We’re not in court yet,” Winston warned. “But we’ll take that into consideration.” He placed his palms on the table and stared at Carter. “Where’s Tarelli now?”

“I…I don’t know,” Carter whimpered, rocking slowly from side to side. “He said we had to stay together. He didn’t trust me. He wanted to kill me.” Carter jerked his chin up and pointed at his neck. “He tried to choke me, but Diego stopped him. Diego stopped him when Brandon tried to shoot me too.”

Lisco put her hands on her thighs and leaned over to get a better look. At least someone in the interrogation room had the decency to pretend to care. “So you and Diego are friends?”

“Sort of. We’ve been hanging out a lot lately. Ever since we met.”

“When was that?” she asked.

“I don’t know. Like two weeks ago. I ran into Brandon Tarelli at the dispensary when I was filling my prescription. I have anxiety.” Carter looked Winston in the eye for the first time since he entered. “Seriously, you can ask my doctor.”

“We might.” Winston wouldn’t even give an inch. “So you met Brandon there.”

“Yeah, he heard me joking around with Mr. D.”

“Mr. D.?” Voletek stepped in. “You mean the man who ran the dispensary? The one who was murdered just outside his shop?”

Carter bit his lip, tears forming in his eyes. “Yeah. You gotta believe me. I didn’t know that was going to happen. Brandon never said anything about hurting anyone, just like the security guard in the dry cleaner’s. I didn’t know about that either. Everything just went to shit real fast. I didn’t know what to do. I just…I didn’t want to die.”

“All right,” Winston said, “start at the beginning.”

The attorney glared at the homicide lieutenant. “I want it put on record that my client is cooperating and that he was an unwilling participant in these crimes.”

“Let’s hear his story first before we start pinning medals on his chest,” Winston retorted.

“Brandon followed me out of the dispensary and struck up a conversation while I was waiting for my rideshare to pick me up. He asked what blend I liked the best and how long I’d been going to that dispensary. I guess I must have told him that me and Mr. D. went way back.” He got a little choked up. “I don’t know. I’ve had a lot of weird conversations with people at that shop, so I didn’t think too much about it. Then while we were talking, Diego shows up. Somehow, we just ended up hanging out at a bar and talking most of the day.”

“About what?” Winston asked.

“The dispensary mostly. I had some crazy stories that Mr. D. had told me or that I’d heard from Mike’s friend.”

“Michael Tolliver, your roommate?” Voletek asked.

Carter looked around. “I don’t want to get him in trouble. He doesn’t know anything about any of this. He’s a