A Time to Live and a Thyme for Murder! (Outer Banks Baker Mystery Series Book 3) (6 page)

As Krissy sat alone in an interview room waiting to be questioned, Cheryl and the rest of her employees filed into the crowded waiting room. After a lot of discussion over the matter, Jason voluntarily recused himself from the questioning of his daughter. Not that the Federal agent would’ve acquiesced anyway. However, the elder detective requested that the young woman at least be given a lawyer or other adult to sit with her during the interrogation. After all, she was only eighteen. Not a minor anymore, but he doubted she had much experience being across the table from a sharp Federal agent asking her intimidating questions. Garland agreed, so Jason called in Janice Littleton. The young female attorney had been instrumental in protecting Melissa and Logan’s civil rights when they ended up in the same interrogation room now occupied by his daughter. He trusted her implicitly, except perhaps her judgment in men. Janice currently dated Jason’s partner, Cory.

Janice smiled at Jason and Cory as she walked into the bustling precinct. Jason readily smiled back, but Cory didn’t. He kept his facial expression serious and barely acknowledged her. Jason guessed he didn’t want the overbearing DEA agent to know his girlfriend was representing anyone who could be a suspect in the case. “What a jerk!” Jason muttered under his breath. Janice shrugged it off and proceeded to the interview room without the slightest sign of being perturbed.

While Cory seemed ambivalent towards the arrival of his girlfriend, Jason noticed Agent Garland had a much more positive reaction. His eyes grew a little wider and an actual smile crossed his face. Janice pretended not to notice or care about either man’s reaction as she strolled into the interview room and shut the door behind her.

Krissy appeared nervous, but smiled when Janice entered the room. She’d met the woman at a cookout her father had in the early weeks of summer, before things got crazy. Although she would never admit it, Krissy admired the young lawyer immensely. They had conversed several times about a variety of topics, including whether she should pursue a medical or legal degree. Despite her rebel appearance, Krissy was highly intelligent. Janice had recognized that instantly as the young woman had cleverly argued about the recent legislation being considered in the North Carolina assembly regarding reforming welfare. Janice realized Krissy was actually ambitious and had dreams for her future. She just didn’t want anyone to know. It may alter their perception of her. The attorney respected the woman’s wishes for privacy regarding her intellect, but urged her to not be shy about her acumen and brainpower.

A few minutes later, Janice opened the door to allow the DEA agent and Cory into the room to begin the interview. Jason was surprised when, after just a couple minutes, Cory exited the room with a stunned expression. He came over to his desk muttering, “She kicked me out. She would rather deal with the Fed by himself. She actually kicked me out.” Jason tried desperately not to laugh, but couldn’t hide his smile.

Inside the interview room, things progressed somewhat smoothly. Agent Garland spoke in an authoritative, but softer tone than he used with the gentlemen. He didn’t want to frighten the poor girl because he thought she would be the one most likely to provide any useful information. He already read the reports. She was the only new addition to Cheryl’s staff that summer. Krissy was the anomaly in the equation. Therefore, she was a primary candidate for either being directly or indirectly involved. He didn’t want her scared and clamming up. Besides, he secretly wished to portray his softer side in front of the pretty attorney. He knew it was unprofessional of him, but he had difficulty not staring into those gorgeous emerald green eyes.

They ticked through the usual simple questions quickly – name, age, employment, time in town, etc. He asked how Krissy liked working for Cheryl and if she made any friends on the staff. She responded in brief answers, sometimes with a look to Janice for approval to reply. Things appeared to be going smoothly until Agent Garland pulled out a manila file folder with Krissy’s name on it. In it was a copy of her high school transcript, as well as write-ups from the principal and guidance counselors regarding her disruptive behavior. “It seems that your grades are phenomenal. Your SAT score is through the roof. You have numerous college recommendations from your teachers, but…some behavioral issues kept you in detention for twelve straight weeks along with a three-day suspension. I’m guessing these may have played into you not getting into a more prestigious university,” the agent explained.

“Agent Garland,” Janice began, “I don’t see how my client’s perceived issues in high school impact this particular investigation. Could you please keep the discussion relevant?” He assured her that it was relevant, so she requested he explain. In response, he pulled out another file folder from under Krissy’s high school record.

“Miss Payne, do you know a person by the name of Derek McCallie?” he asked. Janice noticed the severe look that came over Krissy’s face at the mention of that name. She didn’t like where this was headed, but needed more information. Krissy nodded her head that she knew him. Agent Garland continued, “Are you aware Mr. McCallie has been in Kill Devil Hills this summer?” Again, she nodded in the affirmative. “Have you seen Mr. McCallie during your stay here?” Krissy started to explain, but Janice advised her to simply  answer “yes or no”.

“Miss Payne, how do you know Mr. McCallie?” he asked. Krissy explained they knew each other in high school and they briefly dated. The agent furthered his inquiry by asking about Krissy’s encounters with Derek since he arrived in town. How often had they seen each other? Were they currently “dating”? When was the last time she had contact with him? Janice stopped the agent and requested a little alone time with her client before the interview continued. He readily agreed.

“Krissy, you need to be straight with me. Completely straight. Do you understand?” Janice asked after the agent exited the room. The poor girl nodded and explained the whole story to the attorney. She dated Derek until he was arrested for drugs in Elizabeth City. He surprised her by showing up in Kill Devil Hills a few weeks ago and claimed to be on the straight and narrow path. He completed his GED for high school and took a job with a local moving company and a beach-house cleaning service to pay the bills. They had hung out since he came to town, but she wouldn’t go so far as to say they were an item again. Janice could tell there was more Krissy wanted to get off her chest, but she was reluctant to do so. After some encouragement, the young woman confided that she questioned Derek herself when she found out it was drugs that had caused everyone to get so sick. They had argued because she didn’t believe that he wasn’t involved somehow. Most importantly, she had not seen or heard from him since their confrontation at the beach.

After advising the young woman to keep her answers short and to not volunteer any unsolicited information, Janice invited the agent back into the room. She found him in a deep discussion with two of his fellow DEA agents just outside the interview room. This time he sported a stern expression as he entered the room. “Miss Payne, are you or have you even been aware of Mr. McCallie being involved in drug possession of drug dealing?” By the look on his face, both women knew he already was well aware of the answer. Krissy tried explaining that Derek had promised her that he no longer used or dealt drugs, but a look from Janice shushed her. Agent Garland continued, “It appears that Mr. McCallie has resumed his illicit business since leaving juvenile hall a few weeks ago. He has an outstanding arrest warrant from Elizabeth City for distribution of the new street drug, X15. However, my team in coordination with the local police have been unable to locate Mr. McCallie. Miss Payne, it would benefit everyone involved if you could tell us where we can find your boyfriend.”

Krissy sadly shook her head. She chided herself for not knowing better when Derek first arrived in town. Of course, he hadn’t gone legit! Worse yet, she had no idea where he was now. Since their argument she had tried calling him numerous times to no avail. He didn’t have a known address as he usually crashed at whatever buddy’s house he could find on a nightly basis. He even told her that he sometimes stayed in vacant beach houses when he couldn’t find a place. Krissy readily volunteered this information as the agent jotted down every single word.

After a long ordeal at the police department, Krissy had to get away to clear her head. She knew she needed to talk to someone, but she wasn’t exactly the trusting type. The thought of confiding in her own father that she dated a drug dealer and that he may be behind the recent rash of accidental overdoses and Mrs. Burnside’s death frightened her. Although she put forth the persona of a carefree, independent, somewhat rebellious spirit, inside she deeply desired her father’s love and approval. As she strolled down the street she found herself at The Surf Shack. The beach was crowded with summer vacationers and locals alike, but she felt immensely alone. Just her luck – as she walked over to a picnic table to sit down and relax she saw two familiar forms returning from the surf with their boogie boards – Logan and Tanner.

Logan sensed Krissy’s tension as they strolled over to her. She never really smiled, but at the moment she sported an outright frown. He already knew she had been through questioning at the precinct earlier and was anxious to hear how the interview had gone. Both young men figured they were all in this together, especially after working together to break into the morgue after Krissy’s argument with Derek. Tanner went inside and bought the group a round of orange sodas and bags of pretzels, hoping the blue-haired beauty would appreciate his laid-back gallantry.

Although Krissy had not felt like unburdening herself to a couple of teenage boys, she felt at ease enough with them to confide in them what transpired at the police station. Neither boy looked shocked about Derek coming to town to push drugs. It seemed to make sense that everyone started getting sick shortly after his arrival. Tanner tamped down his enthusiasm to pin the entire thing on Krissy’s boyfriend. Sure, it would benefit him if Derek turned out to be a total loser and hauled off to jail while making him look more attractive, but he saw Krissy was hurting and didn’t wish to make matters worse. “The thing is,” Krissy said, “I think the DEA now thinks that I’m helping Derek. I swear that I thought he had gone straight. Otherwise, I never would have allowed him back into my life. If he is involved…” Her voice trailed off as if she didn’t really want to finish that sentence. In her mind it was unimaginable that her boyfriend could be responsible for all this trouble and that he was most likely going to take her down with him.

“Ok, let me get this straight,” Logan began. “Derek is now considered missing since the truth came out about the drugs being what made everyone sick?” Krissy nodded her head as affirmation. “Is there any chance, he ditched town? If so, isn’t that problem solved?”

Krissy replied, “I don’t think so. The DEA is intent on finding out how everyone came into contact with the drug and who had the drug in the first place. If they can’t find Derek, they will probably still come after me.” She put her face down on the table in dismay. She saw no way this played out in her favor. That good-for-nothing knucklehead was going to be the end of her hopes and dreams. Being mixed up in a drug scandal was sure to nix her college aspirations. UNC-Wilmington could easily revoke their scholarship and boot her out completely with that on her record.

Neither boy liked seeing the young woman so upset. Sure, they hadn’t started off the best of friends. Krissy had been downright ugly to them at some points and Logan resented her rude treatment of his aunt, but no one deserved to go through this kind of pain. Trying to assure her, Logan and Tanner began to formulate a plan to help find Derek and clear Krissy of any wrongdoing. Although, in the back of Logan’s mind he wasn’t completely convinced she was entirely guiltless. It seemed a bit unrealistic that she had no idea her boyfriend was dealing X15 and that drug just happened to affect customers of Cheryl’s Seaside Sundries where she worked.

The trio sat around for hours outside The Surf Shack concocting a plan to find Derek. He hadn’t responded to any of Krissy’s numerous calls and texts. That could be for a number of reasons, but she figured he simply didn’t want to talk to her after their horrific argument. He knew how much she despised drugs and his involvement in the drug scene, so she believed he simply wanted to avoid her. He didn’t have many friends in town that she knew of– only guys he worked with at the moving company, but Krissy admitted she probably just didn’t know of his other “druggie” acquaintances.

Suddenly Tanner had a light bulb go off in his head and jumped up from the table, knocking over his soda in the process. “Dude! I got it!” he joyfully announced. “There’s a huge party tonight over at the abandoned warehouse off Conway Avenue. It’s supposed to be THE event of the summer. It’s been hushed up because it’s illegal of course, but that should be a prime location for druggie types to hang out, right? Maybe we can catch up with Mr. Bad News there or find someone who knows him and where he may be?”

They agreed it was definitely a viable alternative to sitting around waiting on Derek to magically reappear. However, they recognized they could get into big time trouble going to the party. Neither Logan’s aunt nor Krissy’s dad would approve. Actually they would probably outright forbid it. Despite hating the idea of lying to Aunt Mel, Logan agreed they had to do this covertly.  Since Krissy was already on the cops’ radar due to her known association with Derek and the fact that she worked at the restaurant where everyone became sick, they agreed that she should stay home to help cover for the boys’ absence. Since Tanner knew the teens throwing the party, he could get Logan in. They planned to meet up at 11 p.m. at The Surf Shack and ride over to the warehouse with a couple of Tanner’s stoner friends. Logan wasn’t entirely comfortable with that idea, but knew they would need to blend into the party scene. What better way than to show up with known partiers?