Page 71 of Galen's Redemption
Robert put a hand on Brady’s arm. “Listen to me. You’re worrying for nothing. If you don’t feel comfortable doing this, that’s fine. I’ll ask someone else, or I can do it myself. But so you know, I’ve got every confidence in you. Now, do you think you might want to tryagain?”
Brady took a deep breath. “Okay.”
“Great.” Robert turned around again. “Go ahead.”
It took nearly forty minutes, with a lot of stopping by Brady to bite his lip and check to be sure everything was symmetrical, but when he finished, Robert was exceptionally pleased with the results. His hair had been trimmed close to the scalp, and it looked great.
“Did I do okay?”
Robert reached upand ran a hand over his head. “This is one of the best cuts I’ve ever gotten, and that includes from a barbershop.”
Brady’s eyes went wide. “Really? I did okay?”
“You did. In fact, how would you like to help me give haircuts when people need them? I know we can’t pay you, but—”
“No! I’d love to help. It’s just….” Brady nibbled on his lip. “What happens if I make a mistake?”
Robert put a handon Brady’s shoulder. “Let me tell you something. The people here? They would be over the moon to have someone take an interest in them. I’ve trimmed more hair than I care to think about, but even when I screw up, they never care. They’re only grateful that I offered to help them. It’ll be the same with you.”
The phone in the office rang. Robert ruffled Brady’s hair, then hurried to answer it.
“Robert Kotke.”
“Hey, Robert. This is Officer Court.”
A queasy sensation slithered through Robert’s stomach. Court never called. “What’s up?”
“I wanted to let you know that we made an arrest in Bree’s death.”
Robert slumped into the chair. “Who?”
“Michael Dugan. He laced marijuana with PCP for that extra kick.”
The sob that escaped couldn’t have been stopped, no matter how hard Robert tried.“So you’re telling me Bree died from smoking a fucking joint?” She’d been into much harder drugs in the past few years. She’d said she was trying to kick them, and if she was only hitting the marijuana, she was doing better. “Please tell me he’s going away for the rest of his life.”
Court sighed. “I wish I could. With the courts the way they are, I can’t guarantee what’s going to happen. Butwe’re doing our best to gather as much evidence as we can.”
If only that were true. “You meanyou’redoing your best.”
“I’ve got help. Believe it or not, wedocare what happened to Bree, and we’re going to do our best to ensure Dugan never sees the light of day.”
Anger at the thought that Dugan might get away with this grabbed Robert. “You should have just shot him.”
A barked cough from Courtbrought Robert back to reality. “You don’t mean that.”
“No, but God help me, I wish I did.” He shook his head. “Thank you for calling, Gary. Next time you’re in the area, stop in for some coffee. Or I can take you to the diner and buy you a cup.”
Court chuckled. “I get free coffee. Lincoln got into a disagreement with a tweaker and I arrested the guy after he punched Linc in the face. But I’dstill meet you. It would be nice to see you when it wasn’t office hours.”
“You’ve been a good friend, Gary, and I appreciate that.”
“Just wish I could do more.” He was quiet for a moment. “Okay, let me get back to work. Thank you for taking the time to talk with me.”
He had to be kidding. “No, thank you. Even though Bree is gone, it helps to know the person who did it isn’t going to walk.”
“If the courts had done their jobs the last time he went before them, he never would have been able to in the first place.”
That was something they could agree on. A few more pleasantries and they hung up. As much as Robert wanted to go and visit with some friends, he had lunch to get out for a few hundred people. He also needed to talk with Brady some more about picking up a few extra dutiesat the shelter.
