Free All Good Deeds by Stacy Green Page B

Josie’s eyes narrowed. “Why are you asking about Justin?”
    “I just want to know about Kailey’s friends.” I gave her yet another encouraging smile. “Do you girls see Justin a lot?”
    “Sometimes after school, but we aren’t supposed to talk to him.” Josie pushed a lock of her brown hair out of her eyes.
    “Why?”
    “Our moms say he’s too old and that we’re bugging him. But that’s not why we leave. Justin always tells us to go on home before our parents get worried.”
    “Where’s Kailey when this happens? Is she with you, or does she go on to your building?”
    “Until Justin got rid of Isaac, she just hung around. She’s shy and little.” Josie’s tears returned. “Last week, she fell on the way home and ripped her jeans. Her knee was bleeding, and we didn’t have anything to put on it. Justin saw her crying. He gave her some paper towels and a BandAid. He’s so nice, isn’t he?”
    That’s how these guys work. The smallest acts of kindness go a long way to earn a child’s trust. My stomach rolled. “It’s very nice. Do you know if Kailey ever saw Justin without you or Bridget around?”
    Another shrug. “She never said anything. But she didn’t really tell us stuff.” Josie wiped her cheeks. “We sort of ignored her. And I never should have let Bridget talk me into going to the lot. She likes to go play just because she knows she isn’t supposed to. But I think she just wants to keep from going home and helping out with her little brother. He’s a brat.” She shivered, drawing her arms around her. Her eyes clouded over. “I hate the vacant lot. If I hadn’t gone there with Bridget, Kailey would have stayed with us and she’d be okay.”
    “It’s not your fault.” Her face pinched so that it resembled a pug as she tried not to cry. I wanted to give her a hug. “Bad things happen. Now we’ve just got to find Kailey.”
    A uniform on the fringe of the crowd glanced my way, and I knew it was time to go. I handed her my card. “Listen, if you ever need anything or you remember anything else, you call me anytime, okay?”
    Josie shoved the card in her pocket and wiped her tears. I patted her on the head and slipped between chattering parents and kids. So Justin and Kailey must have started emailing after he’d gained her trust with Isaac. He didn’t need to hide who he was in the email because she already thought of him as a good guy. No doubt Todd and his partner would find out this information, but I’d make damn sure it happened today.
    I noticed a sleek, black Audi parked behind my car. Through the tinted windows, I saw Chris Hale behind the wheel. The car’s black rims gave the stealthy appearance of a government official. Or a terrorist.
    Chris exited the car looking cocky, his bright eyes dulled by black-rimmed glasses. “Hi.”
    “You seriously have to stop following me.”
    “I can’t help it. And I didn’t follow you this time. I had a hunch.”
    “Really?”
    “Sure. I knew the little girl disappeared from Kipling, and I thought you might be snooping around. So I took a chance and came looking for your car.” He glanced in the direction of the school, completely at ease, as though he wasn’t the creepiest guy in the vicinity. “What did you find out?”
    My adrenaline still pumped from Josie’s information, and I was pounding with the urge to tell someone. I didn’t get the chance.
    “Excuse me.” The throaty voice came from behind me. Instinctively, I reached into my pocket, my hand closing around the canister of pepper spray. I turned to find the janitor standing a foot away, the same seething question still glued to his face.
    “Can I help you?”
    He took a long step into my space, his action so quick he was within an inch of me before I realized it. “You killed my brother.”

9
    I ’d like to say I was prepared for this moment, that I had a smooth response at the ready, but I froze like a confused deer in the headlights. Cold air