Free The Poisonous Ten by Tyler Compton Page B

stopped. And he never touched a child.”
    “No, he never molested a child, he just fed them razor blades and watched them suffer.”
    “Now you get how serious this is? This man killed thirteen people and attacked another two-dozen, including children. This man cannot be let free.”
    “Whatever you need.” Parks nodded.
    “The case files are being gone over by a team,” Hardwick said. “That you don’t need to worry about. Probably better if you don’t touch it until they’re done, but once they are, it would be recommended that you go over every detail so you know it like the back of your hand. And any meetings you do have with Wolfe you better make sure you have our legal representation there as well. I don’t need any bullshit accusations being flung about. Not any more than already are being slung.”
    “Consider it done.”
    “And Parks,” Hardwick said, breathing deeply. “There better not be any fuckups by you or your team. Adam Wolfe is just looking for that one step out of line that will set his client free.”   
    “Great,” Parks smiled. “All I needed on my first case back.”
    “What’s that?”
    “More pressure.”   

 
     
    7
    “Detective Parks? Detective Parks.”
    Parks turned around at the sound of his name to see Jac kie Isley following him out the front doors of the station.
    “Doctor,” he said. “What can I do for you?”
    “For starters, it’s Jackie. Remember?”
    “Jackie.” Parks smiled. “And when I’m off the clock, it’s Dave. What can I do for you?”
    “Well, Dave, I was wondering what your plans were.”
    “I just broke down what everyone needs to focus on. I b elieve—”
    “No. No,” Jackie cut him off, smiling. “Not about the case. I mean right now. Would you like to get a drink? I was just . . . well, I’d like to talk. Pick your brain. If you have the time, that is? I promise to be more sociable.”
    Parks noticed several officers passing by, no one paying them any attention. The sun was still up over the horizon but looked ready to disappear within the next half hour, hopefully relieving them of the heat that had bore down on the city all day. Despite that he had lived his whole life in Southern California, he never thought he’d get used to the heat. And each passing year it seemed to get worse.
    “I’d like to apologize,” Jackie said when Parks didn’t r espond.
    “What for?”
    “My behavior earlier today. I realize I might not be the warmest person when it comes to first impressions. I guess that just comes from my line of work. Most people assume that because I deal with toxic chemicals and contaminants all day long, I myself might also be infectious. I notice the looks I get. It’s the general behavior I get from other men and women in the department, and I guess that over time I’ve put up a shield against it. Stay professional. Get in, do my job, and get out. The truth of it is that I do work with toxic contaminants all day long and it is a serious business. Lives are at stake and can continue to be so if I do my job incorrectly. But you and your team seem different. I just—”
    “Sure.” Parks smiled, stopping her babble. He wasn’t r eally in the mood to socialize, thanks to the news Hardwick had just given him. But then again, he could use a drink.   “A drink sounds good.”
    *                             *                            *
    Thirty minutes later Dave Parks and Jackie Isley sat at a t able in the corner of the front patio of a dimly lit Mexican cantina on Sunset near Van Ness. The music was louder than Parks would have preferred for conversation, so he chose the gated patio area, allowing for a little bit of privacy.
    Behind the bar rested a wall covered with various tequ ilas, each one used to make a different flavored margarita. Two wide-screen televisions were plastered up in the corners above the bar, currently showcasing the Dodgers, who were