Mayhem & Mistletoe, стр. 55
Marvin’s brow furrowed. “What’s his name?”
“Cal Shepperly. Er, well, Calvin Shepperly.”
“Actually, now that you mention it, that name does ring a bell. Hold on.” He pulled up a file on his computer and started tapping on his keyboard. He had a unique filing system — one I didn’t entirely get — but it worked for him. After a full minute, he turned back to me. “I remember this guy. He was caught with two kilograms of meth when cops pulled him over.”
I was horrible at drug weights. “Is that a lot?”
He snickered. “It’s a heckuva lot. It was one of the biggest meth busts in the county at the time. Meth has exploded even more since then, so we’ve had bigger busts. It was a big deal at the time.”
“But he got off.”
“Yeah, if I remember correctly, there was some backdoor dealing ... the prosecutor’s office would never admit. Word is he rolled over on other dealers to get the charges yanked.”
“There would still be a court record of that.”
“Unless they were trying to protect him and just made it go away. We all know that law enforcement is only a stickler for the rules when it’s in their best interests. In a case like this, when he might’ve been able to lead them to other dealers and drug houses, they probably would’ve looked the other way.”
The information bothered me. “Why would a guy who got busted for drugs be put in charge of a halfway house?”
“That I can’t answer. Maybe securing employment was part of the deal.”
“Maybe.” I was so lost in thought I almost didn’t notice a pair of legs invade my personal space. Marvin and I were already almost on top of one another, so adding a third body to the limited area was more than I could take. “Can I help you?”
Sabrina’s smile was so wide it almost swallowed her ears. “I finished the story I was helping Duncan with. It was some ... dating story. Apparently he’s going to start internet dating and do a first-person piece on it.”
“That’s so ... Duncan.” I rolled my eyes until they landed on Marvin, who looked downright tickled at the news. “You’d be better off doing something like that. Your first-person dating stories would be filled with catastrophes. That’s always funny.”
Marvin’s smile disappeared. “I’ll have you know that I’m getting better at the dating thing. Women everywhere are lining up for a piece of the Potts.”
It took everything I had not to burst out laughing at his earnest expression. “If you say so.” I turned back to Sabrina. “I’m sorry you got stuck helping Duncan. If it’s any consolation, everybody here hates him.”
“Except Duncan,” Marvin volunteered. “He loves himself enough to cover for the entire building.”
“There is that,” I agreed.
“I’m done helping him for the day,” Sabrina said. “I asked Mr. Fish what I should do next and he suggested I find a reporter who needed help.”
Uh-oh. I sensed trouble. “I bet Marvin has something you could help him with.”
Marvin brightened considerably. “I’m sure I can come up with something.”
Sabrina shook her head. “I thought I could help you. You are working on the biggest story in the county.”
“That is true,” Marvin agreed.
I shot him an annoyed look. “It’s also a story that will fall apart if there are too many cooks in the kitchen,” I said pointedly. “It’s a delicate balancing act and I need to work it alone right now.”
“But ... I want to help you.” She was plaintive. “I want to learn from the best and you’re the best.”
I was officially at the end of my patience. “That’s all well and good, but I don’t want anyone hanging on me right now. This is an important story, and I don’t need some enthusiastic newbie blowing it out of the water. So, I’m sorry if it upsets you, but I don’t want you anywhere near me right now.”
Sabrina’s lower lip began to plump and shake.
“Oh, don’t do that.” I glared at her. “Crying will only make me hate you more.”
“I just wanted to help.” She burst into tears, turned on her heel, and ran for the hallway. I had no doubt she was making a beeline for the bathrooms, where she would proceed to burn my name in effigy to anybody who would listen. I was pretty much hated throughout the building, so she would have plenty of willing listeners.
“What happened?” Duncan demanded, appearing at the end of the aisle. “What did you do to her?” His gaze was accusatory. “I’m reporting you to Human Resources for upsetting her.”
Yup. I should’ve seen that coming. “I didn’t do anything but tell her the truth.”
“Somehow I doubt that.”
“Ask Marvin.” I tilted my head toward my friend. “He witnessed the entire exchange.”
Rather than immediately jump to my defense, Marvin shifted on his chair, clearly uncomfortable. “Yeah, I can see where I would be your best bet on this, but I’m going to have to abstain from voting.”
I was incredulous. “Excuse me?”
“He’s saying you were mean and deserve to be punished,” Duncan hissed.
I ignored him and remained focused on Marvin. “I didn’t do anything but tell her the truth.”
“And you crushed her poor little heart in the process,” Marvin argued. “She’s a sweet girl. She deserves to be happy. You’re a good reporter, Avery, but sometimes you’re a bad person. You shouldn’t be a bad person to such a sweet girl.”
I glared at him. “You’re just saying that because you want to see if she falls for it.”
He nodded in agreement, his frown flipping upside down. “Yeah. How was I? Do you think she’ll believe me?”
Disgust rolled through me. I was done with men. They were all driving me crazy.
20 Twenty
Eliot didn’t look surprised when I popped through the door of his shop.
He didn’t give me an ounce of grief.
“Let’s go.” He flipped his ledger closed and slid from behind the counter.
“That’s it?” I asked. “I thought for sure you would say,