“In the meantime, we start with my source’s main supplier and follow it up the chain,” Tanner said. “Shake the bushes.”
Arthur popped in another red hot, rolling it around in his mouth. “So, your source only knows the guy who gives him the drugs at the garage. Kenny Hopkins. We need more. I’m still not clear why Jemma died and no one else. Is it because they threw their guts up?”
Tanner wondered the same. “We’ve got more questions than answers, but that’s always the way a good story starts.”
Meredith raised her hand. “Why don’t I stop by Gene’s house tomorrow night after work? That way we can keep it social.”
“Okay,” Tanner agreed. “Can you ask him to run another test if he didn’t find anything on the first pass? I want a second set of results. Gene tested her… remains. Peggy can test the drugs. It’s a different base. But please don’t tell Gene about the other test.”
Just because they trusted him didn’t mean he had to do the same.
Arthur leaned forward. “Fine. Two tests will carry more weight. Better confirmation for the courts if we find anything. Why the hell was a nice girl like Jemma smoking marijuana anyway? Such a damn waste.”
Meredith patted his liver-spotted hand. “Pete showed up at the Halloween party with another girl, and Jemma was acting out.”
Arthur gripped his cane. “I’ll ask for the police report. Even if there’s nothing useful in it, it’ll tell us who else was on the scene with Gene besides Deputy Barlow. I don’t like the fact that no one was seriously interviewed.”
“The coroner is in charge of the crime scene according to Colorado law,” Meredith told Tanner.
Arthur nodded, and then said, “Mere, ask Gene if any drugs from the party were submitted as evidence.”
“Someone might have flushed them,” Tanner suggested. “My source said he couldn’t find everything he sold that night.”
“We’ll know more after I talk to Gene.”
“How are you going to explain your questions?” Tanner asked.
Meredith tapped her chin. “I’ll tell him that Jill’s desperate to know more. He has a soft spot for her. She always bribed him with mom’s chocolate chip cookies to take her fishing.”
“He’ll buy that,” Arthur replied. “Jill is having a hard time. Details might help.”
And then again, details didn’t change a damn thing. Jemma would still be dead.
“I’d like to meet your source.” Meredith reached for a red hot in the crystal candy bowl on the coffee table.
Tanner shook his head. “No way.”
“But we’re partners. You brought me—us—in.” She looked at Arthur. “We know the local scene. We can ask him things you can’t. Grandpa, tell him.”
“No, Meredith. I would feel the same way. A good reporter never gives up his source.”
Tanner looked up and met the older man’s eyes, and a moment of complete understanding and respect passed between them.
“Give me your questions. I’ll ask the ones I haven’t covered.”
Meredith tapped her foot. Tanner was afraid steam would start spewing from her ears.
“He might have to come forward anyway,” she said in a persuasive voice.
“He’s hoping if we find enough evidence he won’t have to.”
She snorted. “Right, because he’d go to jail.”
Not answering seemed a good approach.
“You don’t give an inch.”
He stared her down when she put her hands on her hips. “I lost a source when I was young and stupid by trusting another journalist. I won’t make the same mistake twice.”
“That’s to your credit, Tanner.”
Arthur uncurled from the sofa, rubbing a hand on his aged back. Tanner would love to have seen the man in his prime, riding a horse through the pyramids like in the photo above the fireplace.
“And you thought Dare was going to be boring,” Arthur said.
Tanner picked up his coffee cup when he stood. “I never said boring. Just not the pressure-cooker I’m used to.”
Arthur popped in another red hot, crunching. “What’s your source doing? Still selling?”
“He said people are freaked out about Jemma and aren’t buying much right now. Plus, there’s fewer parties with the end of the semester looming. If someone asks, he’s going to tell them he’s out or forgot to bring his stash. I asked him to keep a low profile.”
“Stalling is a good plan. See what else you can find out.” Arthur unwrapped another candy, making Tanner wonder if his tongue held a permanent red tinge.