Chapter Twelve
An hour later Bree pushed back from the computer and turned to Tanner. “Okay, I’ve got bad news and worse news.”
“That doesn’t sound promising.” Tanner held a hand out to her from where he sat on the couch. She stood and walked over to him, smiling as he grabbed her wrist and pulled her down next to him.
“There aren’t very many overt ties between Newkirk and Anders. I’ve pretty much tapped out all legal channels. But if you’ll just give the okay, I can—”
His fingers threaded through hers. “No. I don’t want you breaking any laws. I didn’t kill those men. The circumstances with how it went down were damn unfortunate, but they’re not going to charge me. So, let’s not do anything illegal.”
She nodded. “Okay. Well, we do have one possibility. The only other connection I could find between Newkirk and Anders was that they were both cell mates, albeit very briefly, with a man named Darin Carrico.”
“I don’t recognize the name.”
She stood, pulling Tanner with her over to the laptop at the table. With a couple of keystrokes, she had Carrico’s arrest record pulled up.
“Darin Carrico, age twenty-five, arrested for trespassing, burglary and illegal sale of handguns as well as a long list of misdemeanors. He’s been in prison for four years and has another three to go.”
Tanner leaned over her shoulder to get a better look at Carrico’s mug shot. “Yeah, I still don’t recognize him.”
“Newkirk was his cell mate for six months. Anders was his roomie for five nights.”
Tanner let out an audible sigh. “That’s a pretty thin connection.”
“But it is something. And Carrico is currently incarcerated at Colorado Correctional Center. That’s less than an hour away.”
“I can’t question him in any sort of official capacity. Not while I’m on suspension.”
Bree spun around in her chair so she could face him.
She’d already researched this, too. “But your badge could get us in, right? That’s all we need.
If we leave right now, we can catch him today.
Otherwise we’ll have to wait until this weekend.
I know you can’t ask him anything official, but at least we could see if he tips his hand in any way. ”
Maybe this would lead to nothing. Maybe Carrico had nothing to do with it. But if this was something that helped Tanner to feel like he was more in control of his own fate, then it was worth the drive.
It didn’t take much to convince Tanner of the plan, and a little over an hour and a half later, they’d made it to Camp George West, the nickname for the Colorado Correctional Center. They were searched, signed in and waiting for Carrico at a table in the large visiting room.
“Why don’t you let me do most of the talking,” Tanner said, giving her hand a squeeze.
She rolled her eyes. “Do you really think I’m going to argue with you when you tell me I don’t have to interact with someone else?”
He chuckled softly and leaned over to kiss her temple. “I guess not.”
There was no recognition whatsoever in Carrico’s face as a guard escorted him to the table. Since Colorado Correctional was a lower security level, Carrico wasn’t in any sort of shackles. He did have on an unattractive orange jumpsuit that hung off his thin frame.
“You guys Jesus people?” Carrico asked as he sat down across from them at the table, his thin lips twisted in a sneer. “Because no offense, but I’m not interested.”
“No,” Tanner said. “My name is Tanner Dempsey, and this is Bree. We wanted to see if we could ask you a few questions about Joshua Newkirk and Peter Anders.”
A dark, bitter look overtook Carrico’s face, and he muttered a vile curse. “You’re cops. Why the hell are you coming in here like you’re visitors?”
Tanner shook his head. “I’m not here in any sort of official capacity. I’m just here to talk.”
Carrico leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “But you are a cop, right, pig?”
Tanner just shrugged. “I work for the Grand County Sheriff’s Department, yes.”
“And why exactly should I help you?”
“All I want to know is whether you know Anders and Newkirk. That’s all.”
Carrico shook his head. “You obviously know that I was cell mates with both of them, or you wouldn’t be here.”
“You had any contact with them since they got out?”
“Yeah, we’re pen pals. I get a perfume-scented letter once a week from both of them.
” Carrico rolled his eyes. “No, I haven’t heard from either one of those bastards, not that I expected to.
They weren’t my friends. Although, if you run into either of them, ask them who the hell’s ass they had to kiss to get their early release. ”
Bree wondered if Tanner would bring up that no one would be asking them anything since they were dead. That was probably what Bree would’ve blurted out. But he kept his cool. “Why? You looking to get out early?”
“You kidding me?” Carrico scoffed. “There’s no way I think I’ll get out early. I just want to stop your cop bastard friends from sending me to Colorado State Pen.”
Tanner leaned closer to the table. “Why are you getting sent up to a level-three facility? You get into trouble here? A fight?”
“Hell, no. Look, man, I got a daughter. A little girl. I get to see her twice a week right now, but I won’t ever get to see her at a supermax security. You can’t take a kid in there. I’m just trying to do my time and get out, but somebody screwed me over.”
Bree might not be good at reading interpersonal cues, but Carrico was visibly upset about being sent to this higher-security prison.
“You’re in on nonviolent charges, right?” Tanner asked, eyes narrowing. “If you got sentenced here and you haven’t done anything to merit being sent up, then there shouldn’t be any reason why an appeal won’t go through.”
“Yeah, well, already tried that, and it didn’t work.
Somebody has it in for me, and I don’t know who or why.
” Carrico slouched over on the table, smirk on his face.
“Grand County, huh? I even talked to your department’s shrink when he came here yesterday.
Dr. Michael whatever. Thought for a minute he was going to help me, but shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up. ”
Tanner sat up straight. “Wait—are you saying Dr. Craig Michalski was here yesterday? He came to see you?”
“Yep.”
Tanner glanced at Bree before turning back to Carrico.
Holy crap. Was Michalski the same department psychiatrist Tanner had gone to see this morning?
Had Michalski realized the connection between Carrico and the two murder victims?
If so, he obviously hadn’t mentioned it to Tanner at their appointment.
“What did he say to you?” Tanner asked.
“You both work for the same department. Why don’t you ask him?”
Tanner’s lips pressed together to a thin line. “Was he asking about Anders and Newkirk?”
“Dude, nobody cares about your boyfriends but you.” Carrico turned to Bree. “Honey, he obviously isn’t giving you what you need. Sorry I can’t help you from in here, but I know some people if you’re looking for real men who know how to treat a woman right.”
Her skin crawled, and she shrank back into herself as Carrico leered at her. Tanner’s palm slammed down on the table. “Eyes on me, jackass.”
Carrico held out his hands in front of him in a gesture of—obviously false—submission. “Sorry, Officer.”
Tanner visibly got himself under control.
“Why don’t you tell me what Dr. Michalski was here to talk to you about and I will look into why they are moving you into a higher-security prison.
No promises, but if there’s been some sort of mistake, I can help rectify that.
I can make sure you stay here, where you can have visits with your daughter. ”
Carrico snorted. “You know what? I don’t believe for one second that you’re really going to help me. You cops ain’t done nothing but screw me over. But you know what? I’ll try, just in case—”
“Carrico.” A guard walked over, interrupting them. “You’ve got a visitor. That okay, Deputy, or you want us to have him wait?”
Tanner nodded and a few moments later a man who looked almost exactly like Carrico, except more skinny—hard to believe that was even possible—and pale, walked over to their table.
If Bree had been asked which one was in prison just based on looks she would’ve said this new guy, who was obviously Carrico’s brother. Carrico’s sickly and pale brother.
“Who the hell is this?” the guy asked as he reached over and squeezed Carrico’s shoulder.
“This would be Grand County officer of the law Dempsey, and his lady friend.”
The new man’s eyes narrowed. “Why are you here?”
“Who are you?” Tanner asked.
“I’m Glen, Darin’s brother. I’m here twice a week to see him. I don’t think you can say the same.”
“No. I’ll be honest—before this afternoon I wasn’t even aware Darin existed. I’m here, completely off duty, to ask him about Joshua Newkirk and Peter Anders.”
Glen shook his head. “God, you cops are all the same. Always taking, never giving. You’re about to send my brother up to a max security prison. Why the hell should he help you with a damn thing?”
“I’ve already made my offer to Darin to look into it. I can’t make any promises, but maybe there’s something that can be done.”
Glen just turned to his brother. “Darin, no. We’ve heard this before. No more help to these bastards until they help you first.” The pale man spun to stare at Tanner and Bree. “My brother’s done talking to you. Don’t come back here. Or I’ll be filing a complaint on my brother’s behalf.”
Tanner stood and Bree stood with him. Tanner turned to Darin. “If you change your mind, look me up. Tanner Dempsey. You have my word that I’ll look into this, even if you can’t help me with my questions.”
Carrico shrugged. “Well, like I said, if Anders or Newkirk have some words of wisdom about who to talk to about stopping this transfer, I’d be glad to hear it.”
Tanner said nothing, just led Bree out with a hand at the small of her back.
“Well, that was a bust. Sorry,” she said as he opened the door for her and she climbed into the passenger seat.
“Not totally.”
“Because you think he might talk to you? Glen was going to allow that over his dead body, which, admittedly, looked like it might be relatively soon.”
Tanner shook his head. “No, I doubt I’ll hear from him.”
“Then how did it help?”
“Well, for one, Darin definitely didn’t recognize me when he first saw me. Didn’t know my name.”
Bree nodded. “Yeah, he would have to be one hell of an actor if he did.”
“Also, I don’t think Darin knows Newkirk and Anders are dead.
Admittedly, he could be playing us, but I honestly don’t think he wanted anything more but to ask them who could keep him from going to Colorado State Penitentiary.
” He scrubbed a hand across his face. “Not that any of this is going to help me get reinstated.”
She hated that Tanner looked even more defeated as he started the car and pulled out of the parking area. She’d really wanted this to make a difference.
He grabbed her hand and pulled it up to his lips. “Thank you for bringing us out here. Even if Darin has nothing to do with what’s going on with me, somebody still needs to look into what’s going on with him, because the situation doesn’t sound right. So good comes out of this no matter what.”
Bree’s heart gave a little tug. That he would be up to his eyeballs in his own problems and was still going to make it a priority to find justice even for a criminal...
How the heck was she supposed to keep herself from falling in love with him?