Blood of Angels by Reed Arvin Read Free Book Online

questioning. The public defender wanted to make a deal, and they needed somebody from the office.”
    â€œThat was you? For God’s sake, it was two o’clock in the morning.”
    Carl smiles softly. “You know me, Thomas. Becker is always available.”
    This is true; other than work, it’s hard to find any discernible thing in Carl’s life. It’s one reason he’s so good at it. “So what happened?”
    â€œThey processed the kid, but I’m not sure he knew what the hell was going on. The PD’s office assigned that cute brunette to sit with him. The one with the nice behind.”
    â€œRita West.”
    Carl nods. “She was doing her best, but it wasn’t the ideal situation. Bol jumped out of his chair every time the door opened. I think he must have been in jail before, only the kind where the jailers carry cattle prods.”
    â€œBack in the old country.”
    â€œAll I know is something sure as hell happened to that kid. He was as jumpy as a poodle at a Vietnamese barbeque.”
    I smile; Carl is about as PC as a redneck Baptist preacher, which makes him invaluable over long, dreary cases. “So what happened?”
    â€œOnce they got him settled down, I had them bring in a translator. A Dr. Ahmed al-Hasheed, as I recall.”
    â€œArabic?”
    â€œYeah. Bol might be from the jungle, but he speaks four languages.”
    I raise an eyebrow. “No kidding.”
    Carl nods. “Arabic, Swahili, Dinka, and English makes four. Because the kid’s English wasn’t that bad. I think he was understanding more than he let on. You could see it in his eyes, how he followed the conversation. Word to the wise, Thomas. The kid is smart.”
    â€œNoted.”
    â€œWe got the translator anyway, just to avoid a basis of appeal later on. West would be all over that, saying he couldn’t comprehend what he was agreeing to.”
    â€œSure.”
    â€œAnyway, with the translator’s help the kid makes a statement, and it doesn’t hold up. He says he wasn’t there at the time. He says he’s got no idea how his car got to the victim’s apartment.” Carl pauses. “You know about the eyewitnesses, right? He had been seen arguing with Hartlett a couple of times, and it got pretty vehement.” I nod. “Even that early on, they had his prints all over the place. So everybody in the room knows he’s lying his ass off. I look over at Rita, and I can see it in her eyes. She knows the kid’s toast.”
    â€œShe wants to make a deal.”
    â€œBrilliant, Dr. Watson. I take Rita out of the room to talk things over. You know, leave the kid alone for a while, let him stew in his own juices. So I tell Rita, look, let’s do everybody a favor here. We both know the kid’s in over his head. He doesn’t know where the hell he is, or what the consequences are of his actions. I’ll drop the aggravated charge circumstances, which will save the kid’s life. With a few breaks the kid could be out in twenty, twenty-five.”
    â€œWhat’d she say?”
    â€œShe put up a fight, but she was just going through the motions. The kid’s a foreigner, and he’s accused of raping and killing a citizen. That’s a combination that’s going to really piss a jury off. So she says, fine, let’s go with it. But naturally, we got to sell it to Bol.”
    â€œRight.”
    â€œWe all go back in, me, Rita, the translator, and a detective. I explain the concept to the kid, about how he’s agreeing to the lesser charge in exchange for a lighter sentence. I could tell he didn’t know what I was driving at for a while. He just kept shaking his head and asking questions. I’m going through everything slow, real patient. The thing’s being videotaped, and I want to make sure everything is clear. Finally, it sinks in for him. Which is when all hell broke