Garcia grimaced.
‘Did anyone see Brett doing it?’ Hunter asked.
‘No, but everyone knew no one else in Compton High would’ve been capable of something like that.’
‘Nobody ever notified the authorities or the school principal?’ Garcia asked.
‘I don’t think there were any witnesses to that specific incident.’
‘How about bullying in general?’ Hunter asked. ‘Did they simply get away with it all the time?’
Reed looked at Hunter. ‘Do you understand how bullying works, detective?’
Hunter met his stare. ‘Yes. Intimidation.’
‘That’s right, intimidation, and they were very good at it. In and out of school. They’d do things like what they did to this Katherine girl just for fun. No reason, no major grudge against anyone, just because they liked pushing people around and it made them laugh. Imagine what they’d do if you crossed them and they wanted to get back at you.’
‘This gang you refer to, how many were there? Could you point them out to us?’ Hunter pushed the yearbook towards Reed.
‘I can’t really remember.’ Reed shrugged, ignoring the book. ‘It was twenty-five years ago. I was a freshman, Brett was a senior. I tried my best to keep out of their way, as did everyone else. But Brett wasn’t the worst one. He wasn’t the-’ he drew quotation marks in the air ‘-leader.’
Hunter exchanged a quick look with Garcia. ‘So who was?’
Reed pinched his lip for a moment. ‘You still haven’t told me what this is about, detective. Is he wanted for questioning?’
‘Not exactly,’ Hunter replied.
Reed studied Hunter and Garcia. ‘Wait a minute. You guys are homicide, right? Did someone finally kill Brett?’ A thin smile played on his lips.
‘Do you think someone would have reason to?’
‘Did you listen to anything I said?’ Reed frowned. ‘They terrorized everyone in that school. Some students and at least one teacher quit Compton High because of them. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if they became hardened criminals after they left school.’
Hunter leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. ‘Would it surprise you if I told you Brett Stewart Nichols became a Catholic priest?’
Reed stared at both detectives. ‘Are you serious?’
No reply.
‘They say redemption isn’t beyond anyone, but yes, that would surprise me immensely.’
‘The leader,’ Garcia questioned again, pushing the open yearbook closer to Reed. ‘Who was he?’
Reed’s eyes finally drifted towards the book. For a minute he flipped through the pages before pausing and glaring at a picture on the bottom left-hand corner for a long while. A nervous muscle flexed on his jaw as he tapped the photo with his right index finger.
‘Him.’
Ninety-One
The picture Reed had pointed out showed a pale-faced boy with full lips, cat-like menacing dark eyes and shoulder-length black hair. The name under the picture read Peter Elder.
Hunter wrote the name down in his black notebook. ‘What do you remember about him?’
‘I already told you. They were bullies and I stayed out of their way. There’s nothing else I can say.’
‘Anyone else you recognize?’ Garcia pressed. ‘The rest of their gang, maybe?’
‘No,’ Reed said curtly, closing the yearbook with a thump and pushing it back in Hunter’s direction.
‘How about any of these girls?’ Hunter showed Reed the photograph of Amanda Reilly’s girl group.
Reed looked at it attentively for almost a minute before shaking his head. ‘No, I never saw them in school.’ His eyes stayed on the picture.
‘They weren’t students at Compton High. I was wondering if you might’ve seen them hanging around outside school, maybe with Brett and Peter’s gang?’
‘We’re talking twentysomething years ago, detective. Unfortunately, I don’t have a photographic memory. And as I said, I did everything I could to stay out of their way.’ Reed checked his watch. ‘This has gone way over fifteen minutes, detective. I really have to get going.’
‘As a teacher, your mother suspended Brett seven times, didn’t she?’ Hunter pushed.
‘That’s right.’ The answer came with a hint of indignation. ‘My mother was a very good and proud teacher. She always did what she thought should be done in any given situation. She refused to be intimidated by anyone, never mind a pushy student.’
‘Did he threaten her after he was suspended?’
‘Brett and Peter didn’t threat. They acted.’ The muscle in his jaw flexed again.
‘What did he do?’
The question made Reed edgy. ‘Gentlemen, I really have to go. I have a class to teach.’ He sprang to his feet, and both detectives stood. Reed motioned his guests towards the door.
As Hunter walked past the large table with the jigsaw puzzle he paused, studied the pieces for a few seconds, reached for one and slotted it in place.
Reed glared at him.
‘Lucky guess,’ Hunter said, shrugging.
At the door Reed’s eyes narrowed and a look of recognition came over his face. ‘Wait a second. Now I remember where I’ve seen you two before. You were in the paper yesterday. The Tarot Cops, right? Something to do with enlisting the help of a young girl who claims to be psychic.’
‘You shouldn’t believe everything you read in the papers,’ Garcia shot back.
‘A priest was killed, isn’t that right?’ Reed continued. ‘Decapitated? The papers are calling the killer the Executioner. You said Brett became a Catholic priest. Was he the one who was killed?’ A flicker of satisfaction flashed in his eyes.
Hunter zipped up his jacket and nodded. ‘Yes, Brett Stewart Nichols was savagely murdered.’ He waited for a reaction from Reed but got none. ‘Thanks for your time and help, Mr. Reed.’
‘All the best with your investigation, detective.’ Reed closed the door calmly. A satisfied smile spread across his thin, ascetic face.
Outside, Hunter reached for his phone and called Hopkins again. ‘Ian, listen, there’s one more thing I need you to investigate…’
Ninety-Two
Today was an important and proud day for young police officer Shauna Williams. It was her first-ever solo patrol.
Shauna was born in Inglewood, a tough neighborhood in southwestern LA. The youngest of four siblings, she was also the only girl. In school, contrary to all her brothers, she was dedicated and studious. Her grades only occasionally fell under B+. Tall and athletic, Shauna played shooting guard for the basketball team and third base in varsity softball. She was the first and only of all four Williams to ever graduate from high school. Maybe, if things had turned out differently, she would’ve also been the first in her family to have ever gone to university.
Shauna knew her brothers were involved in bad things, she just didn’t know how bad. It’s hard to grow up in an underprivileged neighborhood in a city like Los Angeles and not be affected by the crazy gang culture that rules the streets. Being African-American, for some reason, seemed to make it even harder. She’ll never forget the night she opened the door to a couple of police officers who’d come to give her parents the worst news any parent can ever get. All three of her brothers had been gunned down inside a stolen vehicle in what looked to be a gang retaliation hit. She had just turned nineteen.
Shauna gave up her dream of university and months later, after passing the recruitment tests, she joined the LAPD academy.
The six months of rigorous training that followed didn’t bother her and Shauna graduated top of her class. Her ambition was to make detective or the SWAT team.
Shauna was assigned to the West Bureau Pacific Division and paired up with a more experienced officer, twelve years her senior. She’s been out of the academy for only five months, but she was a quick learner, very intelligent and extremely focused. Lieutenant Cooper thought it was time Shauna did a few rounds by herself, and when her partner called in sick this morning, Cooper saw it as the perfect opportunity.