“Was there any bad blood between Kevin and Dwight?” I asked.
“No.” She shook her head. “None at all. I’m telling you, they were friends, and they both loved the craft. I’d almost guarantee that when Kevin saw Dwight’s sword do that it took everything he had not to run over and nerd out over it. That’s the kind of guys they were.”
“How many students are in the club?” Jack asked.
“We’ve got ninety this year,” she said. “Being a nerd is becoming cool, so we’ve seen our numbers increase every year. But they’re divided into groups by talent and ability, like a rank structure. There’s Kings, Nobles, Knights, and Peasants. Dwight and Kevin are both in the Kings class.”
“Any animosity between the groups?” I asked.
“No, everyone wants to be a King,” she said, “So they’re all working to collect points not only in their sessions, but in tournaments like this. The more points they have the faster they move up. But it’s very difficult to become a King…or Queen,” she added. “There are two women in the Kings class.”
“So taking Kevin out wouldn’t have advanced anyone else into the Kings group,” Jack said.
Trish nodded. “Right. Promotion relies on everyone’s individual merit.”
“Dwight told us there were seven in his group,” I said.
“Yes,” she said. “They also use a couple of the Nobles who aren’t far off from becoming Kings when they need extra players to fill in the storyline. They’re very serious about their sessions.”
“We need the names of everyone in the group,” Jack said.
Jim leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table, steepling his fingers. “Can I ask why? I mean, you’ve got Dwight red-handed. He’s even on video.”
“It’s our job to look at every angle,” Jack said, smiling and pushing his chair back to signal the meeting was over. “Dwight seemed just as surprised as everyone else that the sword electrocuted Kevin. Which means he’s a liar, it was an accident, or…”
“Or what?” Jim asked.
“Or someone else enhanced the sword and let Dwight do the dirty work.”
Chapter Four
“I need to make the family notifications before it gets any later,” Jack said once we were finished with Trish and Jim. “The school hasn’t released the name of the victim yet, but I’m sure the media will have it by the time they go on air for the ten o’clock news.”
“I guess that’s my cue to head back to the funeral home,” I said.
“Chicken,” he said.
“You betcha. Death notifications are my least favorite thing to do,” I said. “I hated doing it when I worked in the ER, and I still hate it. I’d much rather deal with people’s grief at viewings and funerals, once it’s had time to soften a bit. Fresh grief is too hard to watch.”
Jack grunted but didn’t say anything. I knew it was hard for him too.
“So…” I said. “I’m guessing by the exchange you just had with Jim that he’s something of a friend of yours. The way he talked to you was very familiar.”
Jack shrugged. “We’re friendly,” he said. “When you move in the same circles long enough and money is involved, you get to know the faces in the room. There’s always an event or fundraiser. Or golf tournaments.” Jack snorted his irritation. “There seems to be a never-ending supply of golf tournaments. Jim and I have played on the same team a few times.”
“How come you don’t do all these fundraisers and events now?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him. “Are you shirking your duties as heir to the Lawson fortune?”
Jack laughed and bumped against me affectionately. “No, I’m not shirking my duties. It was never a necessity to go. My checkbook is presence enough. But as much as I hate it, this job is as much politics as it is law enforcement.”
“I hate that part too,” I said. “Which I guess was why Jim decided to remind you he donated to your campaign fund. I really don’t like that about him. I’m hoping you’re not planning on setting up any double dates soon with the Colemans because I’m not a fan of people who think they can buy other people.”
Jack smiled and put his arm around me. I was surprised because we were making our way across campus back to his unit and he didn’t generally show public displays of affection while we were on duty. But now that I thought about it, I was usually the one to shy away from public displays of affection and Jack had just conceded to my wishes. I leaned into him a little and could feel his surprise.
“I’m not a fan either,” he said. “People like Jim only know how to do things one way to get results. I’ve never needed anyone’s money to hold office, and money has never kept me from doing right for the victims we serve.”
“It’s so sexy when you’re in superhero mode,” I said. “I bet you’d make all the nerds tremble with fear.”
“I certainly hope so,” Jack said, pinching my side. “My gun has real bullets. We’ll drive through and grab dinner and then I’ll drop you at the funeral home. Otherwise, you’ll forget to eat.”
My mind was already on the victim as Jack drove through the taco place to get our dinner. I wasn’t particularly in the mood for tacos, but I knew my body needed fuel. A standard autopsy took a couple of hours, and this definitely wasn’t a standard autopsy.
By the time Jack turned onto Catherine of Aragon, I’d inhaled two tacos and I was looking down my shirt for shredded cheese that managed to end up in my bra instead of my mouth.
“How can you possibly be that messy?” Jack asked, eyeing the front of my shirt.
“Tacos are not car food. Everybody knows that,” I said defensively, though I noticed Jack had managed to eat his without a crumb in sight.
He pulled into the driveway and parked behind my Suburban. “Good luck with the autopsy,” he said, helping me brush off a few stray crumbs.
“Good luck with the family.” I leaned over and gave him a quick kiss and jumped out of the Tahoe, grabbing my medical bag from the back seat.
There were cars in the staff parking lot, and I remembered that we had a viewing starting at seven. A viewing of which I was supposed to be in attendance.
Since Sheldon had come on full time we’d worked out a schedule where we alternated our evenings and weekends for the most part, but when I had to put on my coroner hat, Sheldon was the one who had to fill in. Especially now that Lily was gone. But at least Emmy Lu was there as backup in case Sheldon needed to be rescued from normal conversation.
I went in through the side door under the carport and waved bye to Jack as he backed away. I locked the door behind me, hung my medical bag on the hook, and then went into the kitchen to start a pot of coffee.
I was procrastinating, and that wasn’t like me. I’d had a lightning strike victim come through the ER when I’d been a doctor for the living, and I’d never forgotten the damage Mother Nature had inflicted on the fragile human body. It had been one of the few times over the course of my career I’d had nightmares. And I wasn’t sure why. I’d certainly seen more gruesome victims, but there’d been something about the helplessness of an attack like that—completely unexpected—that had haunted me.