As Dog Is My Witness Read Online Free PDF Page B

have time for
these . . . 
    Mary put her hands on her son’s well-developed upper
arms, the apparent result of considerable iron-pumping. “It’s not
like that, Kev. Aaron has a son with Asperger’s, and he’s trying to
prove that Justin didn’t do it.”
    Kevin wasn’t enthused about the word “Asperger’s,”
which showed on his face. He also wasn’t crazy about the press.
    “Is that right?” He appeared to think he was the
captain of the football team and I was a bespectacled, 50-pound
waterboy. “How you gonna go about doing that, Aaron ?”
    I looked around for the hall monitor, but none was in
sight. “I don’t know yet,” I said. “I’m going to ask questions and
see where the answers lead me.”
    Kevin moved closer. I was beginning to worry that, in
my mid-40s, I was going to get my first wedgie. He towered over me,
but I’m used to that, and aside from a little tension in the back
of my neck, it didn’t bother me much.
    “Like what kind of questions?” Desperately, I fought
the impulse to answer in an exaggerated voice, “like what kinda questions.” Luckily, I’m an adult, and have learned
self-restraint. It didn’t hurt that Mary stepped between us.
    “Kevin! That’s no way to treat someone who’s trying
to help!”
    “You don’t know these people, Ma. He’s just
interested in getting himself a big by-line so he can use us to get
rich and famous.”
    I smiled my wisest, most self-deprecating
“experienced-old-freelancer” smile. “The famous part isn’t really
all that important,” I said. “But I would like to know where you’ve
been, Kevin. Obviously, this is the first time you’ve been home
since Justin was arrested.”
    Kevin remembered his initial mission, which was to
rescue his brother and be a hero. He did everything but flex his
muscles and eat spinach right out of a can with no fork. “I was
away at school,” he said. “University of Indiana.”
    I considered asking if he was on the varsity
intimidation team, but decided not to give in to my juvenile
impulses. Of course, I didn’t make any moves or sounds to indicate
how impressed I was by his admission into a college, either.
Maturity only goes so far when you’re smaller than most
fifteen-year-olds.
    “So you came home as soon as you were called?”
    “Sure,” Kevin said, defensively. He must have been on
the defensive squad of the intimidation team. “It takes a while to
bike from there.”
    “Then, you’ve been in transit
. . . 
    Kevin wasn’t looking at me anymore. He was concerned
with his mother. “This isn’t getting us anywhere, Ma,” he said.
“Where’s Justin?”
    “He’s in the county jail. They set bail at $200,000,
and I don’t know. . . 
    “What? Two hundred grand? That’s ridiculous! He can’t
stay in that jail by himself!”
    I understood the concern. A relative naïf like Justin
in a jail full of repeat offenders wasn’t a pleasant thought. But
neither is going so far into debt that you might never get out,
assuming it’s even possible to raise that much money.
    “Well,” Mary said in a tiny voice, “I already have a
mortgage on the house, and I can’t borrow much more. I don’t know
what to do.”
    This was the moment Kevin had been waiting for. He
zipped up his black leather jacket and turned toward the door, in
his best Cosmic Avenger style.
    “Don’t you worry, Ma. I’m getting him out. Now.” And
he turned and strode (there is no other word for it) out of the
house. The cacophony began in the driveway again.
    On a chair beside Justin’s desk, Mary sat down
wearily, not even moving the pants that Justin or the cops had left
there. She had promised herself she’d be strong in front of the
guest, but it was too much to ask. Mary Fowler began to cry.
     
     

Chapter Seven

    O n the way back home, I
called Barry Dutton in his office. The Midland Heights chief of
police was between meetings—one with our mayor and council, and
another with a group of