Those Cold Eyes ✓

Chapter 28

Zach waited beside my locker the following day, ready to be my back-up at the police station. Not that I feared that anything would happen, but it was nice to know that he wanted to support me. I had an inkling that he might be preparing himself to speak to them about his sister, but we didn't know what kind of evidence Mel might find in Clara's computer yet--which meant that Zach's business with the police had to wait a few days. 

He held his chin high as we entered, but his clenched fist was a tell-tale sign that he was more nervous than he wanted to let on. It amazed me that I already understood parts of the silent language he spoke. 

We were greeted by a short woman standing behind a counter that hid most of her. "Hi boys, what can we do for you today?" She sounded far too sweet to be a police, but she wore her uniform with certainty. 

"I'm Dylan, looking for Amber Taylor." 

She smiled. "That would be me." She left her desk and reached out with her hand. "I believe my husband sent you." 

I smiled at the thought of the two of them together. They certainly made an odd couple, but I could somehow picture them together in a small house with lots of kids. She had that familiarity about her that put others at ease--something she shared with her husband. The disparity between them came from their difference in height. Mr. Taylor was taller than most, and his wife barely reached my shoulder. 

I took her hand. " Yes, thanks for meeting me." 

"No problem. Bert revealed a few details about the case, but I want to hear it from you if you don't mind." She waved us into the station. 

I began to follow, only to pause when I realized that Zach hadn't moved at all. 

"Are you okay?" I asked. 

"Yeah."

He didn't look okay. "You sure?"

This time he didn't answer. 

"I'll be fine on my own if you want to do something else," I said, hoping that was enough to cool his nerves. 

He gave me a short nod and turned on his heel, obviously anxious to be far away from law enforcement. A brief second I played with the thought that he had something to be worried about other than his sister, but I waved the thought away. I doubted Zach would have volunteered to come with me to begin with if that was the case. 

"Dylan?" Mr. Taylor's wife called, standing by an open door at the end of the corridor. I tried to forget about Zach's discomfort and strode to meet her. 

She showed me into a room that must have been her office. I was glad she didn't put me in a sterile interrogation room because that would have freaked me out even if I was the one coming with allegations, not the other way around. 

"Please, sit, Dylan." She gave me a smile that put me at ease. 

We settled, and then she pulled out a recorder. "I hope you won't mind." She pointed at the device. 

"No, it's fine."

"Great. So, why don't you start from the beginning. State your name first, please." She sat back in her chair and smiled again, succeeding well if her intention was to calm me down. 

"Right. I'm Dylan O'Connor. I'm here to talk about Tobias Forrest, a former boyfriend and teacher." I squirmed in my seat. It was harder than I thought to open up all those messy memories and share them with this sweet woman. 

I took a deep breath, trying to settle down. "I met Tobias when I started Junior year. He taught English and offered me extra help because I was falling behind. It wasn't a problem, really, but I think he singled me out for other reasons. Not that I knew that when it started, but I'm pretty sure about it now."