"He's not in jail," countered Ava. "He's had a cheeseburger, four packages of cookies, and enough soda to float a boat. I'm out of change from keeping him full of sugar."

Nora grinned. "I know. I told her we're still interviewing him and put her in a room with a fresh cup of coffee and a good-looking officer to chat with. She seems content for now."

"Does she know why Micah is here?"

"Doesn't seem to and didn't really ask. She came in ranting like she was Norma Rae or Erin Brockovich, but she didn't know what to complain about other than her baby was in the big bad police station. She comes across as a bit scatterbrained."

"Let's go talk to her," said Ava. "Maybe she knows why Micah has information only our killer should have."

"When's Zander coming back?" asked Nora as they headed downstairs.

Ava glanced at the time on her phone and frowned. Zander had promised to return after reviewing records back at the FBI office. "Let me call him. I'm surprised he's not here yet."

Her call went to voice mail and she left a message. She didn't think she'd ever left Zander a message before; he'd always answered her calls. She shot off a text asking for his ETA.

Nora stopped outside an interview room, and Ava glanced through the door's window at the woman preening before the officer. And sighed.

"What's her name?"

"Regina."

"Of course it is."

"Is there a problem, Special Agent McLane?" Nora asked, amus.e.m.e.nt dancing in her voice.

"I'm pretty certain she's the clique leader from the Mean Girls movie, but twenty years older." Guilt flashed through Ava for her instant stereotyping of Regina Zuch. But now she knew why Nora had put a good-looking officer in the room with Micah's mother. She opened the door and followed Nora inside.

The officer popped up from his seat, excused himself with a quick good-bye to Regina, and darted out as if the room were on fire. Ava spotted the gold wedding band on his left hand and figured she knew why. Regina's appreciative gaze followed his backside as he left, and Ava struggled not to roll her eyes.

"Ms. Zuch, this is Special Agent McLane from the FBI. She's helping us with the case that Micah has volunteered information for," said Nora.

Ava bit her lip at Nora's description of Micah's role and shook the woman's hand. Regina a.n.a.lyzed her and sharp defenses rose in the woman's eyes. She considered Ava a threat.

For what? There's no one else in the room.

Unless we're competing for Nora.

She choked back a laugh and gave the woman a big cheery smile. She'd learned long ago not to be sucked into emotional compet.i.tion.

Ava couldn't pinpoint Regina Zuch's age. Her heavy but perfect eye makeup and trendy clothing indicated she was quite young. But hands don't lie. Regina had an older woman's lined hands and her neck had the softness and beginnings of folds that occur later in life. Her blonde hair looked freshly platinumed. She smiled, and Ava was blinded by her perfect teeth. She was the contrast to Micah's dark, depressing colors and mood, and Ava wondered if he tried to counterbalance his mother.

Her compet.i.tive energy made Ava tired, and she hadn't even spoken yet.

"That officer was such a nice man," said Regina with a coy smile. "He did a good job keeping me company."

"That's nice," said Nora noncommittally. She and Ava pulled out chairs and sat across from Regina. "Is there anything else you need?" she asked pleasantly. "I'm not certain when Micah will be ready to go home. He's being very helpful in our investigation."

"I could use some more coffee," said Regina. "When Micah called me, he said he was under arrest and going to jail. That's not true?" She blinked wide eyes.

There's no way those lashes are real.

"Not exactly," said Ava. "This is sort of an odd question, but can you tell me if Micah has some learning difficulties or perception troubles that would distort some of the information he's giving us?" She winced at her word choices, but she didn't want to make the woman any more defensive.

"Ohhh." Regina's face fell. "Did you catch him lying to you? He's had problems in the past with telling the truth. He's a good boy, but he's fallen in with the wrong crowd."

"I take it you've experienced this yourself? What have you had problems with?" Ava wasn't ready to tell Regina that her good boy had confessed to four murders.

"Well, you know. School. He never could sit still and listen. He struggles with some OCD and the doctors gave him some medication for it. A typical boy." She leaned forward and lowered her voice. "They claimed he brought weapons to school. I don't know why they would try to pin that on him. Everyone at that school was against him. He didn't do anything."

Euzent's words about Micah's failure to accept responsibility rang in Ava's head. Looks like he learned it from Mom.

"How is he at home?" asked Nora.

"He likes to keep to himself. He enjoys video games and movies."

"Does he work anywhere?"

"We've tried to find a job that fits his personality," Regina said earnestly. "But he's a tough fit. Working with the public isn't good for him. His patience level is rather low. It's his father's fault."

Ava wondered if Regina had ever suggested Micah take responsibility for his actions.

"His father?" prodded Nora.

"Oh yes. He left us when Micah was four. Never communicates with Micah except to send him a birthday card. What kind of man does that to a child? It's really affected him over the years."

"Did you get counseling for Micah?" asked Ava. "I know the loss of a parental figure can have devastating effects. The child feels abandoned." She mentally stomped on the memory of her mother explaining that her and Jayne's father simply couldn't handle raising a family.

"I couldn't afford counseling." Regina waved her hand airily. "I made certain to give him lots of attention and find other men to have strong roles in his life."

Ava was scared to ask where she found these men.

"Ms. Zuch," Nora started. "Micah came in because he had information on the recent murders of four law enforcement officers. Has he talked to you about this?" Nora leaned forward, her elbows on the table, her expression open and honest.

Regina's jaw dropped. She stared at Nora and then Ava, looking for an indication that Nora was telling the truth. Her mouth closed and opened as she tried to speak. "Murder? Four of them?" she squeaked.

"Yes," Nora said simply. She and Ava waited, wanting the mother to fill the silence. Regina's surprise felt genuine.

Regina slumped back in her chair, her bangle bracelets jingling. "He didn't say a word to me," she said. "He saw these men killed?"

"We believe so."

"But four? All at once?" she asked.

"No, three happened recently, but Vance Weldon was killed over a week ago."

Regina sat up straight, alarm on her face. "Vance Weldon?" she gasped.

"You know him?" Ava asked sharply. The woman had paled under her makeup.

"Yes, yes, I know-I knew Vance. Oh, my G.o.d." She pressed her hands against her forehead and peered at the investigators. "Vance worked for the FBI. Is that who you're talking about?"

"Yes," said Ava as dread grew in the back of her throat. "How did you know him?"

I don't know if I want to hear her answer.

Regina looked away, her palms still covering part of her face. "I can't believe this," she muttered, and Ava saw tears run down her cheeks.

"How did you know Special Agent Weldon?" Ava asked in a firmer voice.

Bloodshot eyes met hers. "He was a good friend." She held Ava's gaze.

"You had an affair with him," Ava stated. If Regina wouldn't say it out loud, she would.

Regina looked away. "It was a long time ago." She seemed to wilt into her chair.

"How long ago?" Nora asked.

"Three years? Four? I haven't heard from him since then." Her gaze stayed on the floor, more tears running. "He was a good man."

"Did you know Denny Schefte, Louis Samuelson, or Lucien Fujioka?" Ava asked. Is she a black widow? But her son kills the lovers instead?

Regina shook her head, not looking up. "Never heard of them."

Ava exhaled. I watch too many movies.

"Ms. Zuch." Nora paused. "Micah came in and confessed to killing these men, do you-"

"He what?" The lashes nearly touched her eyebrows.

"Do you believe Micah could kill Vance Weldon?" Nora asked. Her voice was steady, her eye contact deadly serious.

"No, no, of course not! Micah wouldn't hurt a fly."

Ava saw doubt flash in Regina's eyes, but she instantly controlled it.

"My boy wouldn't hurt anyone! He's a good boy!" Regina's voice shot up an octave.

"Regina," Ava said in a lower voice. "We don't believe Micah killed these men, but we're concerned because he knows so much information about the deaths. He knows facts that only someone who was there could know."

Regina held her gaze, her chest rising and falling with her rapid breaths. "You don't believe he killed them? You're not lying to me, right? Are you trying to trick me into saying something?"

"No. Can you tell us why he'd try to make us think he did it?" Ava asked kindly. The grown-up mean girl had vanished and in her place sat a terrified mother.

"I don't understand," she whispered. "Who confesses to something like that? I need to see him." She half rose out of her chair. "Take me to him."

"Now, Ms. Zuch, we-"

"Take me to him!" she shouted, anxiety shaking her voice. "You're holding my boy!"

"Ms. Zuch, Micah is an adult. He's here of his own choosing," said Ava, standing to look Regina in the eye. "You understand that when someone admits he killed someone, we need to know the whole story. We have four families whose loved ones have been murdered. Micah is our first solid lead. We're going to get every ounce of information we can out of him, so we can find out who did this."

Regina was silent, studying Ava's face, searching for lies.

"Is he going to be okay?" she whispered.

"We want him to tell us how he knows facts about the murders," said Ava. "Can you convince him to tell us?"

Regina sat down in her chair, defeat in her face. "No, he hates me. He doesn't listen to a word I tell him. I can't even get him to put his dishes in the dishwasher. He seems to take pride in never doing what I ask. It's like a game for him."

"I'm very sorry," Ava said. Inside she was shaking her head. This was a case of a kid who'd needed some tough love long ago. "Can you tell me how you met Vance Weldon? Did Micah know him very well?"

"I think Micah only met him once or twice. He couldn't have known we were having an affair."

You'd be surprised what your kids know. The face of Vance's widow, Sharon Weldon, flashed in Ava's mind and she remembered Sharon had said during their interview that if Vance had had affairs, she hadn't known about it. That was different from claiming her husband had never had affairs. A subtle choice of words. Looking back, Ava believed Sharon had suspicions. Did Sharon know Regina Zuch? Did she know Micah?

"I met Vance at one of those basketball fund-raisers. The type where professional players play against amateurs to raise money for one cause or another."

"Did you ever meet his wife Sharon?"

"No." Regina looked away. "Our relationship didn't last very long. He told me it was a mistake."

No kidding.

24.

Mason was ready to pull out Micah Zuch's fingernails. The kid knew who'd killed Denny; Mason could feel it. But the punk sat there like King s.h.i.t of t.u.r.d Island and brushed aside every question asked of him. He'd wanted more attention, so they were giving it to him, and now he was reveling in it.

"Calm down," Ava said in a whisper. She'd joined Mason in the viewing room to watch Euzent and Nora Hawes question Micah. "He'll eventually tell us how he knows everything."

"He's wasting our time," stated Mason. "This investigation could be wrapped up and finished if he'd just tell us what he knows. He's having fun, drawing it out. He doesn't care that someone else could be killed!"

She took his hand and squeezed, keeping her gaze on the conversation in the next room. Her touch made him take a deep breath and relax his shoulders.

"Where's Zander?" Mason asked, wanting the agent's level head in the room. "Twice Micah has asked where the other FBI agent is. I think he'd talk to him. He must have formed some sort of rapport with the guy even though Zander told him he was going to jail."

"He must still be going through Vance Weldon's files back at our office," Ava said. "I hope he and Mercy are finding something useful."

Mason hoped so, too.

"Micah," Mason heard Special Agent Euzent say through the speaker. "I don't think you killed these men."