"Who's the woman?" Patrick asked, referring to the wispy looking woman who sat at Manny's other side looking at turns angry and uncomfortable.
"His court-appointed advocate. We were shocked she let us go on this long."
"Our gain," Patrick said. "His history?"
"Manny's been at Hope for six months. Before that he bumed down his foster house. He used gasoline and a match, nothing sophisticated. His foster mother was seriously burned. He seems to have remorse for hurting her, but not for setting the fire."
"They searched his room last night?" Hurst asked. "And found matches?"
"Yeah. At first the matches was all they'd admit they'd found, but after we found the eggs, they admitted that they'd found his stash of reading material. How-to articles on arson, but all on liquid accelerants, like the right mix of gasoline and oil. None mentioned the plastic egg as a delivery device. None mentioned ammonium nitrate."
"Did they also find pornography?" Westphalen asked quietly, his eyes on the boy.
"Yes, but that wasn't a big surprise. It's common with arsonists," Reed told Hurst when the man's brows lifted. "Many arsonists start fires, then… gratify themselves."
"I get the picture," Hurst said dryly. "So did he do it?"
"I didn't think so the first time 1 talked to him, at the school." Reed shrugged uneasily. "I still don't. This boy loves the fire. Practically salivates when you show him pictures of burning buildings. If he started a fire, he would have stayed to watch it burn. I don't think he could have forced himself to run away. Also, I don't get the sense of fury in this kid. Manny hurting his foster mother seems to have been an accident."
"But our guy used gasoline on Caitlin Burnette," Spin-nelli pointed out.
"But pouring it on a person is different than on a floor," Reed countered. "Manny has no history of direct violence against people, just structures."
Spinnelli turned to Westphalen. "Miles, what do you think?"
"I'm inclined to agree. But first, do you have photos of the bodies, Lieutenant? I want to see his response to the results of his handiwork, if it is indeed his."
"Mia has them in her briefcase." It was in the chair next to her. "We didn't want to show him actual photos of the scene or the bodies without Patrick's okay."
Patrick considered for a moment. "Do it. I want to see his response, too."
Spinnelli tapped on the glass. Mia leaned closer, deli ver-ing a few more parting verbal shots. The boy continued to look bored, never breaking his disaffected pose.
"His fury's been pointed at women so far," Reed murmured. "We wanted to see if she could get a rise out of him. Intimidate him."
"But he's not taking that bait," Westphalen commented. "Another reason I'm inclined to agree with you."
Mia shut the door. "He's not budging, but I have his advocate shaking in her boots."
"What do you think, Mia?" Spinnelli asked.
"He's hiding something, I think. He's got motive and means-his history of arson possession of matches and all those how-to articles-but I still get stuck on opportunity. I mean, the kid's been in lockup. How the hell did he get out to kill Caitlin and Penny and if he could get out, why the hell did he bother to go back?"
She'd voiced this concern on the way back from the school and it was valid. Reed had given it a lot of thought, "If he found a way out, he might come back just because it's more convenient to do so. It's cold outside and Hope Center is warm and gives him three squares a day. He'd have his cake and eat it, too."
Mia's brows bunched as she considered it. "It's possible. I'll be more inclined to believe he's involved if we can tie him to Caitlin or Penny. So what now?"
"The doctor wants you to show Manny the photos of the bodies," Reed said.
"Okay, but you should go in. He talks to you. He just stares at my chest."
And for that, Reed thought, no man on the planet could blame the boy. "Anything special, Doc?"
Westphalen thought a second. "See if you can get him off his guard before you show the pictures. I don't want that bored look. He hides too much behind it."
"I'll try." Reed walked back into the interview room and closed the door at his back.
The advocate lifted her chin. "Manny is tired. He's told you what you want to know. When are you going to stop this nonsense and let him go back to Hope Center?"
"I'm not sure he's going back. He might stay here tonight, as our guest."
Manny's chin jerked up. "You can't do that. I'm a kid."
"We have a special area for men under eighteen accused of capital crimes." He took his time finding the photos, watching Manny from the corner of his eye.
Manny's face was panicked. "What's a capital crime?"
Reed glanced up. "Death penalty."
Manny jumped up. "I didn't kill anybody." He turned to the advocate. "I didn't."
"Lieutenant." The advocate drew herself up straighter, although her voice shook. "You're just scaring him. He's done nothing." She pointed to a chair. "Sit down, Manny." He sat and she folded her hands on the table. "He wants a lawyer. Now."
"He hasn't been arrested," Reed said carelessly. "Should he be?"
"No!" Manny exploded.
Reed walked behind him, leaned over him and put the photos of the charred bodies on the table. "Should you be?"
Beside him the advocate covered her mouth and gagged.
Manny pushed his chair back, but Reed kept him from going anywhere. "Look at them," Reed said harshly. "This is what your fire did, Manny. This is what you did. This is what you'll look like when they pull your sorry ass off the electric chair."
Manny grabbed the table and pushed away with all his strength. "Let me go."
Hearing the boy's panicked tone. Reed stepped back and the chair flew to the floor, but it was too late as Manny retched.
It was a good thing they had more copies of the photos. It was a better thing that Reed had an extra pair of shoes in his SUV. The boy sank to his hands and knees, heaving, sobbing. Grimacing, Reed went into the anteroom to talk to the others.
Mia shot him a wince. "Sorry. If I'd known he'd do that…"
He narrowed his eyes at her. "You still would have asked me to go in."
She nodded philosophically. "Probably. I gotta say though, not bad, Solliday. Especially the part about the electric chair. I'll have to remember that."
"I didn't know if he'd know we hadn't used the chair in years," Reed said absently as he watched. The advocate was trying to help him. Manny just jerked away and hung there, shuddering. Reed shook his head. "He didn't do this. I think if he did he'd have been intrigued by the pictures. Fascinated, even." Manny crawled to the wall, arms around his knees, rocking. His eyes were closed and his lips moved. "He's not."
"No," Mia murmured. "He's scared. Listen to him." She turned up the volume.
"Can't tell." Manny muttered it to himself over and over. "Can't tell. Won't tell."
Everyone turned to Patrick. "Well?" Spinnelli asked. "Can we hold him?"
Patrick huffed in frustration. "What do you have, exactly?"
"We've got missing eggs and lots of fingerprints," Mia said. "Jack found more than twenty different prints in the art and science rooms. He's cross-checking all the prints against the teachers and inmates." She lifted her brows. "I mean children."
Patrick looked unhappy. "That's all?"
Mia smiled at Reed. "You found it," she said. "You get to share the best part."
It was the plum. "We also found remnants of chemicals used in the devices."
This caught Patrick's interest. "Explain."
That Mia's eyes held respect and admiration shouldn't make him feel as good as it did. But it did. "We checked out the science class lab. Under the hood I found evidence of hydrocarbon vapors and on the countertop remnants of gunpowder and sugar."