Page 30 of So Deadly
“The ones you illegally certified, correct?”Jessica asked.
Mitchell’s lips thinned.“I know where you’re going with this, but I didn’t kill him.I was angry.I said some things I shouldn’t have, but I never intended to follow through on them.I just wanted to scare him.”
Faith controlled her surprise.She hadn’t come across any threatening statements on Mitchell’s part.This was news to her.
Jessica tried to pry more information from the suspect.“You can understand how what you said might make us feel differently, right?People who use those words often follow through.”
“I know,” Mitchell said, lifting a trembling hand to wipe sweat from her brow.
Minnie hopped out of her other hand, tumbled to the floor and trotted right up to Turk.Turk stood stock still, eyes wide, probably terrified that any accidental contact would crush the little dog.Faith wasn’t so sure he was wrong to be afraid of that.
Mitchell watched the two of them closely, and once she was satisfied that Turk wasn’t going to eat Minnie, she replied, “I never would have actually killed him.I was just angry.”
“But youdidthreaten to kill him, right?”
Mitchell swallowed.“This was two years ago.I was angry because I lost my veterinary license.That was my source of income.I didn’talwayslive in a condo with secondhand appliances, you know.”
“No,” Faith agreed.“In fact, you only moved here a few weeks ago, is that correct?”
“You do a lot of home improvement?”Jessica asked.She was standing in the kitchen, having moved there while Mitchell answered Faith’s questions.
Mitchell blinked.“What?”
Jessica lifted a plastic clamshell case containing a dozen boxcutter blades.The steel gleamed dully under the light of the floor lamp in Mitchell’s living room.
Faith looked up at Mitchell.Mitchell returned a confused look, but Faith had caught the flash of fear before that confusion.Faith imagined Mitchell, teeth bared in a feral smile, snarling as she used those blades to slice her victims to ribbons.
She stared coldly at their suspect.The boxcutters sat in between them, still winking in the light, like they were leering at her.Want to know what your insides look like?Let’s see you bleed, little girl.
Mitchell looked between the agents, her face paling as she realized how much danger she was now in.“What?”she asked, trying for bravado and landing on anxiety.
“You tell me,” Faith said, never taking her eyes off of Mitchell.
Mitchell scoffed, still trying to look above-it-all and still failing.“I have them for art projects.”
“And you need this many?”
“They come in packs of twelve for ten dollars on Amazon.Why… What do boxcutters have to do with anything?Do you think I killed Thomas Webb and Margaret Hayes with aboxcutter?”
“Did you?”
“No!For God’s…” She sighed and clasped her hands on her lap, gripping hard enough that the knuckles turned white.“No.I sent Thomas an email saying I’d kill him because I was mad that he didn’t admit to his part in our business.It washisidea for me to put my name on the certifications.He told me it would legitimize the business.I was trying tohelppeople.People who really needed therapy animals but couldn’t get one because insurance companies are assholes.Iwasn’ttrying to help lazy bitches like Hayes who wanted one just so she didn’t have to listen to signs that said no pets allowed.”
“Strong language,” Faith pointed out.
“Do you kill everyone you swear at?”
“No, but I’ve never threatened to kill anyone either,” Faith said.“Not unless they were about to kill me or a loved one.”
Mitchell took a deep breath and pushed it out through her nose.“I was angry with Thomas and Hayes.I had a good thing going, and they ruined it.I was helping people, and Hayes got pissy that I wasn’t helpingher.Thomas tucked his tail in between his legs and let me take the fall for everything.It sucked.But frankly, I’m not confident I’d get away with murder.”
“That’s the only reason?You’re just afraid you couldn’t get away with it?”
Mitchell smiled tightly.“Would you like me to preach about how immoral it is?”Before Faith could reply, she got to her feet and gestured for the door.“Unless I’m under arrest, you’re no longer welcome here.If you want to talk to me again, you can go through my lawyer.”
Faith lifted her hands.“All right.In the meantime, you shouldn’t leave town.”
“I’ll do whatever I damned well please.”
