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I didn’t see the plates or anything.”
        “So why the visit today?”
        “Well . . . ,” Jim began with some hesitation. He could see how this might look a bit suspicious. “I got permission from his probation officer. I know Devon’s had it kind of rough lately, and I was just trying to help. I don’t want anything from him. I just thought he could use some company. Y’know, a friend.”
        “That’s nice of you,” Darnell said, his eyes still on the folder. “We always appreciate it when the community—churches and that—get involved to help these kids. That’s a good thing.”
        Jim shrugged. “Like I said, I wasn’t expecting anything from him. I just wanted to touch base. I wanted to tell him I was sorry about his friend.”
        Darnell looked up. “His friend?”
        “Yeah. See, that night he was shot, there were two kids in the car. I pulled Devon out and did CPR until the cops came, but I couldn’t save his friend. I could only help one of them. And by the time the paramedics arrived, his friend was already gone. They couldn’t save him.”
        “I understand.”
        Jim went on. “And it’s been bothering me. I mean, I made a choice that night—I didn’t think about it at the time, but I realized later that I had chosen which one of those boys lived and which one died.” He looked down. “It’s been a little hard dealing with that. I just wanted to let him know I was sorry . . . about his friend.”
        “Mm-hmm.” Darnell leaned back and nodded to himself. He was quiet for several more seconds, rubbing his jaw. “So did you see Devon ingest anything while he was with you this morning?”
        “No. I told the guard, I didn’t see him put anything in his mouth.”
        Darnell sat up, closed the folder, and tapped his fingers on it. “What about all the water on the window?”
        “The window?” Jim recalled the frost that had appeared on the glass out of nowhere and the sharp chill he had felt just before Devon’s seizure. It was creepy and he had no explanation for it. At least nothing that made much sense. “I… I don’t really know. It was like condensation, I think.”
        Darnell’s frown deepened. “Condensation?”
        “Well, I didn’t mention it earlier, but for a few seconds it got real cold in there. Like the AC suddenly kicked in super high or something.”
        “The air-conditioning?”
        “Just for a few seconds. The glass looked like it frosted up.”
        Darnell rubbed his scalp again, then slid his hand down to his jaw. “Frosted up, huh? No, you didn’t mention that.”
        Jim looked down. “Well, it just seemed so weird, I didn’t think anyone would believe me.”
        “Hmm,” Darnell grunted and stared at Jim for several seconds longer. “So did Devon mention anything about the lawyer he met with earlier?”
        “Lawyer? No. Like I said, he didn’t really say anything.” Then his eyebrows went up. “Wait . . . you mean Conner Hayden?” Had they both come to see the same kid?
        “So you do know him.”
        Jim gave a nervous laugh. “No . . . not really. It’s just that we—my wife and I—had met with him a couple months ago to discuss some legal issues. Then I happened to run into him on my way in this morning. Just by total coincidence, really. He said he had come to talk to one of the kids. I didn’t even think to ask who. I just assumed . . .”
        Darnell leaned forward. “Did he say anything? give you any details? Because apparently Devon took one look at him and just freaked out. He didn’t even want to meet the guy.”
        Jim shook his head. “I . . . I’m sorry. I don’t know how they know each other.”
        Suddenly the old telephone rang and Darnell picked it up. “Darnell.” He listened for a moment. “When?” His lips tightened and he spun his chair to face the