"Let's go over what happened."

       "Happened?"

        His voice gets soft and low. "What happened with Mr. Fletcher?"

       I slump down. I don't even like to think about it. McGill pulls his leg back and leans over the desk toward me. He's not going to stop poking around. "Have you been in trouble before?"

       "I took off once, two years ago, and the Cops caught me down at the California border. I was going to see my dad. The judge says that's no crime ."

       "It's not, it's a statutory offense by a minor, meaning there are rules against anyone under age running away. You're right, though. It's not a crime ." He looks at a couple more sheets in my folder. "I see it here in the report. You told the state police you were on your way to Texas to persuade your father to come back to Oregon with you."