“Thank you.” Potter popped the top and took a drink.
Jaris continued questioning the guy, clearly probing for cracks in his story.
“Jaris is doing a great job.” Chance placed his arm around her shoulder. “I bet the guy is sweating bullets by now.”
She stared directly at the man. “Not yet. Potter doesn’t seem rattled one bit. Everything he’s saying sounds reasonable to me. Maybe this is just an unfortunate turn of circumstances and has nothing to do with Kip Lunceford.”
“Doctor, when your gun misfired, what did you hear?”
“I don’t know what you’re getting at, Deputy.”
“You were out in nature. There are plenty of noises. What did you hear?”
“Birds, mostly.”
“Anything else?”
?
?A waterfall. We parked both our trucks near it.”
“Where were your friends when your gun went off.”
“By the trucks.”
“And you?”
Potter shrugged. “A little bit away from them. I’m not sure how far.”
“Five feet? Ten? Thirty? Approximately how far?”
“A hundred yards, maybe. Like I said, I’m not sure.”
“Did you hear anything else?”
“No.” Potter leaned back in his chair, going on and on about how much he enjoyed hunting.
“What kind of medicine do you practice in Salt Lake?” Jaris’s question seemed to stump the man, as his eyes narrowed.
In an even tone, Potter answered, “I’m just a regular doctor, Deputy.”
“We sure need more of those. What about your four friends? Do they specialize in anything?”
“Go, Jaris,” Chance whispered, even though he couldn’t be heard in the other room. “You’re onto something.”
She agreed. Potter’s face was tight. What was the man hiding?
Potter shook his head. “You’ll need to ask them, Deputy. We don’t share patients.”
Suddenly, Jaris switched gears, asking all sorts of unrelated questions. Was Potter married? Kids? How long had he practiced in Utah? Had he practiced anywhere else?
Potter’s answers were short and to the point. It was clear that the man was clamming up. Jaris was getting to him.
“What medical school did you go to, Doctor?”
Potter frowned and turned to the sheriff. “I’ve answered all your questions and still you keep grilling me. I feel awful that someone got shot because of my gun misfiring, but I’m not a criminal. I’ve answered all the questions I’m going to answer until my attorney arrives. That’s within my rights, isn’t it?”
“Relax, Doctor.” The sheriff stood. “We’re only trying to make sure we report everything accurately.”