Step and Kenny sat on the tailgate of the truck, tucked away under the shade of a towering hemlock tree. The mountains climbed skyward all around them and ugly clouds left only specks of blue overhead. The air turned crisp and chilled them both enough to put on jackets.
Kenny kept his hat on his head, but couldn’t resist the urge to fiddle with the bill. His nose was no longer swollen, but the bruising around his eyes had gotten worse. He breathed through his mouth to compensate for the narrowed passageways of his sinuses. “You think I oughta buy Boss some kind of gift or something? You know, to say I’m sorry and whatnot.”
Step watched the dirt road that descended the mountain for signs of his cousin. “What the hell you gotta be sorry about? Boss hit you.”
“But it was me that set him off. Daddy always said I had a way of running my mouth into a fist.”
Step raised an eyebrow. “Your daddy’s right about that, but you ought not worry too much about Boss. He ain’t that mad at you.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Because you ain’t dead.”
“Reckon there’s something to that,” Kenny said.
Step searched all his pockets for his pack of cigarettes. When he couldn’t locate it, he hopped off the tailgate and headed for the cab. He was two steps in when Kenny said, “Your cousin’s here.” Step turned and watched the police cruiser crawl down and around the bends of the dirt road.
The vehicle pulled to a stop and parked a few feet from the truck. Terry Randle climbed out of the car and stared up at the sky. “Looks like it’s about to spit on us.”
Kenny looked up past the bent bill of his cap and said, “It does that.”
Randle sat on the hood of his cruiser with one foot propped up on the bumper. “Why am I here, boys?”
Step approached his cousin. “You got a gal on your police force. Name’s Savage.”
“Dani Savage, sheriff’s niece. She’s useless when it comes to policing. Got no business wearing a uniform. You still putting it to that stripper from The Rat’s Tail?”
Step ignored his question. “What’s she into, this lady cop?”
“Into? Like sexually? Got no idea. She ain’t giving it up far as I know—”
“Goddamn, Terry, I’m talking about her job. What’s she looking into?”
“Looking into?” Randle scratched the back of his neck. “The Baptist Flats SD don’t look into shit, Step. About the most we do is write traffic citations. Dani sticks her nose into husband and wife matters. Not me. I never thought that was the place for the law. That’s between a man and a woman and the Lord, just like Jesus said.”
“Jesus said that?” Kenny asked.
“Most likely,” Randle replied. He quickly shifted his thoughts to the cigarette filter. “She did have an interest in Porter 100s, now that I think about it. Had this butt she snatched from a double homicide in town.”
Step and Kenny shared a glance. “You ain’t looking into that?” Step asked.
Randle laughed. “Shit no. Ol’ Otis don’t like to stretch himself any more than he has to. A thing like that gets turned over to the state police quick as a phone call.”
“Then what’s the lady deputy doing with the cigarette butt?” Kenny asked.
“Hell if I know,” Terry said. “She’s always making a pest of herself. I told Otis it was a mistake when he hired her. She’s five foot nothing and weighs as much as a twelve-year-old. What the hell kind of good is that on a police force? Might as well put a badge on a kitten.”
Kenny smiled. “She sure is pretty, though.”
“You get to know her and you’ll be rid of that notion. She’s mouthy as hell.” Randle spotted Kenny’s black eyes for the first time. “Damn, son, what happened to you?”
Kenny shrugged. “I can get a bit mouthy, too.”
“So, she ain’t doing any official business on this double homicide?” Step asked.
Randle shook his head. “Nothing official. She’s just playing cop like she always does. Never amounts to nothing. Why you so interested in Dani anyway?”
“She’s popped up in our line of sight a couple of times,” Step said.
“She gave me her card,” Kenny said with a smile.
“Her card? What in the hell for?”
Step gave Kenny a cross look. “She was playing cop, like you said.”
“You think she’s got double-Ds under that uniform?” Kenny asked.
“Wouldn’t know,” Randle said. “Can’t remember a time I ain’t seen her in uniform, but I wouldn’t expect she does. She’d topple over like a stool missing a leg if she was that blessed.”
“We seen her in a dress today,” Kenny said. “Couldn’t get a good look at her tits through the binoculars, though.”
Step rolled his eyes.
Randle furrowed his brow. “What in the hell you boys up to? You spying on Dani?”
“This is business you don’t want to know about, Cousin,” Step said.
Randle cocked a half smile. “Holy shit! You boys are mixed up in that Son Crow business, ain’t you?”
Step’s face soured.
“Now don’t get all bent out of shape on me. I don’t give a shit. I’m sure you had your reasons. Never liked that Daryl Cartwright anyhow. Man was troubled. He sold dope to boys in his Bible study class.”
“Right there in the church?” Kenny asked.
“Nah, over to his house. He was probably diddling some of the boys, too, but wouldn’t none of them come forward on a thing like that. A few of the daddies beat the shit out of ol’ Daryl, though. He give up the Bible altogether after that. Still dealt in drugs. Couldn’t break him of that enterprise…” Randle shook his head and laughed. “It just come to me, Step. You smoke Porter 100s. I’m the one that turned you onto them.”
Step balled his hands into fists. “Won’t do you any good to remember too much more, Terry.”
Randle sensed the anger in Step’s otherwise calm tone. “I told you I don’t give a shit, Cousin. Blood comes before law work. I was raised by your momma’s sister, she brought me up right.” He leaned back and stretched out his legs. “Now, if you want to employ me, I’d be happy to keep a close eye out for you. Let you know what kind of mess Dani’s getting into. Hell, won’t cost you hardly nothing.”
Step studied his cousin. “That’d be acceptable.”
“Put in a good word for me,” Kenny said.
“What kind of word?” Randle asked.
“Talk me up. Give her the idea that I’m some kind of a catch. Don’t come on too strong. I don’t want her to think I put you up to it.”
Randle slid off the hood of the car. “That’ll be easy because I ain’t gonna say nothing to her about you.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’d be a waste of time for one, and for another, if it’s ever found out you two took out Cartwright and that other fella, how would it look if I was trying to make a love connection between you and my fellow deputy?”
“One ain’t got nothing to do with the other,” Kenny said. “And why exactly would it be a waste of time?”
Randle moved to the driver-side door of his cruiser. “No offense, but you’ve got all the appeal of ear wax. Even if Dani was looking for a man, you wouldn’t be him.”
Kenny sat dumbfounded before saying, “Now, why would I be offended by something like that?”
Randle buckled himself in and cranked the engine of the car. “I’ll bill you for whatever I uncover, Cousin.” With that he drove away.
Kenny worked his way off the tailgate and said, “You think he’s gonna put in a good word for me, Step?”
Step shook his head. “Get in the truck. I got someone else I want to visit.”