“Why thank you, Sheriff. I’m Rio Bonner.”
“My pleasure,” Lester replied. Turning to Billy Ray, “And just how did you two meet up again if I might be so bold as to ask?”
”Rio came up to Melissa’s room to check on her, and well…we got to talkin’ and…”
“I get the picture,” Lester said. “Let’s go sit on the porch.”
Rio said, “Let me get my sweater. The evenings are getting cooler now.”
Three chairs were aligned, facing south, and all found a seat. Harley, being well fed for the day and his curiosity of the stranger satisfied, lay down by Lester and closed his eyes.
“Ms. Bonner, I’ve been quite busy lately, transporting prisoners and catching up with paperwork. I haven’t had much opportunity to talk with Billy Ray here about Melissa’s condition, especially how she took the news about her parents.”
“Please call me Rio, Sheriff. I can tell you from a medical standpoint that Melissa is doing remarkable well considering what she’s been through. The damage from the smoke inhalation was mild and she’s breathing normally now and without oxygen. Her doctor is monitoring her condition closely. However, I suspect she’ll be discharged any day now. As for her emotional well being, Billy Ray would know more about that than I do.”
“How did she take the news, B.R?” Lester asked.
Billy Ray sighed, “About like you’d think. I held off from telling her as long as I could. She didn’t have much to say about Albert, but her mama, well, that’s gonna be hard for her to deal with for a long time to come.”
No one spoke for awhile. Harley whined a little and his feet twitched a couple times, chasing rabbits in his dreams. Rio smiled at the dog.
“She talk about any long term plans?” Lester asked.
“Yeah. Dora Wilson and Becky have been at the hospital every chance they get. It’s looking like Melissa might live with them long enough to finish out her senior year. Becky was really excited about that idea. It’ll be a good fit, I think. Mrs. Wilson is so nice.”
Lester nodded. “How ‘bout later, after graduation? Any talk along those lines?”
“A little. Imogene had that sister you know, lives in Tulsa. The two were never close, but Melissa likes her. Apparently the sister made the offer, somewhere down the line, for Melissa to come to Tulsa and live with her—see how it works out. Oh, and there’s this. Melissa tells me she hopes to go to college, Oklahoma State, and become a veterinarian.”
“I hope that comes to pass,” Lester said and grinned. “I would imagine that the sale of the farm would finance part of that education. Wouldn’t know about the Parker life insurance situation, of course. Might get sticky what with the murder and suicide. Then again, Albert was probably too cheap to buy insurance in the first place.”
The sun slid lower, ducked behind a single cloud, and lit the edges with a glowing crown of reds and oranges. A sense of tranquility settled on the porch, the evening silence broken only by the flutter of birds as they came and went from the nearby feeder, their last meal of the day. After awhile, Billy Ray asked Lester, “What about Earl and the Pirate’s Den? Any developments?”
“Not many. Earl is scheduled for a hearing soon. He can make his case to the judge. I hate to see the man lose his livelihood, but damn it, look at all the damage to human lives that started right there, that night, with boozed-up kids.”
“Earl didn’t have a part in what Big Bill Kingston did,” Billy Ray said. “Or make Imogene kill Albert.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know, but the tequila was what set it in motion. Maybe Earl’s learned his lesson this time. He better have or I’ll have to deal with him personally.”
Rio looked at Billy Ray and the deputy nodded as if to say, he would do that.
Billy Ray said, “As long as we’re catching up on things, have you seen J.O. Mecham lately? I suppose you noticed my car is still banged up.”
“As a matter of fact, I happened to drop by J.O.’s place just yesterday evening. He was home but didn’t seem very happy to see me. I couldn’t help but notice a fresh paint job on one fender of his pickup. Guess he couldn’t afford to do the whole thing.”
“And?”
“We talked.”
Then, nothing but silence. Rio gave Billy Joe a quizzical look. Billy Ray shrugged, wait for it.
Finally, “I told J.O. to pay for your repairs. To drop a check by the garage and leave the amount open.”
“And he agreed to that?”
“Not until I told him how I would arrest him for growing marijuana on his property if he didn’t.”
“J.O. is growing pot out there?” Bill Ray’s eyes got wide.
“Nah, I’d have to plant it on him somehow. I could have my friends down at the OSBI lab send me a few seedlings. Shouldn’t be much of a chore.”
Billy Ray laughed. “Sheriff, you do have some moves I admire.”
“Well, thank you Deputy.”
Rio spoke up. “Billy Ray, if we’re going to make kickoff tonight, we should probably go.”
“Friday night lights, huh?” Lester said. “How will the Bobcats do without their star QB?”
“Oh, about like they did before he came along. The boys will play hard and have fun. The crowd will cheer on the good plays and moan on the others just like they’ve always done. Things won’t change much.”
Lester waved goodbye as the Camaro pulled away, crunching gravel. When it hit the blacktop—and just because the Sheriff was watching—Billy Ray mashed it, spinning the tires in a screech of rubber and smoke. Lester shook his head and smiled. Good match there, he thought. Kind of reminds me of Mary Alice and myself in our younger days. Wonder what it would have been like to have a child, one like Melissa? He tried to picture it in his mind; a little girl, frilly dresses, slumber parties, first date, first car, graduation, college, grandkids. He shook his head. Guess I’ll have to leave that up to good people like Billy Ray and Miss Rio.
Feeling the ache in his lower back, Lester shifted his position in the chair and absently scratched behind Harley’s ears. The dog moaned in pleasure.
“Harley, my boy, it’s been a hellava week hasn’t it? A rape, a murder, an attempted murder, and a suicide, all right here in Cimarron County, all in the space of, what was it…five, six days? More crime than most of folks in this end of Oklahoma have seen in their lifetime. We’ve had families destroyed, lives that are gonna be changed forever, and why? Mostly because Melissa had the misfortune to be caught between two egotistical men; one a manipulative, domineering, and controlling sorry excuse for a human being, and the other with the morals of a tom cat that wanted to live his life vicariously through his talented but misguided son. You like that word dog, vicariously? It’s one I heard Billy Ray use, kinda liked the sound of it. Lot’s of things could have changed the events you know. If Imogene had stood up to Albert sooner, been a stronger mother, and not let that cretin beat her down like he did, Melissa might still have a mother. Are you listening to me, dog?
“Boomer’s gonna lose his daddy for a while, a long while probably. Oh, and Boomer will probably serve a little time in jail himself, or should, even though I’m still not exactly sure what happened with Melissa and him out there on that old farm land. He could be charged with attempted rape, or not, but a boy can’t hit a sheriff, elude arrest, point a gun at a lawman, not to mention the reckless discharge of a firearm, and then tiptoe through the tulips scot free. No sir. Wouldn’t surprise me if he got off easy though. He has his youth working for him, no priors, and I’m sure half the people in Boise City, the coaches especially, will testify to his good character. He might even be walking the halls of the high school before the end of year. Wonder how Melissa would take to that? Talk about awkward.
“Then there’s Melissa herself. You know, she might be the bravest little girl I’ve ever known. Got gumption, that young lady does. Hung in there, down in that dark ol’ cellar, doing everything she could to stay alive. I expect her to go far in this world. Hope she be
comes a vet like she’s plannin’. She’ll be a good ‘un. Runaway. Humph. I knew damn well she wasn’t a runaway, knew it from the start. This old man’s hunches and instincts are still working pretty damn good if you ask me. I’m bettin’ that there’s a few good years left in this skinny ol’ lawman’s carcass. What do you think? You got any comment on that Harley dog?
At the sound of his name, Harley opened one eye, glanced up, but quickly closed it again. It was an excellent dream; a wide field of clover filled with purple blooms and rabbits, dozens of rabbits. Some looked fat and slow. A thin stream of dog drool ran from Harley’s jowls and pooled on the wood. A paw twitched. The chase was on.
Fraidy Hole: A Sheriff Lester P. Morrison Novel Page 34
