Stillborn Armadillos (John Lee Quarrels Book 1)

by Nick Russell

  He picked something out of his screen and held it in the palm of his hand, and said, "It's a bullet."

  Barry handed it to John Lee. Looking at the old lead slug, which was slightly deformed at one end, John Lee felt a shudder to think that at one time this had punched its way through a person's skull and plowed through their brain, ending their life.

  "Looks to be about a .32 to me," he said.

  Barry nodded in agreement.

  The sun was getting low in the sky, but it was just as hot.

  "Let's give it another hour or so," John Lee said. "Then we'll call it a day."

  "Who's got guard duty here tonight?"

  "Obie, and he's none too thrilled about it."

  "Well shit fire, John Lee, when's the last time Obie was happy about anything? That old boy'd complain if you hung him with a new rope."

  "That ain't no lie, Barry," John Lee agreed.

  Obediah 'Obie' Long was a sandbagger and chronic complainer who always did just enough to get by, and never a lick more.

  "Compared to this, sitting in a car all night doing nothing sounds pretty good to me," Greg said.

  John Lee had to give the young deputy a lot of credit. He may look soft on the outside, but the redhead had a lot of heart and had worked hard all day, only coming out of the trench for short breaks when John Lee or the other deputies insisted he do so. Of course, that didn't mean anybody was going to cut him any slack.

  "You gonna start bitchin', too? We gonna have to start callin' you Obie Junior?"

  "No, sir. I wasn't complaining, just observing."

  Barry laughed and slapped the young man on the back and said, "I was kind of hopin' you was, tell you the truth. The way you been workin' your ass off down here today, you was makin' us old guys look bad."

  Greg blushed at the compliment, though it was hard to tell because his face was so sunburned. He scooped up another shovelful of dirt and was just starting to pour it into the screen when the soil erupted in front of his face, showering him with red dirt, and the sharp crack of a rifle split the air.

  "Everybody down," John Lee shouted, crouching next to his patrol car. He pulled his pistol and scanned the area just as another shot shattered the window of the car's door. Moving in a crouch, John Lee sought cover behind the front fender of the vehicle, where the engine block and tires would provide some protection.

  "Everybody okay?"

  "Does it count if I shit my pants?"

  "Where's it coming from?" Barry asked, a second before a third shot hit the door of the police car. John Lee popped his head up quickly but saw nothing before pulling it back. He looked again and saw something bright, and a second later the rifle fired again, this time the bullet hitting the rear tire of his car.

  Jerking his head down, John Lee shouted, "He's over there across the road." He moved to the front of the car and poked his arm around the fender and fired four rounds in a hurry. He knew there was little chance of hitting his target, but at least he wanted the shooter to know he didn't take kindly to being shot at.

  There were no more shots fired at them but the deputies weren't taking any chances. John Lee was the only one armed, the others having locked their weapons in the trunks of their cars while they were working in the trench.

  He opened his car from the passenger side, staying as low as he could, and pulled the shotgun from the mount in front of the dashboard. Sliding back out, he called, "Here, Barry," and threw the nylon stocked Remington to where the other three deputies were making themselves as small as possible in the trench. Then he reached inside for the radio's microphone and called the dispatcher.

  "This is County 16, shots fired on Turpentine Road at the construction site!"

  "Say again, 16?"

  "I said shots fired. Somebody's shooting at us from the woods on the other side of the road."

  "10-4. Attention all units, shots fired at the construction site on Turpentine Road. Unit 16 reports that the shooter is across the road. Approach with caution."

  A moment later Flag's voice came over the radio. "Anybody hit, John Lee?"

  "Negative, just my car."

  "Do you have eyes on the suspect? Any description?"

  "No, I fired back a couple of times but I don't think I hit anything."

  "You boys hunker down. Help's on the way."

  ***

  "Well this just pisses me off to no end," Flag said an hour later.

  "I'm not too thrilled about it either," John Lee told him.

  The road was lined with police cars, their red and blue lights flashing in the dark. Four Somerton County units and two State Patrol cars had responded when the shooting call went out. After John Lee had fired back at the sniper there had been no return shots, and whoever it had been was long gone by the time reinforcements arrived. Searching with flashlights, they had not found a blood trail to indicate that John Lee had managed to hit anybody. But they did find four spent brass .308 rifle cases.

  "Sumbitch was serious," Calvin McDonald said. "Damn .308 would knock an elk down."

  "Well there ain't no elk around here."

  "I can tell you one thing," Obie said. "There ain't no way in hell I'm gonna stay out here all night long like a sittin' duck! No sir, I ain't gettin' myself shot for what they pay me."

  "How much would we have to pay you to get shot?" John Lee asked. "Because I'd be willing to pitch in a few bucks. How 'bout the rest you guys?"

  "That ain't funny, John Lee! You should know more'n anybody, with that maniac tryin' to kill you."

  "I don't think he was trying to kill anybody."

  "What the hell you talkin' about? If he wasn't tryin' to kill anybody why was he shootin' at you guys?"

  "I don't know," John Lee admitted. "But I'm pretty sure that flash I saw at one point, just before he fired his last shot, was a reflection from a rifle scope. If he wanted to hit us, it wouldn't have been all that hard."

  "Maybe he's just a bad shot."

  "I don't think so, Fig."

  "Why the hell not?"

  "Because the second and third shots hit the middle of my car. But when I poked my head over the top of my front fender, his next shot, the last one, hit the rear tire."

  "Then what the hell do you think he was doin', shootin' at you guys that way?"

  "I don't know. Trying to send us a message maybe?"

  "Well, whatever the message was, I'd appreciate it if he'd just send an email the next time around," Barry said.

  Chapter 4

  By the time they had ended their search for the mysterious sniper and had rounded up a second deputy to stay with Obie at the construction site overnight, and he had changed the tire on his car, it was after 10 o'clock when John Lee finally pulled into his driveway.

  Magic, his 100 pound German Shepherd, came bounding into the car's headlights and trotted alongside as John Lee drove up in front of the house.

  "How you doing, boy? Did you take good care the place while I was gone?"

  Magic barked and wagged his tail.

  "Good boy," John Lee said, slapping his chest in invitation. The big dog responded by jumping up and putting his paws on his master's chest, rocking the deputy back half a step. He rubbed the dog's head with both hands, pulling on his ears, and leaned down so Magic could lick his nose.

  "Are you hungry? Yeah? Me too. Let's go get something to eat."

  He walked up the three steps to the deck and unlocked the door, the dog going in ahead of him. Unbuckling his gun belt as he went into his bedroom, he hung it on the hook on the wall, then sat on the bed and pulled his boots off.

  Magic stood in the bedroom doorway looking at him expectantly.

  "What, you think you're gonna starve to death?"

  The dog whined and John Lee laughed.

  "Damn, you nag me as much as any woman I've ever known."

  The dog whined again and it seemed like he wrinkled his brows, if a dog was capable of that.

  "Okay," John Lee said with a sigh, "you win."

&n
bsp; He went into the kitchen and opened a can of Alpo and put it in the dog's bowl. Magic started forward and John Lee looked at him and held up a finger. "Don't be in such a damn hurry."

  He used the can to scoop out dry Purina and added it to the bowl.

  "There you go. Are you happy now?"

  Magic waved his tail and barked.

  "Okay, you eat that and I'm gonna take a shower. I smell like something dead you'd find to roll in if you got half a chance."

  He went back into the bedroom, stripped off his clothes, and stepped into the shower. The hot water felt good as it pounded down on his sore back and he lathered up and watched what must have been two or three pounds of dirt and grime stream off of his body and down the drain. Staying in the water until it turned cold, he finally turned it off and reached outside for the towel hanging on the glass door and dried himself off. Then he brushed his teeth and shaved, wondering why he was brushing when he was planning on eating, but it felt like he could still taste the dust of the road in his mouth.

  When he was finally finished John Lee went back into the bedroom and stopped when he saw the naked woman stretched out on his bed.

  "Surprise."

  He looked at Magic, who was laying in the doorway, and said, "You're one hell of a watchdog, ain't you boy?"

  "Now John Lee, don't you be blaming Magic for not doing his job. I mean, after all, I am family, right?"

  "I've had a very long day, Beth Ann."

  "Well then you climb right into this bed where you belong, mister."

  "The only thing I've had to eat today was a burrito from Alvin's Stop and Go."

  The woman stretched sensuously and crooked her finger at him. "The Bible says man does not live by bread alone."

  "The Bible says a lot of things, and I'm pretty sure it frowns on what you have in mind."

  "You just come to bed, John Lee. I promise, we don't have to do nothin' but just hold each other and sleep."

  "Uh huh. You sure about that?"

  "Why, cross my heart and hope to die!" She drew a cross on her naked breast as if to emphasize the promise.

  "I really wanted something to eat."

  "You're going to wind up getting fat like Daddy and Uncle Flag if you spend all your time eaten'. Now you come to bed. I promise all we'll do is sleep."

  John Lee sighed and crawled onto the bed. Fifty minutes later, as he was finally drifting off to sleep with the woman's head on his chest, he thought to himself that Beth Ann had lied. Again.

  ***

  Magic's barking woke him up. Early morning sunlight was peeking through the bedroom window blinds and John Lee looked at the bedside clock. 7:30. Magic barked again, and then he heard somebody knocking on his door.

  "Shit."

  Beth Ann moaned something in her sleep and rolled over. He stood up, pulled on boxer shorts and a pair of jeans and went to the door, peeking out the window next to it on the way.

  "Shit! Shit! Shit!"

  More knocking, this time louder.

  "John Lee, you in there?"

  He opened the door and D.W. said, "What'd you do, forget to charge your cell phone? I tried to call you three times."

  John Lee remembered that his phone was still in the pocket of his dirty uniform shirt, which was on the bedroom floor where he had dropped it when he took it off the night before.

  "Ummm... I guess I must have."

  "How come Beth Ann's car is here?"

  Before he could think of something to say, the woman came out of the bedroom wearing one of his undershirts and padded barefoot into the kitchen, where she turned the Mr. Coffee on.

  The sheriff looked at her, then at John Lee, and then at his daughter again.

  "Beth Ann?"

  "Oh, hi Daddy. What are you doing up and about so early?"

  John Lee closed his eyes and groaned, and stepped inside so the sheriff could come in.

  "What in God's green earth is going on here?"

  "Well, see, it's like this ..."

  "Were you two fornicating?"

  There was a time when D.W. would have used another word for what they had been up to, but he was still trying to follow that promise he had made to God.

  "Come on, Daddy. Don't make a big thing of it, okay?"

  "Don't make a big thing of it! You're here almost naked with your sister's husband, and I'm not supposed to make a big thing of it?"

  "Daddy, Emily moved out eight months ago so she could find herself."

  "That ain't neither here nor there, girl!"

  He turned to John Lee and said, "I thought you were better than that!"

  "Now don't you be blaming John Lee," Beth Ann said. "I'm a grown woman, Daddy, and I make my own decisions. I'm the one that started it, not him."

  "I don't care who started it," D.W. shouted, pointing a finger at his son-in-law "You oughta' be hung!"

  "Oh he is, Daddy. Trust me! That's why I'm here."

  "That's enough of your sass, young lady. You get some clothes on and you do it right now."

  She gave him a fake pout but walked back into the bedroom with her cup of coffee.

  "I'd beat your brains out if you had any!"

  "Look, D.W., I don't... what I mean to say is... oh hell, just shoot me and get it over with!"

  "I really should. Lord knows I want to."

  Beth Ann poked her head out the bedroom door and said, "Ain't nobody shootin' nobody! Now look here, Daddy, I started this. John Lee never came on to me. I'm the one who made the first move, and the second, and the third, too! If Emily was home takin' care of business, this wouldn't of been happening."

  "This ain't about your big sister!"

  "Sure it is, Daddy. I grew up getting her hand-me-downs. Her clothes, her stereo, even her car when you bought her a new one for graduatin' from college. What makes this any different?"

  John Lee wasn't sure he appreciated being a hand-me-down, but he knew a lot worse things could be happening to him at the moment, and he thought there was a good chance that they still would. But before the situation could get worse, D.W.'s cell phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket, pushed the button and curtly asked, "What?"

  He listened for a moment, then said, "Yeah, I found him. He'll be there in just a bit."

  He ended the call and looked at John Lee and said, "The State Crime Lab has a crew on the way out to that construction site. They should be gettin' there within the next half hour so. Do you suppose you could get your sorry ass dressed and out there to meet them?"

  "Yeah, I'm on it."

  The sheriff shook his head and said, "This ain't over, John Lee. Not by a long shot."

  He turned and stormed out the door and across the deck down to his Tahoe. Opening the door, he turned back to look at John Lee one more time and shook his head, then crawled inside and drove away.

  "Well, that was awkward," Beth Ann said. She was sitting on his bed, still wearing just his T-shirt.

  "Awkward? I'm lucky he didn't shoot me!"

  "I don't know why you two are making such a big thing about this. It's just sex."

  "Yeah, well maybe your daddy's kind of old fashioned that way."

  He took the jeans off, pulled a fresh uniform from the closet and began to get dressed. "Do you have to leave in such a hurry?"

  "Yes, Beth Ann, I have to leave. You heard him say the State Crime Lab was on the way out there to where we found those skeletons."

  "Those dead people ain't gonna come back to life, so what's the hurry?"

  He shook his head and continued dressing. "You just don't get it, do you? We can't keep this up, Beth Ann."

  "Well I don't know about that. Tired as you was last night, you didn't seem to have any problem keeping it up."

  "You know what I mean."

  She reached out and groped him as he was trying to buckle his pants and said, "You know what I mean, too."

  "Stop it, okay? Just stop it? This thing with us, it's just..."

  She put her face close to his, until their noses were
touching, and said, "It's just sex, John Lee. I ain't planning to fall in love with you, and I know you're still in love with Emily, though I sure don't know why, with all she's put you through. But it's just sex. I'm enjoying it, and I sure didn't hear you complainin' last night. So what's the big problem?"

  He started to argue with her but realized it was pointless, and he didn't have the time anyway. "I've got to go. Can you give Magic something to eat before you leave?"

  "Leave? I was gonna stay here."

  "No, you're not. I never know when Emily's going to come back for something, and I really don't need any more drama in my life, okay?"

  "Yeah, I know what she comes back here for. Same reason I'm here. The sooner you understand that, the sooner you'll get her outta your head so you can move on, John Lee."

  His stomach was growling as he buckled on his gun belt, and he realized he still hadn't eaten. He filled his oversized stainless steel coffee mug, poured in sugar and powdered creamer, and stirred it. Opening the refrigerator he found three hot dogs left in a pack and took them with him to eat cold along the way.

  "You shouldn't eat them 'til they're cooked," Beth Ann said, as he started out the door. "You could get worms or somethin'."

  John Lee just shook his head again and got into his car. He figured that dying from whatever might be in the hot dogs was still a better option than having D.W. shoot him.

  Chapter 5

  There were two sheriff's department cars and a white van from the state crime lab at the construction site when he arrived.

  "Sorry I'm late," John Lee said, introducing himself to the three crime scene technicians.

  "Looks like we're the ones that are late," said the team leader, a woman named Jayne Emerson, who looked to be in her early 40s, with short gray hair and an aggravated expression on her face. "I don't know why your boss even had us come down if he was going to let you people dig the place up anyhow. You probably destroyed any evidence there was to find."

  "I'm sorry," John Lee said. "We're not exactly used to finding something like this around here."

  "Exactly," the woman said. "But we are. That's our job. We'd all be a lot better off if you'd stick to writing speeding tickets and let us handle this kind of thing in the future, okay?"