Big Lake 07-Big Lake Honeymoon by Russell Nick

Author:Russell, Nick [Russell, Nick]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Suspense, American Suspense, Police Procedural, Crime Thriller, Murder Investigation, Arizona
Publisher: UNKNOWN
Published: 2015-05-07T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 25

Wingate’s Retreat was a one acre tract of land the mayor owned that held six mobile homes that were occupied by long term renters, mostly young couples who worked seasonal jobs, sometimes two or three at a time, trying to get by on minimum wage and dreams. Though none of them were palaces by any stretch of the imagination, they were all clean and comfortable, and the residents took pains to keep things looking tidy.

Kallie Jo answered his knock on the door looking red-eyed and haggard. Always a neat woman, her hair was lank and lifeless and she wore a pair of ragged jeans and a shapeless T-shirt. “Hello Sheriff Jimmy.”

“Kallie Jo, can I come in?”

She nodded and stepped back to let him inside. A bucket and mop sat in the kitchen off to his right and the smell of Pine-Sol cleaner was heavy in the air. But underneath it there lingered another odor, one that wasn’t so pleasant.

“Doing some cleaning?” Weber asked.

She nodded, looking at spots in the living room carpet. “I don’t think I’ll ever get this here rug clean again. I’ve scrubbed it and scrubbed it. At least the linoleum there in the kitchen looks better.”

Kallie Jo usually talked at such a rapid pace that Weber was sure it would have broken the speed limit if he could only have figured out a way to clock it with a radar gun. He was not used to her short, simple sentences and they left him feeling disjointed.

She sat down on the sofa and stared at the floor wordlessly.

“So I hear you and Archer have had a bit of a problem.”

“I guess so,” she said and shrugged.

“Would it help to talk about it?”

“What is there to talk about? My husband ain’t got the backbone to stand up to his daddy.”

With that the dam broke and she burst into tears. Weber stood there uncomfortably for a moment, not sure what to do, then sat down beside her on the sofa and put his arm around her. She came into his arms and sobbed against his chest.

This definitely isn’t in my job description, Weber thought and wondered what somebody would think if they walked in on the scene and found the sheriff holding his deputy’s obviously distraught wife. For a brief moment he pictured that person being Robyn, who for all of the many qualities he adored, also had a strong jealous streak that had caused friction between them in the past.

“Archer’s been under Chet’s thumb for a long time, Kallie Jo. He’s not used to speaking up for himself.”

“Well somebody has to! That old man has bossed him around for way too long.”

“I know. But when it comes to his dad he’s like a whipped puppy.”

“Oh, don’t even say the word puppy to me!” Kallie Jo said, pushing herself away. “Do you know what that critter Archer drug in here did, Sheriff Jimmy?”

“I heard,” Weber told her, feeling better with some distance between them, even if it was only a couple of feet.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.