Sangre Road by David Tromblay

Author:David Tromblay
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Down & Out Books

21

“Daytime is the wrong time to go about ferreting out folks like the Drumgooles,” the old man said and sat and cleared his throat to make sure he had my attention before he continued any further, “You’ve got to go after them nonchalantly.”

“You mean ‘nocturnally,’ don’t you?”

“That too,” he added and placed a heavy green canvas zippered bag onto the end table. The stencil on the side read U.S. The weight and the oblong triangle shape of it told me it was a pistol. The box of .45 caliber ammunition he balanced on top of the bag insured me we weren’t shooting the proverbial shit.

“That’s a 1911,” he said and pointed toward the canvas bag beneath the box of shells.

“Yours?”

He nodded, said, “It was my father’s. Mine now.”

“You giving it to me?” I asked without turning my head towards him, not sure of what was happening—wondering whether Christmas had come early.

“Yeah!” he snorted. “Over my dead body,” he continued with a deadpan look to him. “You’re a have-gun-will-travel type, aren’t you?”

“I am.”

“One without a gun. And you’re not doing much traveling from what I can see, either. You need a gun, and you need to get on, don’t you?”

“Yessir, that I do,” I said.

“All right then.”

I didn’t say or assume a thing. Or reach for the gun. But neither did he.

“My goddamn tooth hurts something fierce,” he said in a way that sounded like he was gargling. “Warm saltwater don’t do jack diddly shit.”

“If you want me to drive you to see the dentist, all you have to do is ask.”

“Is that so?”

“Yessum.”

“He’ll charge me fifty bucks to open up and say ahh.”

“So,” I said and pointed toward where the pistol lay, “do you want me to take you out back and put you out of your misery?”

“That doesn’t sound so bad,” he said. “Do you have any more of whatever they gave you for your face?”

“I believe so. Why? Would you like another?”

“If you would, please. If you’re not running low.”

“No, it’s all right,” I said.

I returned from Elise’s bedroom with the pill bottle in hand and shook a single tablet into his outstretched palm. “Oh, bless you,” he said and brought his hand to his face so fast you’d swear he was about to render a crisp salute.

“Water?”

“No need. Already down the hatch,” he said and stuck his tongue out, showing the chalky white streak trailing toward his tonsils. I lifted my eyebrows as high as they could go to let him know I’d saw plenty, hoping he’d get the hint to reel the thing back into his head.

He pulled back on a lever that sent his feet flying up into the air almost before I could step out of the way. He let go of a laugh while I twisted the cap back onto the bottle, uncrossed my feet, and began my way back towards the bedroom. “Oh, no. Leave the bottle, Barkeep,” he said, placing his one hand atop mine.

“Where you going now?” the old man asked me.

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