Tin City Tinder by David Macinnis Gill

Author:David Macinnis Gill [Gill, David Macinnis]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Mystery
Published: 2014-04-07T04:00:00+00:00

5

“They are moving graves!” Cedar took a deep breath. “Illegally!”

She sat at the round oak table in our kitchen, next to me and across from Mom. Lamar leaned against the counters as Chigger lapped up a bowl of milk.

I had decided to let Cedar tell Mom the news. It would be more believable from her, since Mom considered Cedar far more levelheaded and trustworthy.

“Say that again,” Mom said, almost rising out of her chair.

Cedar repeated the whole story about Early and Stuart, though she left out the information about the finger in the fish sticks.

While she talked, I watched for Lamar’s reaction. He was listening, too, because he laughed when Cedar mentioned the part about me falling in the hole. But he kept a poker face the whole time and only moved when Chigger finished the milk. He picked up the bowl and rinsed it in the sink.

“The whole field is full of graves,” I said. “It’s not only a family plot, it’s an organized cemetery. From the pattern of the holes, the guys knew exactly where to dig.”

“The owners knew about the graves beforehand?” Mom asked.

“Wouldn’t testify to that in court,” I said, “but that’s what it looked like.”

“You’re sure?”

“The field looked like dominos.”

“What about—” Mom wiped a tear from her eye. “What about the headstones?”

“None,” I said. “We didn’t see a single one.”

“That’s outrageous!” Mom stood and threw her arms wide. “They have absolutely violated state law! They can’t do this!”

“Sounds like they already did,” Lamar said.

“Call the sheriff!” she told him. When Lamar didn’t move fast enough, she grabbed the handset from the wall. “Never mind, I’ll do it myself. Some help you are.”

The call connected, and Mom stepped out on the porch.

Lamar picked Chigger up and handed him to Cedar. “Did either one of these men threaten you?”

“They ordered us off the property,” Cedar said. “And we left.”

“Your mama’s wound up, that’s for sure,” Lamar said. “But if the rightful owner asked them to do the work, nothing can be done. It’s not illegal to move bodies in this state, just to do it without permission. Since those old boys let y’all walk around without a fuss, they’re not too worried about getting caught.”

“But there are people in the graves,” Cedar said. “They can’t just, just move them.”

Lamar scrubbed his head. “Human remains are property like a house or land. They belong to the heirs of the deceased. That’s the law.”

Cedar looked at me, asking if Lamar was right. I could only shrug that, yes, he probably was.

“It’s time for me to head home,” Cedar said. “Can I use the little girl’s room first?”

I gave her directions.

“Those men did threaten you, Boone,” he said.

It wasn’t a question.

“Mild threats," I admitted. "Nothing I couldn’t handle.”

“If you were alone, maybe.” Lamar glanced down the hallway. “Follow Cedar back home, just to be sure. Folks around here are acting funny. It’s smart to be careful.”

“Funny how?”

“Some migrant workers ended up in the emergency room last weekend, all beat up. They wouldn’t say what happened.

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