Cost of Repairs by Arthur A.M

Author:Arthur, A.M. [Arthur, A.M.]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2012-06-05T05:00:00+00:00

His cell phone woke him up long before his alarm was supposed to—a fact his sleep-addled mind only knew because it was dark outside. He glanced at the alarm face as he fumbled for his phone. It was a little after two in the morning. This couldn’t be good.

“Briggs,” he said once he connected the call. He hadn’t even managed to look at the ID.

“Officer Briggs? It’s Schuyler Rhodes.”

Samuel sat up, suddenly on high alert. A middle of the night phone call from Dixie’s nephew equaled bad. “Is Dixie all right?”

“Yes, she’s fine. I’m sorry, this isn’t about her, it’s about Rey King.”

A flurry of agitated butterflies soared through Samuel’s stomach. “What about Rey?”

“It seems he’s down at the diner right now, drunk off his ass, and refusing to leave.”

“He’s what?” No, forget that, he heard him the first time. “How do you know?”

“Because Old Joe called a few minutes ago and told me.” Schuyler’s tone held a gentle duh resonance. “I think he meant to tell Aunt Dixie, but I’m staying at her house for a few days while my apartment is being fumigated so I fielded the call. She’s been stressed and overtired, and I didn’t want her dealing with this.”

Okay, all of that made logical sense, except for one part. “So why are you calling me?”

“Well, I can’t go down there and collect him. Rey doesn’t listen to me anymore.”

“Anymore?” Samuel couldn’t stop a rush of curiosity. That single world held a lot of unspoken meaning.

Schuyler hesitated then gave a gentle sigh. “We were involved about a year ago and it ended badly. We’re friendly, but we’re not exactly friends. If he’s been drinking, he won’t want to talk to me. He may even take a swing at me.”

His curiosity was running full steam, and now Rey’s apparent jealousy over Schuyler’s flirting made a lot more sense. He wanted to ask for details about the involvement, because Rey didn’t strike him as the type to hold fast to relationships. How had ended it and why?

“Look, Officer—”

“Samuel.”

“Look, Samuel, I didn’t call the station, because I don’t want him arrested. He just needs to be taken home. Aunt Dixie said you two were friendly, plus you’re kind of a big guy, so you were the first person I thought of to wrangle him out of the diner.”

Samuel saw the logic in that. “Okay. Call Old Joe back and tell him I can be there to collect Rey in less than ten.”

“Thank you.”

“No problem.”

He hung up then stared at his silent phone for a few beats, waiting for his mind to jumpstart. Getting dragged out of bed to collect drunks wasn’t his favorite pastime, but what little he knew of Rey also indicated he wasn’t one to waste his money on booze. He was upset and he was drowning his sorrows in familiar places, and Samuel cared enough to go get him.

But if he barfed in Samuel’s truck, Sam’d be pissed.

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