Grumpy Bumpkin by Sam Cheever

Author:Sam Cheever [Cheever, Sam]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Electric Prose Publications

11

“I didn’t admit anything!” Wilks roared, surging from his chair.

The woman behind the counter jerked a look his way, frowning. Two men sat at the counter and one booth at the front of the diner was occupied. The two men had stiffened, one of them rising to his feet. The man who’d stood was big and rumpled, his bristled cheeks peppered with gray. He looked like a long-distance trucker, his bulk as much fat as it was muscle. He turned an intense blue gaze my way. “Is everything okay, miss?”

I smiled, linking my arm through Hal’s. “Yes. We’re fine. Thank you.”

Hal had stiffened at the question but his stormy green gaze was locked on Wilks. He didn’t turn away when he responded to the other diner. “It’s under control,” he said, his voice soft. “Our companion was just sitting back down.”

Wilks eyed the two men at the counter. The second man, another trucker if I had to guess, was standing too, his expression one of cautious concern. Wilks’s gaze slid back to Hal, and I saw the minute he realized he was outnumbered. With a frustrated sigh, Wilks lowered himself back onto the bench. He fixed an angry stare on Hal. “I’m trying to help, Amity. I don’t appreciate you turning my words against me.”

Hal nodded. “I understand that you’re not happy. But I can’t ignore the fact that you might have been there when Nunn died.”

Wilks’ lips twisted with disgust, but he gave a jerky nod. “Ask me your questions then. I was being honest when I told you I wanted to clear my name.”

“Why were you at the trailer last night?”

Wilks shoved the empty shake glass further away. “I went to talk to Gaylord about the project. As you noted, it wasn’t going as well as we’d hoped.”

“Because Deb Taylor was pushing back?” I asked.

Wilks’s lip curled. “That was just one of the issues. We’re also having trouble finding people who are willing to rip trees out of the ground.” He shook his head.

That surprised me. “Because they wanted to save the trees?”

“That,” Wilks admitted. “And it’s a lot of work grinding out stumps and roots. It’s a specific skill. Needs special equipment. We have dedicated people to do it in Indy. But Nunn was too cheap to pay them a premium for traveling down here.”

“That probably made you mad, huh?” I asked, trying to keep my voice neutral.

“Of course it made me mad. But I’m not an animal. I can get mad without killing somebody.”

The young couple in the front booth jerked in surprise at his over-loud declaration. The man nodded toward the front door and, when the woman was safely outside, motioned for the check, all the while glaring over at Wilks.

The investor sighed, rubbing a hand over his face and sagging in his seat. “I apologize. I’m at my wits end over all this and I’m not myself.” He lifted a tortured gaze to us. “I didn’t kill Gaylord. I had nothing to do with Taylor’s death.

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.