Longarm and the Debt of Honor by Tabor Evans

Author:Tabor Evans
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group

Chapter 21

“Luke Baldwin? Of course I know him. Luke’s been giving me my shaves ever since I came to Crow’s Point,” Norm said from the other side of the bars. Norm looked comfortable enough. He had a rocking chair in the cell with him, and was sitting in it now with his feet—in socks and a ratty old pair of carpet slippers; he had no need for boots at this particular moment—propped up on the edge of his bunk. “What do you want to know about Luke?”

“How friendly was he with Dinky Dinklemann?” Longarm asked.

Norm’s gaze drifted up toward the ceiling while he thought that over. After a few moments he shrugged. “About the same as everybody else, I’d guess. Why?”

Longarm didn’t answer immediately. Instead he tried to prod Norm’s memory again. “Did you see Dinky in the barbershop often?”

“Hell, Longarm, I don’t know. I mean, who pays attention. You know? And how much does it take to make something often?”

“Okay then, Norm, let me put it this way. Did you ever see Dinky Dinkelmann in the barbershop? Doing odd jobs there or getting a haircut or for any reason? Any reason at all?”

This time Norm cocked his head to one side and gave Longarm a speculative look before he answered. “This is going someplace in particular, isn’t it? Do you have a scent to follow about Luke and Dinky?”

“I don’t know yet, Norm, but I need to find out.”

“Then let me make sure I answer you as best I can,” Norm said. “I can’t honestly recall any particular time I’ve noticed Dinky in Luke’s shop. But then like I said before, it isn’t the sort of thing that anyone in this town would notice. You know? Dinky was just kind of ... everywhere. He’d show up all the time, with anybody, and no one ever thought a thing about it. So, no, I guess I couldn’t go under oath and testify that I ever saw Dinky getting his hair cut. But then there’s probably two hundred men in Hirt County that I’ve never watched get their hair cut.”

“Ever see Dinky sweep up for Luke Baldwin? Anything like that?” Longarm persisted.

Norm pondered the question for a moment, then shrugged again and shook his head. “Not that I especially recall. Which doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. Hell, I generally only went to Luke’s shop myself on Wednesday afternoons. I might have stopped in at other times or on other days once in a while over the years, but usually my schedule was for a trim after lunch on Wednesdays. For all I know Dinky could have worked for Luke every Monday evening and every Friday morning since he was big enough to push a broom. I just wouldn’t know.”

“Let’s try it this way. Did you ever pay particular note about Dinky not hanging around the barbershop?” The question sounded stupid even to him, and Longarm regretted asking it practically before the words slipped off his tongue.

Norm laughed. “That’s like asking me do I find anything strange about walking into a room and not finding Ulysses S.

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