‘Thanks, Milt.’
I said bye, hung up, and then me and Emmett got down to some serious calorie intake.
Dalton was worried about his mama. That was nothing new. He was worried about her a lot, which was one of the joys of Mrs Pettigrew’s life. When she’d called just a few minutes back, she’d said, ‘Dalton! Something funny’s going on here! Get over here quick!’ And then she’d hung up. Dalton had no idea what ‘something funny’ meant. He was pretty sure she didn’t mean funny ha-ha, more like funny-weird.
He pulled up in front of his mama’s house, his home up until six months ago when he and Holly had got married and moved into their own place. Although Dalton was considered not terribly bright by most, he was bright enough to know that Holly and his mama living in the same house would be a very bad idea indeed.
His mama’s house was a post-WWII bungalow with some add-ons. It was painted white with yellow trim and, in the summertime, had big geranium plants on the small porch. Right now it just had a poinsettia that was giving up the ghost. But what worried him was the number of vehicles surrounding the house. Some of the cars he recognized as his mama’s bridge cronies. It was the ambulance that worried him. He abandoned his squad car in the middle of the street and hightailed it up the porch steps and into the house.
Jasper Thorne, the African-American head EMT with Longbranch Memorial Hospital, and his new partner, Sylvia Bradshaw, were just putting someone on the gurney. Thank God, Dalton thought, it wasn’t his mama.
‘What’s going on, Jasper?’ Dalton asked the EMT.
‘Got two down,’ Jasper said. ‘Miz Merkle here and Miz Jameson. She’s already in the bus.’
‘What is it?’
‘Food poisoning?’ Sylvia suggested and shrugged, then the two began to push Mrs Merkle out the door.
‘Mama?’ Dalton said, heading into the living room. His mother was sitting on the sofa, her face covered with her hands. Kneeling down in front of her, Dalton said, ‘Mama? You all right? What happened?’
‘It was the peach melba!’ came a voice from behind him. Dalton turned to see the last of his mama’s bridge cronies, Neva Keller, standing by the fireplace, her arms crossed over a skinny chest and staring daggers down at the two Pettigrews.
‘It was not!’ Mrs Pettigrew said, jumping up.
‘Well, then, how do you explain it?’ Mrs Keller said, hands on her hips. ‘Me and you only drank the coffee. Enid and Doris had the peach melba and they’re on their way to the hospital!’ She sighed. ‘I’m not saying you did this on purpose, Inez. But maybe you just got a little sloppy with your cooking, is all.’
‘I am never sloppy! Never in my born days have I ever been sloppy!’ Inez Pettigrew turned to her son. ‘Have you ever known me to be sloppy?’
‘No, Mama,’ Dalton said.
‘Well, maybe something was wrong with the peaches,’ Mrs Keller said.
‘There wasn’t anything wrong with them peaches! Got ’em right out of the frozen section at the Piggly Wiggly!’
‘Were they a name brand? You know, you buy those fly-by-night brands and you never know what you’re getting.’
‘Yes, they were a name brand! And we have no idea what Enid and Doris had to eat this morning. I mean, food poisoning takes a while to show up, right, Dalton?’
‘Yeah, Mama, I think so.’
‘He thinks so!’ Mrs Keller scoffed. ‘Like he’d know.’
‘Don’t you start on my boy!’ Mrs Pettigrew said, advancing on Mrs Keller.
‘Mama!’ Dalton said, grabbing her arm. ‘Why don’t y’all grab your coats, get in my squad car and we’ll all go to the hospital and see what’s going on.’
‘I’m not riding with her!’ Mrs Pettigrew said, turning her back on her former friend and crossing her arms over her chest.
‘Well, that’s just fine! I’ll drive my own self to the hospital,’ Mrs Keller said and slammed out the front door.
‘Come on, Mama. Let’s go to the hospital.’
‘The Permeter brothers,’ Holly said, mentioning the two who’d tried to take on Dalton after Dalton had killed their brother in the line of duty. ‘Nick and Joe. Nick is the older of the three, James is the one who got killed and Joe’s the baby. Joe lives in Longbranch and works at Buddy’s pool hall as a bartender. Nick lives out on Ranch Road two-forty, at the family farm. Still runs it but works part time at that tool and dye out on Highway Five.’
‘Families?’ I asked.
‘Joe’s single. I talked to my friend Carrie who waits tables at the pool hall part-time and she says he’s a real player. Or at least he thinks he is. Most girls won’t go out with him more than once, Carrie said.’
‘He an abuser like his big brother?’ Emmett asked.
‘She didn’t say anything about that. Just that he’s mostly a jerk. She said she wouldn’t go out with him if he was the last man on earth.’
‘What about Nick? Married?’ I asked.
Holly nodded. ‘Wife and three kids. They kept the farm going while he was in prison. Oldest boy’s nineteen and already been arrested for abusing his girlfriend.’
‘We have him in here?’ I asked, surprised.
‘No. The girlfriend lives in Tulsa. He spent a night in the jail there but then the girl backed down and they let him off.’
‘Any word on Nick abusing his wife?’ I asked.
‘No. But his mama lives with them and that might be a calming influence,’ she said with a grin.
‘I doubt it,’ Emmett said.
‘I do believe we need to interview these two,’ I said, looking at Emmett.
‘We go to them or bring ’em in?’ he asked.
‘Bring ’em in. But one at a time,’ I said.
Joe Permeter certainly looked the part of the player Holly’s friend Carrie had described. About six foot two inches tall, weighing in at a healthy one-eighty to two hundred pounds, he had dark, wavy hair, a little too long, big brown eyes, broad shoulders and a shit-eating grin, which he was using liberally on Holly as she walked him into the interrogation room. He sat down in the straight-legged chair across from me by turning it around backwards and straddling it in a manly fashion. I was sufficiently impressed by his masculinity.
He lost the shit-eating grin and frowned at me. ‘I’ve done my time and I’m off probation, so I’m not sure what I’m doing here.’
‘Just wanted to talk to you about what happened to your brother James,’ I said.
‘You guys killed him,’ was Joe’s reply.
‘He was killed while attempting to shoot a peace officer.’
‘Whatever,’ Joe said, crossing his arms and leaning them on the back of the chair.
‘You and your brother Nick tried to take down the deputy who was involved in that shooting.’
‘Yeah. So what? He kills our brother and we took a swing at him. Your deputy damn near took out Nick’s eye and he loosened one of my teeth. Not to mention my broken nose and collarbone. And Nick’s still got back trouble. Then you assholes had the balls to send us to jail because of it. Man, that sucked.’
‘So, the two of you, still sorta pissed off at the department?’ I asked.
‘Not my favorite place to be,’ he said.
‘Sure you haven’t been hanging out here a little more than necessary?’ I asked.
‘Huh?’ He was a bright one, that Joe.
‘Like leaving notes taped to the front door, offing our alarm system and sneaking in to plant zombie babies—’
‘Zombie what?’ If the women of Longbranch could see the look of sheer stupid on Joe Permeter’s face at that moment, he’d never get a first date, let alone a second.
‘You know a lot about cars, Joe?’
‘Huh?’
‘Cars, Joe. You know a lot about them?’
‘Like fixin’ ’em and stuff?’ he asked.
‘Yeah, Joe, like fixin’ ’em and stuff.’
‘Yeah, I guess. I mean, I used to do all sorts of work on my daddy’s ol’ pick-up, b
ut I’m not so good with anything after the catalytic converter.’
‘What about brakes?’
‘I never changed no brakes,’ he said. His frown deepened. ‘You got a problem with your brakes, Sheriff?’
‘Joe, are you really as stupid as you’re putting on?’ I asked.
‘Hey!’ he said, standing up from the chair. ‘Take that back!’
‘Sit down,’ I said. He kept standing. ‘Sit down!’ I said, real loud this time. He sat. ‘See much of your brother Nick these days?’
‘I don’t know what you want, Sheriff. And I’m thinking I ain’t gonna talk to you no more.’ He folded his arms across his chest and turned his gaze to stare at the wall. I sorta felt dismissed.
I had Holly write up a paper saying Joe Permeter was a material witness and we needed to hold him in a cell for his own safe-keeping. She frowned when she typed it up, but she typed it up nonetheless. Then I had her take Joe to one of our holding cells. I could hear him alternatingly griping about getting locked up and hitting on Holly.
I’d sent Anthony to pick up Nick Permeter from his part-time job at the tool and dye company on Highway Five, and didn’t have to wait too long for them to show up. I noticed when Anthony brought Nick in the side door that Nick was cuffed. Seeing me sitting in my office, Nick Permeter let loose.
‘What the hell’s going on here, Sheriff?’ he yelled. ‘Why’d you send this nigger to get me like I’m some sorta dog or something!’
‘Watch who you’re calling names, Mr Permeter. I’d hate to have to arrest you for being aggressive with a peace officer. With your record, you could get some real time,’ I said.
Anthony nudged him forward with a knee to Nick’s back. ‘Keep walking,’ Anthony said.
‘I’m suing you!’ Nick shouted. ‘You, Sheriff, and this here African-American gentleman,’ he said in a sing-song voice. ‘And my mama’s first cousin’s ex-husband is a judge in Tejas County!’
‘Gee,’ I said, leaning back in my chair and putting my feet up on my desk, ‘that should work out real well for you.’
Dalton called Milt from the hospital.
‘What’s up?’ Milt asked after Dalton identified himself.
‘Some of my mama’s bridge ladies got sick,’ he said, then, lowering his voice, whispered, ‘maybe from something mama made. She’s real upset.’
‘Well, you stay as long as you have to,’ Milt said. ‘If anything major comes up, I’ll call you. Otherwise, take care of your mama.’
‘Tell Holly what’s going on, OK?’
‘Sure thing,’ Milt said.
Dalton shut off his cell phone and turned back around. They were in the waiting room of the emergency department. His mama and Neva Keller were sitting opposite each other, both of them with their arms crossed and both of them staring at walls, but different walls, mind you. Dalton started to take the seat next to his mother when he saw Jasper Thorne and his female partner come out of the back. He hurried up to them.
‘Any news?’ he asked.
Dalton had gotten to know Jasper when the tornado hit nine months earlier. It was at the same time that Holly and her bachelorette party guests were being held hostage at the Longbranch Inn. Jasper had gotten promoted to head EMT after that. The only thing different now from then, Dalton reckoned, was that Jasper’s hair was bigger – like an Afro from the sixties or something. He kind of liked it.
This was the first time Dalton had met Jasper’s new partner. She was probably closer to forty than thirty but it was hard to tell with the burn scars. You could tell there’d been a lot of plastic surgery done but not enough to disguise the burns. Her hair was so obviously a wig that even Dalton could tell.
He held out his hand to her. ‘Dalton Pettigrew, sheriff’s deputy,’ he said.
She smiled. It was a little lopsided but not unflattering. Actually, she looked a lot better when she smiled. She took his hand and he tried not to notice that it also had severe burn scars. ‘Sylvia Bradshaw, EMT.’
‘You from around here?’ Dalton asked.
‘Transferred in from Durant,’ she said.
Jasper took Dalton’s arm and led him away from the waiting room. ‘Bad news,’ he said, his voice low. ‘Doris Jameson was DOA. And Miz Merkle ain’t doing so great.’
‘DOA? You mean dead?’ Dalton whispered.
‘That’s what it means,’ Jasper assured him.
‘So what about Miz Merkle?’
‘She’s not responding to anything they’re giving her. She’s not conscious.’
‘Damn,’ Dalton said. ‘You think it was my mama’s cooking?’
‘You need to find out what they ate and when they ate it,’ Jasper said.
‘They ate Mama’s peach melba. It’s usually real good.’
‘Did they all eat it?’ Jasper asked.
‘No. Miz Keller said she and Mama just drank coffee.’
‘So when did the other two eat the peach stuff?’
Dalton turned and looked at his mama. ‘I don’t know, but I reckon I’ll find out.’
He left Jasper and went and sat down next to his mama. ‘When did you serve the peach melba?’ he asked.
‘What do you mean when?’ his mama responded.
‘You know. What time?’
‘I dunno! For God’s sake, why would I know?’ She sighed heavily. ‘Neva, what time did I serve the peach melba?’
‘I have no idea,’ Neva Keller said, still staring at the wall.
Jasper came over. ‘Ladies, I’m trying to find out how soon the ladies got sick after they ate that peach melba.’
‘Right away!’ Neva Keller said, looking at Jasper. ‘Within minutes!’
Mrs Pettigrew sobbed. ‘Yes, yes, it was. Oh, it was awful!’
Jasper turned and headed back into the emergency department.
FOUR
Nick Permeter was shorter and not nearly as good-looking as his younger brother. He had a beer gut and a mullet and wore a John Deer cap on his head turned backwards. And he was chewing a wad of tobacco. On seeing this, once I entered the interrogation room, I turned and asked Holly to get a plastic cup from the water cooler. She came back with one and I handed it to Nick. ‘Spit,’ I said. ‘All of it. No tobacco products in the sheriff’s department.’
‘That’s bullshit,’ he said around the wad in his mouth.
‘Either swallow it or spit the whole thing out. Now!’
He spat. I took the cup out and down the hall toward the cells where the bathrooms were. I wasn’t about to ask Holly to deal with that. Women tend to be a bit squeamish about that kind of thing, and what with Holly being early pregnant and all, I felt it the prudent thing to do.
Since Anthony had handcuffed Nick to the metal ring under the table, he was still where I left him when I came back. Of course, he would have had a hard time getting past Anthony who was standing outside the door staring daggers at the asshole inside. I shut the door behind me and took the seat across from Nick.
‘How’s your family doing, Nick?’ I asked.
‘What the hell? What do you care? What is this? I did my time!’
‘I hear your boy’s taking up the family tradition of beating on women.’
‘Fuck you,’ he said.
‘Well, that’s Tulsa’s problem, until Junior gets a girlfriend in Prophesy County, then I’ll deal with it.’
Nick just glared at me.
‘So, you still pissed about your brother? James, not Romeo Joe.’
‘Of course I’m pissed! Y’all killed him!’
‘He was gonna kill his wife and he turned the gun on a deputy. My deputy had no option but to shoot.’
‘Bullshit! He wasn’t gonna kill her! And your deputy just startled him. He wasn’t gonna shoot!’ Nick said.
‘So, when you didn’t get the satisfaction you wanted when Dalton took on you and Joe and beat the crap out of you both, did you decide to take revenge in a more subtle way?’ I asked.
Nick frowned. ‘Huh?’
I was quickly coming to the conclusion that there weren’t a lot of rocket scientists in the Permeter family line.
‘You been coming by the department here and doing jokes like putting notes on the door and stringing up toys in here?’ I asked, pointing to the light fixture.
‘Hell, no! I live on the other side of Longbranch. Why would I even come by here? That’s just stupid!’
‘You know anything about car brakes, Nick?’ I asked.
‘Of course. Car brakes, truck brakes, tractor brakes. Why?’
‘’Cause somebody cut the brake lines in one of my deputy’s personal cars,’ I said, watching his face close for any sign of guilt.
He laughed. ‘Gee, Sheriff, I’m real sorry somebody’s messing with y’all, but it ain’t me. And don’t even think about Joe. That boy don’t know a brake line from a chorus line.’
‘Stay here,’ I said as I got up and left the room, heading for Emmett’s office.
He was sitting at his desk, staring at the computer. I understood his pain. I waved for him to come in my office.
After we both sat down, I said, ‘I don’t think we’re getting anywhere. I think those Permeter boys are too stupid to have even thought of doing this, much less be able to pull off silencing the alarm and getting anywhere near Anthony’s personal ride.’
‘Yeah, and the Evans kid and Trevino don’t seem like likely suspects either,’ Emmett said. ‘Who’s left?’
I looked at our list. ‘The Connors and Maudeen Sanders’ kin.’
‘Well, hell. Maudeen Sanders had every right in the world to kill that asshole,’ Emmett said, and since he was the father of a twelve-year-old girl, I perfectly understood. Hell, any human being could understand a woman killing a man who molested her child, whether they had kids or not. But when you have a daughter the same age Maudeen’s was at the time, like Emmett and Jasmine did, it put a whole other spin on it. Like he might have helped her kill the bastard if he’d been around at the time.
‘Doesn’t mean her kin aren’t taking revenge.’
‘Her kin?’ Emmett said, his voice skeptical. ‘You mean her daughter and her brother? That the kin we’re talking about?’
‘Emmett, I’m not saying I like this one bit. They’re just on the list.’
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