by Sue Hardesty
"Good thing you don't care," Shiichoo smirked at her watching the woman. "You carrying a gun and all."
"Go away," she told her grandma as she went back waiting for her grandparents to make up their minds about what to buy. Sometimes they never did and fussed at each other all the way back home.
Her grandma slowly cruised along the glass cases. Loni could see the preacher's wife trying to move her grandmother along. This should be fun, Loni thought. Unsuccessful, the woman circled around Shiichoo, ran her finger across the counter, and stared at it. Loni laughed at Pat's expression as he watched her finger travel over the countertop. "Find anything?" he asked her.
"Not yet," she answered, staring him down. She still looked dissatisfied. "What's your freshest meat today?"
"Got a nice cow tongue just in."
"Ech! I can't eat anything that came out of something's mouth!"
"Well then, I got some fresh eggs in this morning. Rangers, too." Pat pointed to the next cooler down. "How about a nice Spanish omelet for supper?"
Exchanging knowing looks with Pat, Loni watched the woman stomp out of the store.
"She'll be back," he said, "unless she wants that long drive to Tucson. Her husband's a really good guy. He's helped some people over at the church, but I swear he should throw that wife of his out with the rest of the trash."
Keeping an eye on her grandparents, Loni moved over and flipped through the board books while they shopped. She needed a birthday present for Maria's niece, who would turn two in a couple of weeks. Loni needed to stay a part of Maria's family.
The colorful books reminded her of the shopping sprees with Maria and her sisters. Loni preferred getting a Pap smear to shopping, but she went along. As if she had a choice! Maria loved going to shopping malls to marvel at all the shoes or sweaters or small appliances.
They had had fun gawking at unusual cooking utensils and guessing what they were used for. Loni remembered the citrus fruit knife, two blades sharpened on both sides at both ends of the handle. She lost that game but won another one when Maria couldn't guess the cherry pitter. Her reward was always amazing. Lost in her memory of tangled bodies moving in the dark of the night, it took Loni a minute to hear someone talking to her.
"Hey, looks like you could use this." Loni turned around to see Jenny standing there with a grocery cart.
Marveling at her feeling of excitement, Loni dumped her bundles into the cart. "Hey thanks. These are my grandparents," she said. "Shiichoo and Bahb. Jenny O'Neal."
"Hello," Jenny said. Quickly turning back to Loni, Jenny ignored her grandparents as she continued. "I'm shopping for dinner tomorrow night. Chicken sound good?"
Loni nodded, avoiding her grandparents 'stare.
"Good." Jenny's smile included only Loni as she turned and walked away.
* * *
Glad to be back at the loft even for only a few hours, Loni opened the door of the refrigerator. "Damn," she said to herself. "Daniel's been here again." All her tamales were gone. Slamming the door, she started through the cupboards. "Shit!" Finally she opened a can of chili con carne. Leaving the chili in a pan to heat up, she reached for saltine crackers. Taking out the soggy crackers from the open box, they almost fell apart in her hand. Oh well. She figured the chili wouldn't care. Grabbing the pot off the stove, the hot handle burned her and she dropped the pan, splattering chili all over the stove and down the front onto the floor. "Shit, shit, shit."
Cleaning up the mess, she was no longer hungry. It was another reason to miss Maria. She was a fantastic cook. Loni filled up on soggy crackers and went to bed.
FROM: Loni Wagner
TO: [email protected]
DATE: July 17
SUBJECT: Still here
The bad news first. I'm hurting about Carl. I don't know whether he is incompetent or untrained or in denial. Or worse. Still haven't traced the ricin. But I'm seriously wondering about Carl's ranch. Security patrols on a ranch just aren't done around here. I'm sure they have the runway I spotted the other night.
Granddad can't drive in town any more. Local cops told him they would take his license if he did. As long as I can remember, he never stopped at stop signs or looked either way when he pulled out on a street. Last time he drove through a stop sign, my friend Clive stopped him. Of course, Bahb insisted he is a very careful driver. I agree he is slow. Like Clive said, when he finally stopped laughing, honking his way through stop signs does not make him a careful driver. So I'm driving them to town to shop.
I can't believe how old school Bahb is and how much he used to embarrass me. He always insists on walking in front of us wherever we go, on a sidewalk or into a store, making sure it's safe for us to enter. When I remind him I'm the one with the gun, he gives me this inscrutable stare and waves me back. Honestly! I think it's sweet. God help me if I ever tell him that.
Now for good news, I think. I'm about to get a rapist off the street. I'm sure the DNA will give me the proof I need. And I have a date with Jenny tomorrow night. She's cooking for me. That's a good thing, right? Do you realize how long it's been since I dated? Oh, wait. I don't think I've ever had a date. Somehow, Maria and I skipped that part. What does that say about me? Also, I think I'd rather be with Lola, but I need to forget about that.
Really good news. Shiichoo is feeling much better these days and nothing makes me happier.
Take care of you and yours.
Loni
Loni thought about the last thing Bahb said to her as she helped put away the groceries in the kitchen. "Your friend in store? She has empty eyes."
CHAPTER 18
July 18, 5:42 a.m.
LONI HADN'T BEEN on patrol long when a red-streak flashed from a dirt side road onto the county road in front of her. She briefly thought about chasing, but knew she didn't have a chance. Besides, she was more curious about why they were in such a hurry. She called Bobby about the speeding sports car and went back to where it had turned onto the pavement.
As she made her way along the rutted track where the low-slung sports car had left clouds of dust in the air, she wondered how it had kept from bottoming out. In the beam of her headlights, she saw a girl on the side of the road, struggling to stand. Loni jumped out of her SUV and ran to her. As she reached out to touch her, the girl swung at Loni, screaming "No" over and over.
"You're safe now, you're safe now," Loni kept repeating, keeping the tears out of her voice. Long, black hair was stuck in the congealing blood from the girl's bleeding slashed cheek and split lip that puffed out to one side. She held a torn purple shirt over her breasts and was naked below the shirt. Loni could see bruises and cuts running down her thighs. She looked as though someone had thrown her out of a moving car. The girl finally heard her and collapsed into her arms, crying, "They raped me! Oh, god! They raped me again!"
Loni helped her into her SUV and examined her in the overhead light while the girl buried her face in Coco's furry neck. Digging a pair of shorts out of her emergency bag, Loni handed them to the girl.
"What's your name?" Loni carefully drove the SUV up the road, and the girl wiggled into the shorts.
"Chickie Bodia."
"Chickie, can you tell me who did this?"
The girl hiccupped through sniffles, working to talk. "I saw Billy Joe's red car." She paused and cried out, "I hurt!"
"I know. We're almost to the clinic."
"Find Chelsa. I need to see Chelsa."
Loni parked next to the emergency entrance at the clinic and opened the door, but Chickie refused to let go of Coco. Flipping her phone open, Loni asked for Chelsa.
"Hey, it's Loni." She kept her voice low and quiet. "I'm at your door and need your help."
Chelsa was at the passenger door before Loni could hang up. "Chickie?" Chelsa gently pulled the girl out of the SUV. Loni followed them as they slowly walked into the clinic and disappeared behind a curtain.
* * *
It seemed a long time before Chelsa reappeared. "She was the first girl t
hese bastards raped," she muttered in anger. Sighing, she rubbed her face. "She works in the clinic during the day. Admittance." She glared up at Loni. "Can't you stop these animals?"
"Yes," Loni reassured her. She turned to the door. "I'm picking them up right now!"
Lights flashing and siren screaming, she sped to Wagner Road, the glow of the hangar coming up fast. She cut the siren and the flashing lights before she pulled up in front of Dorothea’s house. Sleepy and disheveled, Dorothea answered the door. "Where's Billy Joe?" Loni demanded.
"Why?" Dorothea said defensively. "It was an accident. He didn't mean to kill Jimmy."
"No, it's not that."
"It's not about Jimmy?"
Dorothea grudgingly opened the door and motioned toward the living room.
"Which way is his bedroom?"
"Last door straight ahead." Dorothea pointed down the hall. "It's probably locked. He's got an outside entrance."
Loni failed to keep the fury out of her voice. "Get your kids and keep them in your bedroom."
Dorothea stared at her dully.
"Now!" Loni snapped.
The woman tightened the belt around her robe and disappeared down the hall. Loni heard a shuffling and then a lock turn.
Quietly, she walked up to the door where Dorothea had pointed. Standing to the side, she knocked. "Billy Joe, open up!" She knocked again and shouted, "It's the police."
"What?" a surly voice snarled. The lock clicked, and the door slowly opened. "I ain't done nothin'." He was dressed in Levis and a light yellow pearl-snapped button shirt. Dried blood was smeared across the front and down one sleeve. The red hair flopping in his eyes made it hard for Loni to read him.
"Billy Joe." Loni pushed him back into the room. "You're under arrest for rape."
"Balls! Nobody can prove nothin'!"
"Turn around." She waited while he tried to stare her down. His shoulders finally slumped in defeat, and his body crumpled as he turned around. Handcuffing him, Loni read him his rights and searched him. A sneer crossed his face as she ran her hands down his body. "You want some too, bitch?"
"You're not getting out of this one." She hauled him out of his room.
Dorothea was peering through a crack in her bedroom door.
"Stay out of Billy Joe's room," Loni told her. "I need to get a search warrant." Loni wondered how many pairs of panties she would find. "You should call his father."
* * *
"Where'd you get your 'Come to Mama' plant?" Loni asked Billy Joe as she shoved him into the back of the SUV.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Sure you do. You gave it to Todd."
"Oh, that shit. Coach said it came from the O'Neal farm." Billy Joe turned belligerent. "He said it wasn't illegal. They grow all kinds of sex stuff."
"Like what else?"
"I don't know. I only tried a few." He snickered.
Loni waited. Billy Joe couldn't keep his mouth shut. "Ginseng really got my juices going. And Horny Goat Weed. Want me to tell you how I used them?"
"And the meth?"
"What meth?"
"The meth you gave Todd," Loni snapped.
"No, no, no. That was coach. I don't touch that shit."
Loni let that question go. "Why Mexican girls?"
"You stupid breed." Eyes flashing, he stuck out his chin. "That's how you got here, isn't it? Mixin' white in to improve the gene pool? Bet your old man raped your mother. Maybe he even killed her."
God help us. More Billy Joes were the last thing this world needed. She wished he would threaten her so she could beat the crap out of him.
Billy Joe shut up for the rest of the ride to the station. She jerked him out of the SUV and pushed him into the building. He seemed to shrivel with each step. "Bobby," Loni called out as she entered the building. "I'm putting Billie Joe in the holding tank until Lola gets here. Can you ring her? I promised her the honor of booking him."
Shoving Billie Joe into the small, hot room, she uncuffed him and clanged the door shut behind him. She opened it and clanged it shut again. "Hear this sound, Billy Joe? You better get used to it." For the hell of it, she clanged it one more time.
"Chief won't like this," Bobby said when she came back down.
"Do I care? Don't let him out, Bobby. Chief's got no jurisdiction over this one. We got a witness and DNA on this kid for at least four rapes."
* * *
The rest of Loni's patrol was long and quiet. She got back to the station in just in time to hear Chief ranting at Bobby.
"Don't blame Bobby." She walked up behind them.
Chief whirled, the veins in his neck pulsing as his face flushed red. "You bitch," he raged at her. "This isn't your case. I'm turning him loose."
"You do, and I'll arrest you for interference."
"You're fired!" he yelled, spittle hitting her in the face.
"Chief, I don't work for you," She wiped off the spittle with a kerchief that she pulled out of her pocket.
He raised his arm, his hand in a fist. Bobby grabbed Chief's arm and pulled him into his office. "You don't want to do that, Chief," he said gently. It was a long time before the two came out, and Chief did not meet her eyes as he left the building.
"What did you say to him, Bobby?"
"You look beat. Want me to send Tully for the other two boys who helped Billy Joe rape the girl?"
"Changing the subject?"
"You need to go home soon," Bobby reached out to her. "Lola said she'd be right here." Dropping his arm, Bobby returned to his stool behind the counter.
"Wait, Bobby. Can you leave an order for a search warrant on Billy Joe's room?"
"Sure. I'll get it ready for Lola to take to the judge."
At her desk, Loni laid her head down on her arms, exhausted. Coco curled up at her feet and was soon snoring. They were both still there when Lola shook Loni's shoulder.
"I'm not sleeping."
"You snore awake?"
"I don't snore," Loni said.
"How would you know?"
"None of your business. Anyway, I've got a present for you. It's upstairs with the rest of the rat dung."
"Bobby said you picked up Billy Joe." She looked at Loni's face quizzically. "Not before he attacked another girl, I gather."
"It's Chickie."
"Oh god, how is she?"
"She's at the clinic."
"I've got to go." Lola was already at the door when Loni hollered to her back. "What about Billy Joe?"
"You book him," she returned. "I'd kill him."
* * *
Loni's feelings raced between relief and regret as she drove home. Bobby was right. Billy Joe would be gone a long time. She wished it didn't have to be that way. If only the DNA had been back sooner, she could have saved Chickie this last horror. If only Billy Joe had been in jail and not been in Joy's pickup, she could have saved Jimmy Barclay. If wishes were horses...
* * *
Loni hung out with Daniel, handing him tools while he worked on a helicopter. Smelling him and listening to the cadence of his voice always helped her relax. It was like surrounding herself with clean, rich earth.
"Daniel? You know you're part Choctaw?"
"Sure. I read our grandparents' history too."
"Did James?" Loni asked curiously.
"I don't know. Want me to tell him?"
Loni shrugged. "Might be interesting to see his reaction."
"Oh, yeah." Climbing in, Daniel fiddled around with the controls.
"Wanna go?"
"Know how to fly this thing?"
"Wanna find out?"
"Where you going?"
"Up, o'course!"
"I don't think so," Loni frowned. "Heard Charley Rankin skidded up to the gas station the other day and said, 'Give me a gallon of gas and a map of Texas. I'm takin' a long trip.' Think I'd get further going with him."
Loni collected the tools and put them away as Daniel started the engine. Watching him get ready to taxi
out the huge hangar door, Loni hollered, "Isn't it too hot to get lift?"
"Don't know." Loni got Daniel's usual cocky grin as he hollered back. "Guess I'll go find out. Sure you don't want to come along?"