“No. But I happen to know Dr. Box was in the company of my sister, quite recently.”
“And her name?”
“Like I said, Renee Williams.”
“Name sounds familiar. Hang on a minute.”
When he comes back on he says, “You say Renee Williams is your sister?”
“Yes sir. And she sent me a threatening text from Dr. Box’s cell phone. You should know that Renee has been tried two times for a double homicide that occurred in the state of Tennessee a couple years ago, and I have every reason to believe she has ill intentions toward Dr. Box.”
“Well, ma’am, I don’t normally give out personal information, but I can assure you Dr. Box is not in any danger from Renee Williams.”
“How can you say that?”
“Because they’re clearly a couple.”
“I know it might appear that way, but-”
“Trust me, Mrs. Lake. They’re a couple. In every sense of the word.”
“Please, Detective, just hear me out. You mentioned another woman.”
“Yes ma’am. Zander Evans.”
“I happen to know Dr. Box met a woman named Faith Hemphill this morning, in Ralston. How could he possibly have time to see Faith, drive to Paducah, get framed by Zander Evans for a robbery, taken to the station and booked, and set free, and also be involved with Renee Williams?”
“Ma’am, all I’m willing to say is your Dr. Box was having explicit carnal knowledge of your sister at the time of his arrest. And he admitted attempting to engage in carnal relations with Zander Evans less than two hours earlier. I don’t know what kind of feed he’s on, but this Dr. Box gets more action than a two-peckered rabbit.”
“Listen to me, Detective. Dr. Box is in danger. Renee’s holdin’ him at the Royal Landmark Inn. Maybe they were havin’ sex when you arrested them, and maybe they were gettin’ along just fine. But sometime after that, she found out he was interested in me, and that’s when she sent me a threatenin’ message.”
“What time was that, ma’am.”
“About eight-thirty this evenin’.”
“That’d be about forty minutes after we turned him loose.”
“Can you please just go there and check on him?”
He sighs. “I’ll phone it in.”
“Thank you! Will you call me back?”
“I will. But if this is just you, trying to get back at your sister for stealing your boyfriend-”
“It’s not. And he’s not my boyfriend. He’s a mongrel dog who’d fuck a pile of rocks hopin’ to find a snake. But his life’s in danger, and I won’t feel better till you’ve checked on him. If he’s fine and happy bein’ with my sister, more power to him. My only intent is to make sure he’s safe.”
“Can I ask why?”
“He’s been very generous to me. I owe him.”
“Can you give me a little more to go on?”
“My husband beat me half to death last night. Dr. Box saved my life.”
The detective pauses. Then says, “Did your beating have anything to do with Dr. Box?”
I sigh. “Not in the way you’re implyin’.”
“Don’t make me sorry I’m doin’ this, Miss.”
“It’s Missus. And the only reason you’d be sorry is if you wait too long to check on him.”
50
Dr. Gideon Box.
I can’t believe Renee’s still awake. I stretched my dinner into an eighty-minute marathon, and kept her talking long enough that she’s consumed an entire bottle of wine. With the cobbler finally gone, there’s nothing left to do but paint her nails.
She positions herself on the bed, with four pillows propping her upper torso. She’s still naked from the waist down. Her legs are spread apart to give me the full view of her orange, heart-shaped bush. But just above it, I’ve got another view. She’s resting the butt of the gun on her stomach, aiming it point blank at my chest.
I open the nail polish, and paint her toe nails as slowly as humanly possible, hoping she’ll fall asleep before I finish.
“You’re being very meticulous,” she says. “I like that.”
“You know what else you might like?” I say.
“What’s that, honey?”
“A foot massage.”
That should put her to sleep and prevent me from having to receive detailed instructions in the art of giving oral to a crazy person.
“A foot massage,” she says, dreamily. “How thoughtful. Yes, I’d like that, Darrell. Maybe we could do that after you kiss me. Down there.”
Did she just call me Darrell?
She did.
And things start coming together for me.
I say, “It must have been quite a shock when Trudy and Darrell found out they were brother and sister.”
She gives me a long look and says, “That sounds like a lot of information for a waitress to give during a dinner service. And since we’re on the subject, I never believed for a minute my Daddy strung you up for pecking Trudy’s cheek after bringing your meal.”
“I have to admire your father. Scooter.”
“Why?”
“If I found out my wife had a baby with another man, I’d probably resent her and the kid.”
“That speaks to a character flaw in you, Gideon. A flaw you’ll be able to correct, with my help.”
“Scooter and Darrell have become very close, considering they’re not related.”
“My father’s a loving, giving man.”
“You know what I think?”
“What?”
“I think your father and Darrell helped you kill your husband and best friend. And then I think you returned the favor by killing Aunt Lori when she won the lottery.”
“She died from cancer.”
“From what I understand, Lori’s cancer was in remission. I think you found a quicker way to get the money in Darrell’s hands.”
“Good luck proving that. Aunt Lori was cremated.”
“You know what else I think?”
“What?”
“I think you hung Trudy’s mother and made it look like an accident. And I don’t think Scooter and Darrell know anything about that.”
“Is that Trudy’s theory?” she says.
I notice her eyelids are getting heavy. She’s got to be drunk enough to pass out. If I can just keep her talking long enough, she’ll drift off on her own, peacefully.
“Is that what Trudy thinks?” she says.
“No. It’s what I think.”
She closes her eyes for several seconds. Then opens them and says, “Anything else?”
“Yeah.”
“Go ahead, then. Spill it all.”
“I think somewhere along the line Darrell’s done some toenail painting and bud blooming of his own.”
She smiles. “I said it before. You’ve got a fine mind, Gideon. If true, there’d be no shame in it. Darrell and I aren’t related.”
“Except through marriage.”
“You’re quibbling.”
“Am I right?” I say. “About everything I said?”
“If I did all those things, would it help you admire me?”
“Possibly.”
“I wonder. Still, I doubt you’d admire someone foolish enough to admit to a crime.”
“There are no police here. Just us.”
“I think I’ll let your theories about me remain unanswered. But I would like to know one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“How can you possibly believe I hung Lucy?”
“It’s your father’s execution method of choice.”
“Maybe he hung her.”
“I don’t think so.”
“You think I did it hoping to please him? If so, why wouldn’t I tell him?”
“You couldn’t. You had no way of knowing how he’d react to his daughter hanging his wife. I think you hung her for a different reason.”
“I’d love to hear it.”
“I think you grew up hating her, and blamed her for taking Scooter out of your life.”
“I won’t deny that. But why would I hang her?”
“To experience what your father feels when he hangs someone. You thought it would help you feel connected to him.”
“I wonder if you’ll try to run these theories past the police.”
“You think I give a shit about any of those people? Your husband, your best friend, your Aunt Lori, your step-mother, Lucy?”