The Wild Hog Murders (14 page)

“Deal,” Hack said.

Lawton looked a little put out, but he didn’t say anything.

“You first,” Rhodes said.

“Loose cows out near Milsby. Boyd’s takin’ care of that. Two possums in a house on Oak Street. Boyd got that taken care of, too. Got a couple more complaints about that badge charity that’s callin’ people.”

They hadn’t had any complaints about the badge charity for a few days. Someone was calling the county’s residents and asking for donations to help the sheriff’s department buy better, more up-to-date equipment. The caller also said that some of the money would be put into a fund to provide medical care for those “who risked their lives to keep the county safe for decent people to live in.” As far as Rhodes knew, none of the money had ever been given to the county or to the sheriff’s department.

“We oughta do something about those calls,” Lawton said.

“We will,” Rhodes said, “but not today. Murder comes first.”

“We know that,” Hack said. “So what about Hugh and Lance?”

Rhodes gave them a quick version of what had happened.

“Well, you might’ve got dirty, but you got the best of ’em,” Hack said.

“That’s one way to look at it,” Rhodes said. “Now I need to talk to them.”

“They’re a surly pair,” Lawton said. “Might not have much to say.”

“We’ll see,” Rhodes said.

*   *   *

Rhodes looked at the cousins through the bars of their cell. Dressed in the natty orange jumpsuits provided by the county, they lay in their bunks and seemed right at home. Rhodes wasn’t surprised. It wasn’t the first time they’d occupied the very same cell.

“I think we’ve had this conversation before,” Rhodes said.

Neither cousin looked his way. Hugh said, “Which conversation is that?”

“The one where you go ahead and tell me what I wanted to know before you caused me so much trouble.”

“I think I remember that,” Lance said.

“Yeah,” Hugh said. “I think I do, too.”

“It’s gonna be different this time, though,” Lance said.

“Yeah,” Hugh said.

“You can have a lawyer present if you want one,” Rhodes said.

“That ain’t it,” Lance said.

“How’s it going to be different, then?” Rhodes asked.

Lance sat up and swung his feet to the floor. He had to lean over to keep his head from hitting the top bunk.

“You remember what we said about the lawyer back at the tank?” he asked.

“Randy Lawless? You said he’d help whoever paid him.”

“That’s right. You’re pretty good, Sheriff. Not ever’body woulda remembered that. No wonder you’re the law in Blacklin County.”

“What does that have to do with our conversation?”

“Well, it occurred to me and Hugh that we can’t pay him.”

Hugh sat up and slid down to sit beside Lance on the lower bunk.

“It’s this damn economy,” Hugh said. “It sucks.”

“It sure does,” Lance said. “We ain’t had us a good long haul in a month.”

“More like two,” Hugh said.

Lance nodded. “More like two. And when we ain’t haulin’, we ain’t bringin’ the dough. So we can’t afford to hire Randy Lawless.”

“Even if he cut his rates, we couldn’t afford it,” Hugh said.

“Too bad,” Rhodes said. “You know how sorry I am about that. ’Course, the court will appoint you a lawyer if you can’t afford one.”

“We appreciate that, Sheriff,” Lance said. “We really do. Ain’t that right, Hugh.”

“It sure is,” Hugh said.

Sometimes Rhodes thought the whole world had joined up with Hack and Lawton in a conspiracy against him.

“There must be a point to all this talk,” he said.

“Oh, there’s a point, all right,” Lance said.

“Get to it, then,” Rhodes said.

“You sure are touchy,” Hugh said. “It’s not like we really did anything to you. Nothing more’n a good Babtist preacher would do if he was babtizin’ you in a creek.”

“I think that’s debatable,” Rhodes said. “Now like I said, get to the point.”

“The point is that we don’t want a lawyer,” Lance said.

“That’s right,” Hugh said. “We did use our phone call, though.”

Rhodes had a feeling he wasn’t going to like the answer to his next question. “Who did you call?”

“Milton Munday,” Lance said.

*   *   *

Milton Munday had several things going for him. He was big and not bad-looking, about thirty, with black hair cut so that it looked to Rhodes as if someone had messed it up. Rhodes thought it looked weird, but it seemed to work for Munday.

Looks didn’t matter on radio, however. It was Munday’s voice that sold him on the air. It was deep and rich and resonant. There was no trace of a Texas accent or an accent of any kind.

Munday was good with inflections and dramatic pauses, too. He could read the menu from a fast-food restaurant and make it sound like a pronouncement on a par with the Declaration of Independence.

At the moment, he wasn’t reading a menu or anything else. He was regaling Hack with the reasons why he needed to talk to the Eccles cousins. He was so eloquent that a lesser man than Hack would have forced Lawton to hand over the keys to the cell and release the cousins into Munday’s custody for a trip to Mexico.

Munday was so wrapped up in his rhetoric that he hadn’t seen Rhodes return from the cellblock. Rhodes listened to him talk for a while before breaking in on his monologue.

“Can I help you?” he asked.

Munday looked away from Hack. “Who are you?”

“I’m the sheriff,” Rhodes told him.

Munday gave him the once-over. “You don’t look like a sheriff.”

Rhodes tapped his badge. “I’m not required to wear a uniform.”

“Nice for you,” Munday said.

“I like it,” Rhodes said. “Now, can I help you?”

“I want to visit two of my listeners who I understand you have in custody. Lance and Hugh Eccles.”

“Why would you want to see them?”

“They say they have some material for me, something I can use on my radio show.”

“Your radio show,” Rhodes said.

“That’s right. Have you heard it?”

“Not often.”

“You don’t like it?”

“Let’s just say I’m not a regular listener and leave it at that.”

Munday shrugged. “I have the right to say what I want to. Some people might not like it.”

Rhodes knew he wasn’t the only one who didn’t particularly like Munday’s approach. Munday had attacked just about everybody in the county. In his short time in Clearview, Munday had managed to get under the skin of several commissioners, the mayor, the Clearview Chamber of Commerce, the city council, the city manager, the fire chief, the superintendent of schools, two principals, and several business owners.

Rhodes figured that in some of the cases, the criticism might have been justified, but Munday’s scathing commentary went over the line too often.

Not that Munday restricted himself to local topics. He’d also attacked both houses of Congress, the president, the United Nations, and several European leaders.

“You know what?” Munday asked.

Rhodes played along. “I’m not sure. You tell me.”

“I don’t care if nobody likes me. They don’t have to listen if they don’t want to. Somebody likes me, though. I have as many advertisers as I can work into the show, and I’ve doubled the station’s audience since I’ve been in town.”

“I’m happy for you,” Rhodes said.

“That’s nice of you. Now how about letting me have a visit with the Eccles cousins.”

Rhodes hadn’t been able to get the cousins to tell him what they wanted to talk to Munday about. He had a feeling they wouldn’t tell Munday anything they wouldn’t tell him about the hog hunting, however, so they would probably launch into a tale of woe about police brutality. In a way, Rhodes hoped they would.

“Those two aren’t known for their truthfulness,” he said.

Munday smiled. “I’ll have to be the judge of that, I’m afraid.”

“All right, then. Lawton, take Lance and Hugh to the visitor’s room. Then come back and get Mr. Munday.”

Lawton left the room, jangling his keys.

“The visit won’t be supervised,” Rhodes said, “but I’ll be right outside the door if you need me.”

Munday straightened, and for a second Rhodes thought he might be going to flex his muscles. He didn’t, though.

“I’m not afraid, Sheriff,” he said.

“Just a matter of liability,” Rhodes said.

“You sure you don’t just want to listen in?”

“I wouldn’t do that.”

“Probably got the room wired, right?”

Hack laughed. “Look around, Mr. Munday. Does this place look like it could be wired?”

“You have a point,” Munday said, as Lawton came back into the room.

“You can follow me,” Lawton said.

Munday did just that. When he was gone, Hack said to Rhodes, “You gonna monitor them?”

“Lawton can wait outside the door. Lance and Hugh won’t try anything.”

“What you think they’ll tell him?”

“That I jumped them and tried to drown them.”

“I wish he coulda seen you when you brought ’em in. You think he’ll believe ’em?”

“I don’t think it matters whether he believes them or not. It won’t matter to him. I don’t think he believes half the stuff he says on that show of his.”

“He’ll try to make you look bad,” Hack said.

Rhodes grinned. “Let him. Half the town seems to think I’m Sage Barton. If Munday tells Hugh and Lance’s version of what happened, most everybody who hears it will think I’m even more like Sage than ever.”

“You don’t think there’ll be trouble?”

“Not a bit,” Rhodes said. “Munday doesn’t know the Eccleses, but most people around here do. Those two don’t have the best reputation for truth-telling, and they’ve caused trouble more than once. People will be glad I did whatever they say I did. The ones who don’t think I’m Sage Barton will know it’s an exaggeration, and the ones who think I am will believe I’m a tough guy.”

“So it’ll all work out,” Hack said.

“Sure it will,” Rhodes told him. He just wished he believed it.

Chapter 14

Munday left the jail with a satisfied smile. Rhodes figured Munday had a good story for his program tomorrow, and he didn’t have to bother checking to see if it was true because he wasn’t a reporter. Munday claimed that he was an entertainer and that entertainers didn’t have to worry about accuracy. Accuracy wasn’t the point.

Just what the point was, other than to get an audience, Rhodes wasn’t sure, but whatever it was, it worked. Munday was right about one thing: He had a lot of listeners.

“You think he’ll bond the Eccleses out?” Hack asked when the door closed behind Munday.

“Not a chance,” Rhodes said.

“I’ll bet they asked him, though.”

Rhodes had had the same thought. “The judge hasn’t even set the bail yet.”

“Don’t matter,” Lawton said, coming in after returning the cousins to their cell. “They’d ask him anyway. It’s just the way they are.”

“I think I’ll talk to them one more time,” Rhodes said. “Maybe they’ll feel more like talking now that they’ve had their meeting with Munday.”

“You really think so?” Hack asked.

“No,” Rhodes said, “but I’m going to give it a try, anyway.”

He went back to the cellblock and found the cousins sitting on the bottom bunk with expectant looks, as if they had been waiting for him.

“You gonna listen to Munday’s show tomorrow, Sheriff?” Lance asked. “Gonna be a good ’un.”

“I don’t have time to listen,” Rhodes said.

“Gonna miss some good stuff,” Hugh said, elbowing Lance and grinning.

“Munday’s not going to bond you out,” Rhodes said, “if that’s what you’re hoping. We might be able to work a deal, though.”

Hugh quit grinning. “What kind of deal?”

“You tell me what I want to know, and I’ll see about dropping the charges against you.”

“We got nothin’ to tell,” Hugh said. “Right, Lance?”

“Right,” Lance said. “Whatever you think we saw, we didn’t see it.”

“It’s about my bedtime,” Hugh said, and he climbed into the upper bunk and lay down.

It was still daylight outside, but that didn’t seem to bother the cousins.

“’Night, Lance,” Hugh said.

“’Night,” Lance said, and he lay down, too.

“’Night, John Boy,” Rhodes said.

“Who the hell is John Boy?” Lance asked.

Rhodes was already on the way out of the cellblock.

“You wouldn’t know him,” he said.

*   *   *

Ruth was telling Hack about a defaced traffic sign when Rhodes returned.