2 Digging Up Dirt (3 page)

Chapter 5

The huge gat swung open. Pone and Beans mouths also hung open. Cash smiled. "You guys get down. I'll see Val while you check the outside. Maybe I can check out the inside of the house. I'll meet you at the shed, just like we planned."

Pone pouted. "This is not what we planned. Look at your clothes! Where's the rich boy?"

"Aw, man, I forgot. Wait! I got a shirt behind the seat. Grab it for me."

Bean dug out a red shirt with large flowers all over. "Did you mop up a murder scene with this, or what?"

Cash grabbed the shirt. "Shut up, maggot. Hand me that bottled water." He splashed the water over his head. He combed his hair back and took off his tennis shoes. He stepped out of the truck wearing the shirt open over a bare chest. The cargo shorts fit in with his bare feet and wet hair. "I'm Chad Fitzsimmons, lady killer and beach bum."

Pone snorted. "You look like a cross between Justin Bieber and Sponge Bob to me."

Cash snapped. "You got a better idea?"

Bean jumped between them. "Cash, you look great. Back off, Pone. You're just jealous."

Pone stepped forward. "Of what?"

Cash threw his hands in the air. "Whatever." He walked to the front door. Bean and Pone each grabbed a caddy. The whir of the weed whackers cut through the air. Pone walked slowly along the hedge close to the house. He looked in the windows as Cash hugged a pretty girl.

"Whack job." Pone ran the weed whip back and forth. He saw nothing but grass. Lots of grass. He went around the corner and came upon a tall fence. He peeked between the slats. He saw a large in-ground swimming pool. Chairs sat around the pool, and mostly naked girls lined up in one big tan-o-rama. "Holy cow. Blondes, blondes, blondes!"

He caught movement off to his left. More blondes. His jaw dropped as a
totally
hot chick came out of the house carrying something cool in a tall glass. Some old guy followed and ran his hand over her shoulder. His hand went down her back to her butt. She turned and slapped at his hand. They both laughed. Pone's jaw dropped an inch further. "Oh, my God, it's Spaz!"

Pone jumped at the sound of his own voice. Thank God Bean's weed whacker was still going. He ducked under a tree limb, working hard. Pone sighed. "What a knucklehead."

Pone turned back to the fence and watched. Spaz wore a one-piece suit. She also wore shorts. She'd tied a long scarf around her waist. It draped down her mile long legs. Pone watched her play the old guy. His stomach churned.

Pone saw more movement to his left. A flash of brown skin and black hair caught his eye. Oh, no! What the heck was Shroom doing in there? He was jiggling around like an idiot! Shroom danced by the pool and moved toward Spaz. The other girls moved with him. Cash came out of the house with a blonde.
Hmmm, must be Val.
He looked like he belonged there. Pone dashed around the fence and found an opening. Cramming his hat on his head, he squeezed through the break. He dropped his T-shirt and tried to blend in.

Spaz spotted Cash. Cash spotted Pone. Pone gritted his teeth and pointed to Shroom. Spaz's eyes grew big. Shroom only saw the bouncing blonde in the teeny weenie bikini in front of him. The old guy had moved on. Spaz laughed and inched her way toward Shroom. Spaz stood between him and blondie. Shroom came out of his trance. His gaze stared straight at Spaz's chest. "Mmm. Pretty mama!"

Pone swore. Shroom drooled. Shroom danced with half-closed eyes. He grabbed Spaz's hand and yanked her to him. With her other fist, Spaz let him have it. Right in the family jewels. Shroom froze. He squeaked. His face turned a funny shade of purple. He doubled over and Cash grabbed him. Good thing, because Shroom dropped like a rock. Cash scooted backward to the opening in the fence. Pone bent to take Shroom's feet. They dragged him out, feet first.

Spaz picked up his hat. She slapped it on his gut. "Pond Scum." Shroom opened his eyes. They grew wide. "Oh, my God, Spaaa–"

Cash clapped a hand over his mouth. Pone looked up. The old guy was coming over.
Crap. I'm going to jail. All because of you, moron!

Just then, Cash dropped his end and Shroom's head bounced off the ground. Pone yanked hard. Shroom's skinny little butt caught for a second. Pone panicked and pulled hard. Shroom slipped through the opening.

Shroom grabbed the back of his head. "Ow, that hurt! Give me back my feet before I stuff one down your throat! He huddled there, curled in a ball, rubbing his head.

Pone dropped his feet. He heard Cash say, "Hey, Mr. H. Great party! I just stopped in to see Val…The voices faded. Pone let out a breath.

Bean noticed Shroom on the ground. He cut the power to the weed whacker, the silence immediate. Bean ran over. "Hey, what are you guys doing–"

"Shhh!"

Bean shut up.

Pone gave Shroom a nudge. "Get up, man. We gotta get out of here!"

Shroom looked back. "But Cash is still in there." He thought a second. "Wait a minute!" Shroom jumped to his feet. "Spaz was in there. I saw her." He looked confused. "Boy was she hot! I didn't know who she was at first. He grabbed his pants. "I know that fist though."

Bean looked toward the fence. "What?"

Pone grabbed his arm. "Never mind. We gotta get out of here. Now! Let Cash cover for us. Grab the tools. Let's go!"

The three of them picked up the tools and stuffed them in the caddy. They ran across the lawn to the greenhouse. Breathing hard, they ducked around a corner. Pone looked back. "Crap!" He gave Shroom a hard look. "This is all your fault, dumbass!"

"What? What's my fault?" He peeked around the corner and saw several beefy security guys. "Oh. Uh, damn.
Run!"

They took off
.
Opening the greenhouse door, Bean slipped inside. Pone dove under a tarp covering a mound of compost. Shroom streaked toward the broken gate. Pone watched. "Shroom, no!" Shroom never looked back.

The security guys stopped at the same corner where the boys had stood moments before. One bald guy leaned over, hands on his knees. Breathing hard, he wiped his brow. "Man those kids were fast."

"Yeah, want to check out the buildings? I'll go after the skip."

"Naw, didn't you see? They ran over the hill. Two are long gone. Let's get that skinny ass at the top of the hill." The bald guy nodded and they ran after Shroom. Pone waited. No sound from Bean. Pone waited some more. The tarp itched. It grew heavy. He tried not to move. Dirt trickled down the back of his jeans. That was the last straw. He carefully lifted the corner of the tarp. Nothing moved out there. He lifted it higher.
Nada
. Pone got to his knees. He was about to shimmy out from under the tarp when he lost his balance and fell forward. His chin hit the ground and he saw stars. Lifting his head, he shook it gently. He worked his jaw a couple times. Blinking, he cleared his eyes. Something jabbed into his side. Pone turned to move whatever it was. He turned his head. He found himself staring into the eye sockets of a dead girl. His eyes rolled and he fainted.

* * *

Spaz took Hunnicut's arm and leaned into him. She talked low, and Cash couldn't hear what she said. Hunnicut laughed and put an arm around her. He squeezed. She laughed softly. Cash wanted to puke. Spaz wasn't going anywhere. She hung onto Mr. H. so Cash couldn't get to her. Time was running out. He had to get out of there. Now. He took Val by the arm. They went into the house. He hugged her. "Gots to go, Babe."

She pouted. "Really?

"Really, really. I have to get back to the Olive Branch. Uh, curfew, you know."

She reached out and grabbed him around the neck. She kissed him. "A shame you have to go."

"Yeah, I know. Take Care, Val." Cash ran to his truck. He barely had it started when he slammed it into gear.

Val watched as Cash drove down the service road instead of the front gate. "
Hmm."
One of the girls her dad had brought to play with ran down the slope toward the greenhouse.
Hmm.

Chapter 6

Pone came to and looked into the rotting face of the dead girl. What was left of her blonde hair was held on her head by a pink headband, Pone felt the bile rise in his throat. The dead girl stared back at him. Pone inched back. He heard a strange noise. He realized he was whimpering. He swallowed. He dug his toes in and scrambled backward. He finally wiggled out from under the tarp. He shook all over. He turned his head to the side and puked. He wiped his mouth with the do-rag and threw it on the ground. "I gotta stop puking every time I see a dead body."

Wiping his grimy hands on his pants, he rose slowly to his feet. Spinning toward the gate, he slammed into a brick wall. Pone looked up. Baldy grinned large. "Going somewhere, boy?"

"Uh, uh, eh…" Pone stuffed his hands in his pockets. "No, sir, I guess not."

Baldy took his arm. "Right answer. Let's go, Rambo."

He half-dragged Pone toward the side gate. Pone topped the hill and saw the police lights flashing near the gate. His stomach flipped. Several people in uniform looked up when they neared. Pone stared at the ground. No one moved.

The crowd parted in front of him. "What do we have here? Oh, why it's little Junior, the criminal."

Pone looked up…and up. "Oh, crap. It's you," and dropped his head again.

The rude cop from the alley smiled down at him. "Yup. Sure is, punk." He turned Pone and slapped handcuffs around his wrists. "You have the right to remain silent, puke bag. Anything you say can and will be held against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney, and you'd better get a good one…

Pone listened while the rude cop babbled on. One single tear leaked from his eye and dropped to the ground. Pone watched as it soaked into the dirt. Somebody grabbed him roughly and shoved him toward a squad car. Pone stumbled and fell. Having no balance, he fell forward like a brick and no one caught him. His chin struck the ground and the lights dimmed around him. He had a foggy view of the area around him. His ears were ringing, and he couldn't see. Somebody grabbed his cuffed hands and dragged him up off the ground. Pain shot up his arms. He cried out. They yanked the cuffs again and someone slapped him in the back of the head. "Shut up, crybaby."

They stuffed Pone into a squad and took him to the county jail. They drove through the sally port doors and parked. The huge doors closed with a hollow bang. Pone suddenly needed to go to the bathroom–badly.

After they shoved him onto a bench, they made him wait forever. A jail officer finally came out and took off the cuffs. Pone touched his wrists. They were raw and bleeding. The officer looked at his wrists and looked at the laughing cops in the other room. "Sorry, kid, I'll take care of those wrists as soon as I can. You okay for now?" Pone nodded.

He looked through the window into the jail. Pone saw the rude cop staring, pointing at him, and talking to the other cops. They all laughed and Pone looked at the floor. The jail officer asked him a lot of questions. Then they searched him and brought him in for booking.

Pone looked around and saw Shroom sitting in a chair by another officer. He never looked up. The officer was getting mad. Pone realized Shroom was making like he couldn't speak English.
Gotta love, Shroom, man.

A noise at the door startled Pone. Franklin B. Hunnicut stormed into the jail. "Officers, there has been a mistake."

"I'll say," the cop murmured.

Hunnicut raised his voice. "These boys were not breaking in. The gate was already in bad shape. I'm not pressing charges. Let them go."

The bald cop stepped forward. "Now see here–"

Hunnicut's eyes flashed. He slapped a paper on the desk. "Now, sir, release these boys."

The big cop looked at the paper. "How the heck did you do this so fast?"

Hunnicut stood silent.

The cop looked at Pone. He jerked his head toward the door. "Get out of here, meat stick." He looked at Shroom. "I'll have you back here in a week, Mex."

Shroom slid past him. "I'm half Swede, pig."

The rude cop lunged at Shroom and the other cops grabbed him.

They stepped out into the afternoon. Shroom squinted as the sunlight hit him in the eyes. "Thanks, man. Whoever you are. I thought my ass was grass in there. Those guys don't like me much."

"It's okay, boys." He put his arm around Spaz. "Kelli here explained you were doing lawn work. Some of the other girls invited you in. Thank her, not me. No harm done. Right, boys?"

Pone looked at Spaz. "Kelli?"

Shroom was quick to answer. "No, right, uh, I mean no harm, Yeah, sure. Thanks uh, Kelli."

Spaz smiled up at Hunnicut. She looked at Shroom and scowled. She jerked her head to the side and mouthed, "Go."

Pone glared at Spaz. "Kelli?"

She took Hunnicut's arm. "Yes. My name is Kelli. Kelli Ann Riley. Now go home. She stared Pone down. "And stay away from the mansion, okay?"

Pone slowly nodded. "Will do." The crunch of gravel told them a car pulled up. Pone knew it could only be his father.

Spaz ducked behind Hunnicut. Big Mike exited his vehicle. "Franklin."

Hunnicut smiled and shook Big Mike's hand. "Mike, how are you? Long time. Is this your son? Little Mikey all grown up. Well, well, what do you know?"

Big Mike said nothing. He stared at Pone. Hunnicut slapped him on the back. "The boys aren't in trouble, Mike. It was all a big mistake."

Big Mike stroked his chin. "Mistake?"

"Yep, mistake. Hey, I'll see you around. Boys, be good." He turned to go, dragging Spaz behind him.

"See you around, Franklin, and thanks." Big Mike watched Hunnicut drive away. Spaz looked out the back window. He swore. "Michael. In the car."

Pone watched the Lincoln disappear. "But, Dad, how can we let Spaz go like that? She's under age. He might hurt her!"

"In the car! Hunnicut is not committing a crime. Spaz is only riding in a car. He might be driving her to choir practice for all we know."

"But we know better!"

Big Mike mumbled, "Yes, I
thought
we knew better." He pointed to the car. "Get in." Pone and Shroom piled in the back seat. "Now tell me everything."

A long time later Big Mike sighed. "What you did was dangerous." He thought some more. "Do you really think Spaz had no choice but to go back?"

"Yeah. That guy shoved her around like she was dirt. He touched her and grabbed her butt. I think she'll end up like the girl in the crap pile in the back of the greenhouse. We gotta get her out."

"You're sure you saw a dead girl?"

"My puke marks the spot."

"Anyone else know you were there?"

"They walked right by me. Twice. It was only when I crawled out and threw up that they caught me."

Big Mike shook his head. He sighed loudly. "Okay then. I'll need a warrant."

"Yes, you will."

"This is going to be tough. You know that, right?"

"Yes."

"We are now dealing with two murders instead of one."

"We know, Dad."

"Okay then. I'll take it from here." He drove them back to the garden center. No one said a word. Big Mike stopped in the Olive Branch parking lot. Shroom and Pone got out.

"Thanks, Dad."

Shroom piped up. "Yeah, like uh, thanks, Mr. Williams."

Big Mike cleared his throat. "You're welcome."

"See ya," The boys ran back to their room. Pone flopped on his bed and Shroom sat in their only chair.

Pone stared at the ceiling. "Man, I thought we were dead. I thought my dad would kill me."

Shroom sighed. "I just hope Spaz ain't hurt, or worse."

They stayed quiet for a while, each lost in their own thoughts.

Pone turned to Shroom. "Tell me straight. Do you believe Spaz is in danger?"

Shroom nodded. "Yeah man, I think he's going to…like, uh, kill her."

Pone nodded once. "I think so too. Come here, I got another idea."

Shroom groaned. "I'm not gonna like this, am I?"

"Nope. I bet you're going to hate it."

"All right, I'm in, let's go"

Pone stopped. He remembered what was bugging him. He looked at Shroom. "Uh, where do you think Bean is?"