The Devil's Dwelling (6 page)

We could hear Boomer’s old truck heading out.

“Looks like we missed him. Since Boomer is gone let’s take a look around his place.”

I grabbed my Glock  from my bag and started down the hill. Loosing my footage I fell on my butt and slide down the hill through the brush, rocks and barbed wire Boomer had run around his property. My head hit a rock, stars were flickering  and I was out cold.  I came to my senses with Mona fanning me.

“Wake up, wake up!” She was slapping my cheeks when I woke up.

She sat me up. Everything was twirling around me.

“Let me help you to your feet.”

Mona pulled me to my feet. I held to her and staggered up the hill to the Explorer. She put me in the passenger side of the rig and buckled me in.

Mona gathered brush from the area and put it under the stuck wheel of the Explorer.

She jumped in the driver’s seat. Put her hands on the steering wheel. I could see she was in deep thought.

“Wait a minute, isn’t this a four-wheel drive?”

“I don’t remember Mr. Hood mentioning it.” My head was pounding I couldn’t remember anything Mr. Hood said.

Mona checked out the dashboard and there it was a knob to turn to put it in four-wheel drive. She started the rig and turned the knob and gave it the gas. The Explorer revved it’s engine and out of the hole we came bounding across rocks and shrubs. We bounced across a ditch and landed on the dirt road heading for the main road.

“We need to get to the main road before Boomer heads home. He would  wonder what two women are doing on the dirt road to his place.”

“Do I need to take you to the  hospital?” Mona kept glancing over at me looking puzzled.

“No, I’ve had worse hits on the head than this. Let’s get home and finished this job tomorrow.” Stars flickered in my head and I felt as if I was passing out.

Mona got us to the apartment. She helped me out of the rig and together we staggered to the foyer. Mr. Sinclair was in the foyer dusting the cobwebs from the windows.

“Tiffany, what happened to you? Here let me help you up the stairs.”

“That’s okay Mr. Sinclair Mona can help me. I fell and hit my head on a rock.”

“Don’t let her go to asleep. She might have a concussion.”  Mr. Sinclair continued dusting as he gave instructions on how to care for a concussion.

I looked over Mona’s muddy shoulder to see Sheriff Reagan enter the foyer.

“What happened to you? You look like you’ve been in a fight with a pole cat.“

“She fell down a hill and hit her head on a rock.” Mona was holding me up.

“Mona, help me put her in the patrol car. She could have a concussion.”

“That’s what I said.” Blurted out Mr. Sinclair. “You can’t be too careful.”

They put me in the patrol car.  Randy strapped me in the back seat and Mona was riding shotgun in her muddy clothes and mud streaked face.

Sheriff Reagan was on the two-way talking to the dispatcher.

“Let Conway Hospital know my ETA is five minutes.”

“Ten four.”

The hospital emergency room had a gurney waiting for me outside the double doors.

Sheriff Reagan lifted me from the car and the orderlies helped place me on the gurney. I felt like a fool. All the commotion over me and I was sure I’d be fine when the jack hammer stop pounding in my head.

They wheeled me in and sent me straight to X-rays. After a couple X-rays or so it seemed they wheeled me into another X-ray room. This time it was a big honking machine. Sorta looked like a barrel with a hole at each end. Soon I was on a board and they were slowly putting me in the barrel. I  closed my eyes and that was the last I remember until I heard Momma crying. I didn’t open my eyes or speak but I could hear Momma going on and on. I wondered if I really wanted to open my eyes. I decided Momma wasn’t going to shut up, I might as well open my eyes and see what all the commotion over me is about.

I tried to open my eyes the light was bright causing me to squint. First one eye and then the other opened.

“Tiffany, Tiffany!”  Momma grabbed me, my head shot off an array of gunfire. The dang jack hammer was pounding in my head again.

“She’s awake, everyone she’s awake. Dad, call the nurse.”

Dad ran to the door and called for the nurse. She came in and checked my vitals. I couldn’t believe everyone was making such a fuss over me.

“I must have dozed off. I’m sorry for all the trouble.”

”You’ve been unconscious for two days.” The nurse told me.

“What?

“Yes, we’ve been very concerned with you. There was a lot of swelling on your brain.”

Mona, came through the door.

“I’m so glad you are okay. Sheriff Reagan saved your life. If he hadn’t taken you to the hospital you could have died.”

“What, somebody tell me what happened.” I tried to set up in bed but the pounding sent me crashing back to my pillow.

“The doctor will be here shortly and he will explain everything to you.”

Daddy and Momma were thanking God for bringing me back. I didn’t understand  the fuss. I hadn’t gone anywhere.

The door swung open and in walked a handsome man in his forties with dark wavy hair cropped short around his ears.

“Hello Ms. Turner, I’m Doctor Dillon.”

I nodded feeling a little bewildered at all the excitement.

“You have a concussion and there was swelling. You took quite a fall.

“Yeah, down a dang mountain.” I blurted out.

He continued talking and  briefly explain my condition.

“ I guess I’m one lucky girl. Thank you, Dr. Dillon.”

“You do as your told and you might be out of here in a short while.” He closed my file and hung it at the end of my bed and excused himself as he pushed the swinging door open leaving the room.

The next morning swelling had gone down and they released me.  Mona loaded me in the Explorer and we headed for my apartment.

The jack hammer left my head leaving a claw hammer to finish the job.

Mr. Sinclair was out front when we arrived shuffling his feet toward the entrance of the apartment foyer to open the door for me.

“I’m glad you are okay. Mona kept me informed on your condition. And I let everyone in the apartment complex know.”  He held the door as we walked in and watched us walk up the stairs.

“Thank you, Mr. Sinclair. I‘m gonna be just fine. You tell everyone I’m fine. Just a bump on the head” I called back down the stairs.

SEVEN

Boomer was in the back of the shack when we drove up. Mona went around one side of the shack and I took the other. With guns drawn we called him out.

“Boomer, you come out with your hands up.” I yelled as I stretched to look inside the shack from the side window.

“He’s not in there. He must have slipped out on us.”

I put my finger to my lips and slowly walked around to another door motioning for Mona to follow. Mona kicked the door in and I jumped on Boomer’s back as he tried to run. We fell into a tub of moonshine, splashing around trying to get out of the galvanized wash tub. I gulped a mouthful of Boomer’s brew.

“Not bad, in fact it’s pretty good.”

“You’re dang right it’s good. The best in the county. Get off me!” He yelled trying to pull his butt out of the wash tub.

Mona grabbed his left arm and pulled it to his back and then his right hand cuffing him.  Boomer squirmed trying to free himself.  Mona pulled his hands toward the back of his head.

“Stop, you’re hurting me.” The squirming stopped and Mona dropped Boomer’s arms to a more comfortable position.

“You should have shown up for court. Now you’ll have to do some jail time while you wait on getting bailed out.”

“Tell you what girls, you let me go and I’ll give you a jug of my best brew.” He smiled knowing his offer wasn’t going to fly.

We pulled Boomer to his feet and walked him to the Explorer. Mona opened the back door and gave Boomer a push with her boot. He flew to the other side of the rig hitting his head on the window. She dusted her hands, slammed the door shut and hopped in the shot gun position.

We dropped Boomer off at the local jail. Got the paperwork signed and headed for the office.

We walked past Linda powdering her nose as we headed  straight to Peewee’s office.

“Tiffany, I’m glad you are okay and back to work. These ‘no shows’ are stacking up and Peewee drives me crazy with his pacing.”

“Thanks Linda. I’m fine.” I backed up to the door and pushed it open with my butt. Mona caught it and held it open and walked through.

I pitched the file on Peewee’s desk.

“We’ll expect a check tomorrow morning.”

“Good work ladies. Your check will be ready first thing tomorrow. Mona you feeling alright?  I‘d a visited but I don‘t like hospitals and they said you were sleeping anyway.”

“Don’t give it a second thought. I wouldn’t have been good company.”

We headed out the door heading for Maxine’s place.

My  phone rang. Caller ID, it was Momma.

“You feeling good?”

“I’m just fine Momma, feeling good, really good.”

“Tomorrow night is BUNKO and Peggy is wondering if you can substitute. Seems Luanne can’t make it.”

“Sure Momma, you want me to pick you up?”

“That would be nice. I’m bringing the dessert. I hate it when Melba brings the dessert. She brings stale cookies from the day old bakery and tells the ladies she baked them herself. She such a fibber.  I‘ve a mind to set her straight.”

‘Momma, now don’t you go getting self righteous. I’ll pick you up at seven tomorrow.”

“You don’t be late picking me up. I don’t wanna walk in late. I’ll have to set by the Baker twins and you know how they drive me crazy with their spats.”

Della  and Bella are fifty year old identical twins. They both carry the ole’ maid title. You can tell them apart by the wart on the side of Bella’s nose. I don’t know why she doesn’t get that disgusting thing cut off. She suffers from asthma and when she breaths deep her nostrils flare out and the wart stands to attention.

The caution tape was still around Maxine’s Massage Parlor. I stopped the Explorer and asked the deputy what happened. He said some woman was murdered a few days ago.

“Was it Maxine Martin?”

“I don’t know. The Sheriff should have the information on the victim soon.”

I got on the phone pushed number one. Sheriff Randy Reagan answered the phone.

“Tiffany, what are you doing out and about?”

“How’d you know I’m out?”

“I have my snoops. Just kidding I’m pulling up behind you right now.”

I jumped out of the Explorer heading back to Randy’s patrol car.

“Do you have the murder victims identity?”  I asked looking into the SUV.

“We’re waiting for the DNA to come back since we can’t find Marty to identify the body. He’s good at eluding us.”

“Yeah, he failed to appear in court and we are on the look out for him, too.”

The white sedan drove by the massage parlor. I didn’t want to let them get away but didn‘t know how to get away from Sheriff Randy without him being suspicious.

Mona jumped  behind the wheel of the Explorer and yelled to me.

“Tiffany, I forgot I have an appointment and need to be there in just a few minutes.”

“Randy, I’ll talk to your later. I’m her wheels for now.” I put my foot on the running board and pulled myself into the Explorer.

As soon as Mona got around the corner she put the pedal to the metal. In an effort to catch up with the white sedan. The sedan drove out of town heading toward Russellville.  They took a quick sharp right turn.

“I think they spotted us.”

“Let’s see if they try to loose us.”

Within moments we were in a fast paced car chase. The man riding shotgun lowered a gun out the window getting off a few rounds. Mona swerved the Explorer from side to side trying to dodge the flying bullets. I lowered my gun out the window and got off a few shots planting a few holes in the trunk of the car.

“Mona back off, we can run a check on the license plate and get a make on them.”

“That’ll teach them to mess with us.”