Read Online Bill Crider - Dan Rhodes 07 - Murder Most Fowl by Bill Crider - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Bill Crider
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King’s house a thick stand of woods began, the same woods that ran behind the houses of Lige Ward and Press Yardley. It was already dark back in the trees.
There was a light breeze from the west, and Rhodes waited by the car for a minute to enjoy it. It was very quiet in the country. Rhodes thought he heard a car whoosh by on the main road, but that might have been his imagination; he was a good three-quarters of a mile from the pavement. There was also a mechanical clanking that Rhodes couldn’t quite identify.
He could hear some birds down in the woods as they settled into the trees for the night, and somewhere in the distance a dog barked. Probably at Press Yardley’s house.
There was a light in the front room of King’s house, and Rhodes stepped up on the porch. The door opened before he could knock and a man peered at him through the screen.
“What do you want?” he said.
Rhodes identified himself and explained that he was there to ask about some stolen emus.
“Well, come on in then,” King said. “If you’re the sheriff, there’s no use in you having to stand out there on the porch. Nobody’s stolen any of my emus, though.”
He pushed open the screen and Rhodes walked into the living room. The floor was bare except for a couple of throw rugs. A window-unit air-conditioner clanked and clattered. That was the noise that Rhodes had heard in the yard but had been unable to identify. It was much louder in the house.
There was no couch in the room, only a card table and four folding chairs. There wasn’t even a TV set. A paperback book called SONS OF LIBERTY was splayed spine up on the table. A pair of half-glasses lay by the book.
King noticed Rhodes looking around the room. “I don’t have much furniture yet,” he said. “I just bought this place, and I didn’t want to buy anything right off. I’m waiting until I get the new house finished.”
King looked to Rhodes to be about fifty-five. He was thin, with a tanned, wrinkled face, and he looked as if he’d spent a lot of time outdoors. He was wearing jeans and a plain cotton short-sleeved shirt. His hands were calloused, and his arms were corded with muscle.
“When did you move to Obert?” Rhodes asked.
King walked over to the card table and pulled out a chair. “Have a seat. No use to stand up.”
Rhodes went over and sat. King sat on the other side of the table and pushed the book out of his way.
“I’ve been here about a month,” King said. “I moved down from Dallas. Worked at Super-Tex Freight Lines there for thirty years, mostly doing local deliveries. I retired a couple of months ago and decided to invest in an emu ranch.”
“Why emus?” Rhodes asked. He was genuinely curious.
King leaned forward on the table. “Well, that’s kind of interesting. I was thinking about cattle, to tell the truth. I grew up around cattle, and I always thought I’d like to have me a little ranch when I retired. So I went down to that big livestock show they have in Houston every year to see about getting started in the cattle business. While I was there, I saw this ostrich booth.”
“Ostriches?”
“Right. There’s a lot of ostrich ranches in Texas, but I thought better of that. They’re too much trouble. They’re bigger than emus, and they can hurt you if you’re not careful. Kick the devil out of you; kick harder than emus, even. And they’re not as resistant to disease.”
“So you went with emus.”
“Right. There was a booth there about them, too. I’m just getting started, but I’ll have me a pretty good ranch here before long, soon as I can get me some more birds.” King looked at Rhodes sharply. “What’s this about some birds being stolen, anyway? Happen around here?”
Rhodes told him about Yardley’s emus.
King was thoughtful. “Yardley, huh? I talked to him about buying some of his stock, but he didn’t much want to sell.”
“How well do you know your other neighbors?” Rhodes asked.
“The
There was a light breeze from the west, and Rhodes waited by the car for a minute to enjoy it. It was very quiet in the country. Rhodes thought he heard a car whoosh by on the main road, but that might have been his imagination; he was a good three-quarters of a mile from the pavement. There was also a mechanical clanking that Rhodes couldn’t quite identify.
He could hear some birds down in the woods as they settled into the trees for the night, and somewhere in the distance a dog barked. Probably at Press Yardley’s house.
There was a light in the front room of King’s house, and Rhodes stepped up on the porch. The door opened before he could knock and a man peered at him through the screen.
“What do you want?” he said.
Rhodes identified himself and explained that he was there to ask about some stolen emus.
“Well, come on in then,” King said. “If you’re the sheriff, there’s no use in you having to stand out there on the porch. Nobody’s stolen any of my emus, though.”
He pushed open the screen and Rhodes walked into the living room. The floor was bare except for a couple of throw rugs. A window-unit air-conditioner clanked and clattered. That was the noise that Rhodes had heard in the yard but had been unable to identify. It was much louder in the house.
There was no couch in the room, only a card table and four folding chairs. There wasn’t even a TV set. A paperback book called SONS OF LIBERTY was splayed spine up on the table. A pair of half-glasses lay by the book.
King noticed Rhodes looking around the room. “I don’t have much furniture yet,” he said. “I just bought this place, and I didn’t want to buy anything right off. I’m waiting until I get the new house finished.”
King looked to Rhodes to be about fifty-five. He was thin, with a tanned, wrinkled face, and he looked as if he’d spent a lot of time outdoors. He was wearing jeans and a plain cotton short-sleeved shirt. His hands were calloused, and his arms were corded with muscle.
“When did you move to Obert?” Rhodes asked.
King walked over to the card table and pulled out a chair. “Have a seat. No use to stand up.”
Rhodes went over and sat. King sat on the other side of the table and pushed the book out of his way.
“I’ve been here about a month,” King said. “I moved down from Dallas. Worked at Super-Tex Freight Lines there for thirty years, mostly doing local deliveries. I retired a couple of months ago and decided to invest in an emu ranch.”
“Why emus?” Rhodes asked. He was genuinely curious.
King leaned forward on the table. “Well, that’s kind of interesting. I was thinking about cattle, to tell the truth. I grew up around cattle, and I always thought I’d like to have me a little ranch when I retired. So I went down to that big livestock show they have in Houston every year to see about getting started in the cattle business. While I was there, I saw this ostrich booth.”
“Ostriches?”
“Right. There’s a lot of ostrich ranches in Texas, but I thought better of that. They’re too much trouble. They’re bigger than emus, and they can hurt you if you’re not careful. Kick the devil out of you; kick harder than emus, even. And they’re not as resistant to disease.”
“So you went with emus.”
“Right. There was a booth there about them, too. I’m just getting started, but I’ll have me a pretty good ranch here before long, soon as I can get me some more birds.” King looked at Rhodes sharply. “What’s this about some birds being stolen, anyway? Happen around here?”
Rhodes told him about Yardley’s emus.
King was thoughtful. “Yardley, huh? I talked to him about buying some of his stock, but he didn’t much want to sell.”
“How well do you know your other neighbors?” Rhodes asked.
“The
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