Read Online Bill Crider - Dan Rhodes 09 - Death by Accident by Bill Crider - Free Book Online Page A

and the jeans.  It was as if a cheap sofa had exploded inside the t-shirt.
    Overton looked at Rhodes without expression.  It was possible that his face wasn’t capable of much expression.  It was almost flat, like the face of a cartoon character who’s been hit by an iron.  Even the nose was flat.
    “Randall Overton?” Rhodes said.
    “Yeah,” Overton said.  His voice was even flatter than his face.  “So?”
    Rhodes hated to have to show Overton his badge.  It would probably mean the car deal was off.  But there was nothing else to do.
    “Sheriff Dan Rhodes,” he said, producing the badge.  “I’d like to talk to you for a minute.”
    Overton didn’t appear to be unduly impressed by the badge or Rhodes’s name.
    “Talk about what?” he said.
    “A roofing job.”
    “You got a bad roof you need fixed?  A leak?”
    “Not exactly.”
    “Well why do you want to talk about a roofing job, then?”
    The dog was still barking, but it was quieter now.  Rhodes could hear the TV again.
    “Can I come inside?” he asked.
    Overton didn’t move.  He just shifted his weight so that his feet were planted a little more firmly on the floor.
    “We can talk just fine right here,” he said.
    Rhodes didn’t push it.  “All right.  It’s about the roofing job you did at the Free Will Church.”
    “What about it?”  Overton sounded bored.
    “It’s a pretty sorry job.  The roof still leaks and Brother Alton tells me that you won’t do anything about it.”
    Overton leaned against the door frame.  “Can’t.  They won’t pay me.”
    “They’ve already paid you.”
    “I did what I was paid for, and then some.  I spent most of the money on materials.  Didn’t get hardly a thing for all my labor.”
    “Brother Alton says you won’t show him the receipts for the materials.”
    Overton shrugged.  “Lost ’em.  He’ll have to take my word for it.  He’s a Christian man, right?  Why would I lie to him?”
    “Because you’re a con man and a swindler,” Rhodes said.
    Overton straightened up and looked at Rhodes with surprise.
    “What are you sayin’?”
    “Which word didn’t you understand?”
    Overton took a quick step forward, thrusting his chest out without bringing up his hands.  He bumped into Rhodes, who almost lost his balance on the top step.
    But not quite.  He wasn’t as agile as he had been when he was a kid, but he was still steady enough when he had to be.
    When Overton tried to bump him again, Rhodes grabbed the front of Overton’s t-shirt with one hand and the door frame with the other.  Using Overton’s momentum, Rhodes helped the roofer keep right on moving, past the steps and into the back yard.
    Overton hit the ground with his legs churning, but he lost his equilibrium and stumbled to his knees.  Before he could get to his feet, Rhodes was standing over him with his hand pushing down on his back.
    “Think about it before you try anything,” Rhodes said.  “You wouldn’t want to get arrested for assaulting a peace officer.”
    “You’re the one that assaulted me ,” Overton said, but he didn’t try to get up.
    “We could let a judge decide that,” Rhodes said, keeping his hand pressed against the small of Overton’s back.  He could feel the thick hair through the t-shirt.  “If you really want to, that is.”
    “You called me a name,” Overton said.
    Rhodes nodded, though he was aware that Overton couldn’t see it.  He was a little surprised that Overton was so sensitive.
    “That’s right.  I called you a con man.  And a swindler, too, I think.  I could have said you were a crook and a cheat and a few other things, but I didn’t.”
    “I didn’t cheat nobody.”
    “Sure you did.  You cheated Brother Alton and his church.  For all I know you’ve cheated other people around here, too, but they haven’t told me about it yet.  I’m going to ask around and find out.  If you have, I’m going to see if I can get some of them to press