Read Online Devil's Playground by D. P. Lyle - Free Book Online

paced back and forth in Charlie’s office. He flopped into his chair.
    “I hate the way that son-of-a-bitch gets to me,” she said.
    “That’s what he tries to do.”
    “He’s just so arrogant. So sure of himself.”
    “That’s all he has left," Charlie said. "He knows he’s a dead man. The only thing he can do now is piss you off.”
    “How’d he know so much about Connie’s accident? Has Ralph done the autopsy or gotten any of the toxicology back yet?”
    “He said he wouldn’t have anything until later this morning.”
    “So, how does Garrett know the trucker was drunk and drugged?”
    “He doesn’t. He’s just pulling your chain. But, guessing a trucker was on speed and alcohol would be a fairly safe bet.”
    Sam knew uppers were a staple in the diet of many long haul drivers. “Probably.” She pushed a vagrant strand of hair behind her ear and released a long sigh. “I think I’ll go clean some of the mess off my desk.”
    *
    Twenty minutes later, Charlie peeked into Sam’s office. She sat with her back to him, one foot propped on the corner of her desk, gazing out the window. She looked so young and innocent. Of course, he always pictured her that way. When he looked at her, he didn’t see the beautiful young woman she had become, but rather the strawberry blonde eight year old that seemed to run everywhere she went, her mother struggling to keep up.
    He had always considered her his surrogate daughter. Probably because he and Martha never had a girl. After the birth of their second son, they resolved to keep trying until a daughter came. But, Martha’s third pregnancy and delivery, also a son, had been difficult, almost taking her from him. They decided to stop and be grateful for the three healthy children God had given them.
    As a child, when Sam had tired of her mother’s shopping and visiting with friends, she would come by and visit with him and Thelma. She loved it when Charlie locked her in jail or when he let her wear his hat, which balanced on the crown of her head and covered half her face. She would giggle with delight whenever he gave the hat a spin, sending it gyrating around her head.
    “Sam,” he said.
    She turned toward him, eyes red, glistening with tears. “Yeah.”
    “You OK?”
    “I still can’t believe Connie’s gone.” Her eyes melted into two blue watery pools. “And now...Juan and Carlos. I grew up with them. Went to school with them.” She wiped the back of her hand across her eyes.
    “You want to go home for a while?”
    “That’ll only make it worse.” She laughed, sniffed. “I’ll quit being such a ninny and tackle this junk.” She waved her hand across her desk, which held a two-foot high stack of reports.
    They both looked up as Lanny Mills stepped through the door. “Morning,” he said.
    “Lanny,” Charlie said with a nod.
    Lanny sucked his teeth. “Anything new on John and Connie’s accident? I hear the trucker might have been drunk.”
    “Probably. Won’t know until Ralph finishes the autopsy.”
    “Well, let me know.” He turned to leave and ran into Vince Gorman. “Excuse me, Vince.” He nodded to Vince, Junior, who stood behind his father. “What brings you guys here?”
    “Couple of bodies to transport.”
    “Bodies?” Lanny turned to Charlie.
    “The Rodriguez brothers,” Charlie said.
    “Here? In jail?” Lanny asked.
    Charlie could almost see the wheels turning inside Lanny’s head. How could he make political hay out of this? Lanny might be short on charm, but he was long on schemes. His talents lay in his ability to lie with a straight face and to shake your hand and smile while lifting your wallet. As Mercer’s Corner largest landowner, mostly inherited from his father who was a mover and shaker back when the town moved and shook, he was rich and powerful. Even though I-40, which moved travelers past the town faster than they could blink, had plummeted the value of his land, it hadn’t deflated his pompous