Desperation Road(23)

“Riding around,” Russell said.

“Riding around where?”

“Around here.”

“Doing what?”

“I told you. Riding.”

“You got ID?”

“In my wallet back there.”

The deputy took Russell’s wallet from his back pocket and opened it. He pulled out Russell’s driver’s license which expired eight years earlier.

“I’ll be damned,” the deputy said. “Stand up and turn around. Didn’t know you with that stuff on your face.”

“Boyd Wilson,” Russell said and he broke into a smile and they shook hands.

“Holy shit. You never know who you might find in the middle of the night.” Boyd was roundfaced and his forehead and hair seemed greasy slick in the flashing lights. His neck and cheeks had swollen with the years but Russell couldn’t miss those squinty eyes and the crooked nose that had been broken twice during their senior football season. Russell shook his head at Boyd.

“When did you get home?” he asked.

“About noon.”

“Noon today?”

“Noon today.”

“Don’t guess it’s today no more but you know what I mean.”

“I do.”

“Well. Damn.”

“Damn,” Russell said.

“How was it?”

“About like you’d think.”

“Like in the movies?”

Russell forced a smile. “Yeah. Except worse. In the movies somebody has a happy ending. I didn’t see many of them.”

“You’re out. That’s a happy ending.”

“We’ll see. How’s Lacey doing?”

“Aw hell. Not bad.”

“She still turning backflips?”

“God no. She couldn’t put her right leg in that old cheerleader outfit now. Two kids later and Jesus H. if shit don’t change. Gotta love her, though.”

“How old are them boys?”

“Fifteen and thirteen. You wouldn’t believe how much they eat. Oldest starts varsity ball this year.”

“He been running?”

“Running. Lifting. Both of them. They ain’t like we used to be, running up and down the roads all summer and then getting ready a month ahead. They got them doing something year-round. Junior high and high school. Get pissed at them if they miss a workout in March, much less August.”

“That’s good. They don’t need to be like we used to be anyway,” Russell said.

“That’s what Lacey keeps telling me. I just ain’t sure they’re having much fun. But it don’t seem to bother them none.”

“They got a daddy with the department. They could get away with damn near anything.”

“They might figure that out before too much longer.”

Boyd slapped the other man in the chest and then pointed at Russell. “This son of a bitch could fly back in the day. Couldn’t catch for shit but if you threw it up he’d outrun you to it.”

“I caught a couple. You gotta catch it every now and then to get laid.”

“Speaking of, Lacey’s sister split up with her husband not too long ago. She might be as hard up as you.”

“Tell her to grab a twelve-pack and come on over.”

The three men laughed and then Boyd gave Russell back the wallet. The other man walked back over to the scene.

“Hurry and get that thing renewed,” Boyd said.

“First thing.” Russell stuck it in his pocket and asked what happened.

Boyd’s face went straight and he blew out a big breath. “Found a deputy out here shot dead. Shot a few times. Can’t find his pistol, either. It ain’t pretty.”

“Anybody I know?”

“Nah. Guy came down from Tupelo or somewhere a year or two back. He’s been on thin ice ever since he got here. Wonder if something didn’t catch up with him.”

“What was he doing out here?”

“That’s the ten-dollar question,” Boyd said and shook his head. “Don’t nobody seem to know right now. I hate for Lacey to find out about this one. She hates it enough already. It ain’t like it used to be when we were running the roads. Fighting in the parking lot or busting somebody’s mailbox was about as bad as we got. These days you walk up to somebody’s car and you might get your face blowed off. Any swinging dick can get a gun.”

A man from the crowd called out to Boyd and Boyd told him just a minute.

“I gotta run over there, Russell. Good to see you. Can’t believe it’s been that long.”

Russell nodded and they shook hands again and Boyd walked away. Russell waited a minute, mesmerized by the swirling lights. He then turned to get in the truck and Boyd hustled back over to him.

“Hold on,” he said. “Don’t get in yet. I’m told it don’t matter if you’re my momma I got to look in your truck. Stand over there.” Boyd pointed to a spot on the ground ten feet away from the truck and Russell stood on it. Boyd opened the glove compartment and looked under the seat and then he lifted the seat and found empty beer bottles and the shotgun and shells. He put the seat back and then he walked over to Russell and asked him if it was his.