A Bad Day for Sunshine (Sunshine Vicram #1)(121)

Their gazes shot to her face in unison. “How?”

Sun shook her head and sat back down. “It’s impossible.”

“No, it’s not.” She calmed the rooster with several aggressive strokes.

“Okay, I’ll tell you, but you aren’t going to like it.”

“Sure we will,” Ike said. He had such a kind face, she hated to do this to him, but someone had to give them that little shove.

“The only way the ADA can’t force you to testify is . . . is if you’re married.”

Both members of the upcoming wedding party stood motionless, neither willing to address the situation first.

“And even then, it’s only if you’re married before I have to get this paperwork to the courthouse. Today. At 4:00 p.m.,” she prodded. “And I just can’t see that happ—”

“No, it can happen.” Ida looked at Ike and nodded.

He nodded back at her. “Today by four.”

Sun shrugged. “Okay, then. I guess, without an eyewitness, I’ll have no choice but to drop the case. If I get a copy of your marriage certificate by the end of the day.”

“You’ll have it.”

They started for the door, but Ike turned back and whispered to her, “Can you thank that nice deputy for me? If not for him, I don’t know what would’ve happened.”

“Which one?”

“That Price fellow. Puff escaped, and he spent half the night helping me find him. I mean, I only had him because I saw him out by Route 63 and I was going to give him back, but then he got out and that nice deputy—”

“Cory,” she said, her heart sinking for what had to be done. “His name was Cory.”

“Well, thank him for me, will you?”

“I will. Congratulations.” Sun blew out a deep breath, trying to come to terms with how things can go so horribly wrong one minute and so wonderfully right the next.

Quincy walked up to her. “You realize she’s going to do a lot worse to him than what the chicken did.”

“Funny thing about that,” Sun said. “I have a feeling he’s going to enjoy it.”

He made a face. “Ew.”

He started to walk off when she said one word to him. “Bo.”

Turning toward her, he put his fingers on his chin in thought. “Who?”

She stepped closer. “I don’t like being in the dark, Quincy.”

“Who does? That shit’s scary.”

“I’m afraid of ghosts,” Zee said, not helping.

“Lieutenant Bo Britton,” Sun continued. “The only deputy on the payroll who gets paid to do absolutely nothing.”

Quincy grinned. “Well, he’s been a little preoccupied.”

“Where is he?” He started to talk, but she interrupted. “And if you say ‘who,’ I will throw darts at your spleen. While it’s still in your body.”

“Ouch. Aggressive much? I was going to ask what day it is.”

Sunshine tried to pry her teeth apart, but he held up his hands in surrender.

“No, really. I have to know what day it is before I can tell you.”

“Fine. It’s the ninth.”

“Oh, right. Sybil’s birthday. Well, we can go see him now.”

“Who?”

“Really?” he asked, his expression flatlining.

They drove to the Del Sol Mortuary and, after a heated discussion with the mortician, Quincy led Sun back to the embalming room.

“Quincy, what’s going on?”

“A wife and two kids,” he said as the mortician opened a cold chamber and pulled out a tray with a handsome older gentleman.

“Sunshine Vicram, meet Lieutenant Bobby Britton.”

“Quincy,” she said, having had enough death for the time being.

“Bo passed this morning.”

“He’s frozen solid,” she said.

“Yeah. He . . . froze to death.”

“Quincy, damn it.”

He lowered his head. “Bo passed away two weeks ago while hunting. He had a heart attack, but he was two weeks away from retiring with full benefits instead of that bullshit they offer you if you retire early. Two weeks, Sun.”

She said nothing, so he continued, “He married late. Has two small kids. A wife who loved him more than air. They’re devastated.” He moved closer to her, begging her to hear. “They deserve this.”

The mortician stood back, clearly nervous about the whole thing now that the sheriff had arrived.

“Did Redding know about this?” She would have been very surprised if the former sheriff had agreed to it. He cared about no one but himself.

“Hell no. Just a handful of us lackeys.”

After offering Bo a silent prayer, she turned to the mortician. “He died in the line of duty last night during a manhunt.”

“Yes, ma’am. Sheriff. I’m sorry for your loss.”

If ever there were a town that could pull this off, it was Del Sol. After all, they’d pulled off a fake husband for her.

“We’ll be taking care of all the funeral expenses, if you could arrange that.”

“Of course.”

“Quincy,” she said, walking him out, “you have a lot of paperwork to illegally alter and hope it doesn’t come back to bite us on the ass.”