Rumble on the Bayou (29 page)

He looked Richard straight in the eye and drew himself up in his wheelchair. "I did what I thought was best for Dorie. Always have. If I had to do it all over again, I'd do the same thing. Don't really matter who fathered her, if that's where you're going with this. I'm her daddy. There's a big difference."

"I agree, but do you think Dorie's going to see it that way? She's spent her entire life under the assumption that you are her biological father and her mother abandoned her. She's only half right. The odds of Shawn Roland having fathered Dorie are very high-damned near one hundred percent. And if that woman had a baby with Roland, she was definitely in danger. So now the man who actually fathered Dorie most likely killed her mother and is now trying to kill her." He blew out a breath and ran one hand through his hair. "That's too much, Sheriff. Too much to ask anyone to deal with. Even someone as strong as Dorie."

"I know," Sheriff Berenger said. "That's why I was kind of hoping we could keep this between us. There's no need for Dorie to know about it. At least, not that I can see."

Richard shook his head. "You're wrong. Dorie deserves to know. She may very well have to face Roland. Do you want her to make a decision without a full set of facts? She may never forgive you for it if she does."

Richard paused a moment and took a deep breath. "I can agree to buy you a little time by trying to keep Dorie out of the worst of this, but you know I can't guarantee success. And even if I can hold her off, it won't be for long. You know your daughter, Sheriff. She's not going to let this go. Roland's attacked her on her home turf. It's personal now."

The sheriff nodded. "I understand. And I know what you're up against. My Dorie's as hardheaded as they come."

Richard cleared his throat and rushed forward with his next statement before he could change his mind. "There's something else, Sheriff. Another reason why I can't lie to your daughter."

The sheriff looked at him and beckoned him to continue.

"I care for her," he said. "More than I should. More than I wanted to. But there's no way we have any future if this secret is between us."

Sheriff Berenger looked at Richard and slowly nodded. "I kind of figured it would get around to that between the two of you. I never seen anyone get under Dorie's skin the way you did. It was bound to happen." He leaned forward in his chair and looked closely at Richard. "I tell you what. I'll make you a promise if you make me one."

"What's the promise?"

"I promise to tell Dorie everything when the time is right if you promise to get her out of that godforsaken town and put her talent to better use. Since she popped up in your databases, I'm sure I don't need to go into her background and education. I didn't mean to keep it all from you before, but Dorie's never really wanted anyone knowing about her brains. She said it gave her an edge if people thought she was stupid. Hard to argue with her when she's right."

"What about you? You know Dorie won't leave here given your condition."

"I can take care of myself just fine. I know Dorie's worried about money and the cost of my care, but I have a plan to cover that. I'll let her know when everything is in order."

Richard blew out a breath, not exactly pleased with the vague plan, but smart enough to know it was the best he was going to get. For now. "Okay. If you tell her the truth, and she's willing to leave, I'll see that she's taken care of with a game warden or law enforcement position somewhere else. Will that do?"

Sheriff Berenger nodded and slumped back down in his chair. "'Then I guess you best get to catching your criminal. You've got a life to get on with." He pointed a finger at Richard and gave him a stem look. "And you best remember that life you're getting on with includes my daughter. I just ask that you keep her out of catching Roland. Your criminal has been far too aggressive where Dorie's concerned."

"You have my word, Sheriff, that I'll do everything possible to protect her."

The sheriff nodded and Richard rose from the couch and walked out the door, wondering how in the hell he was going to act normally around Dorie now that he was keeping this secret. Pulling back from her after the way they'd been together would probably hurt her, but it was what he was going to have to do.

There was no way he could continue to be so intimate with Dorie and not let everything spill out. No, he was going to have to make a huge adjustment. Go back to the standoffish, sarcastic Dick. At least, until this was over and everything was out in the open.

As he climbed into his car and set off in search of tires, he wondered how Dorie was going to feel about him when she found out about the lie he'd helped her father perpetuate, even if only for a brief time.

***

Sheriff Berenger reached for the phone on the end table beside him. He pressed speed dial and spoke as soon as the man answered on the other end. "Buster, it's Berenger. It's time to get on with our plans. I've held my daughter back long enough. You've got things covered on the other end now, so there shouldn't be any problems."

"If you're sure," Buster said. "I'll start making arrangements. I found someone in Florida on my last trip who said they could take care of things down there."

"Well, best get going then. But I have a favor to ask before we start." He told Buster what he had in mind. There was silence on the other end, but he knew Buster wouldn't refuse him. Hanging up the phone, he opened the drawer on the end table and removed his.357, weighing it in his hands. It felt good, he decided. It had been too damn long since he'd enjoyed the brush of the metal against his palm.

Removing a soft cloth from the drawer, he gently began to clean the weapon, and hoped that this time would be the last.

***

Dorie and Joe eyed Richard suspiciously when he entered the sheriff's office. Dorie tried to study him, but found herself unable to look him in the eyes. Even though she'd already made a vow to distance herself from Richard, she was afraid it was going to prove impossible. Just the sight of him had her nerves jumping and her heart racing-for all sorts of reasons.

It only took one look at him for her resolve to waver. I am not capable of lying, and hiding the truth is no different. She looked over at Joe, who frowned and shook his head, apparently keying in on her war ring emotions. Dorie took a deep breath and struggled to get control. Her dad's future depended on it.

You find out anything, Dick?" she asked, trying to sound normal.

"Not really," Richard said. "Well, except that the DNA was a match, but then we already knew that. And I got my car patched well enough to get me to Lake Charles for a new set of tires. What about you?"

She shook her head. "No. We went over the boat and the surrounding area with a fine-tooth comb, but came up with nothing." She shrugged. "Not that I expected anything. We knew it was a long shot. So what's next?" She looked expectantly at him, still waiting for him to mention his visit to her dad.

He stroked his jaw for a moment, apparently considering her question. "It looks like we've stalled on figuring out who Roland is in business with. Maybe we need to come at this from another angle."

Dorie shrugged, and tried to control her rising aggravation. She didn't care about Roland right now. She wanted to know why Richard had visited her dad and what the old fool had told him, but it looked like that bit of information was something she was going to have to get from the sheriff-the last person she wanted to speak to at the moment. "Okay," she said finally. "What angle?"

Richard sat on the end of Joe's desk. "We've been focusing on who Roland was dealing with and how they were going to get the drugs in Gator Bait. Maybe we should consider how they're going to get them out."

She raised her eyebrows and looked at Joe, who nodded. "That's actually a pretty smart idea," Joe said. "If the shipment is as large as you say, it will take far more than a pickup truck or a bass boat to move it out of here. And I can only assume Roland would be planning one trip in and one trip out. I can't imagine him moving the product out in small pieces.'

"He wouldn't," Richard said. "No time for that. Roland is not part of a small operation. The people he works for have timetables. And they don't like to wait."

No, I don't guess they would," Dorie said. "So what do we have to go on? We've talked to the major players in town. Anyone have an idea as to how someone could move that much product out of Gator Bait without looking suspicious?"

The shrimp boats are out," Joe said. "No shrimper is going to be headed up the channel into Lake Charles. That would attract too much attention. Lake Charles game wardens would be all over him."

"He's right," she agreed. "Anyone that far up from the gulf risks being stopped and searched in a big way."

Richard considered this for a moment. "What about cabin cruisers? Anyone have a boat large enough to haul the product while still appearing to be taking an outing?"

Dorie didn't like the answer to this one. She looked over at Joe, who barely nodded, giving her the go-ahead to tell Richard what they knew. She supposed it would be easy enough for Richard to find out the information on his own, and they would look far worse for not telling when they had the opportunity.

"Buster has a cabin cruiser," she said. "It's about thirty feet. Would that be big enough?"

"Probably," Richard said. And that should be a very easy thing to watch. Anything else? What about enclosed trailers? Anyone have horses?"

Dorie and Joe shook their heads. "I can't think of any enclosed trailers at all," she said. "Flatbed, yes, but that wouldn't work."

"What about his own transportation?" Joe asked. "Couldn't Roland be arranging to rent a truck or trailer and move the stuff out himself?"

"It's possible," Richard said. "But not very likely. We've caught some of his shipments at the delivery point, but Roland was never anywhere to be found. I think he arranges things, then steps conveniently to the side. Plus, you could hardly move an eighteen-wheeler through a town like Gator Bait without attracting a whole lot of attention. Ditto for a big boat. In a town this small, a different hairdo is a big event."

"True," Dorie agreed. "Still, he's got to have a plan or he wouldn't be here. And he definitely wouldn't be taking time out of his schedule to chase after me if the deal was over."

Joe opened his mouth to speak when the phone on his desk rang. He answered the phone and Dorie heard loud obnoxious cussing all the way at her desk. Joe held the phone about six inches from his ear and waited for a pause in the yelling. Finally, there was a break, and he put the phone back up to his ear. "I'll come out right now, Mrs. Thibodeaux" He hadn't even completed the sentence when the yelling and cussing began again. Joe looked at Dorie. "She's asking for you. How do you want me to handle this?"

Dorie sighed. "I guess I better go. Whatever has her that riled will probably take at least an hour of my time and a bottle of her brew to solve." Dorie looked at Richard. "You going or staying?" she asked, hoping at the-same-time that he would both go and stay.

Richard hesitated for a moment then replied, "I think I'll go. I need a break from this case. Mrs. Thibodeaux is quite a refreshing form of entertainment compared to Roland."

Dorie laughed. “That's the first time I've heard anyone refer to Maylene as refreshing."

Joe smiled. "And it will probably be the last" He rose from the desk and followed Dorie and Richard out the front door. "Since Richard has security detail covered, I think I'll make a pass around town while you're taking care of Maylene. See if anyone acquired transportation large enough for what we're looking for."

“
Be careful, Joe," Dorie warned. "We can't afford to create another target."

"You're the one who needs to be careful," Joe said, and Dorie knew by his tone that he wasn't only talking about Roland.

"I've got it covered, Joe," Dorie said, trying to keep her voice steady and sure.

"Well then, don't worry about me," Joe continued with a smile. "Dick just thinks Maylene is safer than Roland."

Dorie slowly shook her head at his retreating figure and hoped this time he wasn't right, then jumped into her jeep, Richard in tow, and headed out to the Thibodeaux place.

For as big of a snit as she was in, Maylene had managed to put on more clothing than Dorie had expected. Her T-shirt came almost all the way to her waist and her shorts just missed covering her entire rear. The remainder of both front and back were hanging out of the garments in full display. Dorie took one look at Richard and knew he was rethinking his position on Maylene Thibodeaux being entertainment.

"Hello, Maylene," Dorie said, trying to sound pleasant. "What seems to be the problem?"