The Curse of Crow Hollow (39 page)

The only reason he'd slipped past Bucky at all was John David had tried talking sense to Wilson. Now Medric barreled past the very spot you're parked now, friend, and he had the fear of the devil in his eyes.

Flying now, bringing his old car up to fifty on the potted dirt road that runs on down past where the Reverend had seen Stu Graves, blowing by the clinic in a blur. Aiming for the edge of town and freedom—freedom finally—from all he'd done. Looking on past the blue mountains that rose around him on all sides. Thinking of Richmond. That's where he'd go. He had kin there, and they wouldn't know what he'd done. He could start over. Do anything besides tend to the dead.

And he almost made it, friend. But as he rounded the last turn and neared the flat spot where Bucky had caught John David the night before, he saw ahead the two trucks set up in the road not a mile on. Four men, all armed. Medric couldn't tell their faces, but he didn't need to. The only thing he could do was stop before they saw him and make a slow drive back to town.

-6-

He got as far as the town line. That's where Hays found Raleigh Jennings waiting with a shotgun and a box full of shells, standing in front of the Cadillac he'd parked sideways in the road. Raleigh'd known it was Hays long before Hays even seen him. It was the Camaro, you see. That car sounded like nothing else in town.

Wilson had called early that morning after his meeting with the pastor. Told Raleigh to get some men together and block
Crow Holler off, and then he read off a list of people to watch for especially. Troublemakers all, that's what Raleigh said as he wrote down those names. Wilson agreed, then asked Raleigh if that was something he could handle. Raleigh said it would be no problem, he knew just the men to call for help.

The rest of the Circle were now scattered along the other roads leading to either Mattingly or the deep woods. Good men who knew how to protect a town.

Hays didn't slow.

Raleigh tried waving. When that didn't work, he racked his shotgun and leveled it at the windshield. That would be the boy's only warning. Twenty more yards, he'd get a face full of buckshot.

Hays hit the brakes, nearly losing the Camaro's back end in the process. He fishtailed on the dirt and nearly went sideways before finally gaining control, stopping in a cloud of dust barely beyond the scatter-gun's reach.

Raleigh stepped forward to close the gap and yelled, “Out the car.”

Hays opened the Camaro's door. He eased out with his hands high. What little color that boy kept in his face was gone. His arms shook like they each weighed more than the world.

“Always thought there was something wrong with you,” Raleigh said. “Now I guess I know for sure. Where you running off to, Hays?”

“You have to let me pass, Principal Jennings. You gotta let me go. They're coming.”

“Who is?”

“Them.”

“Well, the mayor says nobody comes in or out. He'd like to have a few words with you.”

“Don't take me back to town,” Hays said. His voice cracked. “They'll kill me.”

Raleigh smiled. “You don't get in my car right now, boy, I'll kill you first.”

“You can't.”

“Can't?” Raleigh said. “You ain't in no position at all to tell me what I
can't
. Playtime's over. Order's gotta come back to this Holler, and I'm the one to do it. Time to put things right, and that means taking you back to town. You think of a reason why I can't do that, you better let me know now.”

Hays had one.

“I know who killed Ruth.”

-7-

No one was home at the funeral parlor, or at least no one answered the door. John David said they couldn't go in without a warrant. Bucky told him that was a good point but not to go getting a big head about it, because all that was just an easy excuse to go against Wilson's orders.

“Whose side you on here, anyways?” Bucky asked.

“Side where everybody lives.”

They tried the grocery next. Hays wasn't there and neither was Cordelia, but Landis and Kayann were. They didn't know where their boy was. Kayann asked what was going on, and that's when Bucky told them the mayor and the Reverend wanted Hays at church that night for questioning. John David tried answering when Landis asked what sort of questioning that might be, but Bucky held up a hand and shushed him. Concerning the witch, our sheriff said, and then he said Wilson had a list of people, one of which happened to be their boy, who'd been seen or heard doing some awful strange things in the days since the Curse.

Well, I guess you can imagine what happened next. Didn't
matter Bucky was still carrying Chessie's old shotgun or that John David was there and had seen war. Landis said he'd sooner die than see his son brought up to some kangaroo court over something he didn't do. Bucky tried saying it wouldn't be a court at all, it'd be in the church and only a couple questions, but he never got that out because Kayann started throwing things at him. Boxes, busted bottles, half a head of lettuce that had somehow gone unclaimed during the run on the grocery and had since rotted, anything she could reach. Bucky had one hand over his face and the other trying to hang on to his gun, yelling for Kayann to stop before he ran her in on a charge of assaulting an officer of the law. Landis started screaming that Stu Graves had been there the night before, right there next to his
office
, and if Bucky and John David should be looking for anybody, it was what Alvaretta had raised up. Took John David every bit of muscle he had to drag the sheriff out of there. He told Bucky maybe he should do the talking next time.

Neither of them was too fired up about going to Chessie's, so Bucky decided to try the clinic next. They were nearly there when Angela called. Cordelia had walked all the way home from Hays's house. She'd cried herself into such a fit that it took Angela near half an hour to understand what had happened. Somehow (Cordy wouldn't say exactly, though Angela said she believed Kayann had gotten word to her son), Hays had found out he was wanted. He'd gone, and Cordy didn't know to where.

Bucky hung up and repeated all that to John David, who just sat there staring out the window. Bucky said aloud what he knew his new constable was thinking: “I don't see a good end to any of this.”

It was quiet at the Sullivans' place. Nothing at all in the lot and no patients lined up outside, as that part of Alvaretta's curse seemed to have ended so a worse one could begin. Danny's car wasn't in its spot, but the sign on the door said
Open
.

Before they got out of the car, John David said, “You let me try this one, Bucky.”

“Well, I got to do something, John David. I'm the sheriff, you're just the constable.”

“Be my backup, then. Stand there and look pretty. And keep that scatter-gun down. Makes me nervous.”

Bucky looked through the windshield, watching the door. “You want a pistol? Got one in the backseat. It's a beater, but it shoots straight.”

John David opened the door. “I don't like guns.”

Bucky followed. He let the shotgun lay in the seat but reached back for that old pistol anyway, tucking it in his belt at the back. John David could say all he wanted about keeping things calm; after hearing what Angela had said about Hays, Bucky didn't have a good feeling about whatever would come next.

Maris stepped out onto the cement porch as they got out. She put a hand to her forehead to shield her eyes from the sun and parted her lips into a grin.

“Angela told me you went and got yourself some help, Buck,” she said. “Where's your badge, John David?”

John David smiled. “Didn't think I'd need one to come visit the doctor, Maris.”

“That what y'all are doing? Visiting? Because I just got off the phone with Belle, and she's gone half mad because the Reverend's got it in his head to round up half the town and set'm up in front of the church tonight. You two wouldn't know anything about that now, would you?”

John David let that be. “Doc around?”

“No, and I don't know where he went. What's your business with him?”

“Just need a word.”

She nodded and grinned again. “Buck, you want to add anything to this conversation?”

Bucky shrugged. “I'm just standing here to look pretty.”

“Maris,” John David said, “truth is me and Bucky don't want to be out here at all. Mayor's orders, though, and Bucky's just loyal enough to say Wilson's orders are what we gotta carry out. Everybody in town's scared, sure you know that. Scared of the witch, scared of Stu. But they're scared of whoever it is that's been visiting Alvaretta most of all, because we don't know who that is.”

“What's that got to do with Danny?” she asked.

“Well, somehow his name's come up. Just people talking. But there's been some question of why he ain't been out to church all week and why he's the only one seems to think whatever's wrong with my sister and the others is something other than the witch. What we'd like Danny to do is come down to the church tonight, talk to everybody. Just put folks at ease. So if you know where he's gone, we'd be obliged if you'd tell us.”

“I only got a quarter tank in the car, Maris,” Bucky said. “I can't be running all over town looking for anybody. I ain't got paid yet.”

“I don't know where Danny went, if you got to know. And shame on y'all. Wilson's my own brother.”

“I know,” Bucky said, “and I'm sorry, Maris. Like John David told you, we don't really want to be out here.”

“Well then, you go tell Wilson if he wants Danny, he can come out here and get him on his own instead of sending his flunkies.”

“We ain't flunkies, Maris,” Bucky said. “We're the law.”

“Law was better when we didn't have any, and I ain't the only one to think so.”

John David looked about ready to remind Bucky he was
just supposed to be looking pretty when they all saw Danny Sullivan's car leading a cloud of dust up the road. The doctor pulled in with a grin and popped the door open with, “Morning, gentlemen. What brings you out? Not more trouble, I hope.”

“Trouble enough,” Maris said.

John David asked, “Where you been this morning, Danny?”

“Oh, just about. Had to check on some patients. Congratulations on your new employment, by the way. I'd dare say it's more honest work than what Chessie can offer.”

“Not by much,” John David said, “and not by choice. These patients you seen. Anybody we know?”

“I expect so. Why?”

“Because Wilson thinks you're Alvaretta's spy,” Maris said.

The doctor stood there like Maris had spoken in some kind of foreign language. He chortled and said, “That's absurd.”

Bucky kicked a rock at his feet and watched it go tumbling. I don't expect this was how he'd thought being a policeman would work, too much worrying and having to do things you didn't think should be done at all. Danny went on about how Wilson had never liked him and all the power had finally rotted his brother-in-law's brain, and Bucky kept looking at that rock that had come to a stop right behind the doctor's tire, right in the groove of one of the treads, and wasn't that tread a funny-looking one? Didn't it look familiar somehow—

Wasn't it—?

He reached for the pistol he'd stuck in the back of his pants, this time remembering to free the safety. Maris screamed as Bucky's trembling hands tried steadying the barrel. Danny Sullivan backed away with his hands held high. John David came forward with his hands the same, asking Bucky what in the holy hell he was doing.

“It's you,” Bucky said. “Doc? It's you, ain't it?” The barrel went from Danny's chest to his head, to his leg, back to
his chest. He was scared, sure enough (and wouldn't you be, friend?), but it was more than that. I think Bucky couldn't find his aim because his eyes had started to tear up.

John David stopped at that question. He looked at Danny now.

“Doc?” Bucky asked. He took a deep breath and steadied the pistol. “You been going out to Alvaretta's house?”

Faced with that, Danny Sullivan had no choice but to answer the truth.

-8-

Bucky shook so hard he had to lower the pistol before his finger jerked and he killed the doctor right there. It got awful quiet in that little parking lot. For a while, nobody even breathed. Doc still had his hands raised and Bucky looked about to puke. John David's eyes had gone from warm to cold. And Maris? Well, Maris couldn't believe what she'd just heard.

“Danny?” she asked. “What you saying?”

“It was me. I did it.”

Then it got quiet all over again, all except Maris, who started saying
No
much like Hays had awhile earlier, over and over again. Bucky said she couldn't ride with them into town because she'd have to bring Danny's car as evidence. John David collected himself enough to suggest Danny going out to Alvaretta's wasn't a crime. Bucky said aiding the woman who'd both sickened his little girl and raised up the dead sure did sound like a crime to him. Maris looked to protest but didn't. No way that woman believed her husband of near fifty years had anything to do with Alvaretta Graves. And yet all of what Danny had just admitted had put a hole in Maris's heart, and out of it leaked every bit of moxie she held.

John David came up behind the doctor. He said, “Go on and put your hands down, Danny,” and helped him toward the sheriff's car. Gravel crunched from up the road. Maris made her way to Bucky, wanting to plead with him, but Bucky's attention had settled more on the car driving past. Didn't nobody in town drive a black car but Medric, him saying it went with his funeral duties. Bucky saw the grill come into view through the trees, then the hood, and then there was Medric behind the wheel, staring straight into Bucky's eyes. The car went on past before it stopped and backed up. Medric swung into the lot behind Danny's car. He got out and raised his arms.