okay?”
“Fingernails still intact, but no telling what they would have got up to.”
“And who is this?” She turned to Carson, an eyebrow up.
Carson stared at this awesome woman, cleared her throat. “I’m Carson DeSilva. I met Griffin today. He saved my life, kept me from being murdered.”
“That isn’t true!” Brewster yelled. “Rafer’s a good man, never hurt a flea, ask his ma, his pa, his pa’s brother, ask anyone in town, well, except for fighting sometimes at Five Star Bar, but everyone’s always fighting out there.”
DeAndre picked Brewster up by the neck and swung him around. “Keep your mouth shut, little dude. Nod when I put you back down.”
Once Brewster’s feet touched the floor, he swallowed, rubbed his neck, and nodded.
Kraus smiled. “Good to hear Griffin can be useful when he’s not on the clock.”
Brewster was scared, but he knew he had to man up. Jewel was too young and he’d probably already peed his pants. Besides, he knew to his bones Jewel would tell everyone in town what happened if he folded like a two-dollar tent. He drew himself up as straight and tall as he could. “Ma’am, sirs, I’m a sworn officer of the law. My questions and observations are justified. You’re wearing what look like official uniforms and combat gear, but you can buy that stuff on Amazon. I’m going to need to see your identification. And I want to know why you came busting into our sheriff’s station looking like you’re ready to take out Al Qaeda.”
Kraus smiled at Brewster, surprised he was showing some backbone. “Do you now?”
Brewster gripped his mojo in both hands and took a very small step toward Kraus. “Ma’am, I don’t know who you are, but you don’t have any business here in our station. We are the law here in Gaffer’s Ridge. What did you do to Fayreen?”
Kraus handed Brewster her creds. “Fayreen? She’s in your cell. As you can see, Deputy Brewster, I am Special Agent Kraus, FBI, from the Richmond Field Office.”
His hand shook as he looked down at the FBI credentials, but he couldn’t let the sheriff down, or his life would be hell. He swallowed, licked his lips. “How do I know these aren’t bogus, like his?” He nodded toward Griffin.
Bettina’s voice remained smooth, steady, interested. “Why in the world would you think Agent Hammersmith’s creds are bogus? You could have easily called to verify his FBI status.”
“He’s a murderer if Rafer doesn’t make it, both of them are. Him and the gal over there tried to kill poor Rafer. And look at them, they don’t look like cops. We thought they were con artists, and poor Rafer got in their way.”
“Hmmm.” Bettina gave both Griffin and Carson the once-over, nodded. “I agree, they’re both too pretty for their own good. But why didn’t the sheriff allow Agent Hammersmith to call his superior in Washington? Why didn’t your sheriff speak with Agent Hammersmith’s boss?”
Brewster saw the alligators gliding toward him, mouths open, teeth ready to chomp. He cleared his throat. “Sheriff Bodine thought the fellow who called him was this Hammersmith’s cousin. Fayreen hung up on him.”
Kraus blinked, looked astonished, though Griffin bet Savich had already told her everything. “I would have to say your sheriff is neither very bright nor is he professional. Now, here’s what you are going to do, Deputy Brewster. You’re going to call Sheriff Bodine, tell him his presence is requested in—” She looked down at her black-banded iWatch. “Ten minutes, no more. After I’ve spoken to him, I’ll decide whether or not to take all of you into federal custody. You’ve broken enough laws to paper your cell in the Pennington Gap federal prison.”
25
* * *
Brewster knew serious when he saw it, he recognized it from the same look on his mother-in-law’s face. Mother Maude, as he was told to call her, was meaner than he was, and this woman was close. He pulled out his cell, punched in a number, and turned his back to whisper into the phone. “Sheriff, Brewster here. A whole battalion of Feds came busting into the station, in war gear, with submachine guns, FBI written all over their jackets. So I guess the good-looking fellow wasn’t lying. The lead Fed, the SAC they call her, is a girl, ah, woman. She said you gotta come now.”
They watched Brewster’s face turn white. “There’s nothing Jewel and I can do, Sheriff. We have no armament, they took our Berettas. I told you, they have submachine guns.