Page 6

She looked exactly like what she was. A woman down on her luck, desperate enough to do anything. She was too skinny, she was dirty, and hell, in spite of himself he felt his chest tighten with compassion.

It was so easy to get jaded. And not just in his line of work, byliving. The truth was, there wasn’t a hell of a lot of crime in Pyrite Falls. But the crime there was was repetitious and soul grinding. He was familiar with it. The fact that he could still feel a bit of compassion mattered to him. Meant something to him.

It at least made him feel like he wasn’t a husk. Which was nice.

Figuring out what to do with her was less nice. The truth was, every stray that wandered through town wasn’t his responsibility. But a stray that wandered onto his property felt... a little more like she might be.

“IsBixshort for anything?”

“No,” she said.

He wasn’t sure he believed her. He wasn’t even sure if she went by Bix or if it was something she’d plucked out of the air.

“Right. Well. Do you have somewhere to go, Bix? Someone waiting for you?”

“I... Yeah. I’ve got a husband. Waiting for me to come home. If I don’t come home, he’s going to get mad. And worried.”

He was certain she was lying about that.

“Do you have a house?” he pressed.

“I’ve got... a house.”

“Do you have a house other than a cabin on my property?”

“Housemight be overselling it, but I have a place. I have a van. I just... I’ve got to buy a part to fix it, that’s all. And then I’m leaving. Not just your ranch, but the state. So, you don’t have to worry about me. I’m not a problem. I won’t hang around. I just...”

Lord have mercy. This creature was going to end up being his problem.

“Cut the bullshit, please,” he said.

She blinked. “Are cops allowed to saybullshit?”

“Sweetheart, cops do nothing but shovel bullshit all day. We can damned sure call it like it is. This is your still.”

She bristled. “I have the right to remain silent.”

“You do. But I’m not arresting you.”

It was his property, after all. And it wasn’t like she had time to have actual alcohol in the still, so whatever her intent was, she hadn’t gotten far with it. Anyway, doing something to this girl would be like... kicking a puppy. A pathetic, homeless puppy.

She blinked. “You’re not arresting me?”

“No. I’m not. Just... tell me honestly, Bix, what the hell was happening here?”

“I’m being honest. I’m not staying. I just need to earn a little money so that I can get out of town. My starter’s blown and I can’t get the damn van to start. You can give me a jump if you want, and I’ll be on my way.”

“To where?”

“I’m headed down to California.”

“To do what?”

“I don’t owe you that information,” she said, giving him the lofty look of a queen, when the only royal thing about her was that she was a royal pain in the ass.

“Here’s the thing. You may not owe me information, but the way that I see it, you don’t have any control here. I can arrest you if I want to. You’re trespassing, you’re squatting and you’re engaging in illegal activity on my land.”

“Squatters have rights,” she said, jamming her finger toward him. “You can’t arrest me for staying here. And you can’t just kick me off.”