Desert Wives (9781615952267) Read Online Free Page B

my family, sister. Miles stays.”
    My sigh finally escaped. “So you refuse to do anything about your son?”
    â€œI don’t need to do nothing about that boy. He’d be fine if people would just stop leanin’ on him. Now you go on back to them Citizens for Clean Air fools and tell them to mind their own business. Maybe they ought to be looking at their own kids, cause it sure ain’t my Miles been settin’ these fires. Now, it’s been awful nice talking to a pretty lady but I got me a ton of work to do here.”
    Just then a young man entered the office, Ringo slobbering happily at his heels. Miles. I recognized him from the news reports, where, in typical firebug behavior, he always bellied up to the camera to hold forth about the fires. It was easy to see how he’d become the apple of his dad’s eye. Where Alder looked and sounded like the product of a hard-scrabble upbringing, Miles, with his designer hair, broad shoulders, and even features, could have posed for a Ralph Lauren ad. But I thought his blue eyes were just a trifle too steady. Con man eyes.
    Since reason hadn’t worked with the father, I doubted its effectiveness with the son. I decided on a more direct approach. “Listen, you little shithead. The neighbors are tired of the fires. They want you to stop.”
    Miles smirked. “Why, ma’am, I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about.”
    â€œYes, you do, and I’m telling you right now, if those fires don’t stop, I’m going to be all over your butt like a bad pair of pants until your firebug ass gets locked up permanent. And, Miles? Now that you’re eighteen, you’re too old for Juvie. The next time you go down it’ll be to the State Correctional Facility in Florence where the big boys live. You’ll be the sweetest piece of ass they’ve seen in a long time.”
    The blue eyes blinked rapidly, then shifted to his father.
    â€œPop?” Miles whined, now sounding decidedly non-Lauren-esque. “Are you going to let her talk to me this way?”
    Dad rushed to his baby’s rescue. “You got no call to talk to my boy like that! Get the hell out of here!”
    I nodded, but directed a parting shot to Miles. “Remember what I said, little boy. One more fire and you’d better start stocking up on K-Y Jelly.”
    When I stood to leave, Ringo, who had been lying adoringly at his master’s feet, stood too. He looked at my own butt, perhaps envisioning a rare rump roast for dinner. Miles’ eyes flicked toward his dog.
    â€œIf that dog bites me I’ll shoot it first and ask questions later.” I punctuated my words by patting the carry-all that served as my purse. A
thunk
revealed my .38’s presence. Like so many Arizonans, I was licensed to carry.
    My threat worked.
    â€œRingo, sit,” Papa Alder ordered.
    I made it to the Jeep in one piece.
    Back at the office, things had slowed down. Jimmy had spent the day running background checks for the semiconductor company, and he had narrowed the thief down to three suspects, all of whom had criminal records.
    â€œI don’t know why employers don’t do this themselves,” he said. “Just think of all the money they’d save.”
    â€œThey don’t do it because they’re not as good as you are, Slick.”
    Jimmy snorted. “It’s so easy a child…”
    â€œâ€¦could do it,” I finished for him. Yeah, sure, a child with an I.Q. of 156, who’d grown up playing with computers the way other children played with Matchbox cars.
    He pushed away from his keyboard and faced me. I had noticed long before that his tribal tattoos tended to darken when he was worried, and they looked almost black now.
    â€œLena, those guys from Utah. I don’t like that they traveled all the way down here.”
    I nodded. “I’m worried, too. I told Esther to take a trip somewhere,