with them. Not that he did much, even with those that
could.”
“Like Juan Santos?”
“Nothing more than to ask how the work was going,
were the tomatoes ripening up on schedule, how bad
were the worms? I’ll be honest with you, Bryant. I don’t
think Harris thought of these people as fully human.
More like work animals. Just a couple of notches up
from horses or mules. If it hadn’t been for Mrs. Harris
and OSHA, I believe he’d have worked them like mules
and stabled them like mules, too. The only time he re-
ally put his hand in for more than a day, though, was
last spring when my parents were out in California and
Dad had a heart attack so I had to fly out. I thought we
ought to bring somebody over from Kinston, but he
said he could handle it for a few days. My dad died, and
it was over a week before I could get back. He wasn’t
too happy about that, but he did keep everything on
schedule. God knows what actually went on. Santos
never said much, just that Mrs. Harris was out here and
they had a big fight about something. They were legally
separated by then, though.”
“You think he got on Santos’s ass about something
while you were gone?”
Lomax let out a long breath and settled his cap more
firmly on his head. He met Dwight’s eyes without blink-
ing. “You’re asking me if Santos could’ve done this.
Ol’ son, I don’t know anybody that could’ve done it.
Besides, that was almost a year ago. If Harris still had
a beef with him, he’d’ve fired him. And if Juan Santos
had a beef with him, I do believe he’d’ve quit or done
something about it long before this, don’t you? Who
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HARD ROW
has a hate this big that waits a year to get even? Besides,
I thought you had fingerprints.”
“We do,” Dwight conceded. “But we don’t have
comparison prints for everyone who ever walked across
this land. So tell me about Mrs. Harris?”
“What about her?”
“She get along with everybody?”
“She’s a hard-nosed businesswoman, if that’s what
you mean, but she treats her people fair. Sees that the
housing’s up to government standards, makes sure the
kids go to school. Expects value for her dollar, but
doesn’t forget that these are human beings, not work
animals. She used to work out in the fields when they
were first married, so she knows what it takes to make a
crop. Even better, she’s from the ‘trust ’em or bust ’em’
