Nate reached out and grasped Bud’s ear and twisted it. “I said, let’s go.”
Joe had seen Nate twist off enough ears. He said, “Nate . . .”
But the pressure caused Bud to rise clumsily and stand up. Nate let go of Bud’s ear and Bud pawed at it with his free hand like a bear cub.
“Can I at least see the girls?” Bud asked Joe. “I miss them girls.”
“They’re in bed,” Joe fibbed. “It’s a school night, Bud.”
“I do miss them girls.”
“They miss you, too,” Joe said. “You were a good grandpa to them.”
“Until that witch screwed it all up.”
Joe nodded.
“You know the worse thing about her?” Bud said suddenly.
Joe braced himself.
“I still love her. I still goddamn love her, even after all she did to me.”
Joe said, “That is the worst thing, all right.”
“What about my Army Colt?” Bud asked Joe. “I like to have it within reach.”
“Go home, Bud. I’ll drop it by later.”
“Come on,” Nate said. “Can you find your keys?”
Bud clumsily started patting himself. In addition to his pickup keys, he located his can of Copenhagen and a warm bottle of beer. Bud twisted the cap off and took a long drink, and offered it to Joe and then Nate.
“No thanks, Bud,” Joe said.
As Nate guided Bud out the backyard toward the distant truck, Joe heard Bud say, “If you really want to kill me, I probably wouldn’t put up too much of a fight.”
“Shut up,” Nate responded.
LATER, AS JOE crawled into bed, Marybeth said, “It’s so sad what’s happened to Bud. I don’t know what’s going to become of him.”
He moved close to her and she turned away to her side. Their bodies fit so well together, he thought.
She said, “I keep expecting to get a call from the sheriff’s office asking us to come down and bail him out of jail. Or identify a body.” She didn’t sound sleepy.
He said, “Your mother’s body count is getting pretty high. How did you manage to turn out so well?”
“I guess I’m the black sheep of the family.”
Joe chuckled. “Yup. No one can accuse you of trading up.”
“Do you think he’ll come back? Bud, I mean?”
Joe pulled her closer. Her body felt warm and soft. He buried his face into her hair. “I doubt it. He knows now Nate’s not after him. And deep down, Bud’s a good man. He’ll wake up and be ashamed of himself for showing up here, I think.”
“Mmmm.”
“Marybeth,” he whispered into her ear, “I was wondering . . .”
“Joe,” she said, cutting him off. “First, we need to talk.”
“About what?”
She took a deep soft breath and paused. “I can see the direction this is all headed. I could see it tonight when you and Nate got your guns and went outside. It was like your sails were full. I know it was me who called Nate for help, but at the time I wasn’t sure when I’d see you again, if at all.
“You’re thinking of going back up into those mountains, aren’t you? You want to find those brothers,” she said.
He closed his eyes, even though she wasn’t looking at his face. “No one believes me, honey.”
“I do.”
“I keep thinking about everything that happened—how they whipped me. I keep thinking about Terri Wade and . . . that other woman. Something was going on up there and I couldn’t see it at the time. I still can’t. But whatever it is, it’s still there. That the sheriff in Carbon County and all those DCI boys couldn’t find the Grim Brothers at all puzzles the heck out of me. That the FBI seems to be monitoring the situation makes no logical sense. And who is this Bobby McCue representing? There are a load of unanswered questions, starting with why the Grim Brothers are up there in the first place. Plus, there are lives at stake. Even though Terri Wade and the mystery woman seemed to be there willingly, I just don’t buy it. No woman would choose to be alone in the wilderness like that with those two brothers around. I think they’re being held, even if they didn’t act like it. Just walking away doesn’t feel right.”
She turned to face him. He could see the side of her face in the soft light of the moon outside. She still looked youthful, attractive, strong. He wanted her.
She said, “Be thankful you were able to walk away, Joe.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Maybe it was a blessing,” she said. “You may not be so lucky the next time.”
