22
Griffin nearly burst out with a laugh, but not Aimée Rose, she was nearly sputtering. “Come on, Brew, you think we’re here to bust them out of jail? And what is this ‘Ms. Wiley’? You’ve eaten more meals Jenny’s cooked for you than your wife has. Carollee told me so herself.” Aimée Rose shut her mouth then, better not to rub salt in the wound. Word was Brewster was a bully, mean as a snake, and he sometimes knocked his wife around after a bender, but who knew what would set him off?
Brewster said from between seamed lips, “Don’t you call me Brew, like I’m a damned beer. I’m Deputy Sheriff Brewster.”
“Why not?” Jenny asked. “Everyone else does, like they call Jewel FJ—Family Jewels.”
Jewel’s face turned crimson.
Jenny said, “It’s all right, it’s all in good fun.”
Griffin grinned. “What about the sheriff? Does he have a nickname?”
Brewster wanted to flatten the pretty boy. He couldn’t right then, but he was going to talk to Carollee for sure, ask her what she’d been saying about him. He’d probably have to rearrange her thinking a bit. He felt Jewel’s hand on his sleeve, shook it off. He looked down at his watch. “You’re only running out of visiting time, shooting off your mouths.”
Griffin nodded. “You gentlemen can leave now.” But they didn’t, probably on Sheriff Bodine’s orders. They stood by the door, their backs to the wall. Griffin ignored them, said to Aimée Rose, “Come on, babe, time to calm down. Last thing I need is for you guys to be tossed into our cell with us. It really isn’t big enough for four of us, and there’s only one john.”
Jenny looked ready to burst. “Don’t you dare joke about this, Griffin Hammersmith. It isn’t funny, it’s fricking outrageous. You know your boss called Aimée Rose, told her about your call to him? He asked her all sorts of questions about the sheriff. Why didn’t you call us?”
Griffin glanced over at Jewel and Brewster. “I’d hoped Savich could deal with the sheriff without any fuss. Plus, the sheriff took my cell.”
Carson sat forward, raised her voice. “Griffin said the Richmond Field Office should be here soon to bust us out.”
Brewster straightened up like a shot. “What’d you say?”
Griffin said, “Don’t worry, Brewster, as long as you don’t resist, I doubt they’ll shoot you or throw you in your own cell.” He shrugged. “But I could be wrong.”
“Lying little punk,” Brewster said under his breath, but not under enough.
Jewel’s young voice broke a bit when he whispered to Brewster, “Maybe we should call the sheriff, warn him the Feds are coming?”
“Don’t pee your britches, Jewel. Pretty boy here is trying to scare us, that’s all. This is only one more of his lies.”
Jenny said, “Agent Hammersmith isn’t lying. Wait until the FBI wagons pull up, you’re going to be in big trouble. And Brew, you can forget coming in for your tacos and meatloaf. You’re no longer welcome in our eating establishment.”
If Griffin wasn’t mistaken, Brewster stared at her with horror, shaking his head. “No need to be unpleasant, Jenny, I’m only doing my job. Really, only doing my job.”
“Then you’d best be careful how you treat Agent Hammersmith.”
Brewster opened his mouth, probably thought about his meatloaf and tacos, and shut it.
Jewel swallowed, his prominent Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. He shot another scared look at Brewster. “But why would he lie?”
Brewster called out, “He thinks he can rile us, worry us enough to let him go. Not going to happen, so stop your twittering. As for you and the girl, the sheriff said you two are going to stay in jail until Judge Pinder gets back with his walleye and bass and decides what to do with you. But like everyone knows, you never can plan on anything with him.”
Griffin said quietly, “Deputy Brewster, do you have any idea how many laws you’ve broken, interfering with a federal officer? Do you have any idea what I could make happen to the lot of you, beginning with Sheriff Bodine?”
“Nothing’s going to happen,” Brewster said, and took a step forward and raised his fist. He shot a look at Jenny, stepped back. “The Bodines won’t let anything happen, you watch.”
“Brewster—”
Brewster ignored Jewel. “So you keep a civil tongue in your mouth, boy, or I’ll show these visitors out right this minute and put you two mutts back in your cell.”
Jenny ignored him, leaned forward. “Griffin, if your boss hadn’t called Aimée Rose, we wouldn’t have known where you were.” She shook her head in disbelief. “Except, of course, this is one of the first places we’d have come if we couldn’t reach you, hoping for help from the sheriff to find you.” She pointed at Carson. “Okay, now, who is she and why are you two together?”
Carson waved her hand. “I’m Carson DeSilva and I can talk, too. Actually, I ate a late lunch at your café yesterday right after I drove into town. The guy at the gas station told me you were putting Gaffer’s Ridge on the map with your cooking. I’ve got to say that was an outstanding Reuben sandwich, maybe the best I’ve ever had, and I live in New York so that’s saying something. And why am I telling you that? Sorry.” Carson stuck out her hand, heard Brewster snarl, and drew her hand back. “Griffin’s told me a bit about both of you. It’s a pleasure to meet you. It’s true, you two could outcook the White House chef.”
“I think Jenny could, but I’m still learning the finer points,” Aimée Rose said. “So you like our cooking and you somehow hooked up with Griffin today. What happened?”