“What can I say? My mama taught me right.”
The store was a bit rundown but it had character. The aisles were arranged in a way that only made sense to Sue, the owner. A handful of tables were gathered in a corner where folks could sit and eat the food that was prepared in a small kitchen in the back. One of those tables had three grizzled men sitting at it. They eyed us warily as we walked by, one outright glaring as we passed.
I ignored them and headed for the counter. Sue looked up from her book. A woman in her seventies, he
r long, salt-and-pepper hair was woven into a braid that hung down her back. She wore jeans, a t-shirt, and perfectly worn boots. “Sheriff. Deputy. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
I gave her my most charming smile. “Can’t I just come for a visit? Maybe I missed you, Sue.”
“I wish you missed me.” She gave Young a wink. “This one is nothing but trouble, but he’s pretty to look at, so I don’t mind.”
Young tried in vain to hold back her laugh. “All the most dangerous ones are that way, don’t you think?”
“Truer words have never been spoken.” Sue’s expression sobered a touch as her gaze drifted to the men assembled at the table. “But since you’re both in uniform, I’m guessing you don’t need a quart of milk.”
I leaned a hip against the counter, shifting my body so I had a side-eye view of the men at the table. All three were carrying, and I had a feeling if I asked them for permits, we’d have a problem. “You hear about the young woman who was attacked at the lake?”
“The Sweeney girl, right?”
I nodded.
“She’s okay, isn’t she? I heard she got away.”
The men at the table seemed to shift with the conversation’s focus, stopping their card-playing altogether. I drummed my fingers against my thigh, my hand itching to rest on the butt of my gun. “She’s going to be just fine, thanks to the self-defense class her dad made her take.”
“Smart man. Brave girl.”
“That they are.” I focused in on Sue. “You see anyone come through here on horseback that day? Lone rider. Man. Over six feet.”
Her face carefully blanked. “You know if I start answering questions about who comes through here, I’m going to lose more than half my business.”
I raised my voice so the men at the table could easily hear. “Do you really think your customers want to protect a kidnapper? Probably a rapist?”
The largest man at the table, one who looked vaguely familiar, stood. “This about that girl?”
“It is.” My hand itched and strained, but I forced it to stay loose at my side.
“You find who did this, and we’ll be happy to take care of it for you.”
I gave him an easy smile. “I appreciate that, but I think we’re gonna do this one by the book.”
He shrugged. “Those books don’t work for a lot of folks.”
“You’re not wrong there. But I do my best to make them do their job.”
The man studied me for a moment, seeming to take my measure. “What do you want to know?”
“Looking for a lone man on horseback, around this area or the lake. You guys see anyone?”
A slender man, still sitting, snickered. “I see them all the time. Lots of folks around here prefer horseback to a car or truck.”
He was right. It was far from abnormal for someone to ride to The Post for a few groceries. Or just take off into the national forest for some time alone in nature. I scanned the men’s faces. “What about anyone who seemed off to you?”
The third man, who hadn’t said a word yet, sneered. “You seem pretty damn off to me. Sticking your nose in where it don’t belong.”
My fingers twitched. “Well, that’s a matter of opinion, isn’t it?”
“My opinion is that pigs aren’t wanted here.”