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“Oh, in Texas,” she purred. “I have a cousin there.”
“What part?”
“Near Dallas,” she said, and stopped abruptly. “But I grew up in Douglas, Arizona,” she replied. She leaned forward, grinning. “Rumor has it that my family dates to the time Pancho Villa was fighting near there, and that one of my ancestors was with Pancho at the time.”
“Wow,” Lassiter said. “Interesting ancestry there. Do you speak Spanish?”
She laughed. “Oh, yes.” She stared at him. “Do you?”
“Of a certainty. I live in Houston, but I do a good bit of work in South Texas, ranching country. It comes in handy.”
“Yes, it does.” She looked at her watch and gasped. “I have to get back to work!” she exclaimed. “I was on my lunch hour. I don’t like to cost my employer time,” she added with a sly grin.
“Two birds of a feather,” Lassiter said, and he and Cody got to their feet when she got up.
“How gentlemanly,” she said with a warm smile. “I enjoyed talking to you.”
“Same here.”
“That man the jailer spoke of, who was here for bank robbery, did you get him convicted?” she asked innocently.
“Still awaiting trial,” Cody said lazily, and didn’t give away the sudden red flag that went up at the question. He knew that she’d had contact with the jailer the night Whatley had been taken to the hospital, but he wasn’t letting on.
“Ah, the time-consuming legal process in this country,” she added, shaking her head. “In other parts of the world, such criminals are dealt with in a more timely fashion. Such is life. Nice to see you again, Sheriff. And nice to have met you, Mr....Lassiter, was it?”
He nodded and smiled. “Nice to have met you as well.”
“I will be seeing you,” she told Cody, going close and smiling up at him. “You don’t mind if I drop in from time to time?”
He cleared his throat. She smelled delicious. “Not at all.”
She smiled at him again, waved as she went out the door.
“NOW,THATWASINTERESTING,” Lassiter said when she’d gone.
“What part?”
“Do you know anything about perfumes or colognes for women?”
Cody thought about that for a minute. “Abby said something about the cologne that was on my shirt. She said I smelled of Nina Ricci, whoever that is.”
Lassiter chuckled. “It’s not a person, it’s a fragrance. Coincidentally, my sister’s favorite. Expensive as hell, too. She orders her soaps from Paris and they’re about forty bucks a pop,” he added, making Cody’s eyebrows lift. “Interesting, isn’t it, that your trooper friend can afford a fragrance like that on a trooper’s pay?”
“Even more interesting,” Cody replied, “that she had contact with the jailer the night Whatley went to the hospital. The jailer brought him an opened soft drink.”
“Nita Whatley said that a pretty blonde woman from South America used to come to see Bobby Grant at her house.”
The sheriff nodded. “Interesting connections.”
“I’m beginning to see a few of my own.”
“So am I. I think I’d better add on a couple of men to hang around the office when I’m not in it.”
“That’s not a bad idea. This Grant man is more slippery than an eel. He managed to wriggle his way out of a murder accusation in Denver. I’d imagine he’s been in scrapes even before that. He does have that prior for assault that he spent two years in stir with,” Lassiter added thoughtfully. “I have some friends who owe me a favor,” he added. “Let me contact them and get a man up here to keep the office going when you aren’t here.”
“I’m not sure our budget will run to...” Cody began.
Lassiter held up a hand. “It won’t cost you a penny,” he said, grinning. “They owe me a favor and this is where I need it.”
