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“The entire town was in on it.” Sheriff Bergeron appeared with a roasted corn cob in his hand. “Best corn in the county. I was glad Burns showed up when he did, or we’d have missed the party.”
Bernie’s eyes widened. “You knew about it, too?”
The sheriff nodded. “Deputy Taylor and her friends dreamed it up after you left yesterday to deliver your melons to New Orleans.”
“Word spread so fast we were afraid it would get back to you.” Shelby grinned. “Apparently, it didn’t.”
Gerard slipped an arm around Bernie’s waist.
“Did you know about this?” she asked him.
He shook his head. “I’ve been with you all this time. But I had a feeling they were scheming when we left yesterday. I just didn’t know what it was about.”
“Come on,” Gisele said. “Join the fun.” She danced away.
As Bernie and Gerard moved through the crowd, they came upon Gerard’s teammates, drinking beer and playing a yard game, tossing bean bags onto a board with a hole in it.
“Hey, Bernie and Gerard,” Remy called out. “Come play a round of cornhole with us.”
Gerard held up a hand. “Maybe later.”
Remy turned and tossed a bean bag at the far board. It slid up to the hole but didn’t go in. “Oh! So close.” His cell phone chirped before he could throw another bag. He stepped away from the noise to answer it.
LaShawnda appeared, carrying a can of beer. “Bernie, darling, this man’s hand is empty. You gotta keep your man happy, or someone will steal him away.” She handed the beer to Gerard. “I might just be the one who steals him away.”
“He’s not mine to steal, LaShawnda,” Bernie said, watching for Gerard’s reaction out of the corner of her eye.
LaShawnda practically purred. “You mean, he’s fair game?”
Gerard shook his head. “I owe Bernie a date. Until I pay up, I’m not available.”
“What kind of date is that?” LaShawnda glanced from Gerard to Bernie and back. She tapped a long, teal acrylic fingernail against her lip. “I think there’s more to this date than you’re letting on. But LaShawnda doesn’t play with her friend’s boy toys.” She cocked an eyebrow at Gerard. “Let me know when or if you’re available again. I like playing with toys.”
“LaShawnda, you hussy, leave Bernie’s beau alone,” Shelby said.
“He’s not my beau,” Bernie tried to say, but the music got louder at the point, drowning out her words.
Remy strode back into the group gathered around the cornhole game and walked straight over to Gerard and Bernie, a frown denting his brow. “That was Hank and Swede. They finally got some information about the foot and the fingerprints.” He had to shout to be heard over the Zydeco band set up on a portable stage in the middle of the yard.
Bernie’s eyes widened. She wanted to hear what he had to say. “Come into the house,” she yelled.
Remy, Shelby, Gerard and Bernie entered the house, passing someone on the way out, carrying a six-pack of beer.
Bernie didn’t mind. It wasn’t like she had anything of value in the house.
Once inside, she closed the door. They could still hear the music, but at least it was muffled by the walls and windows.
“Start all over,” Bernie said.
Remy pulled out his cell phone. “Hank and Swede heard from the Louisiana State Crime lab. They found a match on the fingerprints from the car found crashed in the bayou. It belonged to Dean Chauvin, a thirty-eight-year-old man from New Orleans.” He held up an image of a man in a mug shot with thick, wavy dark hair, bushy eyebrows and a distinctive nose.
Bernie stared at the image for a long time. The face looked vaguely familiar, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on who it reminded her of.
“Chauvin has a rap sheet filled with minor infractions. Nothing life-changing. The problem is the group he hangs with is tagged by Homeland Security and the DEA as New Orleans mafia. He’s believed to be the grandson of Vincent Benoit, the New Orleans mafia kingpin.”
Bernie shook her head. “And he just happened to crash into Bayou Mambaloa? Why here?”
Shelby frowned. “The deputy who found the car that night said that there were two men with guns near the area where he found the car in the bayou. When he ordered them to put their hands in the air, they fired at him and then took off. They got away in another car. They could’ve run Chauvin off the road into the bayou and were looking for him when the deputy found them.”
