Devil’s Claw

“Come in,” Joa

Frank Montoya poked his head around the door. “Time for the morning briefing?” he asked, waving a fistful of manila folders.

“Past time,” Joa

“I guess you didn’t have a chance to have that little chat with Deputy Gregovich and Kristin,” Frank suggested tentatively.

“But I did talk to them,” Joa

“Well,” Frank said. “It doesn’t appear that your talk did much good. You’d better give it another shot. When I came into the outer office just now, I caught them in the middle of a great big smooch. They broke it off, but they didn’t even have brains enough to look guilty about it.”

“Kristin Marsten and Deputy Gregovich aren’t guilty, Frank. They’re pregnant. They spent yesterday afternoon finding out for sure that it was more than just a late period and deciding whether or not to have an abortion. I think we can say Kristin was legitimately sick even if she wasn’t home when you went by to check. They were in Tucson seeing a doctor from Pla

“Whoa! I’d guess that means you’re not going to fire them.”

“And I’d guess you’re right. I told them no more monkey business at work or during business hours, but we can probably overlook an engagement-launching smooch. Now let’s get down to business. What happened overnight?”

For the next forty-five minutes, Joa

“And here’s the information you wanted me to find,” Frank Montoya said when they had finally worked their way down to the last folder in his stack.

“What’s that?” Joa

“Faxes of the newspaper clippings on the Thomas Ridder shooting. I also found out why he got thrown out of the army. He decked a superior officer.”

“So at least he didn’t discriminate,” Joa

Frank frowned. “What do you mean by that?”

“Most of the men who beat up their wives don’t have balls enough to pick on someone their own size who might hit back.”

“Maybe you’re the one who’s discriminating, Joa

“Point taken,” Joa

“Ernesto poked his head in my office a little while ago and told me to tell you the water is from Tucson. He said you’d know what he meant, but I don’t.”

“The water in the jugs with no fingerprints,” Joa

“I see what you mean,” Frank said. “Most of the UDAs are walking north, not south. So what else is going on that I don’t know about?”

“Dr. Daly came down from Tucson yesterday and did Clayton Rhodes’ second autopsy.”

“And?”

“And nothing. She came up with the same results Doc Winfield did-cerebral hemorrhage.”

“That’s a relief then,” Frank said. “At least we won’t have to have the FBI snooping around here and sticking their noses into everybody’s business. I wasn’t looking forward to that.”

“Neither was I,” Joa

“And we’ll also have Reba Singleton off our backs.”

“Right.”

Frank was up and on his way to the door when Joa

“They took off for Tucson first thing this morning,” Frank told her. “They had an appointment with Melanie Goodson. They were also going to take the slug that killed Sandra Ridder up to the Department of Public Safety satellite crime lab in Tucson. Why, do you have something for them?”

“I talked to Melanie Goodson myself yesterday afternoon,” Joa

“What do you want Ernie and Jaime to do about it?”

“I want them to bear that in mind when they talk to her. And when they finish up with everything else, I want them to go out to Melanie’s neighborhood on Old Spanish Trail and check it out. There’s always a chance that one of her neighbors saw or heard something unusual.”

“There’s a chance,” Frank Montoya agreed. “But not a very big one. If I were you, I wouldn’t hold my breath.”

The moment Frank left Joa

“I hope you’re happy,” Eleanor Lathrop said. “I don’t see how the Dixons could have felt very welcome when you and George and Frederick locked yourselves up in the kitchen that way. I suppose it could have been worse, though. If you had come outside and started discussing all those gruesome things…”

“Mother, look,” Joa

“I’m glad you liked them,” Eleanor sniffed. “The food was all right, but the atmosphere was so thick you could have cut it with a knife. Why, even Eva Lou was snappish with Maggie when she and Jim Bob were getting ready to leave.”

She was snappish a lot earlier than that, Joa

Joa

“All Maggie did was ask a few questions about Andy-nothing out of line as far as I could see, but all of a sudden Eva Lou stands up and says, ”I can’t imagine why you’d be asking such a personal question.“ It was an answer straight out of ”Dear Abby,“ and I was absolutely floored. Can you imagine Eva Lou being so… well…” Eleanor Winfield paused as she groped for the proper word. “So outspoken,” she finished at last.

When it comes to Maggie Dixon, Joa