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“Good grief,” Lo
He flipped the pages, thumbing through all eight sheets of the subpoena itself before seeing the first page with any data worth looking at.
Neoprint for profile 149230525 taken on 2012-10-09 for dates (2012-07-01 thru 2012-10-08)
He read the details aloud as his eyes scrolled down the page. “Let’s see...Name, Jesse Simmons. Recent Login IP address, email addresses, member since January 2008, born November 11, 1989, scree
As Lo
“Mornin’, Freeman,” Lo
“Mornin’, Sheriff. Just heard that the National Hurricane Center said the hurricane has strengthened and may actually make landfall near Sava
Lo
“Sava
“1890s is what they said on the TV,” Freeman said. “At least not a major one.”
“What are they saying about this one?” Lo
“Saying it’s looking like it’s go
“At least?” Lo
“Yep, maybe even a five,” Freeman said. “They’re already asking folks to evacuate the islands down there. That’s a long way from here, Sheriff, but I figure a lot of folks will want to volunteer to help out if needed.”
“Did you happen to see what path they’re projecting the storm to travel?” Lo
“Well, their map shows it hittin’ the Georgia coast tomorrow late afternoon or early evening, then heading up toward north Georgia or western North Carolina early Friday morning. Course they say there’s still a lot of leeway.”
Lo
“Them weather guys are always saying that, ain’t they?” Freeman asked.
“Saying what?”
“That there’s a lot of leeway. Lots of variables. That way they can be right no matter what way the wind blows.”
“I reckon so,” Lo
Freeman stood opposite Lo
“Holy sh—” Freeman started and stopped, remembering that Sheriff Lo
“That, Mr. Bishop, is one of the missing boys we’re looking for, Jesse Simmons.”
“Yeah, but where is that? I mean, look at the size of that boar!” Freeman said. He invited himself around the desk to get a better look.
“Son of a–” Freeman began before biting down on his lip. “You don’t wa
Lo
“I been on some of them hunts,” Freeman said. “Was on one when one of the boars, just like that ’un, killed a fella.”
“What? Where was that?” Lo
“I don’t believe that for a second,” Lo
“You better believe it!” Freeman said. “Arkansas. Five of us was on a huntin’ trip ’bout twenty years ago. 1993 I think. We’s all chasing after some pigs that had been ripping up cornfields. The fella that got killed was older...‘bout 65 I reckon, and he owned that cornfield we were huntin’. Don’t remember his first name but they called him Hopkins, which I sorta figure was his last name.”
Freeman paused and reflected on the story. Lo
Freeman grabbed the sheriff’s right arm and looked him in the eye. “I’m tellin’ ya that was a dag blam 150 grain bullet and it just flat out bounced off his shield!”
“Shield?” Lo
Freeman loosened his grip and remembered where he was. “Them boars grow these thick shields, Sheriff, ’bout a two inch plate of cartilage over and around their shoulders. That way the tusks from the other boars don’t bother them none. Them shields can flat out stop an arrow, Sheriff, and if that boar’s big and mean enough, it can stop a 30.06!”
Lo
“Anyway, I hit this thing and it took off into the cornfield. We had a fella with a huntin’ dog and he sent it off after the boar. Then he and another fella chased after the dog while this fella Hopkins, me, and one other stayed back. After a couple of minutes we hear this scream from the cornfield and see that dog come ru
Lo
“It was starting to get a little dark so we all tried to doctor up that fella’s leg. All of us, that is, ’cept Hopkins. That old coot took off in the cornfield after that boar, all by hisself. Heck, we didn’t even know he’s gone ’til we heard this god-awful scream for help. Me and one other fella ran out to find him and he’s just laying there, blood gushing out from just above his knee.”
“We called the ambulance and it didn’t take ’em more than ten minutes to get there. But that boar had hit a major artery and that old fella bled to death right there in his own cornfield.”
Lo
“It took us two more days but we found that boar,” Freeman said. “Killed him myself. And let me tell you, Sheriff, I stood twenty yards away and watched him die. He was good and dead for half an hour before I had the courage to walk over and check. This thing had two six-inch rippers...bottom tusks if you wa
Freeman stood, shaking his head. “That thing, dead or not, nearly scared the life out of me. And he looked a lot like that thing right there!” Freeman put his finger emphatically down on the Facebook picture of Jesse standing behind Eduardo just after he had killed him.
“Where was that picture taken, Sheriff?”
“Don’t know, Freeman. This here’s a picture from the missing boy’s Facebook account. They—you know what Facebook is?”
Freeman looked at Lo
Lo
Freeman leaned over and examined the black and white photocopy closely. “Heck, Sheriff, that could be most anywhere. Some thick woods it looks like but that could be from Alabama to Maine.”