Side Story #1 - Colt - Page 49

That was caveat behind this "offer" of theirs, he supposed. It was an absurd proposal to begin with, that they would install him, a man they barely knew anything about, as the sheriff of their own town, a place that they all presumably had some manner affection for, even if only as a plaything for their amusement.

But that proposal made more sense to Colt now that they were admitting that it was no "guarantee" that he would win. They could promise to back him, but if he ended up losing, then it was no skin off their noses, was it? Hell, they would probably prefer that, unless he managed to give them the impression that he would be an obedient little lapdog.

Colt had served under men of this type before--in both the sad joke that was the Atreyan military and as a cop. So he could already tell. More than anything else, they wanted loyalty.

And sure, loyalty wasn't necessarily a terrible thing to ask for. He didn't mind being loyal. Some of his superiors had deserved it. Earned it.

But some didn't.

And given everything else that had happened to him over the years, everything that he had done, Colt was most assuredly not inclined to extend that amount of trust to these crusty old fuckers. Did they actually think that they were making a favorable first impression on him?

Hmph, they probably did. Or maybe they just didn't care.

"Isn't there a deputy who should already be in line for the position?" said Colt.

"There is," said Richardson. "Unfortunately, Mr. Hart has been on an extended leave of absence for some time now. Family issues, I heard. It's unclear when--or even if--he intends to return."

"Anyone tried calling him up?" said Colt. "Telling him what happened to his boss?"

"Tried and failed," said Davinworth. "The man can't be reached, apparently."

How convenient. "And that doesn't strike you as strange, given the circumstances?" said Colt.

The men were all quiet a moment as they exchanged looks with one another.

Fred Millerman was the one to speak up again. "Rex's relationship with Mr. Hart was strained. I believe he was looking for a replacement deputy at the time of his death. I hadn't thought it odd before, but now that you bring it up, the timing does seem a bit peculiar..."

That was new information. "What was the cause of this strain in their relationship?" asked Colt.

Fred glanced at the others and seemed suddenly hesitant. "Well, I... that is, Rex did not go into detail, but... the impression I got was that it was a financial matter."

Hmm.

"I think Mr. Hart wanted a raise, and Rex did not want to provide one," said Fred. "But that is just my guess. They seemed cordial enough whenever I saw them together, but there was a distinct... coldness between them that had not been there a year ago, I felt."

Colt really didn't want to have to hunt down this Chadwick Hart motherfucker, but it was beginning to sound like he might have to. Ugh.

"Needless to say, we have our own questions for Mr. Hart," said Richardson. "Even if he did suddenly return now, I am not sure he would be sheriff for very long. It would only be a stopgap until the next election, if that is what you are worried about."

"Mm," said Cree. "And the longer he's gone, the worse his chances of winning become."

Colt scratched his nose as he eyed them all again. He wanted to ask if it had occurred to any of them that the reason for Mr. Hart's "extended leave of absence" might be because he was fucking murdered, too.

But he resisted that urge. Other than trying to gauge their reactions, he didn't see much advantage to playing that card, right now, especially since he didn't know how dangerous these men here actually were. If Chadwick Hart was dead, then that would make this case about a thousand times worse. The cops in Lagoroc probably wouldn't be able to keep that quiet, and their investigation would very likely turn into something much serious than it currently was.

Unless they really were just corrupt as shit. Which was certainly possible, Colt supposed.

"So what do you say?" said Richardson, looking slightly more serious now. "Are you interested in taking the job? As our own personal investigator into this matter? "

Ah. Moment of truth, huh?

Frankly, this whole thing sounded like a mess and a half, and he would've preferred to just flatly refuse them. Problem was, he didn't yet know if these were the kind of guys who would actually be willing to take no for an answer. Colt had a feeling that the safest course of action here might just be to tell them yes and then skip town.

But was the safest course of action also the wisest? He didn't trust this offer of theirs at all, but dammit if it didn't still sound tantalizing. He'd invested several months into this damn town, already. The prospect of integrating into the town as its new sheriff, having a safe and welcoming community to raise the kids in...

Not to mention, a steady paycheck as well...

Well.

He could play along, for now.

"...I can't make any promises," said Colt, "but yeah, I could look into it for you."

"Aha! Excellent!" said Richardson. If things ever got too bad, Colt was prepared to pull the rip chord and just leave for good. It was a big world. He'd started over from scratch before, and he could do it again.

Richardson finally teed off. His form seemed pretty good to Colt's untrained eyes, and he sent the little white ball flying far afield. "In that case," said Richarson, "why don't we split up and take turns talking to Mr. Thompson here?"

"Good idea," said Davinworth, setting up for his own turn at the tee. "That way we won't we keep the game going in the meantime."

"Alright," added Cree.

"I'll go first, then," said Fred.

The other three men all looked at him.

"Oh?" said Richardson. "That's unlike you, Fred. Taking the initiative on us."