Page 67 of Faking I Do
“I told you, I’m not going to fix the election. Now, why don’t you come clean with me and tell me exactly what’s been going on?”
“That won’t be necessary.” Mayor Little swiveled around in a chair, a thick cigar clenched between his teeth. “We’ve got some business to discuss.”
“What’s this?” I spread my hands. “I told you, I’m not selling out to Swynton. I don’t care about the sheriff’s job. Just tell me what your involvement is in the cigar-smuggling ring. If all goes well I can use the info you give me as a bargaining chip and we can figure out who’s at the top of the line.”
“Deputy Phillips,”—Mayor Little stood—“you may want to rethink your options.”
My head shook from side to side. “I’ve made my decision. The cigar ring is going down.”
“Even if it means taking your entire family with it?” Buck’s eyes gleamed.
“Dad? Want to tell me exactly what your role is in this? Who are you working with?”
My father didn’t speak but the look in his eyes said more than if he’d launched into a long-winded explanation.
I turned my attention to Buck. “You seem to be running the show. Why don’t you tell me exactly what’s going on?”
“Oh, I will. But first we need to make sure you’re not going to do anything with the information we share. A little insurance, if you will.” Buck slid his phone out of his pocket.
“What’s he talking about, Dad?”
“I didn’t mean for it to come to this.” Dad hung his head. I had never seen him look so haunted, so wrung out, so low.
If I thought my dad and pops had been messing around, my mind was completely blown by the image staring back at me from Mayor Little’s phone screen. Lacey stared into the camera, her eyes smudged with makeup from crying, her cheeks stained pink, probably from shock and embarrassment.
“Where did you get your hands on that?” I asked.
“I happen to have a penchant for mug shots. You think the people of Idont?—”
“She’s changing the name to Ido,” I corrected.
“Doesn’t matter. When the folks see their beloved mayor splashed across the front page of the paper they won’t care what name she wanted to call the town. I can see it now.” Buck lifted a hand and made his point by punching the air with his palm. “Small-town Texas mayor arrested for assaulting an officer.”
My hands clenched into fists at my sides. I couldn’t overreact. That would just fuel whatever fire Buck had started building. “What do you want?”
“I think you know, son.” Buck slid his phone back inside his linen blazer.
“Fine, the beavers are yours. Cigars, too. I’ll go get them tonight and meet you wherever you want.” I couldn’t let Lacey take the fall for something my family had started, not even if I went down with them.
Buck waved the notion away like a pesky fly. “That’s the least of it.”
“Then what?” I spread my arms wide, at a loss. Obviously Buck was in charge of whatever my dad and pops were involved in. What more could he want than the damn cigars?
Buck tapped his cigar against the ashtray on my dad’s desk. “Find anything interesting while you were digging around in the yard the other night?”
My forehead creased and I rubbed at a knot in my shoulder as I tried to make sense of Buck’s question. “I was filling in holes from the armadillos.”
“You sure those critters are what made those holes?” Buck kicked his feet up on the edge of the desk, making it crystal clear who was running the show.
“You buried something in the yard, didn’t you?” I stepped forward and slammed my hand down on the desk. “You sick sonofabitch. There’s something out there you can’t get your hands on now, isn’t there?”
Buck tapped a finger to his forehead as he cast a long look at my dad. “I knew you got the smarts in the family.”
“What’s out there?” I crossed my arms over my chest, my patience for Buck’s style of fun and games quickly dissipating.
“I want to make you an offer. You get me what I want and I don’t leak your girlfriend’s picture to the AP. Sound good?” Buck offered a hand.
I ignored it. “I’m not willing to consider any kind of offer until you tell me everything.”
