Page 20 of His Virgin Vessel

Chapter Eight

Asa

It will most likely come as no great surprise to you to learn that this was not my first time in jail. My first time was when I was sixteen, and I'd spent a few uncomfortable nights there since. Still, even with my line of employment, the longest I'd spent inside was six months, which wasn’t bad when you thought about it. Unfortunately, this time was looking quite a bit longer, and I couldn't see any obvious way out of it. If Dugas had my Black Book, then I'd be behind bars for years. It wasn’t a prospect I relished.

I was sitting on the floor of the cell in the local jail, wishing I had a baseball so I could work on my Steve McQueen impersonation, when I heard a door open down the corridor and the sound of footsteps coming my way.

Sheriff Brian Dugas stopped in front of my cell and turned to his deputy.

"Step outside for a minute, Crucero."

Deputy Crucero gave me a black look but did as he was told.

"Good evening, Sheriff." No harm in being polite.

"Mr. Covert." Dugas couldn't keep the hatred out of his voice, but I couldn't really blame him. We were on opposite sides of the law, natural enemies, and that was that. I think we both understood that and maybe each grudgingly respected the other. I might not like Brian Dugas, but I knew he wasn't crooked. He might bend the rules, but he never broke them. You couldn't bribe Brian Dugas. By the same token, he might have despised everything I represented, but Dugas knew that I wouldn't hurt women, children, or the elderly. I didn't sell drugs to kids, and I didn't make demands on those who couldn’t afford it.

But two nights ago, the dynamic between us changed when he caught me and Corinne coming out of that closet. I was genuinely sorry to see Crucero go because, if he could get away with it, I had a feeling Brian Dugas wouldn't mind stringing me up and claiming I hung myself. I'd had run-ins with a few angry fathers in the past (also boyfriends and husbands), but I'd never had a father walk in just after I've deflowered a girl. I could claim ignorance, but I couldn't see Dugas believing me. My best hope was that he didn't know himself.

Dugas spoke. "My daughter seems to have a bit of a thing for you."

"It's not going to matter where I'm going, is it?" I pointed out.

Dugas pulled a wooden chair from by the wall and sat down. He looked tired. "There's men on death row who get married now. They get hundreds of proposals a week. Something to do with the glamor of the criminal. I can't see it myself, but there it is. And now, thanks to those bleeding-heart human rights lobbyists, they all have to have conjugal visits. You should see the queues of women. When I think that there are murderers and rapists who are having more sex in a week than I've had since my wife left, it makes me wonder why the hell I bother enforcing the law."

This was more of a heart to heart than I had expected, and I decided to just let him talk it out.

"I don't want my Corinne spending her days hanging around prisons to see you."

"She won't." I said it, but I wasn't sure.

"She will," said Dugas. "She's a loyal girl. And she's got it bad for you. Plus, she knows how angry it'd make me. She'll be there every visiting day, every ... conjugal day, and she'll be there to meet you when you come out. Stupid kid loves to play with fire. A boyfriend in prison is what she's wanted her whole damn life."

"Not much I can do to stop her." I didn't say it as if I was forcing his hand. I just said it.

"No." Dugas spat the word. "In fact, it has become obvious to me that, when it comes to Corinne, having you inside is worse for me than having you out. Because when you're inside, you can't run off and leave her."

He had been staring at the floor, but now he looked up. "We're both men here, so let's speak plainly. You know I've got you, right? You know you're going down."

I nodded slowly.

"I'm willing to drop it."

My eyes widened as he spoke.

"And I'll turn a blind eye to the hooch and to the protection racket, provided the only people you're menacing are other criminals."

"If?" I asked.

"You stay away from Corinne," said Dugas, and I could hear the earnestness in his voice. "More than that—drive her away. Let her know that she means less than nothing to you. That she was just a ..." he swallowed as he used awkward words to describe his daughter, "just a fuck. Break her heart quick to save her having it broken slow, and ruining her life in the bargain."

Of course, unbeknownst to Brian Dugas, he and I were on the same side in this. What he was telling me to do, I had already done and would have continued to do. I didn't want ruin her life either, and that girl was definitely in way over her head with me. He was offering me a deal in which I gave up absolutely nothing. I felt a bit smug and managed not to grin as I nodded.

"We'll shake on it," said Dugas. "Like men."

We did so.

Dugas unlocked my cell. "You're free to go."

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