Page 53 of Born to Sin

“Yep,” Cash said. “That’s the idea. Shoot ’em and eat ’em. A duck’s good eating. You need a good dog for duck hunting, though. Labrador, now—that’s a good duck dog. A Labrador knows how to sit down and shut up.” Which was exactly what Beckett had thought about Bacon’s general uselessness, so why was he bristling?

“I don’t want to kill ducks.” Troy’s lower lip was trembling a bit, but he wasn’t backing down. “I like ducks. I like how they quack and walk funny, and Bacon likes to bark at them. Maybe I should get some other boots instead.”

“Nah, mate,” Beckett said. “You don’t have to kill ducks. You can wear those boots and think about their shiny green heads instead. Maybe I should look for some like that, too.” He shot a look at Cash.Back off,he did not say.I don’t care that you’re Quinn’s dad and you seem to own half the retail real estate in Montana. You don’t get to upset my boy.

“If you had the same ones,” Troy said, “we could match! And be mates.”

“We could definitely be mates,” Beckett agreed, putting a hand on Troy’s shoulder. The hell with Cash.

Cash said, “You’re going to need some flannel-lined jeans, too. Both of you. Got those in men’s and boys’. Get you some flannel shirts for winter, and chamois for you, Beckett. Chamois’s a good work shirt. We’ve got Patagonia and all that, but I say, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and chamois’s always worked for me. Save the Patagonia for the parka.”

“Cheers,” Beckett said. “I think I can find them. We’re keeping you from your work.”

Cash snorted. “If you’re too chicken to talk about my daughter, just say so.”

Right. Beckett had had enough. He said, “We’ll go find the shirts, Troy. And the jeans.”

“But then you won’t have matching boots!” Troy said.

“Yeah,” Beckett said, “I will. I’ll pick them up at the end. Here.” He threw Troy’s boot box in the trolley and headed over to the boys’ clothes. “Have a squiz at these shirts and see which colors you like. I’m going to talk to Mr. McLaughlin for a wee moment.”

“OK,” Troy said. “But there are heaps.”

“I know,” Beckett said. “Pick four colors.”

“Can I have purple?” Troy asked. “And red? Even though Janey says they’re bad?”

“Yeah,” Beckett said. “You can have whatever color you want.” Then he walked a few meters away, faced off to Cash—no surprise, he’d limped along with them—and said, “I’m going to be Quinn’s tenant. That’s it so far.”

“Oh, yeah?” Cash said. “Not how it looked like to me, when she explained how you’re moving in. Too casual, I’d call that, like she knew I’d object and she knows I’m right. How does she shut the door on you, exactly, if you’re in her house?”

“Have youmetyour daughter?” Beckett asked. A reluctant smile creased Cash’s leathery face at that, and Beckett went on. “I was married for more than ten years. I loved my wife, and I’ve got two kids I’m trying to raise to be halfway decent humans. I’m not in the habit of assaulting women, and I don’t think I’ll take it up as a hobby now. Also, the woman’s a judge and about the most take-charge person I’ve ever met, and I’m including myself in that.”

“What, she can’t be good at her job and be a good-looking woman?” Cash asked.

Was the bloketryingto drive Beckett mad, so he could witness his breaking point? He said, “Do I think she’s fit? Too right I do. Am I interested? Too right I am. If I knew what I was doing, that is, but I’m guessing it’ll come back to me in time. So far, though, she’s said no, and as far as I’m concerned, ‘no’ is a complete sentence. I’ve got a daughter.”

“So do I,” Cash said, “and when yours is a little older, you’ll find out what that means.”

“No worries,” Beckett said. “I’m already finding out.”

“Yeah?” Cash’s hard face split with a surprisingly friendly grin. Either he was liking Beckett better, or he was enjoying the thought of him suffering.

What the hell. Beckett said, “She likes this boy, Micah. Micah is an older man, which means he’s twelve and in the seventh grade, and he’s on the football team. That’s the same anywhere, I reckon, just a different sport than I’m used to. Hot boys have floppy hair and cute smiles, apparently, though I have no idea how a smile can be cute or otherwise. Micah also has a girlfriend who’s Janey’s sworn enemy and a cheerleader. It’s all pretty dramatic. Maybe Quinn will have an idea, because I don’t. She had the idea to come here and buy Janey new clothes, so that’s a start. I’d feel better, though, if I knew what it meant to have a boyfriend when you’re eleven. Think I mostly just stared at girls like they were from Mars for a good three or four years after that.”

Cash let out a reluctanthuh,which Beckett guessed was his version of laughter. “Don’t ask me. Bam did all that. I mostly just gave the guy the Death Stare when he came around, and copied down his license number so he knew I had it. I wasn’t going to clean my gun or whatever, because Bam says that’s some kind of sexist B.S., like you’re protecting your daughter’s virginity, which is bad because … something something. I figured, how about if I just protect her from you jumping her?”

“Works for me,” Beckett said.

“Gave my boy the talk, too,” Cash said. “That’s the one I knew something about. Mostly from doing the wrong thing, but, hey, I was in the Army, and then I was a bull rider. Not a lot of choirboys around those places.”

“Which could make a bloke wonder,” Beckett said, “why I’m getting the evil eye now.”

“Yeah, well, I’m guessing you were something like that,” Cash said. “Whatever the Australian version is, though they’ve got the rodeo over there, I know.”

“Surfer,” Beckett said.

“Yeah,” Cash said. “I figured. I guess you’re not too bad, but if you hurt her, I’m just saying, I don’t give a damn about Brett Hunter. Hunter showed up a couple years ago. I’ve been here all my life. If it’s a showdown, I’m betting on me.”

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