Page 1 of Refuge for Flora

Chapter 1

He turned the key and… nothing happened. “Well, shit.” That meant getting off the thing and tinkering around, something he really didn’t have time for.Probably the spark plug, he told himself as he took things apart and put them back together. It would be dark soon, and there was no way he could get the damn thing running before then. It was supposed to have headlights, but of the two, only one worked, and it was about as bright as a pen light.

“You ‘bout got that done?” a thready, high-pitched voice called out.

He dragged the back of his hand across his brow to wipe the sweat away from his eyes. “I’m sorry, Mrs.Murphy, but there’s no way. I think the spark plug is fouled and it’s gonna be too dark to fix it by the time I can get to town and buy another one.”

“Reckon you’ll have to finish it tomorrow. Don’t want my yard lookin’ like shit.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He wanted to yell,Thank you for ordering me around, seeing as how you’re not paying me!The old woman had lived there for as long as he could remember, and she was getting pretty feeble. Most folks had stopped doing anything for her because she was so damn hard to get along with, but Barrett had gone to school with her grandson, and the boy had been killed in a motorcycle accident. There was an older girl, but Barrett hadn’t heard anything about her in ages. Without any family to help Mrs.Murphy, he felt it was the least he could do. His mama had raised him right.

He pushed the mower into the barn and closed the door. It was time to take a shower, get dressed for bed, and watch a little TV before he fell asleep. Morning would come and he had a long workday ahead of him.

All his life, he’d heard people talk about waking up in a new world every day. It never occurred to him that someday, it would be the perfect description of the life he had loved.

* * *

“What does it look like?”

“I thought it was a hawk, but it’s not. It’s got a long, pointy beak, but it’s a big bird, and?”

“It’s a woodcock.”

There was a pause and the man’s voice said, “A woodcock.” Barrett waited, and he knew exactly what was happening?a Google search. “Oh, yeah. I see the picture. Yeah, that’s what it is. So it’s in my grill, and there’s a hunting season, so I thought I’d better call.”

“Yeah, but you can just throw it away. But I do appreciate you trying to do the right thing,” Barrett said, glancing at his watch since his phone was up to his ear.

“Thanks so much, sir,” the man said.

“You’re very welcome. Have a nice day.” At least the guy had been friendly and polite, and he was trying to do the right thing.

Dealing with the public. That was the part of the job he hated most. He didn’t want to sound like an asshole, but people were stupid. He hadn’t realized how stupid they were until he took that job. After he’d slipped his phone back into his pocket, he adjusted his tool belt before he climbed back into the big four-wheel drive truck. He’d no more than started the vehicle than his radio squawked.

“KDFWR unit four twelve, this is dispatch. Over.”

He picked up his mic and keyed it up. “Dispatch, unit four twelve responding.”

“Four twelve, officer assist needed at the back side of the old mill on OaksRoad. Repeat,

officer assist needed at the back side of the old mill on OaksRoad. Copy?”

“Copy that, dispatch. Four twelve en route. Out.” Barrett wheeled the truck out onto the road, throwing gravel as he went. It wasn’t far, just a few miles, and he wondered what was going on.

As soon as he pulled up, he was met by KirbyWhite. “Hey, what’s up?”

Kirby pointed up the hill. “You ain’t gonna believe this, but on top of that hill there’s a big pen full of coyotes. Some of the neighbors called and complained, said there was a lot of noise. They think the guy who’s living there is trying to breed the coyotes to dogs he’s got up there.”

Barrett glared at him. “You’re not serious.”

“Absolutely am.” The other officer standing there was FrankieElliott, a deputy sheriff with the McCrackenCounty Sheriff’s Department. “I climbed up the hill and checked it out. But let me tell you, I think there are some booby traps and shit up there.”

“You think they’re doing more than just illegally breeding wild canines to domesticated?” Barrett asked, knowing the answer.

Frankie nodded. “Oh, yeah. Pretty sure there’s a meth lab up there.”

“So why can’t you guys bust them for meth?”

“We’re going to, but we need wildlife officers there to handle the animals. Animal control won’t touch them.”

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