Page 19 of Chasing Justice
“Always do.” Cody smirked. He rubbed a lime on the back of his hand between his thumb and index finger, stuck it in salt, licked his hand, then threw back the shot and sucked on the lime. He grinned at Maya and said, “Lip, sip, suck, fed. Does tequila make your clothes fall off?”
Maya rolled her eyes and said, “Check, please.” She pulled a twenty out of her wallet and waited for the bill, irritated that Cody had ruined her night.
“Feds are worthless pieces of crap. Why did someone hot like you decide to become one?” Cody asked.
Maya continued to ignore him. Nothing good would come from engaging Cody. Ninety-nine percent of the time, she would try reasoning with a person who was being hostile. Cody, though, was that one percent where talking wouldn’t work.
She stood up while she waited for her check. If she remained sitting, she was at a disadvantage if Cody engaged her.
“Shut up, Cody,” Jenna said from the booth. “Leave her alone.”
“You’re friends with this fed, aren’t you? I forgot about that,” Cody said.
Maya continued to grip her beer and stare straight ahead. She slugged back the final bit in the bottle and Mr. Williams came over with the check. “Let it go, Maya,” he said.
“I know,” she said. “I’m doing my best.”
As Maya was setting her twenty on the counter to pay, Cody asked for another shot.
“Go sit with your sister and I’ll bring it over to you,” Mr. Williams said to Cody, as he went to the cash register to get Maya’s change.
Maya hoped that Cody would listen and go sit with Jenna, but of course he didn’t. Instead, he came closer. Maya could smell a mix of tequila and chewing tobacco on his breath. A little bit of brown spit lined his lip. Disgusted, she stared straight ahead, focusing on all the bottles up on the bar. She began reading them one by one—Jack. Knob Creek. Maker’s Mark.
When she got to the high-end whiskey, Cody opened his mouth again. “You and your pig of a grandfather better watch out. We don’t like your kind.”
Jenna stood up and marched over to the bar. “Stop being so stupid, Cody,” she said, grabbing his arm and then saying to Maya, “Sorry, he’s just being an ass. He’s drunk and looking for a fight.”
The door behind Maya opened and closed again. Someone else had walked in the bar and was now strolling their direction. She peered over her shoulder and saw a small blonde lady. She wasn’t anyone Maya knew. The lady focused on Cody and Jenna. She wore jeans similar to those at Doug’s house, but didn’t look like someone who fit in with the Rays. Her clothes were ranch-style, but new and clean. They didn’t have the wear and tear that came from hard work wrangling cattle, moving hay and all the other labor that came with owning a ranch. Her boots were new and spotless. She seemed more like a tourist trying to fit in. But based on Jenna’s and Cody’s body language and annoyed expressions, the Rays obviously knew her. And she knew them.
If this person was connected to the Rays, Maya was now outnumbered three to one. She needed backup. Now. “Mr. Williams, can you call 9-1-1 and ask for a deputy to come?”
Mr. Williams nodded in agreement and headed for the phone.
Cody staggered back over next to Maya’s bar stool and grabbed her forearm. His hand was smooth and soft, not the rough callused feel of someone who did ranch work. It showed he was spoiled and never lifted a finger. Maya’s reflexes kicked in as Cody grabbed her and spun her around, grabbing onto the front of her shirt. “You need to look at me. I’m talking to you.”
“You better back off, Cody. Think this through. You really want to start a fight with an officer?”
“Screw you,” Cody said.
“Just remember, you asked for this,” Maya said, as she blocked his arm with her left hand and then made a fist with her right hand, punching him as hard as she could in the solar plexus to knock the wind out of him. She wanted to create space between her and Cody for her safety. And his.
With a grunt, Cody staggered back and fell on the floor littered with peanut shells.
“You were saying?” Maya asked, staring at Cody’s thin body. Yes, he was definitely the same size as the suspect at the cabin.
The new blonde and Jenna rushed over and grabbed Cody, heaving him to his feet. They stomped toward the front door, dragging Cody between them. Maya could still hear him whining, but before going out the door, Cody yelled, “You’ll get what’s coming to you, fed! You and your asshole grandfather.”
Maya didn’t answer. She stood her ground, making sure that they were gone before she turned back around. Maybe she could have one more beer in silence, but Mr. Williams handed Maya her change and said, “I think you should head home too. The Rays won’t forget this. I don’t need that headache tonight.”
“He grabbed me first,” Maya said, wanting to make sure she had a witness on her side just in case the Rays called her boss.
“I know. I saw that, but I also think it’s time for you to go home.”
Mr. Williams’s expression was serious. Maya grabbed her cash and thanked him. As she walked out the door, the sun was setting, and the light bounced over the mountain peaks. Maya put on her sunglasses and saw Cody, Jenna, and the mystery woman at a black truck that looked exactly like the one that had passed her and Doug yesterday. The one that threw the rock on the windshield and made her startle.
Maya pulled out her cell phone and took some quick pictures. She changed angles and made sure she had the license plate in one so she could run it later. Maybe the truck was connected to the explosion. It wouldn’t surprise Maya if Cody was running drugs, but he wasn’t smart enough to make them. Was he smart enough to set bombs?
Maya’s view was suddenly blocked by a white Tahoe that saidWestern River County Sheriff. The window rolled down and Josh was inside. He grinned.
