Now Pete looked very nervous. “I don’t want’a say.”
“Well, you’re going to have to overcome that,” said Robie, pressing the muzzle tighter against the young man’s head.
“Okay, okay. He had a shack at the back of his property.”
“I know. I’ve seen it. It’s still there.”
“Right. And it was secluded. He…he let this guy bring the kids there.”
“And he was paid for it?”
“Yeah.”
“Why would a rich guy put himself in your dad’s power like that?”
“He told Dad he was bringing his girlfriends over. That wasn’t so bad, I guess. Men back then screwed around as a matter of course. I mean this was a long time ago.”
“They still screw around, as a matter of course,” noted Reel.
“But your dad found out it wasn’t grown women having consensual sex?”
“He started watchin’ the place. He saw the kids. He got hold of some pictures. Then he started blackmailin’ the dude.”
“Enough to set him up in business with the Rebel Yell casino?”
“Pretty much how it was,” admitted Pete.
“And his first wife. The one that was in court?” asked Robie. “Did she know?”
“I don’t know. Dad never said. Swear to God.”
“But she must have known his money didn’t come from oil and gas rights on their land. Since no one did even any exploratory work there.”
“I guess that’s right.”
“And your mother, did she know about this?”
“We never talked about it. But I don’t think she did. My mom wouldn’t have liked that at all. She’s a good Christian. Goes to church every Sunday.”
“Well, maybe she did know and that’s why they divorced,” pointed out Robie.
&nb
sp; “Could be,” conceded Pete.
“Which brings us back to the photos. How did your dad meet someone like Wendell?” asked Robie. “He’s rich and your dad was poor back then.”
“Well, back then Wendell wasn’t as rich. He and my dad run into each other some way. My old man didn’t want to be a farmer his whole life. He was always anglin’ for a way to get rich. And Wendell had money. Family money.” He looked up at the Willows. “Like the folks who owned this place did.”
Robie followed his gaze. “The Barksdales?”
“Yeah.”
“You know what happened to them?”
“Not really. I remember my dad talkin’ about them a few times. He said they just upped and left. Nobody knew they were even gone till the house come on the market for sale.” He looked around. “Pretty out of the way. Folks don’t come ’round here ’less they’re visitin’, and apparently folks didn’t visit much with the Barksdales.”
“Did you know them? Laura and her brother, Emmitt,” said Robie. “You ever see them in town?”
“No, I think they were gone before I was even born.”
“Did your father know Henry Barksdale, the father?”
“If he did he never said so to me.”
“How’d your dad get the pictures?”
Pete looked away.
Robie raised his gun again but Pete put up his hands. “Okay, okay. Dad told me he had a deal with the man who took the pictures.”
“What sort of deal?”
“He’d give my dad the pictures if he never told about him being involved in all…that stuff.”
“So this other guy was into kiddies, too?” said Reel.
“Yeah. I guess.”
“And he gave Sherman Clancy pictures of Nelson Wendell with the kids so Clancy wouldn’t rat him out for what he was doing?”
“That’s right.”
Robie absorbed all of this and said, “Do you know who the other guy was?”
“Dad never said.”
“I’ll ask you one more time. Do you know who the other guy was?”
“No, I swear. I don’t. I wish I did, but I don’t. I just knew about Wendell.”
“And you communicated with Wendell’s people because you wanted to keep the cash coming in?” said Robie.
“Well, you seen the house and everythin’. It’s all goin’ to hell. Dad’s bank accounts are cleaned out. Son of a bitch spent every last dime he had. I can’t even afford gas for my Porsche. What was I supposed to do?”
“Oh, I don’t know, how about get a job?” said Reel disgustedly.
He said angrily, “Hey, I grew up kind’a rich. Didn’t prepare me for workin’ for a livin’. Not my fault.”
Reel looked at Robie. “Can I just shoot him anyway?”
Robie said, “Where can we find Nelson Wendell?”
“At a cemetery over in Tupelo.”
Robie looked stunned. “You’re saying he’s dead?”
“Yep. He died ’bout a month before my daddy did.”
“So it wasn’t Wendell you were communicating with? And it wasn’t Wendell who sent the goons after you. So who was it?”
“Coastal is looking to go on the New York Stock Exchange.”
“How do you know that?” asked Robie.
“Looked it up.” Pete added defiantly, “I took a semester of business classes at the community college. I’m no dumbass.”
“Okay, Mr. Business, how does that tie into all this?”
“Well, Nelson Wendell ran Coastal right up to his death. So’s I bet the company don’t want all this crap comin’ out about Wendell. It might mess up the deal. Could cost the family billions. And a public shamin’ on top of it.”
“So it’s the family that’s coming after you?” said Reel.
“Guess they didn’t like my proposal. Thought they’d get the pictures and send me on into the hereafter without payin’ me one dime, the pathetic jerks.”
Reel said incredulously, “And this possibility hadn’t occurred to you?”
“Look, this blackmail crap is new to me, okay? My old man made it look easy.”
Reel sighed and looked at Robie. “What the hell do we do with him?”
Robie said, “Why did you come here, Pete?”
“Heard you were here. I need protection.”
“And why is that our problem?”
He started speaking fast. “I’m a material witness. I can talk about stuff that’ll get your dad off. Lots of folks had reason to kill my old man. But if I get killed, all that goes away.”
Now Robie sighed. “Okay, we’ll take you down to the police station where you can make a full statement and they can protect you.”
“But I won’t get in no trouble, right?”
“That’s not up to me, but I suppose if you cooperate they’ll overlook certain things.”
“Look, man, I ain’t goin’ to jail. I can’t be in no box.”
“You’re lucky you’re not in a coffin,” said Reel. “Because you are that stupid.”
“Sticks and stones,” said Pete smugly.
Reel pressed the muzzle of her gun against his forehead and the smug look vanished.
She said, “Let me make this as clear as possible. I don’t care if you get killed. I might end up being the one to pull the trigger, actually. But you are in way over your head. So you better drop the smartass routine and start treating this situation like it’s life and death. And in your case my money’s on death.”
She stepped back, holstered her weapon, turned, and walked off, leaving Pete Clancy looking like he might be sick to his stomach.