Chapter 34
Jimbo stares across the table at the man shoveling food into his face. There's barely an inch between the plate and his mouth and the fork is moving fast. He's already downed two helpings of the leftovers Jim threw in the microwave, and he bets Dickie will be asking for a third any minute.
There's no way he ever would have taken this weasel for Doyle Bennett's brother. He looks nothing like him, aside from coloring, and has none of Doyle's somewhat menacing affability. This man is crazy. He's probably a psychopath. Whether that's because of the events of the last few months, or whether he was always that way, Jimbo has no idea. He never knew Dolye's family. His friendship with the sheriff had grown out of a law enforcement seminar they attended together. Talking through the bullshit, they discovered a shared love of sports, UK sports especially. When he found Doyle to be a rabid fan impressed by his connections, he'd taken him to several football games and their outside relationship developed from there. Doyle didn't talk much about his brothers.
"Thanks for the meal." Dickie says. "I was mighty hungry."
"You want more?"
"No, no, I'm good." Dickie pushes back from the table and smacks his belly with both hands. "I'm stuffed."
"Listen," Jimbo says. "I gotta go. I got this thing I need to get to. You're more than welcome to stay, take a shower." Please take a shower, he thinks. The man smells.
"I appreciate that, I do." Dickie says. "Think I'll take you up on it."
"Fine. I'll see if I can find you some clothes. You can't walk around like that." Dickie is wearing the scrubs from the hospital, turned inside out to hide the institution's name in large block print on the shirt and the jacket fomr the guard he jumped. "How'd you get here, anyway?"
"Truckers." Dickie said. "Nice people, mostly. Told 'em my momma died and I had to get home for the funeral."
"I was sorry to hear about what happened."
"Yeah, well." Dickie stares straight ahead for a moment then slaps the top of the table hard with both hands, making Jimbo flinch. "Ha! Surprised you there. Nah. Listen, I'm gonna take care of things. I had Givens once…strung him up like a gutted deer. If it hadn't been for Boyd Crowder;" He says the name like it's a curse. "I woulda finished things then. I'm gonna get him. You wait. Make him wish he'd never heard the name Bennett. Make him wish he'd never been born."
"Okay, Dickie. I'll get some things for you and be back later tonight. Don't need to tell you not to answer the door or the phone, right?"
"I'm not stupid."
Jimbo nods, but he isn't so sure about that, and yet…he may be able to use the man to his advantage.