Lethal Lineage by Charlotte Hinger Page B

that comes with wealth. And Keith, because he had risen up from sheer force of will. He could, by God, simply make things go his way.
    So we spoke of normal things. Spring things. Gaily joking about it being the time of year when the tumbleweeds come and beat my tulips to death. His eyes shone at the prospect of lambing time for some of our neighbors. Our stubborn buffalo grass would soon be greening up.
    “I’m going into the courthouse today. I didn’t see yesterday’s mail?” A question, not a statement.
    “Damn. I forgot. I’ll get it right now.” He headed out the door. Our mailbox at the end of our lane was assembled from yard art and featured a cowboy with a rifle slung over his shoulder cradling the mailbox under one arm.
    I went back upstairs to make the bed and put on make-up. “Lottie!” Keith bellowed at the bottom of the stairs. “You need to read this. Right now.”
    I bounded down the stairs.
    “What?”
    Silently, he handed me a folded piece of paper. It did not have a stamp or postmark. Someone had put it directly into the box. It had been printed off a computer onto the kind of white paper nearly everyone bought from Wal-Mart. I read the blunt message.
    “You have no business trying to get rid of Sheriff Deal. He’s a fine man. He has a family. Cease and desist or you’ll be sorry. P.S. We mean business.”
    I looked up. “Deal’s relation, no doubt.”
    “Those people can be nasty, Lottie. Just because they’re dumb, doesn’t mean they’re not dangerous.” He slapped a rolled magazine against his thigh. He brushed a lock of his hair from his forehead and reread the letter. “Can’t tell if this is intended for you, me, or both of us.”
    I shrugged. “I’m not going to let it bother me.” I turned and started back up the stairs.
    “Wait a minute. We need to talk.”
    I came back down.
    He waved the letter. “This is the last straw.”
    “Keith, it’s not that big a deal.”
    “I’ve been mulling things over ever since Irwin threw you and Josie in jail. We always end up making fun of the bastard and leaving it at that. That was one of the reasons I was so upset over the YouTube video. It diminished him to some kind of harmless buffoon. He’s not.”
    The morning sun streamed through the window, highlighting his light brown hair.
    “I thought you were mad simply because we did it.”
    “I was. Still am. But mainly because you didn’t seem to understand that it’s a mistake to cross that family.”
    “Listen! He crossed me first.”
    He held up his palm gesturing me to stop. “I don’t want to get into an argument about that video.”
    “Good.”
    “It’s time we started taking that man seriously. I’m going to put an end to this.”
    “How? This isn’t the Wild West, you know.”
    “I’m going to help Josie and get behind the recall election one hundred percent. We’re going to put that whole ignorant clan in their place.”
    “OK.” This was clearly a pronouncement. A decision he’d come to before the “last straw” letter came. He had no intention of talking it over with me. I smiled at the image of Keith and Josie working together. Superman and Wonder Woman on the High Plains.
    The phone rang. I sighed and went into the kitchen to answer it. Sam again. I listened as Keith watched my face.
    “Trouble?” he asked when I hung up.
    “You could call it that, but it might be a blessing. Troy called in sick again today, and I think Sam is getting ready to fire him. He’s simply not working out. He wanted the job, or at least the badge. Just the badge probably. Without all the piss-ant duties that go with it.”
    Keith smiled.
    “Now I’ll have to sheriff again this afternoon and I wanted to spend the whole day at the historical society. I have a whole stack of family histories piled up, and we have to get new pages to the printer by Friday.”
    On the drive into town I went over all the events of the past two days. Absolutely nothing made sense. Not Mary