"you'd damn better have a good explanation lieutenant!" i yelled.

"cuff him. sorry miss, i'm leuitenant oster, i'm taking sypes in for questioning."

"you don't need cuffs for questioning! mr. sypes came in on his own accord."

"these are my orders, deputy."

"who issued them!" i shouted.

"commissioner jorden."

"is terry under arrest?"

"house arrest."

"you don't use hand cuffs for house arrest, lieutenant."

"shut up!" he snapped. "let me do my job." terry was shaking.

"please don't worry terry, we'll get this taken care of."

"shit, and i trusted you carlee."

"it's a mistake terry, they just want to talk to you."

"yeah," he said. "a mistake: mine, i should have stayed in new mexico."

"think of sidney, terry."

"you told me to think of electronic kitties," he smirked.

"them too," i added.

when we got to the station, terry was photographed, finger-printed and given a bright orange prison suit to put on. his clothes and effects were confiscated and removed by a lab guy. "i demand to talk with commissioner jorden!" i told the desk sergeant.

"sorry cutie, but i don't call the boss at this late hour, i'll need your service revolver and cuffs by the way." i handed the sergeant my issue, his name was sanchez.

"sergeant sanchez, commissioner jorden promised me that mr. sypes would not be arrested."

"he ain't arrested deputy, just being held for questioning."

"this is a hell of a way to hold someone," i said.

"we'll need your flight suit too, miss."

"and i'll need my clothes!"

"good evening captain," sanchez said. i looked around, it was harry. i could have hugged him, if i hadn't been so angry.

"what in the hell is this all about harry?" i asked.

"ah, our orders were to not let terry get contaminated carlee, we need to question him as soon as possible."

"will he be released when it's over harry?"

"sure baby, if everything goes right."

"and what is that supposed to mean?"

"if he doesn't confess to a crime, carlee."

"he told you all on the phone harry."

"that doesn't count angel, it has to be official."

"will you be questioning him?"

"no baby, captain bernhart and his people will, it's their case."

"when harry?"

"tomorrow around ten, i'm told."

"and what in the hell is terry suppose to do until then?"

"he'll have to wait carlee, i'm sorry, but that's just the way it is."

"he thinks he's under arrest harry, so do i."

"it's precautionary honey."

"but he's not free to go?"

"no."

"does he have the right to an attorney?"

"he's not under arrest, babe, he volunteered for questioning."

"does he need a lawyer then?"

"not at the moment," he answered.

my dad told me a story once. he was in officer's training at fort pope, next to bragg, in north carolina. they had been running for two days. a staff sergeant came up to his group and asked if anyone knew how to type. several raised their hands, including my dad. they were marched to a semi truck where there were seven hundred typewriters to be unloaded and carried to the compound. dad said that was the last time he ever volunteered. i'll bet it's terry's last time too. i told terry that i was sorry and was going to check on sidney. he didn't speak to me. i didn't blame him. i changed clothes in the rest room and asked harry for a car. he gave me the keys to his. gosh, harry spent a lot of time on the job. it was late, very late. i drove to lissell's, no lights on. i parked and walked softly to her door. couldn't hear anyone ranting around, no one snoring either. did i have a key? of course i didn't have a key. "lissell?" i whispered. "let me in." i tapped lightly on the door. "it's me, lissell." a dim light came on.

"carlee?"

"hey, let me in," i said. lissell was wearing a pair of pj's with cats all over them.

"those are mine," i said.

"you can take them offa me," she smiled.

"is the bar closed?"

"of course not honey, come on in and i'll make you a drink in the kitchen."

i was about to pee all over myself, barely made it to the bathroom. lissell and my drink were waiting in the kitchen. i kissed her gently and thanked her. she looked absolutely radiant in her night attire and short red hair.

"did they bring him back?" she asked.

"i did," i said, and told her the horror story.

"god baby, drink your drink, you deserve it."

"do you think the police are leveling with me and terry?" i asked, as i finished my drink. going to the drinks chest i made another.

"probably carlee, this is a touchy situation, if you had brought him back early tomorrow morning."

"it is early tomorrow morning," i interjected.

"well, a few hours later then, but i'm sure the main issue was just getting him here." lissell took a drink of my scotch.

"i'll make you one babe."

"no thanks, i'll just drink yours." i pulled my chair over next to lissell, and hugged her. "you look tired baby," she said.

"long day lissell." she kissed me.

"you can share my bed."

"i don't have anything to sleep in."

"you can use my cats," she smiled and said. i unbuttoned the last two buttons of her pajama top, then bent over and kissed her belly button. lissell petted my head. "that feels simple delicious, carlee." i licked a little. "uummmmm," she moaned, struggling to take my tee shirt off. the door bell rang.

"god, what now!" she said.

"anybody home!" pork pie shouted.

"sure, come on in, we were waiting up for you mr. anderson," lissell sarcastically announced.

"trouble girls, big trouble, sysco just bought the farm!" he shouted.

"bought the.....?"

"died, lissell. what happened pork?"

"fuckin' seizure baby, and her daughter is looking for me!"

"darlene?"

"yeah, she's a federal prosecutor."

"darlene?"

"yeah, fuckin' darlene!"

"oh, pork pie, calm down, let's think for a minute."

"think hell, my lawyer told be to head for italy, the sooner the better! are you comin' with me babe?" he asked.

"no pork, i'm not. now you calm yourself down and listen for a change. this may be the best thing that's happened yet." pork pie raised an eyebrow, his face was partly red, partly blue. "sysco didn't file any charges against you pork, and now she's gone."

"the state can carlee," he muttered.

"the state cannot, it's not in their jurisdiction."

"shit, i guess you know as much as buffalo bob." he was refering to robert "buffalo bob" cartwright, a local thug mouthpiece that should have been shot years ago, i knew him.

"darlene may have the opportunity to file on behalf of her mom, but she's a federal prosecutor, hell, no wonder sysco didn't like her."

"and terry's in better shape too, carlee, he just has to stick to his being highjacked story," lissell said.

"lissell, sysco told me in the hospital that she wasn't going to file anything against pork pie, she didn't want him in jail, she wanted to kill him herself." lissell smiled. "and remember that, she was on her death bed."

"i'll write that down angel," she said.

"you'd do that for me baby?" pork pie asked.

"what are friends for anyway, big man." he hugged me. "now go home buddy, get some rest, i'll meet you at the track around noon."

"i'm going home, to some piece and quiet."

"lissell, get in touch with a guy named williams ashcroft, he's an attorney at shuester and dunning. let him handle pork pie's worries."

"coffee?"

"please," i answered.

"what's ashcroft's middle name, carlee?"

"he's the only lawyer in the country who doesn't have one, but how many other guys are named williams?" she laughed.

"your buttons are unbuttoned miss stacey," said sidney.

"yeah," she smiled. "seems there was a reason for that." i chuckled.

"come to green river with me lissell, now, or when ever you get the chance." she gave me her best smile. "you sleep good baby?" i asked sidney.

"wonderful, i dreamed that daddy was ok."

"i believe your dream came true angel, maybe it was the watch, second-to-none thought it was magic."

lissell's coffee was delicious. lissell was delicious. "tell williams that pork and sysco were playing a game on the net and got into a big fight like overaged children, she drew a knife and he hurled a horseshoe, and that was all. he didn't really mean to hurt her, much less kill her. i suspect sysco has had a seizure disorder for years, she was probably on medication to control them, tell williams that the hospital was negligent, and that's why she died."

"i doubt if darlene feels compelled to do anything about her mom's death, pork pie and sysco were business associates and friends, he really liked sysco, lissell, in his peculiar fashion."

"and the friends thou hast, grapple them to thy heart with hoops of steel?" she quoted.

"sort of like that," i said, and smiled, finishing my coffee. "and be sure that he gets some suitable accommodation for terry and sidney, more than suitable. i'll tell him when i see him at noon, but you reinforce that, ok?"

"sure carlee, are you really leaving today?" sidney started crying.

"please don't sidney, start your day out crying." i hugged him."that way you'll cry all day, and even go to bed crying. besides, you've got nothing to cry about, everything's turning out fine."

"i don't want you to go, carlee," he sobbed.

"look baby, i came here to check on you, intended to be here for a couple of hours, and i've been here a week. i've practically been murdered, flown on a lear jet at five hundred miles an hour and have neglected my poor cat."

"louisville grows on you, doesn't it babe?" lissell stated, grinning.

"yeah." i smiled. "hard to forget it."

at noon i visited pork pie's paddock. he was in his under shorts and a white tee shirt, smoking his cigar, wearing his hat, washing his pig mobile. "you'd better get some clothes on, honest pork pie," i said.

"hell girl, there ain't nobody here but me," he said, and picked up his drink.

"where's andy's babe?"

"in the field, wanna see him?"

"yeah, i do," i said. pork and i walked to a clearing in the woods that surrounded the big red mile. andy's babe was eating hay and was alone. he came to me, he was magnificent.

"he remembers you carlee." i hugged his neck.

"yeah, he does." his nose was so soft. i started to cry.

"what's the matter, angel?" pork pie asked.

"nothing pork, i'm just tired and happy." i petted andy's back. "he's pretty tall, ain't he?" i said.

"tall as the sky, pretty one," he said, as he blew a smoke ring. "sysco was a muthafucker carlee, one of the meanest i've ever known, but........i miss her." i held him tight.

"i know pork, i know that. hey, you got an apple?' i asked.

"what the hell for?"

"for the babe, pork."

"oh, yeah, back in the fridge." i petted andy's head.

"we'll be back in a jif baby." we saundered back to the paddock. pork pie stumbled a few times, but i didn't think he was really drunk, tipsy maybe, but not dead dog.

"shit! fuckin' ice melted," he muttered.

"it's warm out pork, it's suppose to do that."

"summa-bitch," he mumbled under his breath. when we went inside, pork immediately made another drink. jack daniels, straight up, he added three or four ice cubes.

"hey, add some water to that!" i snapped.

"goddamnit, there ain't no room."

"then pour some in the sink and make room!"

"yessum," he said. "wimmen," he muttered to himself.

"pork pie, i want you to get a nice place for sidney and terry, near a school, air conditioned, clean."

"ok," he said as he lit another cigar.

"do you have such a place?"

"dunno, i'll have to ask, if i ain't, i'll buy one. you really think terry's goin' free?"

"yes, i'm practically sure, you make sure you go down there with sidney and you see to him."

"when?"

"where some calls you and tells you terry's free to go."

"will someone do that, carlee?"

"yes pork, they will," i answered. "and here, give this number to sysco's daughter when you see her, she needs to call me." he took it and laid it on a table.

"you really going back baby?"

"you all can live without me pork pie, hell, i've had the same panties on for four days, they need to be buried." pork pie smiled. "now give me that apple." he got the apple from the fridge, i held out my hand, and he grabbed it with his other hand.

"carle......." i shushed his rough lips with my finger.

"don't say anything big man, just give me my apple." pork pie's smile was honest, and i was about to cry. i went out and walked slowly to the field. "hungry baby?" i said to andy's babe. he raised his head and walked over to me. i held the apple out, and he took a bite. it crunched, and i looked down to see if my hand was still there. it was. "good boy, look after your dad, and don't let him drink too much." horse silence, but i thought he understood.

i stopped by belkins on my way home. andy was sitting on the bench with nicky, his daughter, waiting for customers. god, she looked ten years older. "morning," i said, as i got out of the car. nicky ran and hugged me. "hey there beautiful, great to see you." she had a winning smile.

"great to see you too carlee," she said.

"slow day andy?"

"never carlee, when i've got nicky, and now you."

"you and margaret work things out?" i asked.

"it's better carlee, i have nicky for six months anyway." i kissed his neck.

"that's wonderful andy, much much better." his smile was winning too.

"i've been reading about you in the paper angel, your excitment concluded?"

"hope so andy, for the moment anyway."

"work out alright?"

"yeah, sure, oh andy, i'm so happy for you," i said and hugged him. "you still working three jobs?"

"no, but if business don't pick up here i might be looking for another one." he smiled.

"well, go in there and bring me a case of miller light, really cold, i have a long drive back." he turned to fetch them and i looked at nicky. "nicky, i just can't get over how you've grown."

"my jeans are a size ten, and i'm into a b cup," she whispered into my ear. i couldn't help but smile.

"keep growing baby, and by the time you're sixteen you'll look just like dolly parton." nicky laughed.

"in the back seat of the lexus ma'am?"

"yeah, sure andy," i said....