have much to say about. What’re you askin’ that for?”
Brother Alton made the mistake of glancing up as he phrased the question and found Rhodes looking right into his eyes. The preacher’s right hand twitched nervously and knocked one of the crumpled papers across the desk. It fell to the floor at Rhodes’ feet.
Rhodes picked up the paper and smoothed it out. “Jesus spoke to that sinful woman at the well,” he read aloud. “And he told her all about her whole iniquitous life.” Rhodes stopped reading and put the paper on the desk. “Have you been to see any sinful women today, Brother Alton?”
“God knows,” Brother Alton sighed. “God knows.”
“He’s not the only one that knows,” Rhodes said. “I saw your car. How old are you, anyway?”
“How … huh?”
“How old? I wouldn’t ever have thought to look up in that tree for you.”
“God forgive me,” Brother Alton said. “I surely didn’t want to do that, Sheriff.”
“I wish you hadn’t,” Rhodes said. “You made me twist my ankle.”
Brother Alton sighed again. “I’m surely sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“You shouldn’t have run.”
“I know that. But you don’t know how it felt, walking up on a dead woman like that. She was an awful sight, lyin’ there in that ring. And then to have the sheriff come up on me. How was I to know what you might think? I was afraid that you might believe I had somethin’ to do with killin’ her, so I ran. And then when you fell down—”
Brother Alton looked at Rhodes. “Are you sure you didn’t hurt your ankle then? Instead of when I jumped on you?”
“I’m sure,” Rhodes told him.
“Well, then, I’m mighty sorry for hurtin’ you. Anyway, when you fell down, I thought maybe I could stop and get my breath, but you got up so quick and came after me that I was still blowin’ like a bellows. I was afraid you’d catch up to me sure. So I climbed up in that tree and jumped on you. It wasn’t very high.”
Rhodes reached up and touched the knot on the back of his head. “Jumping on me’s not all you did.”
“God forgive me,” Brother Alton said, shaking his head from side to side. “God forgive me.”
“What did you hit me with, anyway?” Rhodes asked.
Brother Alton stopped moving his head. “Just a little old hick’ry limb. I didn’t hit you very hard.”
“Hard enough,” Rhodes said.
“Lord knows. Lord knows.”
“Let’s leave the Lord out of this,” Rhodes said. “What were you doing at that cockpit?”
“I’d heard about the fights that Lige was havin’,” Brother Alton said. “I wanted to see if it was true.”
Rhodes shook his head. It seemed as if everyone in the county had heard about the cockfights except him.
“What if it was?”
“If it was, then I was goin’ to have a talk with Miz Ward. She’d called and asked me to preach Lige’s funeral, and I didn’t know if I could do that with Lige havin’ a sin like that on his account. I didn’t want people thinkin’ I was tryin’ to gloss anything over.”
Rhodes wondered whether Brother Alton was more worried about Lige or about what people would think about their preacher.
“You could’ve gone in the front way,” he said. “Why didn’t you do that?”
Brother Alton brushed at the shoulder of his suit jacket. There was a piece of a leaf there that Rhodes hadn’t noticed before. The leaf fell onto the top of the desk.
“I didn’t want to just go right up to Miz Ward and accuse her husband of anything that wasn’t the truth,” the preacher said, “him bein’ dead and all. I thought I’d just check it out first without her seein’ me.”
“And you found Mrs. Ward in the woods?”
“Just like you saw her. She was lyin’ there dead.” He looked out the little window and back at Rhodes. “I heard you comin’ and ducked back in the trees. Then I just started to run. I shouldn’t’ve done that. I shouldn’t’ve run. But I didn’t kill her,
Brother Alton made the mistake of glancing up as he phrased the question and found Rhodes looking right into his eyes. The preacher’s right hand twitched nervously and knocked one of the crumpled papers across the desk. It fell to the floor at Rhodes’ feet.
Rhodes picked up the paper and smoothed it out. “Jesus spoke to that sinful woman at the well,” he read aloud. “And he told her all about her whole iniquitous life.” Rhodes stopped reading and put the paper on the desk. “Have you been to see any sinful women today, Brother Alton?”
“God knows,” Brother Alton sighed. “God knows.”
“He’s not the only one that knows,” Rhodes said. “I saw your car. How old are you, anyway?”
“How … huh?”
“How old? I wouldn’t ever have thought to look up in that tree for you.”
“God forgive me,” Brother Alton said. “I surely didn’t want to do that, Sheriff.”
“I wish you hadn’t,” Rhodes said. “You made me twist my ankle.”
Brother Alton sighed again. “I’m surely sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“You shouldn’t have run.”
“I know that. But you don’t know how it felt, walking up on a dead woman like that. She was an awful sight, lyin’ there in that ring. And then to have the sheriff come up on me. How was I to know what you might think? I was afraid that you might believe I had somethin’ to do with killin’ her, so I ran. And then when you fell down—”
Brother Alton looked at Rhodes. “Are you sure you didn’t hurt your ankle then? Instead of when I jumped on you?”
“I’m sure,” Rhodes told him.
“Well, then, I’m mighty sorry for hurtin’ you. Anyway, when you fell down, I thought maybe I could stop and get my breath, but you got up so quick and came after me that I was still blowin’ like a bellows. I was afraid you’d catch up to me sure. So I climbed up in that tree and jumped on you. It wasn’t very high.”
Rhodes reached up and touched the knot on the back of his head. “Jumping on me’s not all you did.”
“God forgive me,” Brother Alton said, shaking his head from side to side. “God forgive me.”
“What did you hit me with, anyway?” Rhodes asked.
Brother Alton stopped moving his head. “Just a little old hick’ry limb. I didn’t hit you very hard.”
“Hard enough,” Rhodes said.
“Lord knows. Lord knows.”
“Let’s leave the Lord out of this,” Rhodes said. “What were you doing at that cockpit?”
“I’d heard about the fights that Lige was havin’,” Brother Alton said. “I wanted to see if it was true.”
Rhodes shook his head. It seemed as if everyone in the county had heard about the cockfights except him.
“What if it was?”
“If it was, then I was goin’ to have a talk with Miz Ward. She’d called and asked me to preach Lige’s funeral, and I didn’t know if I could do that with Lige havin’ a sin like that on his account. I didn’t want people thinkin’ I was tryin’ to gloss anything over.”
Rhodes wondered whether Brother Alton was more worried about Lige or about what people would think about their preacher.
“You could’ve gone in the front way,” he said. “Why didn’t you do that?”
Brother Alton brushed at the shoulder of his suit jacket. There was a piece of a leaf there that Rhodes hadn’t noticed before. The leaf fell onto the top of the desk.
“I didn’t want to just go right up to Miz Ward and accuse her husband of anything that wasn’t the truth,” the preacher said, “him bein’ dead and all. I thought I’d just check it out first without her seein’ me.”
“And you found Mrs. Ward in the woods?”
“Just like you saw her. She was lyin’ there dead.” He looked out the little window and back at Rhodes. “I heard you comin’ and ducked back in the trees. Then I just started to run. I shouldn’t’ve done that. I shouldn’t’ve run. But I didn’t kill her,
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