Indelible by Karin Slaughter Page A

he opened his mouth, he spoke with the sexiest Southern drawl Sara had every heard. “You too scared to introduce me to your new girl, Slick?”
    â€œCourse not,” Jeffrey said, slipping a proprietary arm around Sara’s waist. “Honey, this is Spot. He and Possum were my best friends growing up.”
    â€œStill waiting on this one to finish,” the man said, feigning a punch at Jeffrey. “And it’s Robert now.”
    Possum called from outside, “One ’a y’all fetch me them burgers from the fridge.”
    Robert said, “Slick, why don’t you handle that?” then took Sara by the arm and led her down the hall before Jeffrey could stop them.
    Robert opened the screen door for Sara, asking, “How was your trip over?”
    â€œGood,” she told him, though that was debatable.She cast about for something positive to say. “My God, what a gorgeous yard.”
    Possum beamed. “Nell loves being outside.”
    â€œIt shows,” Sara said, meaning it. Lush flowers bloomed all over the place, spilling out of pots on the deck, climbing up the wooden fence. A huge magnolia tree shaded a hammock at the back of the yard, and several holly trees added contrast to the fence line. Except for the barking dogs next door, the yard was an oasis.
    â€œWhoa,” Robert said, bumping into her as the dog shot past them.
    â€œTig!” Possum yelled halfheartedly as the dog dove into the pool. She swam a lap across, climbed out, then rolled around in the grass, kicking her legs in the air.
    â€œMan,” Possum said. “What I wouldn’t do for that life.”
    The woman sitting by the pool looked over her shoulder. “She learned everything from Jeffrey.” She indicated the chair beside her. “Come sit by me, Sara. I’m not as horrible as Nell.”
    Sara gladly took the offer.
    â€œJessie,” the woman introduced herself. She indicated Robert with a lazy wave of her hand. “That specimen’s my husband.” She pronounced the word “huzz-bun,” managing with her tone to make it sound slightly pornographic.
    Sara offered, “He seems nice.”
    â€œThey all do at first,” she said offhandedly. “How long have you known Slick?”
    â€œNot long,” Sara confessed, wondering if everyone here had a nickname. She was getting the distinct impression that Jessie was probably worse than Nell. She was just more polite about it. Judging by the woman’s breath, a liberal dose of alcohol was responsible for her mellow tone.
    â€œThey’re all a tight little group,” Jessie commented, leaning over to pick up a glass of wine. “I’m new in town, which means I’ve only been here twenty years. I moved from LA during my freshman year.”
    Sara guessed from her accent she meant Lower Alabama.
    â€œRobert’s a cop, just like Jeffrey. Isn’t that nice? I call ’em Mutt and Jeff, only Jeffrey hates being called Jeff.” She took a healthy swallow of wine. “Possum runs the store over by the Tasty Dog. You should meet his and Nell’s children, especially the oldest. He’s a beautiful little boy. Children are such a joy to have around. Isn’t that right, Bob?”
    â€œWhat’s that, sugar?” Robert asked, though Sara was certain he had heard her.
    Nell sat down beside Sara, handing her a bottle of beer. “Peace offering,” she said.
    Sara took it, though beer had always tasted like swill to her. She forced herself to make an effort, saying, “You’ve got a beautiful yard.”
    Nell inhaled deeply, then exhaled, “The azaleas bloomed and went away quicker than spit. Neighbor’s never home to take care of his dogs so they bark all day. I can’t get rid of the fire ants by the hammock and Jared keeps coming in with poison ivy, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out where he’s gettingit.” She paused