Saving Allegheny Green Read Free Page B

me around, ducked his head and whispered in my ear.“Maybe not,” he said, “but you seem to be the only one in the place with a lick of sense.”
    I smiled. Swear to God I did. And flushed with pride. I was the only one with a lick of sense, but nobody in my family saw me that way.
    In my bizarre-and-proud-of-it clan, I was known as the dull one. Ally would rather clean the dishes than strip naked and dance in the rain. Or Ally is such a snore, she has always got her nose stuck in a book instead of actually living. Or Ally doesn’t have an artistic mind, she only cares about making money. My family never seemed to appreciate that because I did the boring, mundane things, they got to be eccentric.
    The paramedics loaded Rocky onto the stretcher and trundled him into the back of the ambulance. Sissy begged to ride along but they wouldn’t let her. She stood beside me, sobbing into her hands.
    The deputies scattered, searching for witnesses to interrogate, leaving me and Sissy and Conahegg in the garage.
    “Well, ladies,” Conahegg said. “May I have the honor of escorting you to my squad car?”

CHAPTER TWO
    “A RE WE UNDER ARREST ?” I asked.
    Conahegg’s flint-gray eyes revealed no emotion. It would take a lot to get close to him. Had he ever been in love? I wondered for no good reason.
    “No,” he said and for one moment I thought he was answering the question I’d posed in my mind. “At least not yet. For now I’m simply detaining you for questioning.”
    What was I going to say? When an assertive man with a badge tells you he’s taking you for a ride what choice do you have? To tell the truth, I sort of got off on his forcefulness. I’m used to being the one in charge, the leader, the boss. To find myself in the subordinate position was both thrilling and disconcerting.
    “Just let me change.” I flapped a hand at my bathrobe.
    He nodded and I darted into the house, shimmied out of my gown and into blue jeans and a crisp white blouse. Okay, I admit it. I also stopped long enough to run a brush through my hair and roll on some lipstick. That’s not a crime, is it?
    Conahegg and Sissy were bent together in a huddle when I returned to the garage. I didn’t like the feeling that zipped through me. Jealousy is not one of my usual faults.
    “Ah,” Conahegg said, straightening to his full height when he saw me. “You’re here.” The glance he flicked over my body was quick but I caught it.
    And smiled to myself.
    “Ready,” I said.
    We walked outside into the starry cloudless night. Warm, moist air wrapped around us like a soggy thermal blanket. The wind shifted and I caught the scent of honeysuckle mingled with river smell.
    A copse of blue spruce and a six-foot stone wall separated our waterfront property from the house on the hill next door. Reverend Swiggly had recently completed the three-story Colonial affair reminiscent of Tara from Gone With the Wind. It was quite out of place on the Brazos where most homes were breezy farm styles like ours, functional A-frames or log cabin replicas.
    The house was heavily guarded with a high-tech security system and motion detector floodlights. Clearly the good preacher did not wish to be ambushed on vacation by overly devout members of his flock seeking to kiss the hem of his thousand-dollar, tailor-made trousers.
    Conahegg took Sissy’s elbow and gently eased her into the backseat of the patrol car, a white and brown 2004 Crown Victoria. After she was inside he stepped away and motioned for me to join her.
    Great. No reassuring hand on my arm. Wasn’t that the story of my life? Men tripped over themselves for Sissy. Me, I had to fend for myself.
    I climbed in and slammed the door a little too firmly. Okay, maybe I was a little miffed. It wasn’t fair. I felt like a criminal and I hadn’t done a damned thing.
    “Buckle up,” Conahegg said, before getting in and starting the engine.
    I snapped my seat belt on. Sissy didn’t. The ambulance was still