But Not For Lust by BJ Bourg (comprehension books .txt) 📕

Achilles seemed to nod his head as he leapt from the truck and followed me to the front yard of Nikia’s house. There was an old beat-up truck parked in the front yard. Out of a force of habit, I glanced through the windows and checked the hood as I walked by. The interior was dirty, but empty, and the hood was cold.

I really didn’t like men who abused their wives, so I had to remind myself repeatedly that I was only here to get information from him, and that he hadn’t done anything wrong—well, that I knew about. I was sure he had done something wrong, because that was his nature. I was at least hoping he didn’t have a girlfriend, because she would never be safe with him.

  CHAPTER 28

I moved to one side of the door and knocked. Achilles stood like a statue beside me, his ears fully erect and alert.

“Easy, boy,” I said, not wanting him to lunge out if Nikia opened the door too quickly. Achilles might take any sudden movement as a sign of aggression and lash out at Nikia before I had a chance to stop him, so it was important that I was proactive in my commands.

The main door swooshed open and Nikia stood inside the storm door staring. He wasn’t looking at me. Somehow, he had spotted Achilles immediately and his eyes were transfixed on my giant dog.

“I…I’m not coming outside,” he said. “There’s no way I’m coming outside with that thing right there.”

I ruffled the hair on Achilles’ neck. “What—this innocent little ball of fur?”

“You can say what you want.” Nikia was shaking his head. “I can see it in his eyes—he’s mean.”

“Your nephew doesn’t think he’s mean.” I shot a thumb toward the west side of town. “I saw him at the bus stop. He said you think you saw Ty Richardson on this side of town.”

“No, I know I saw him on this side of town. I called the police department to tell them and they said they would send somebody over. I didn’t think it would be you.”

“Are you not happy to see me?”

“Nah, you kinda bring back bad memories.”

I nodded, not sure if he was talking about the time he lost his wife or the time I knocked him unconscious with a kick to the chest. If he was referring to the loss of his wife, then I might feel bad—but for her, and not him.

“Well, I need to know what you saw,” I said. “Once you tell me everything, I’ll be out of your hair.”

“Just like I told the girl who answered the phone”—he shot a thumb toward Camp Street—“I saw that fellow named Ty walking on the street heading toward the back.”

“How do you know it was him?” I asked.

“It looked just like the guy in that picture and he was mumbling to himself.”

“What day was this?”

“Saturday—oh, wait, it would’ve been Sunday by then.” He nodded to himself. “Yeah, it was Sunday morning.”

“And what time did you see him?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” he mused. “It must’ve been around two o’clock in the morning. I had come outside to smoke and I was sitting on the steps when I heard someone talking. I looked up and didn’t see anything at first because it was dark, but then he walked under the street light and I saw him.”

“When did you realize he was a missing person?”

“Last night when I was at my sister’s house.” He glanced down nervously when Achilles shifted his position and popped his jaw. “I…um…I was checking her newspaper for the classifieds and I saw the article about him going missing.”

“What was he wearing when you saw him?”

“Um, it was hard to see exactly what he had on, but I think it was jeans or some kind of blue khaki pants.” He scrunched up his face as he tried to remember, and I wanted to beg him not to do that, because it made him look constipated. “I think he was wearing a black shirt and it had a tear in the shoulder where I could see his bare skin. I don’t remember if it was short-sleeved or long-sleeved.”

I didn’t bother telling him that khaki was a color and not a type of fabric. “Were you able to hear what he was saying?” I asked. “Any of it at all?”

“No, not really. He wasn’t really talking loud. He was moving his hands around like he was trying to explain something, but nobody was there to hear him.” He shook his head. “He didn’t see me sitting on the steps because it was dark, so he wasn’t talking to me.”

I nodded and glanced toward the street. “Did you come back outside to smoke later that morning?”

“Oh, yeah, a bunch of times.”

“And did you ever see him again?”

“Nope.”

“Did you hear any noise after you went inside?” I pressed. “Any indication that he might’ve returned the way he had gone?”

“I mean, I didn’t hear anything, so I don’t really know if he came back, but I just know he was heading toward the back, like he might be going to the woods.”

I considered all that he had said. If Ty were high on meth at the time he strolled through this area, he would’ve been far from home when the effects of the drugs had worn off. Lost and confused, there’s no telling what he might’ve done or where he might’ve gone. There were miles and miles of swamplands and woodlands to the east of town, and it would be easy even for someone thinking clearly to lose their way. In Ty’s state of mind, he didn’t stand a chance. This might explain why I hadn’t located him on the west side of town.

Reluctantly, I thanked