Robin Caroll - Bayou Justice

Sheriff Bubba Theriot, his thick glasses mirroring the flashing blue-and-white, nodded as soon as they drifted close enough to her. “CoCo, whatcha got?”

She jerked her head toward her shoulder. “Dead body. Heard the death roll, then saw him. Got the gators to leave with the noisemaker before I radioed in.”

A deputy killed the engines and directed the boat to where she’d indicated. Bubba glanced over the side, his red hair looking brassy under the boat’s lights. “Oh, man. It’s Beau Trahan.” He glanced over at CoCo, his face paling by the minute.

“I know.”

He turned to his deputy. “We need to drag him out and carry him back to shore.” His gaze flitted to the body for a second before shooting over to her. “We’ll need you to make a statement.”

The deputy slipped the retrieval rod into the water, hooking Beau’s waist in the curve. CoCo stared back at the sheriff. If she had to watch them haul Beau in, she’d hurl again. “Okay. Can I just meet you back on land?”

Bubba gave a curt nod. “We’re closest to your house. We’ll put in there. I’ll radio the coroner to meet us.”

Great. She didn’t want to see any more. Her property wasn’t where she’d had in mind to meet, but at least she could go now. “Fine.”

She fired up the engine and whisked away as camera flashes went off. Shudders wracked her body. Everything about the situation gave her the creeps, but nothing more than the burning question—what had Beau Trahan been doing out in the bayou this time of night?

CoCo banked the airboat, tied it off, then rushed into the house. The screen door slammed behind her.

Grandmere sat up. “Ma chère, what’s your hurry? You look like a band of demons are after you.”

“I found a body in the bayou.”

“Oh, no!” Her grandmother’s voice bounced off the sunny walls.

Tara bounded down the stairs, the wood creaking and popping. “Grandmere, what’s wr—” She stopped when her gaze lit on CoCo. Her eyes narrowed. “Oh, you’re riling her up again, aren’t you? Come to lecture her about me?” She crossed her arms tightly over her chest.

“Stop it, Tara. Contrary to what you may believe, everything is not all about you. I found Beau Trahan’s body in the bayou.” Anger shoved out the fear and revulsion she’d felt just moments before. A hum echoed off the bayou, but she ignored it and glared at Tara.

Grandmere struggled to her feet, her curled fingers grasping the back of the torn couch. “Oh, my. Are you sure, child?”

CoCo’s stomach knotted. “I’m positive.”

Her grandmother gasped, but Tara snorted. CoCo darted her stare to her sister and arched her eyebrows.

“Well.” Tara shrugged. “The old man got what was coming to him.”

“Tara!”

“It’s true.” Her sister flung her straight hair over her petite shoulders marked with tan lines. “I’m not sorry.”

Boards creaked from the porch. CoCo scrutinized her baby sister, recalling how Tara used to run to her for help and direction. What had happened to that sweet little girl? How could her sister be so cold, so callous? “That’s a horrible thing to say about another human being.”

“What, did one of your precious alligators get him?” Tara’s mouth twisted into a sneer.

“No, ma’am. Mr. Trahan was shot in the back,” Sheriff Theriot said from the screen door. “May I come in?”

“Oh. Yes. Certainly.” CoCo pushed open the door and waved the sheriff into the room.

He ambled inside, already pulling his little notebook from his shirt pocket. He popped the top off his pen, sat on the couch and then looked at CoCo. “I need you to tell me everything about finding Mr. Trahan.”

She wet her lips and closed her eyes. “I was late getting to my run today because I had an appointment in town this morning.”

“About what time did you get on the water?”

Opening her eyes, she locked gazes with her sister. “About sevenish.”

“Isn’t that a little late to be getting on the bayou?”

“Yes. I normally go in the morning and then again in the afternoon, but like I said, I had an appointment.”

Sheriff Theriot gave a little huff, scribbled something on his notebook, then returned his attention to her. He looked entirely too casual sitting on her grandmother’s floral-patterned couch. “So, you got out on the bayou around seven. Then what?”

CoCo flipped on the lamp sitting on the sidebar. “I went through my normal routine, marking locations of the tagged alligators on my tracking sheet. I saw a new bull gator, a young one, and reached for my tagging equipment. That’s when I heard it.” She pinched her eyes closed again. The action didn’t block out the memory.

“Heard what?”

She stared back at the sheriff, fighting against the stinging tears. “A death roll.”

“And then?”

“I shined the light over there and I saw…I saw the gator had a human body.”

“Uh-huh.” He jotted on his notebook again. “Then what?”

“I grabbed my noisemaker and scared off the alligators.”

“Gators? Thought there was just one?”

“No, the young bull decided to defend his territory against the gator that had the body.” She hated the way her voice cracked.

“So, you scared them away. Then what?”

She hauled in a deep breath. Bad mistake. The stench of death lay just outside. She could smell it, sense it creeping into the house and settling between her shoulder blades.

“CoCo?” Sheriff Theriot tilted his head to the side, waiting.

“I got my stick out, hooked the body and then flipped it over. I radioed it in immediately.”

“I see.” The sheriff mustered to his feet. “That’s all you can tell me?”

“Yes.” What more could she say?

“You didn’t hear a gunshot? See any boats in the area?”

She thought for a moment. “No, nothing.”

“Uh-huh.” He ambled to the door, pushed it open, then leaned outside and spit. He turned back to face her, a bit of tobacco spittle lingering in the corner of his mouth.

Her stomach rebelled. She rushed down the hall, shoved open the bathroom door and bent over the toilet. Dry heaves shook her body.

“You okay?” Tara stood in the doorway.

CoCo leaned her forehead against the clawed tub. “Yeah.” She stood and turned on the tap. “I’ll be there in a minute.”

“Just thought you might want to know, Sheriff said he called Luc.”

Marvelous. Just what she needed. The cherry on top of an already lousy day. “Merci for the heads-up.”

Tara nodded and left, her footsteps echoing on the wood floors. CoCo rinsed her mouth and splashed cold water on her face. She wondered how Luc took the news. This was a tragedy. However despicable he might have been, Beau Trahan was Luc’s grandfather. She set the towel on the counter and then walked back to the living room.

Sheriff Theriot glanced at her through the screen. Men’s voices filtered in through the door, riding on the beams of headlights. Other law officials and the coroner must have arrived.

“CoCo,” the sheriff said as he opened the door and stepped inside, “is it true you and Mr. Trahan had a disagreement yesterday?”

News traveled fast in the bayou. No big surprise there. “Uh, sort of.”

“Care to explain?” He cocked his bony hip against the doorframe.

It struck her that he looked an awful lot like that Opie character from the old Andy Griffith show. “It really wasn’t that big of a deal. He gave my grandmother an eviction notice, and I asked him to leave.”

“An eviction notice? And you say it wasn’t that big of a deal?” His unibrow crinkled.

“I mean, sure we were upset, that’s the appointment I had this morning. I went to see my lawyer.”