Robert Parker - Brimstone

He looked at Laurel again.

“That right, Laurel?”

She nodded.

“ ‘ My kingdom is not of this earth,’ ” Virgil said.

I shrugged.

“Taking this God thing pretty serious,” I said.

“Probably more than Pike does,” Virgil said.

“Probably,” I said.

“And Pike speaks another bad word,” Virgil said. “And walks off without visiting Mary Beth.”

“And now Percival is outside his place preaching against him,” I said.

“Worked on the other saloons,” Virgil said.

“I kinda thought that was the deal,” I said. “Percival closes down all the other saloons. Pike gets all the business.”

“I kinda thought that, too,” Virgil said.

“And Choctaw?” I said.

“Kinda thought he was Pike’s man,” Virgil said. “Keeping an eye on Percival.”

“Or keeping somebody from killing him while he put them out of business for Pike,” I said.

“Job might be changing,” Virgil said.

“Might.”

“Guess we’ll see,” Virgil said.

“We got a side in this?” I said.

“Depends on what this is,” Virgil said.

“Say this is some sort of battle between Pike and Percival,” I said.

“Well,” Virgil said. “We the law.”

“Yeah, and one law knows a lot more about this than the other law,” I said. “Why I’m asking.”

“Let’s await developments,” Virgil said.

He stood.

“Can’t sit here all day,” he said.

He took his coffee cup and walked into the office. Laurel stood up at once and walked in behind him. I looked after them and smiled.

I was good enough only when Virgil wasn’t around… sorta like with Allie.

THE PIANO MOUNTED on the wagon expanded Allie’s horizon. She’d taken to driving it herself and parking at every hitching post in town. She’d climb back, sit on the piano bench, and play hymns and sing by herself, without Percival. Today she was doing it right across from the sheriff’s office.

“That’s a painful noise,” Virgil said.

“Can’t you do something ’bout it?” I said to Virgil.

“Keeps her from cooking,” Virgil said.

We were sitting on the porch, Virgil, Laurel, and me.

“Yes,” I said. “I s’pose it does.”

I looked at Laurel and put my fingers in my ears. She dropped her head, and in a moment, put her fingers in her ears, and looked cautiously up to see if I was looking. I smiled at her. She didn’t smile back, but she didn’t look away.

People stopped as they passed her and listened. I suspected it was in disbelief. Between hymns she climbed down with a collection plate and passed it among them. If they gave her anything she would say, “God bless you.” Then she climbed back up on the wagon and played some more and sang some more. I couldn’t tell if it was the same hymns or new ones. They were loud but unvaried. After a while, when no more people came to the wagon, she loosed the team from its hitching post, got back in the wagon seat, waved at us across the street, and drove to a new location.

“You think she believes all this stuff?” I said to Virgil.

“I never quite understood Allie,” Virgil said.

“And now you do?” I said.

“I been thinking ’bout it ever since we took her out of Placido,” Virgil said.

Laurel was sitting very still and very erect, watching Virgil’s face as he talked.

“Always loved her, even when she cheated on me, which, certain sure, she’s done a lot of,” Virgil said. “Still love her. Don’t know why. What I read, I guess that’s how it is. You love somebody, you love ’em.”

Laurel was staring at him.

“ ’Course, I was mad at her a lot,” he said. “You know anything ’bout that, Everett?”

“Never been in love,” I said. “Liked a lot of women. Never loved one.”

“That’s too bad,” Virgil said. “When it’s right, it feels real good.”

“Feel right often?” I said.

“Not too often with Allie,” Virgil said. “But…”

Laurel had probably never heard a man talk about such things in her whole life. Virgil didn’t talk about feelings much, because I’m not so sure he had many. But when he cared to, he would talk about anything he felt like talking about. Laurel seemed immobilized, listening to him.

“One of the things I come to see,” Virgil said, “is that Allie believes whatever she needs to believe. And when she don’t need to, she believes something else.”

I nodded.

“She needs a man taking care of her,” I said.

“Yep.”

“You ain’t it,” I said.

“I’m taking care of her,” Virgil said. “Just not…”

He looked at Laurel.

“You know,” he said.

“Which means she can’t trust you to take care of her.”

“Sure she can.”

“But she don’t know it, ’less you and she are, ah, taking care of business, she don’t feel like she got any control.”

“Maybe so,” Virgil said.

“Ain’t you, it may as well be God, I guess.”

“Yep.”

Laurel leaned close to Virgil and whispered to him. He listened and nodded. Then he looked at me.

“Laurel told me she understands what we’re talking about, and she don’t mind if we say fuck when we need to.” Virgil’s face showed nothing as he spoke.

I nodded.

“Thank you, Laurel,” I said.

IT WAS LATE AFTERNOON. I came back from my turn walking the town and found Allie in the office with Virgil. Laurel sat on the couch silently. Virgil sat at his desk. Allie was on the couch next to Laurel, leaning forward, her hands clasped tightly in her lap.

“Want me to come back?” I said.

Virgil shook his head and pointed at a chair. I sat.

“I wanted to tell her here, with you,” Allie said to Virgil.

Virgil nodded.

“I just found out,” Allie said.

Virgil nodded.

“Laurel’s mother killed herself last night,” Allie said.

She put her hand on Laurel’s knee. Laurel didn’t move. She was looking hard at Virgil. Virgil stood and walked to the couch. He gestured for Allie to sit at his desk, and when she stood he took her place beside Laurel. Laurel edged slightly toward him and let her shoulder touch his.

“I’m sorry,” Virgil said to her.

She nodded.

“But your life ain’t gonna change much,” Virgil said. “You been with us, and you’ll be with us. We’ll take care of you.”

She nodded. Her face had not changed. She remained motionless. Then she leaned toward Virgil and whispered to him. He listened. Then he nodded.

“Probably is,” he said.

“I got something else I got to do, Virgil,” Allie said.

Virgil nodded.

“I got to tell you things,” Allie said.

Virgil nodded again.

“If we going to take care of this child, I got to start clean for her,” Allie said.

Virgil waited.

“Brother Percival is in cahoots with Pike,” Allie said.

Virgil nodded.

“Pike agreed to let him have his crusade if he closed down the other saloons and not Pike’s,” Allie said.

Virgil nodded.

“Then Pike gets all the saloon profit in town,” Allie said. “And Brother Percival’s church gets to be bigger and bigger.”

“Kinda figured a lot of that,” Virgil said.

“But it’s changed,” Allie said. “Percival is going to close down Pike.”

All of us were silent for a time.

Then Virgil said, “How do you know?”

“That’s the shameful part, Virgil,” Allie said. “I been with him. Even after he bothered this child, I been with him.”

“I kinda knew that, too, Allie,” Virgil said.

“How’d you know that?” Allie said.

Virgil didn’t answer.