The Family: Long Road Home (VOL. 3)

Chapter 4

I've never seen them so scared. The Sawyers, I mean. They're sweating like a bunch of whores in church. I picked up that southernism from Loretta herself. It's funny but it's true. They're all nervous. And rightfully so. It's not every day you're about to get caught and arrested for murder, kidnapping, cannibalism, and every other crime in the book because I bet you at one point or another this gang has committed it. Been there done that you could say.

A cloud of white smoke encircles the trooper, coming from the cigarette clamped between his nicotine-stained teeth. Beady black eyes that match his dark horseshoe mustache scan the parking lot and inspect each one of us from top to bottom. The sight of our gangly group must be enough to send alarm bells ringing through his head. Except, the group isn't all here. Bubba's nowhere in sight. And neither is his chainsaw. 

I'm not the only one to have noticed Bubba's disappearance, Chop's electric blue eyes scan the area for his little brother. Finding no trace of him, he whispers something to Nubbins and backs away, slipping off behind the building while Drayton distracts the cop with his smooth-talking skills.

I don't know what he said to his twin, but I'm sure it had something to do with me because the second Chop retreated Nubbins curled his lips into his most sadistic smile. There was no time to react before he threw his arm around me, hugging my own arms to my side. His hot breath worms its way into my ear like a wet willy, attempting to hiss a whispery threat that doesn't scare me one bit. 

"You try anythin' an' I'll—"

"Or you'll what? Turn me into a lampshade? Bleach my bones and string them up as windchimes? I've heard it all before, Nubbins. You need some new threats."

My attempt to shake him off is thwarted by the presence of a cold and pointy piece of steel pressing into the small of my back. The blade is dull but could still do some damage in the right hands. And Nubbins' hands are as right for violence as any. As much as I want to make a scene, I don't. I didn't come this far to get shanked to death with a rusty knife in the parking lot of some backwoods gas station. 

The chain-smoking cop isn't the only problem on the Sawyer's hands. He's got a friend. A trooper in a tan uniform with chocolate trim is the second to exit the vehicle. He tips the wide-brimmed cowboy hat sitting atop his headful of sandy blond hair, peppered with strands of silver around his temples. He doesn't look particularly young...but he's not old either. The wrinkles branching across his forehead and around his eyes give away his age. 

"Howdy there, folks," the second policeman greets us, flashing his pearly whites. "Nice day for a drive, ain't it?" He squints at the lot of us instead of putting on the aviator glasses hanging from the front pocket of his shirt.

Drayton takes the lead and speaks before anyone else can get the chance to say something stupid that will incriminate them all. He raises the bucket hat on his head in acknowledgment and flashes that same cordial smile that fools anyone who comes across him. " Sure is, sure is...if only these gas prices weren't high as the damn sky."

"Shoot, don't I know it. It'd give you a heart attack to hear how much we shell out for gas on the daily to fuel just one of these bad boys." He slaps the hood of his car, drawing a scowl from his less amiable-looking companion.

"Don't ding the car, Lloyd," is all he barks before taking a final drag of the cancer stick then flicking the bud to the ground and stomping it out with the sole of his dusty leather boot. Better not let Bubba catch sight of those. That boy loves his boots.

Lloyd the good cop backs away from the car like he just found out it's worth more than the Mona Lisa. In his partner's eyes maybe it is. Anyways, he opts to hold his longhorn belt buckle instead. Whether it's intentional or not, they give off major good cop bad cop vibes. The unnamed bad cop whose name is probably something badass like Switchblade or another name that's equally intimidating says something to his partner about staying put then heads inside the store.