Free Jason Deas - Benny James 02 - Pushed by Jason Deas

that he has to pay with his credit card over the phone and if we get there and ring the doorbell and he doesn’t answer, we just leave the pizza outside of the door. I guess he gets it in the morning.”
    “Fair enough,” Benny answered. He gave them a credit card number over the phone as well as a healthy tip and hung up.
    Before Benny could even check on Ted to see if he made it safely out of the bathtub, he could hear him snoring in one of the bedrooms. He rounded the corner and witnessed a sight that would be forever burned in his memory. Ted lay sprawled on the bed, completely naked, on his back in a frozen snow angel pose. Benny thought about turning away and fleeing the scene, but his caretaker instincts took over as he felt the cold air conditioning blowing his hair from the vent just above the doorway. He had no idea how long Ted would be out and Ted did not need a sickness on top of what would probably be a nasty hangover. Trying not to look at Ted’s massive belly and all of his other attractions, Benny pulled what looked like a homemade quilt over him and gently tucked it under his chin. He pulled the door shut and found the thermostat to turn the air up. It had been set on sixty-five. Benny readjusted it to seventy-two.
    He found Ted’s briefcase in the living room and opened it to find, just as promised, each and every case file for the Brother Jim murders. Benny pored over them until the pizza showed up and filed the pizza away into the fridge and the case files back into Ted’s briefcase. The files contained scarce information. Benny checked on Ted one more time and once again covered him. Benny left a note on the fridge telling Ted to call him when he wanted company again. He wrote that he would bring all the ingredients to make Sloppy Joes. As he left, his mind was puzzling over one item in Ted’s files.
     

Chapter 12
     
    Benny had been meaning to check in with Reverend Jim and tell him he was in Florida and on the case. Since he had learned nothing new before his visit to Ted’s, he had been hesitant to call. Now that he had some information, he dialed Reverend Jim’s number as he eyed the Kenny Rogers’ cassette. His mood had changed and he was now in the mood for a little Kenny.
    Without a hello, Reverend Jim asked, “Did you find him?”
    “No, sir. Not yet. But I did just get some pretty good information,” Benny lied.
    “Do you know where he is?”
    “Not exactly.”
    “You need to catch him before he kills again. Did you see that Rachael Martin gal on the news this morning talking about the disappearance of the Wingz-N-Legz waitress, Charlene?”
    “I didn’t see it, but she told me about it,” Benny answered. He speculated whether Reverend Jim knew about his relationship with Rachael and this was a test of his honesty.
    “That’s right,” Reverend Jim answered, with a sneer. “You two were like two peas in a pod on your last case. I saw you two one time on the television and it looked like something was going on between the two of you.”
    Benny decided to ignore the statement and changed the subject. “Where are you?” he asked.
    “At the home office,” Reverend Jim answered. “As your employer in this situation, I don’t really think it is your business to know my whereabouts,” he scolded.
    “I apologize. I was just wondering if we might be able to sit down and discuss the case at some point. I’m not much of a phone person.”
    “I apologize, as well,” Reverend Jim said. “That was rude of me.” Benny could have sworn he heard a slap and wondered if the Reverend had struck himself as he did the first time he met him at the Tilley police station.
    “Not a problem,” Benny assured. “You are my employer.”
    Benny knew when to grovel and he did it well.
    “I’m just a little tense, Mr. James. I think we do need to sit down face-to-face and discuss something. I’m afraid I haven’t told you everything about my son. I’m ready to tell you the rest, and I