Free The Last Buckaroo by J. R. Wright

I …”
    “ That ’ s
okay, ” he said.  “ I
don ’ t
remember much of it ...  That pain medicine caused me to sleep most of the day. ”
    “ How
are you, Mister Burke? ”   Woody came up,
unlocked the cell door and opened it.  “ I
must say you look better than when I saw you at Terryville prison. ”   He took Yancey ’ s
extended hand for a firm shake.
    “ I ’ m
all right, ” Yancey
returned.   “ Could
use a bath is all … and maybe a change of
clothes. ”
    “ I ’ ll
get you something before the day is out, ” Katie
said.  “ Helmer
is about your size.  I ’ m sure he wouldn ’ t
mind loaning you a suit for the trial.  The tub and hot water I can bring from
across the street, whenever you ’ re ready. ”
    “ Maybe
after dark, ” he
said, as if being naked in daylight was against his beliefs, regardless of who
was or was not around.
    “ Yancey,
I don ’ t
think you have a thing to worry about, ” Clampett said.  “ For
one, the sheriff doesn ’ t have a shred of
evidence you did it  —  he
never does, except for his intuition.  For another, Katie has proof you couldn ’ t
have been there at the time Clyde was killed.  If that Kingsley can ’ t
be found, I ’ ll put her on the stand with the
statement he signed. ”   He turned to her.  “ Good
work, Katie. ”
    To
that Katie beamed.
    “ And
there ’ s
another factor here; Sheriff Preston Ames isn ’ t
as popular as he once was.  There ’ s
a growing number of people in this county that now think his devil may care
style of law enforcement is no longer relevant.  And you have to figure, some
must worry the day will come when the man points his finger their way on some
trumped up charge. ”
    Speaking
of Preston, a loud banging came on the jail door, which Woody Clampett had
locked from the inside, and in the little window appeared the angry face of
Sheriff Ames.  “ What the hell is going
on in there? ”
    “ A
lawyer ’ s
conference with my client, Sheriff, ” Clampett returned as he
walked toward the door, keys in hand.   “ It ’ s
all in accordance with the law, I assure you. ”
    “ I ’ ll
be the judge of that, Clampett! ”   Preston was
also angry Woody ’ s shiny new Packard was
parked in his usual spot out front.
    “ I ’ m
afraid not.  I ’ ve already put your deputy under
arrest  —  I
can do the same with you, if necessary. ”
    Once
the door was opened, Ames came through it in a huff.  But when he laid eyes on
Katie down the way he settled a bit.  “ Give
me those keys, ” he
yanked them from Woody Clampett ’ s hand and stepped
to release his deputy.  “ What are you doing in
there, Weasel?  I said no visitors!  Get out of there! ”
    The
deputy came stomping out.  “ Well, he put me
in there  —  said
it was the law, ” Weasel said and gestured to Clampett,
who towered over them both.
    “ It
is the law, Sheriff, and you know it … you old coot!  Now leave us be so I can do my job. ”
    “ Get
out, Weasel, ” Preston
said and followed him out, closing the jail room door behind him.
    Woody
and Katie spent another hour with Yancey before going their separate ways:
Clampett to the eatery to charm the locals, some of them potential jurors, and
Katie to the telephone office to ask Gracie Kingsley ’ s
mother Marta if Lester had showed up at home, before meeting him there.  She
wanted to talk to Helmer about borrowing the suit, anyway.

 
     
     
     
    CHAPTER
FOURTEEN
    The
decades-old county courthouse was a white painted wood sided structure of
little character.  It sat three blocks east of the s heriff ’ s
office, at the very end of the main street.
    Katie
entered the courtroom at a quarter of nine, passed beyond the rail and took a
seat directly behind Woody Clampett at the defense table.  Courtrooms were
nothing new to her.  With a father that was a prominent attorney in Nashville
and a grandfather that served as a Tennessee state judge, she