"Whoa, whoa," the first man said. He reached into his back pocket. "I'm just pulling out my wallet now. We're from the mining company."
"Who the hell gave you permission to come out here?" I asked, glancing at the identification he held up. "This is private fucking property."
"Don't shoot the damn messenger," the other one said. "We're just doing our jobs."
"Your job involves trespassing on private land?"
They didn't answer, just gathered their bags and began backing away from me. "We don't want any trouble," the first one said, holding up his hands again.
"Well, trouble is what you're about to get," I said. I took long strides toward the house. As far as I could remember, that shotgun was still over the mantle.
"Shit," I heard one of them say from behind me.
They'd better be running, I thought. My mind was spinning as I approached the house. If I weren't paranoid about what was going it on in this town already, this would send up a few red flags. My theory about stuff going on in this town wasn't so crazy when people from the mining company started showing up on my property and poking around.
I stuck the key in the lock to the front door, but stopped when I heard the crunch of tires on the gravel in the driveway. As soon as I saw the Sheriff's car, the blood rushed to my head. I didn't even need to wait for the car door to open to know who was inside.
Jed Easton stepped out and ambled up the driveway like he had all the time in the world. I was regretting the fact that I'd taken the time to talk to the two guys outside, instead of getting my shotgun like I should have. "Are you here to arrest the two dickheads over there, the ones trespassing on my property?" I asked.
Jed didn't even glance at the two guys, who were busy getting into their truck. I heard the truck start, and shook my head. "No, I guess not. Are you in the pocket of the mining company, then?"
Jed smiled, looking at me from behind his mirrored sunglasses.
Fucking smug sonofabitch.
Jed had treated my family like shit for years, hassled me when I came back in town, the same way he'd done to Elias.
I didn't like the fucking guy.
"I don't think it's any of your business whose pocket I may or may not be in, Elias," Jed said. "Or is it Silas? I can't see your leg, so it's hard to tell. Well, you're not here with that white trash reality star girlfriend, so you can't be Elias."
"Do you have a girlfriend, Jed?" I asked. "Or do you just jerk off at night to pictures of your mother?"
Jed's face darkened. He slid up the mirrored sunglasses, and looked at me, his eyes flashing. "I'm going to ignore that," he said. "But that's the only warning I'm giving you."
"Warning?" I asked, laughing. "Or what? Will you take me down to the station for disrespecting that little Sheriff's badge you've got there? Or for implying that you’re a literal motherfucker? I'm not sure which part of that involves breaking the law."
Jed smiled, but the expression was sinister. "The two of us are the only ones out here right now. And I do believe that the men from the mining company can attest to the fact that you behaved in a threatening manner toward them. You should tread very carefully."
"Are you threatening me for making a comment about your momma?" I paused, my thoughts churning. I hadn't considered Jed being involved in all of this.
Until now.
There was just something about the way he showed up here so quickly, and the way he'd gone straight into menacing me. "No," I said. "That's not the reason, is it?"
Jed smiled again, the corners of his mouth pulled tight. "You and I are the only ones out here on the outskirts of town, Silas. The nearest house is what, a half mile away? There are no eyes on us. And I'm sure your mother's house has a few weapons inside. As I recall, your alcoholic father was a bit of a gun nut. I was always surprised that your mother ended up going out the way she did. I figured her for eventually getting her head blown off by your father, not swallowing a bottle of pills. But I guess you never know about people, do you?"
"Fuck you, Jed." I clenched my fists, stepping forward toward him. "You talk shit about my family, you talk shit about me. Why don't you take a shot at me like a real man?" I asked, immediately regretting my choice of phrase. The last thing I needed was to get shot by a trigger-happy cop.
As if on cue, Jed drew his weapon and pointed it at me. I stopped in my tracks, raising my hands in my air, barely able to speak through my rage. "So this is how it's going to be, Jed?" I asked. "You're going to shoot me, right here in the middle of my mother's front yard?"
"Keep your hands in the air where I can see them," Jed said. He stood, his weapon trained on me, unwavering. I wanted to fucking lunge at the guy and beat his ass into the ground, but instead I stood there, swallowing my anger.