Chapter 14: Clean House

The sun had not been up three hours when Lee Roy knocked on Milt's front door. Wary and puzzled Milt let a grinning Lee Roy into his home for the first time. A worn looking woman lay reclined in a fold-back lounge chair, pillows placed around her. The smell of sickness was in the air. "This is my wife, Emma," he told Lee Roy.

"Howdy ma'am," Lee Roy responded, grinning his friendly brown toothed grin.

"Better git them teeth fixed, boy," she greeted him.

"Ah, yes ma'am, I'll surely will," he responded and turned to Milt, "You got a job yet?" He cocked his head and waited for the answer he already knew was forthcoming.

"Lee Roy, you know I haven't had a chance to even ask around yet. We were let go just yesterday." He looked dejected and beaten already.

"Well, I got one for you, if you want it, Milt. It isn't much, but at least it will keep a roof over your head."

"Christ. What is it? Shoveling shit? Digging ditches? Whatever it is I'll take it." He grabbed Lee Roy's arm the way a drowning man would grab a life preserver.

"Naw, Milt, you're too good for scut work. You are now the new town marshal. You are also the court bailiff and you have to walk around town once or twice every night and make sure all the downtown doors are locked and no desperado has tried to rob a pair of pants from Penney's. You also have to serve notices and legal papers. You get fifty cents each time you serve a legal paper.

The job pays a hundred fifty dollars a month and you get to use city gas and oil in your car and the city will pay your regular phone bill. It hasn't got all the authority like what you're used to, but it is better than nothing, I figure.

Milt's chin quivered, his mouth quivered from the deep emotion roiling inside him. Marshal Milt Armstrong said, "God damn you, you are a life saver, you worthless ... Aw, hell, Lee Roy, When do I go to work?

"Well, Harley told me to tell you how you're on the payroll right now. How soon can you come meet with the mayor and Judge Mack? It's just a formality; if Harley said hire you, you're hired." Lee Roy felt the happiness grow inside him. By god, it is nice to help friends. Another little thought reminded him it was nice to have friends you could help.

"Just a minute," Milt said. He turned and crossed the room to his wife and touched her cheek lightly. "You hear, Babe? I got a job again. I got to go but I'll be right back. You want some ice cream?" She nodded her head dispiritedly her illness showing in her sallow, lined face. Milt bent over and kissed her on the forehead. He followed Lee Roy out the door.

Lee Roy climbed into the Ford Harley had turned over to him. Milt got in on the other side. "When you get this?" he asked.

"Oh this is Harley's old car. He acquired another yesterday. I acquired this one today," he answered.

"Is 'acquired' your word of the day?" Milt asked with a smile.

"It surely is." Lee Roy responded. "You know, since I started trying to better myself, all sorts of great things have been happening."

"What was all that yesterday? You know, at the Duran house?" Milt was curious. He had hurried on home to be with his wife and hadn't heard what had transpired.

Lee Roy recounted all the events. He finished with, "You know, Milt, I never killed anyone before in my life. And then to take down two men like ... well, its been hard on me, real hard. I hope I never have to do it ever again."

"I can't get over it, Lee Roy, just when you think you have someone pegged, you find out you're way off. It took real guts to come plowing out of the car like and just start wading in like you did. You say the little Duran girl actually fought one of them and sunk her teeth in his hand, the one holding the gun?" He shook his head at the wonder of it all.

"Oh I tell you, she's a feisty one, she surely is. I'll tell you, Milt, she looks just like her mama but she sure as hell takes after her daddy."

They had arrived at the courthouse and Lee Roy drove around back. He pulled into the parking spot reserved for the bailiff. "This is your parking spot. So if you have to drive a prisoner, you can do it from right here at the back door."

Milt nodded and said deadpan, "Lee Roy, I owe you a hell of a lot. But you still better stay away my daughter."

Lee Roy looked guilty at Milt and saw he was joking. He answered in a serious voice, "Hell, Milt, I got too much food on my plate at home to go looking for a snack elsewhere."

Milt looked at him and said, "You amaze me. Wonders will never cease."

They got out and entered the building. Lee Roy led the way to Judge Mack's chambers. They entered the courtroom and found the mayor already there, talking to the judge. "You look familiar. Where do I know you from?"

"I was on a jury of yours. Judge, the Will Avery murder trial."

"Oh yes, you were the holdout who refused to go along with the consensus of your fellow jurors. The man went free. Why?" He stared intently at Milt.

"Well, sir, the man wasn't guilty and I was not going to send a man to the electric chair just to please the prosecutor. The real killer was caught a year later. Remember?"

"You got any questions to ask this man, Mayor?" the judge asked, nodding but not answering Milt's query.

Mayor Art Crenshaw asked him, "You look familiar to me, too. Why?"

"Well sir, I passed out handbills for you. I though you were the man for the job." Milt smiled at him.

"Well, Judge," the mayor said, "I do believe this is the right man for the job." He patted Milt on the back and left.

"It really did not matter, because what Harley Duran wants, he seems to get. But I feel you're the right man for the job, myself." He paused and then asked, "If a prisoner under your escort from the county jail, or the holding cell here or from the police station, would you shoot to keep him from getting away?"

"If I felt the circumstance warranted it, I'd say yes, I could shoot. But I hope it never happens. There are only a very few times when shooting a man is proper."

"I agree Harley picked a good man for the job. How did you come to meet Harley Duran?" The judge sat and waited.

"Well, I never met the man. He told Lee Roy to find him a man to fit the job and Lee Roy came to me," Milt answered.

The judge shook his head in mock surrender and said, "Here's the keys to the back door of the court house and the upstairs holding cells. Lee Roy will tell you what has to be done. If he doesn't know, our esteemed chief of police will know. We have a new broom sweeping our city clean. It feels strange." He thought a minute and added, "It feels very strange, but very good too. Yes."

Milt accepted the keys and left with Lee Roy. They drove to the police station and entered. A very pretty young girl barely out of high school sat at the front desk. "May I help you, please?" she asked in a formal voice.

"Well, yes," Lee Roy answered her. I'm Lee Roy Jones and I work here somewhere. This is Milt Armstrong our new Marshal. Now who are you?"

"Are you the one who killed those two desperados yesterday?" Her eyes widened.

"Uh, yes," he answered flatly. This was a subject he did not wish to talk about it. "But who are you?"

"Oh," she said airily, "Uncle Art told me to come over here this morning and answer the telephone and I have been here ever since. You think the chief will hire me?"

"Why don't you ask him?" Lee Roy countered.

"Oh I couldn't, he's scary." She protested.

Just then Harley came out of the back office, chasing his daughter. He stumbled to keep from stepping on her and fell on his face. She jumped on his back and squealed with delight. "Yep, he scares the hell out of me too." Lee Roy said and began to laugh.

"Harley, will you please grow up and act like a chief of police is supposed to act? You look don't look dignified face down there on the' floor. I worked real hard to starch them shirts an' iron them so you would look nice." Ida Marie stood there, hands on hips, frowning at her errant husband.

"He scares the hell out of his wife too," Lee Roy laughed. You want the job ask him.

"Chief Duran, sir?" she asked timidly.

"Yes?" Harley responded.

"You think I got a chance at having this job permanent?" She was very afraid of the big man. Her hazel eyes were big around as she looked at his face, her lower lip was nervously quivering. She appeared to be almost on the verge of crying.

"Well, hell, I thought you already had it. Didn't your Uncle Art hire you? I hired two and I figured he sent you over here to be hired also. We have to have at least one member of his family in this office." He grinned at her and got up off the floor and dusted himself off. He gathered wife and daughter and left.

"Harley, this is your new City Marshal." Lee Roy called after his retreating back.

Harley came back in and grabbed Milt's hand, shook it and looked him up and down. "You need anything, just holler." He turned and began to depart again.

"Harley, what you want me to do?" Lee Roy called after him.

"Sit at my desk and look important. It'll be yours after the' election. Don't shoot anybody and give the Marshal one of the guns out of the desk drawer. I got a lot of 'em in there." He waved and left.

"Mister Jones, am I hired or not?" The girl seemed almost in tears.

"Only if you want it, darlin'. Only if you want it. What's your name?"

"Elspeth Connors. My friends call me Ellie. Of course I want it. Every girl in town would do anything to get this job, anything."

Lee Roy began to feel a familiar excitement and warmth tingle in his groin. Then he stopped and thought of his wife. He remembered she told him she wanted him to kiss her on the mouth more often.

He bit back the remark he almost made to the young girl. By damn, this turning over a new leaf got harder and harder. Right then Lee Roy decided he was a man with responsibilities. Besides, hadn't he even told Cassie Jean he loved her? Now there was something he had never said to anyone before in his life. He smiled at the damned pretty young girl and led Milt back to the chief's office and rummaged through the drawers.

"What kind of firearm you prefer, Milt?" He asked.

"The kind you don't have to shoot anybody with. You got anything with a holster and belt? Then I can take it off and leave it when I don't need it."

"Milt," Lee Roy told him flatly, "Your gun goes on when you get up and come to work. It goes off when you get home. Make no mistake. The time you don't wear it is the time you will need it." Visions of the previous day came to Lee Roy. Lee Roy had begun to grow into his job quickly...

"I don't know if I feel comfortable with a gun. I never shot at anyone in my life." Milt looked very miserable.

"Milt," Lee Roy told him, "You were a friend to me and you gave me a chance. I had to learn new stuff when you made me a driver. But I was willing to learn and do what it took to do the job. I did a good job for you, too, didn't I?"

"Well, yes you did, Lee Roy. You turned out to be the best man I ever hired. But this is different. This is about shooting people, not just driving."

"Milt, listen to me. The chances are you will never have to pull a gun on anybody. But if you do, you better have it. Its either that of forget the job. It's a good job, Milt. But you have to learn new ways to keep it."