agility.”
“I guess my two-mile walk every day keeps me limber.”
“Guess so. Lucky for you and Grace.”
“He wasn’t aiming at us.” Joe pushed back his chair and got up to pour himself a refill of coffee. He returned to the table, but once he’d set the mug on it, he didn’t touch it again. “What happened up there?”
Crawford knew that “up there” referred to the roof of the courthouse. “I haven’t been near a TV, but I suppose it’s been a big news story. Your neighbor Susan remarked on it. What’s being reported?”
“That you were trying to talk the guy into surrendering. But that when he realized he was surrounded and fired at a deputy sheriff, SWAT team snipers took him down.”
“That’s pretty much it.”
“The TV people are playing up the fact that you’re a Texas Ranger.”
“I’m a computer geek with a Ranger’s badge.”
“To hear them tell it, you’re a hero.”
“I don’t look at it that way.”
“Neither do I.”
Joe had gradually been working up a lather, so that by the time he said those last three words, he was seething. He turned his head, listened for a moment, as though to make sure that Grace was still in the bedroom asleep, then came back around to Crawford.
But before his father-in-law could speak, Crawford went on the offensive. “Since I came through the door, you’ve been building up to something, Joe. Let’s have it.”
“You took it upon yourself to play John Wayne.”
“I went after a man armed with a semiautomatic pistol who threatened the lives of everybody inside that building. Was I supposed to just stand by and let him walk out of there?”
“That building is crawling with officers of every kind, all day, every day.”
“Well, the only officer immediately on hand was Chet, and he was dead.”
“What did you say to the shooter?”
Crawford had spent the last several hours answering Neal’s questions about that encounter. He resented getting the third degree about it now from his father-in-law. On the other hand, he hoped to avoid creating a rift with Joe and recognized the value of treading lightly.
“I’ll be happy to recount it for you later, Joe, but right now I’m bushed. Thank you for arranging my visit with Georgia. I needed to see her. I also wanted to check on Grace. Now that I know they’re tucked in and all right, I’m going home to my own bed.”
When he pushed back his chair and stood up, so did Joe. He said, “It’s time we took the gloves off.”
Crawford raised an eyebrow.
“You know what I’m talking about,” Joe said.
“Yeah, I know what you’re talking about. But you’ve had years to get things off your chest, and you chose tonight? Now
?
Lousy timing, Joe. Can’t your grievances keep for at least one more day?”
“No, because I don’t want to be blamed later for not giving you fair warning.”
“Of?”
The older man propped his hands on his hips in the stance of a victor. “You played my ace for me today. You scored a goal for the opposing team.” He gave a short laugh. “I’ve been trying to come up with a way to beat you on this thing, and damned if you didn’t do it for me.”
“This thing being the custody dispute?”
“What dispute ?” he sneered. “There won’t be a dispute after your grandstanding today.”
“I wasn’t grandstanding. I was trying to prevent—”
“What you did was take a loaded weapon off a fallen officer and chase after a crazy man. Those courthouse employees that you encountered on your way up to the roof? They interviewed two of them on TV. Neither saw the man in white, but both said you scared the bejesus out of them.”
Crawford turned toward the door. “Tell Grace I’ll check on her in the morning.”
“Hear me out.”
Crawford came back around.
“I didn’t like you from the minute Beth brought you to meet us.”
“That’s not exactly a news flash.”
“I disliked you on sight.”
“On sight? Why? You didn’t even know
“I guess my two-mile walk every day keeps me limber.”
“Guess so. Lucky for you and Grace.”
“He wasn’t aiming at us.” Joe pushed back his chair and got up to pour himself a refill of coffee. He returned to the table, but once he’d set the mug on it, he didn’t touch it again. “What happened up there?”
Crawford knew that “up there” referred to the roof of the courthouse. “I haven’t been near a TV, but I suppose it’s been a big news story. Your neighbor Susan remarked on it. What’s being reported?”
“That you were trying to talk the guy into surrendering. But that when he realized he was surrounded and fired at a deputy sheriff, SWAT team snipers took him down.”
“That’s pretty much it.”
“The TV people are playing up the fact that you’re a Texas Ranger.”
“I’m a computer geek with a Ranger’s badge.”
“To hear them tell it, you’re a hero.”
“I don’t look at it that way.”
“Neither do I.”
Joe had gradually been working up a lather, so that by the time he said those last three words, he was seething. He turned his head, listened for a moment, as though to make sure that Grace was still in the bedroom asleep, then came back around to Crawford.
But before his father-in-law could speak, Crawford went on the offensive. “Since I came through the door, you’ve been building up to something, Joe. Let’s have it.”
“You took it upon yourself to play John Wayne.”
“I went after a man armed with a semiautomatic pistol who threatened the lives of everybody inside that building. Was I supposed to just stand by and let him walk out of there?”
“That building is crawling with officers of every kind, all day, every day.”
“Well, the only officer immediately on hand was Chet, and he was dead.”
“What did you say to the shooter?”
Crawford had spent the last several hours answering Neal’s questions about that encounter. He resented getting the third degree about it now from his father-in-law. On the other hand, he hoped to avoid creating a rift with Joe and recognized the value of treading lightly.
“I’ll be happy to recount it for you later, Joe, but right now I’m bushed. Thank you for arranging my visit with Georgia. I needed to see her. I also wanted to check on Grace. Now that I know they’re tucked in and all right, I’m going home to my own bed.”
When he pushed back his chair and stood up, so did Joe. He said, “It’s time we took the gloves off.”
Crawford raised an eyebrow.
“You know what I’m talking about,” Joe said.
“Yeah, I know what you’re talking about. But you’ve had years to get things off your chest, and you chose tonight? Now
?
Lousy timing, Joe. Can’t your grievances keep for at least one more day?”
“No, because I don’t want to be blamed later for not giving you fair warning.”
“Of?”
The older man propped his hands on his hips in the stance of a victor. “You played my ace for me today. You scored a goal for the opposing team.” He gave a short laugh. “I’ve been trying to come up with a way to beat you on this thing, and damned if you didn’t do it for me.”
“This thing being the custody dispute?”
“What dispute ?” he sneered. “There won’t be a dispute after your grandstanding today.”
“I wasn’t grandstanding. I was trying to prevent—”
“What you did was take a loaded weapon off a fallen officer and chase after a crazy man. Those courthouse employees that you encountered on your way up to the roof? They interviewed two of them on TV. Neither saw the man in white, but both said you scared the bejesus out of them.”
Crawford turned toward the door. “Tell Grace I’ll check on her in the morning.”
“Hear me out.”
Crawford came back around.
“I didn’t like you from the minute Beth brought you to meet us.”
“That’s not exactly a news flash.”
“I disliked you on sight.”
“On sight? Why? You didn’t even know
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