“This is part of your build-up, to let me know what a tedious job I gave you?”

“Damn straight. I worked for this information.”

“Um-hmmm.”

“And I expect you to appreciate that.”

“Oh, believe me, I do.”

“Do I hear some sarcasm in your voice?”

“God forbid.”

“Then I’ll finish what I was saying.”

“Please do.”

Tolliver sprawled on my bed, lying on his back with his arms flung out on either side.

“McCluskey—did I mention how nasty the man is? McCluskey’s decided I’m your bodyguard, and he wanted to know how I managed to stay around you, since surely you were marked by the devil.”

“Oh, yeah? And I thought I’d showered real well.”

“You probably missed some Satan behind the ears.”

“Sorry about that.”

“Well, he thinks anything to do with contacting the dead, or seeing the dead, is a big church no-no, and anyone who claims to be able to do that is—”

“Let me guess—Evil?”

“How’d you know? Amazing! You’re right!”

“Just lucky.”

“Anyway.” Tolliver yawned. “He heard about the boys this morning, and though he thought young men shouldn’t hurt women, he also thought putting a scare in you was a good thing.”

“Oh, gee, thanks.”

“I told him it wasn’t.” Tolliver sounded suddenly sincere. “I told him if anything happened like that again, I’d be forced to display some of my amazing bodyguard skills, learned at the Special Forces camp.”

“What Special Forces camp?”

“Obviously, the one that exists to train specially vicious and lethal bodyguards.”

“Oh, that one.”

“Right. Anyway, he swallowed some of that story, and he said that he was sure nothing else like that would happen to you here in Sarne, since Sheriff Branscom was so put out about your being threatened.”

“Well, actually, that’s nice to know.”

“That’s what I thought. Do you think it’s safe for you to go out tonight?”

I stopped looking at my fingernails and started looking at Tolliver.

“I’m not trying to stop you,” he said hastily. “You go on with Officer Friendly, if you want to. I’m just reminding you, this is a fundamentalist community and they don’t admire your ability.”

I held my tongue for a long minute, trying to think through Tolliver’s advice. But I heard myself saying, “It’s okay for you to go out and get laid while you’re getting the car washed, and it’s not okay for me to go to a gospel singing?”

Tolliver’s skin reddened. “I just don’t want anything to happen to you,” he said steadily. “You remember what happened in West Virginia.”

In West Virginia, the entire populace of a tiny hamlet had thrown rocks at our car.

“I remember,” I said. “But it was a smaller place, and it had a strong leader who hated the whole idea of me.”

“You’re saying there’s no united front here in Sarne?”