“What in tarnation happened to that armadillo?” I asked as I turned down the dirt lane pocked with patches of gravel.

“Billy Jack’s a big Arkansas Razorback fan. Rumor has it that he was drunk enough to think it was a razorback one night. He got pretty ticked off when he found out his mistake, which explains the dents in its back. He fixed it in another drunken stupor.”

“I take it Billy Jack gets drunk a lot?”

“Define a lot . . .”

I slammed on the brakes, which didn’t exactly have the effect I was going for, since we were only traveling ten miles per hour. “Neely Kate, what exactly are you draggin’ me into?”

Her face scrunched in indignation. “Nothing! We’re checking on my cousin. It’s perfectly harmless.” She gave a half shrug. “Probably.”

I reached for my phone. “I’m calling Joe.”

“No!” she shouted, grabbing my phone out of my hand and holding it out of my reach. “Don’t! Billy Jack hates the sheriff’s department. We’ll never find her if you do that.”

“Neely Kate, if you think she’s in actual danger, let Joe come check on her. He’s better equipped to deal with something like this than we are.”

Before I could register what she was doing, Neely Kate opened the passenger door and hopped out, taking my phone with her and leaving the door gaping wide open.

I opened my own door. “Neely Kate! Come back here.”

“You can wait there if you want,” she called over her shoulder. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

“I’m gonna kill you, pregnant or not,” I grumbled as I climbed down and started after her.

She’d already disappeared around a bend in the road, and when I found her, she was standing in front of a rusted trailer surrounded by rusted cars, a pile of assorted home furnishings, and knee-deep weeds. A giant “Keep Out” sign, written in spray paint, was nailed to a tilting post.

“Your cousin lives here?” I couldn’t imagine anyone willingly living in those conditions.

“No. But she’s spent a lot of time here with Billy Jack. The last time Aunt Thelma heard from her, Dolly was hanging out here.”

I was glad she hadn’t made a move toward the front door. I had a sneaking suspicion that Billy Jack’s sign wasn’t just for show. “Is her boyfriend violent?”

“Not usually.”

“Tell me again why we can’t call Joe?” I hissed.

“Because Joe won’t give two figs.”

My eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”

She turned toward me, disgust painted all over her face. “I didn’t just ask you not to call him on account of Billy Jack. My aunt called the sheriff’s department last night to file a missing persons report. They won’t do anything.”

“Why not?”

“They say she has a history of taking off. Aunt Thelma tried to tell them that it’s different this time, that she’s never disappeared for three days before, but they wouldn’t listen. So it’s up to me to find her.”

“Neely Kate,” I groaned. “Why didn’t you just tell me? I would have helped you.”

“After the whole thing with the bank robbers and Skeeter . . .” She gave me an apologetic smile. “Well, you got so deep last time that I wasn’t sure you’d be open to it.”

“We’re best friends, Neely Kate. Where you go, I go.”

“Thank you.” She gave me a quick hug. “Now all you need to do is stay back on the other side of the road. I’ll go knock on the door to see if she’s here.”

“If you think I’m gonna do that, you’re as crazy as Billy Jack on a bender.” I looped my arm through hers. “Though I suspect your story about your car breaking down was a crock of crap, and you want me here for more than a getaway driver.”

She squeezed my arm. “You’re the best friend a girl could ever hope to have.”

“I’m gonna wait until we’re on our way home to decide if I’m gonna return the sentiment.” I winked. “So what’s your plan?”

“Billy Jack and I have never had bad blood, so I’m not worried about him. As long as he’s semi-sober.”

“And if he’s drunk as a skunk?”

“Run.”

I supposed it was as good of a plan as any, given the circumstances. “At least he doesn’t have any dogs,” I muttered as we followed the trampled path to the trailer through a forest of weeds.

“Oh, he does. They’re just in the house.”

So much for that pipe dream. I glanced around. “Do you see your cousin’s car anywhere?”

She frowned. “No. But that doesn’t mean anything. I think it got repossessed.”

“But you don’t know?”

“No. I was hoping Billy Jack could tell us.”

We stopped on the six-foot-by-six-foot porch, which appeared fairly new and was covered by a roof. The whole structure was in better shape than the rest of the trailer combined, even though empty beer cans had been shoved into a corner.

Neely Kate knocked on the front door and stood back, ready to make a getaway if necessary.

A bunch of yipping broke loose inside, and I cast a sideways glance at her while still trying to watch the door. “What is that?”

“Billy Jack’s dogs. He breeds Chihuahuas.”