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by Kris Bryant

  “Let’s go ahead and do a blast to all the subscribers. I’ll send you a generic picture of the dog and post that we are trying to find him.” Natalie ignored the text message she’d just received and searched for the perfect golden-retriever photo. “Here. I found one. Say he’s friendly but has been known to get into trash cans, so keep lids on tight and call or message us if they see him.”

  “On it, Boss.”

  When David called Natalie “boss,” he meant it. He respected and borderline crushed on her. He was single, attractive, but a tad boring. He was a few years younger than her, and not once did he ever mention a hobby or anything other than movies. Classics, book-to-film movies, Oscar winners, B movies, and foreign films. He never talked about his family or anything normal, like renovations on the house he’d bought last year, or car problems, or great deals at Spruce Market. He talked only about movies. He was heavily involved in a movie-based online chat group that Natalie suspected he logged onto every night. Most single young men she knew gamed online, but David never mentioned Xbox or PlayStation. Her phone dinged again, and she looked at it in dread.

  Please don’t tell her I told you. I just think she needs a friend right now, and she’s afraid to go out and find one.

  Judy’s first text inviting her to Tanner’s had been a shock. The second one made sense. Her niece didn’t know about the invite. Sarah had seemed only slightly surprised at seeing Natalie at Creative Crafts, as if it was a quick recognition and then disappointing realization it was only Natalie. She sighed. She should go see Sarah and say hi and get caught up and get it over with. It seemed as though she was in town for a bit, so running into her was going to happen, and Natalie wanted it to be on her terms for now. No more surprises.

  She checked the time. Almost five. That gave her about an hour to get home, shower, and slip into clothes that were casual yet flattering. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to be there early or show up fashionably late. Early. They could approach her instead of the other way around.

  “I’m going to leave a few minutes early, but you can catch me on the radio.” She grabbed her backpack and coat and headed out the back.

  “Oh, hot date tonight?” Faith had been with the department only eighteen months. They had needed a receptionist, and Faith had needed a job after her third marriage tanked.

  Natalie hesitated as she reached for the doorknob. “Uh, no. Just things to do.” She flashed Faith a smile and closed the door behind her, but not before she heard Faith yell out. “Don’t forget to run the material to your mom.”

  Shit, Natalie thought. That was going to set her back at least ten minutes. She called her mom when she got in the car.

  “Mom, hi. Listen. I’m running late and am meeting friends at Tanner’s tonight. Can I run the material over tomorrow morning, and we can have coffee?” Natalie was immediately wracked with guilt. Her mom didn’t get out much since her dad lost his battle with cancer eight years ago. “Scratch that. Better idea. How about you join me for drinks tonight at Tanner’s?”

  “Oh, no, sweetheart. I’m not ready to go out.”

  Natalie could visualize her mother tugging on the back of her hair, already worried about how she looked. “I’ll go home and get changed. Be ready in forty-five minutes. I won’t take no for an answer.” She hung up so her mother couldn’t back out.

  The drive home took only five minutes. She pulled out a black sweater and dark jeans while stripping off her uniform and took a ten-minute shower. She shaved in places she hadn’t in a long time, but not because she thought anything would happen. It just made her feel sexy and confident when she was smooth. She wasn’t able to dry her hair all the way because lack of time was frantically pushing her through the door. Early was still better than late. She tugged on her ankle boots while dabbing makeup on her face. After a quick inspection and a few swipes of a mascara brush, she grabbed her lip gloss and her coat, and raced out to her Jeep.

  It was a quarter to six. She was never going to make it. It would take five minutes to get to her mom’s house, five minutes to get her mother ready, and five minutes to get to Tanner’s. Best-case scenario, they would arrive at the same time as Judy and Sarah. She backed out of her driveway and smacked her hand on the steering wheel. “Shit.” She put the Jeep in park, raced over to her sheriff’s vehicle, and grabbed her mom’s bag of material. The whole thing took about twenty seconds off the clock, but it felt like minutes.

  Much to her surprise, Natalie’s mother, Linda, was waiting for her at the door. “Honey, do you have to drive that fast? I mean, I know you’re the sheriff and all, but you aren’t being careful tearing into the driveway like that.”

  She ran to the passenger side and helped her mother into the car. “I know. I know. I’m just trying to beat the crowd. Listen, Mom. Judy Eastman secretly invited us because her niece, Sarah, is back in town, and she wants her to feel welcome. She remembered that we knew one another and asked that we meet them up there without knowing that she planned it. Can you do that?”

  Linda stared at her daughter. “The same Sarah who kissed you and pretended she didn’t and then left and never answered your texts? That one?”

  “Mom, we were young and confused. Truthfully, she probably did forget. We consumed a lot of alcohol that night.”

  Linda put her hands over her ears. “I’m not supposed to know these things.”

  Natalie reached over and tapped her mom’s leg until she moved her hands. “Mom, it was a long time ago. I’ve already forgotten.” She hadn’t, though. Sarah showed up in her thoughts when she least expected her to, like when she read a book that tugged at her heartstrings, or saw a gray kitten like the fluffy gray kittens Sarah loved, or when she saw lilies in somebody’s garden. Lilies were Sarah’s favorite. She doodled them everywhere: on her notebook, in the margins of her textbooks, and even on the condensation that gathered on her car windshield when the seasons changed to cooler temperatures.

  And there was always the first kiss with anybody new. Not that Natalie had a lot of those, but she always compared each first kiss to her first kiss with Sarah. Natalie couldn’t help it. Most first kisses were awkward, but that one special night, with that one special girl, her first kiss was perfect. Just thinking about it kicked her heartbeat up a few notches.

  “It’s a good thing Judy will be there. She’ll make it not so uncomfortable for you both.”

  Natalie rolled her eyes. “Mom, I’m fine.”

  Linda pointed to Natalie’s death grip on the steering wheel. “I haven’t seen you this tense in a really long time. You aren’t still carrying a torch for her, are you?”

  Loosening her grip on the steering wheel, Natalie sat back in the seat and managed to bark out a small laugh. “Carry a torch? Mom, we need to modernize your lingo.”

  “Deflection. I invented it.”

  Natalie turned the corner and found an empty spot on the street. “Oh, look. We’re here.” She batted her eyelashes at her mom and jumped out of the car.

  “We’ll talk about this later.”

  Natalie waited for her mother and linked arms with her. “Nah. Let’s just have a nice mother-daughter night.”

  “You mean mother-daughter-and-the-girl-who-got-away night?”

  “And yes, her too, if we’re going to be technical.” Natalie held the door for her mother and took a deep breath before she looked around the town’s only bar. Tanner’s looked exactly the same as it had the night she returned to Spruce Mountain eight years ago and had a much-needed drink with her father. It was the night he told her the history of himself, all the things she didn’t know. It was a night of extremes. Extreme happiness at the memories they had, and extreme sadness when they knew he wouldn’t be around for Christmas. Nothing could keep the cancer from spreading, so he stopped treatments and spent the last few weeks saying his good-byes to the people he loved most.

  Natalie shook her head at the memory and turned her attention to the patrons who dotted the place. Four booths with high-back g
reen cushions lined one side of the bar from the front door to the kitchen area. A dozen mismatched barstools were pressed under the L-shaped bar, and a pool table that was entirely too big for the establishment filled up most of the free space. They served peanuts, pretzels, and sometimes popcorn in little wooden bowls at the bar, but people weren’t here to eat. They were here to drink. Tanner’s had a great selection of whiskey and surprisingly good beer on tap. It wasn’t a place Natalie frequented, but on rough days, she swung by for a quick beer and a handful of pretzels. Sometimes that was her dinner. She always left a bigger tip on those sad evenings.

  “Well, speak of the devil,” Linda said, her voice low enough for only Natalie to hear.

  “Hi. What are you ladies doing here? Come join us.” Judy waved them over to the booth. She scooted over, and Linda immediately sat down next to her. There was only one place left to sit. Natalie watched as Sarah slid over to make room for her. She clenched her teeth and smiled at Sarah when she sat down.

  “We thought we’d come out for a quick drink. Natalie’s been working so hard and needed to get out for a bit,” Linda said.

  “Hi, Nat. It’s good to see you again. We were kind of rushed earlier.”

  Natalie couldn’t stop the flush from spreading up her neck and over her cheeks. The emotional tailspin she was in gave her a moment of nausea, and she could only smile weakly at Sarah.

  “Sarah, what brings you back to Spruce? Last I remember, you were down in Texas, right?” Linda quickly ordered a domestic beer on tap from the waitress, who came out of nowhere. Natalie ordered a Heineken, and Sarah and Judy asked for glasses of wine.

  “Yes. I went to school down there and ended up staying.”

  Natalie was already dreading Sarah’s story. She had probably met some guy, married him after college, and started the perfect family. Her eye roll must have been visible because she felt a warning kick under the table from her mom. Judy either didn’t see it or pretended not to notice. “You studied finance, right?” She always remembered Sarah beating her in algebra and economics.

  “I’m a CPA. Not really a need for one of those in town, since Spruce already has one,” she said.

  “If you’re looking to stay, I’m sure you could set up shop here. Brian Denmore can’t do it all. A little competition is good,” Linda said.

  Sarah cocked her head as if the idea had merit. “You know, if I can’t find anything, I might consider that. Tomorrow I’m going to the library. Apparently, they need help, and it’s right next door to the elementary school, so I could drop Harley off and then go to work.”

  “Do you have only one child?” Linda asked.

  Natalie stared straight ahead, completely hating this line of questioning. She was so close to Sarah that they bumped elbows and smiled apologetically at one another.

  “Yes, a six-year-old daughter. Harley. The love of my life.”

  “She’s been a blessing for me and Bob. We just love her to death,” Judy said. She pulled out her phone to show the table photos of Harley.

  “She looks just like you,” Natalie said. For the first time since sitting next to her, she looked Sarah in the eye.

  Sarah looked down. “She’s my mini me. Only her hair is lighter and straighter than mine.”

  Natalie remembered tugging on a piece of hair playfully right before they kissed. She sighed. That was a long time ago. And Sarah didn’t even remember. It was time to forget about the past and just move forward. “Is she in kindergarten?”

  “No. She’s in first grade.”

  It was hard for Natalie to focus on anything but Sarah’s lips. She watched them as Sarah described taking Harley to her first day of school and how well she seemed to be adjusting.

  “I think one of the elementary teachers is somebody who graduated one year ahead of us. Rebecca Palmer. Do you remember her?” Natalie asked.

  “Oh, great.” Sarah sat back in the booth and sighed.

  “What? That bad?”

  Sarah nodded and laughed. “I stole her boyfriend.”

  “Oh, my God. That’s right. You blew into town and took Brent away from her the first week you were here.” Natalie grabbed a handful of pretzels to keep her hands busy. Being this close was making her antsy.

  “Well, I don’t know that I did that, but what was I thinking? He was awful. He partied too hard and treated everyone like crap.”

  Natalie sat up a little taller when Sarah’s fingers brushed hers as they both reached for pretzels. “Sorry,” she mumbled and quickly moved her fingers away.

  “What ever happened to Brent?”

  “Let’s just say he peaked in high school,” Natalie said. Brent had worked at the mill with his father, and when it closed, Brent had found odd jobs around town until he exhausted all possibilities. The last Natalie had heard, he was in Portland working at a vintage record store.

  “What a waste of time that was, huh?” Judy asked, and winked at Sarah.

  “Because we don’t know if he was successful?” Linda jumped into the conversation, having finished scrolling through Judy’s photos of Harley.

  “She means because I’m a lesbian, and I was trying to be somebody I wasn’t in high school.”

  Sweat popped up on the back of Natalie’s neck and on her palms. The longneck she was holding slipped out of her hand and smacked on the tabletop, spilling the contents in the direction of Judy’s lap. She jumped up and slapped napkins in the path of the liquid. “Shit. I’m sorry.” She glanced at her mom, who quirked her eyebrow.

  “It’s okay.” Judy waved off the handful of spare napkins. Natalie and her long reach stopped the beer from spilling onto Judy’s lap. “At least you aren’t drinking red wine.”

  Natalie couldn’t decide if her phone ringing at this exact moment was a blessing or a curse. “Sheriff Strand.”

  “Sheriff, we have a sighting on the dog.” David’s voice was filled with excitement.

  “Did someone call?” Natalie turned around so her back was to Sarah, and she plugged her other ear with her finger to hear him better. “Or did someone post?”

  “Jim Pierce called and said he saw a dog fitting that description in his shop garage.”

  “That’s not too far from here. Let me head out and see if I can find it.” Natalie clicked off her phone and stood. “I’ll be right back. There’s a loose dog we’ve been trying to catch.”

  “So, you’re the sheriff, dogcatcher, welcoming committee. So many hats, Natalie,” Sarah said.

  Natalie shrugged. “When I come back, I’ll share some interesting stories of being a sheriff in a small town. I shouldn’t be long.” She slipped on her coat and bolted out the door.

  Jim was exactly like Fred at Spruce Market and would probably shoot the dog if it didn’t vacate his property. She pulled up at the exact time she heard a gunshot. Her fear flipped to anger immediately. She threw open the car door, turned on her high beams so Jim didn’t accidentally shoot her, and barked out for him. “Jim. Sheriff Strand. Put down that shotgun.” Nobody answered, so she put on her flashing lights and used the loudspeaker. “Damn it, Jim. Can you hear me?”

  “Yeah, yeah. I hear you. My gun’s down.”

  Natalie cautiously approached him. “Jim. You can’t fire a gun in town. I should write you up.” Even though he lived on the outskirts, it was still illegal, and it pissed her off. That dog was probably scared to death.

  “I have every right to protect my property.”

  “It’s a fucking domesticated dog who’s lost. If I hear you shoot a gun or if you kill it, I’m hauling your ass to jail for animal abuse.” Natalie was furious, and keeping her anger tamped down and remaining professional was incredibly difficult. She had never liked Jim, because he was always trying to cause trouble but knew exactly how to stay a hair on the right side of the law. Except for firing a shotgun.

  “I called the department five minutes ago.”

  “I came as soon as I got the message. When we posted to keep an eye out for the dog, it d
idn’t mean to shoot it.” She took his shotgun and put it in her car. “It stays here until I’m done searching the property.” Natalie grabbed a tactical flashlight, locked her car, and shined the sharp beam of light down the driveway that led to Jim’s garage and shop.

  Jim followed, keeping a good ten feet between them. “I just saw him when you pulled in. He was in my shop, and then when I fired the gun in the air, he ran to the back of the shop.”

  He stumbled over the in-the-air part of his explanation. Natalie ignored him and walked around the whole shop but didn’t see the dog. She booted open the side door where the dog had entered and escaped, according to Jim. It was probably looking for shelter. She hunched her shoulders against the cold she suddenly felt now that her anger at Jim was subsiding. “I’m going to look in the woods. I want you to stay here in case he returns.” At his nod, she turned back around and shined her flashlight in the tall trees. She saw paw prints, but they were spread all out as if the dog purposely did it to throw her off, or nervously pranced because he was scared of the shotgun but didn’t know where to go.

  Her heart broke. “Oh, baby boy. Where are you?” She walked through the woods for a good twenty minutes before returning to Jim’s gravel driveway. “I didn’t see him, but I did see some dog prints. Listen, the dog isn’t going to hurt you or destroy your property. I’ll give you back your gun and not write you a citation if you promise not to shoot it. Call us if he shows up again.” She seriously doubted he would.

  “It’s a ghost dog. I have no idea where it could go other than deeper into the woods, and if that’s the case, you can forget about it. It’ll never find its way out,” Jim said.

  “I mean it. Don’t shoot the dog.” She handed him back his gun and climbed into her car. She kept eye contact with him until she reached the end of the driveway. As much as she wanted to get back to Tanner’s, she had to at least drive around the neighborhood to see if the dog was anywhere else. It was the first sighting of him since this afternoon. After driving up and down several long driveways, she gave up. There was no sign of Ghost Dog, and she needed to get back to her mother and, if she was being truthful, back to hear Sarah’s story. Dropping a bomb like that deserved all her attention. Worst-case scenario, she would get the details from her mother.