by Sandra Owens
Moody’s voice floated down the hall, and I swiveled my chair to face my computer. By the time he walked in, I was creating a form for my officers to fill out with their uniform sizes.
“I’m here,” he said, standing in the doorway.
“Sit.” I kept on working for another five minutes, letting him stew. Playing games with people wasn’t normally my thing, but Moody brought out the worst in me. At what I estimated to be his tenth loud sigh, I shut down the monitor.
“Captain, before we’re done here, one of two things is going to happen. You are either going to give me your word that you accept me as the police chief, or you’re going to put your gun and badge on my desk.”
He sputtered and his face turned red. I held up my hand. “I’m not done yet. This department’s a joke. Since you’ve acted as the interim chief for the past six months, some of that is on you.”
“You son of—”
“Careful. Here’s the thing, Moody. Together, you and I could make the Blue Ridge Valley Police Department something that our officers and our town could be proud of. You’re either with me or against me. Which will it be?” He’d been with the department longer than any other officer here, and for that reason alone, I was giving him one last chance.
“You let a murderer walk free. You arrested a poor girl who was traumatized. How the fuck do you expect me to be with you on anything?”
Stupid ass. I deducted a million—no, a trillion—points. “If by a murderer you mean Gertie Jenkins, her guilt or non-guilt is up to the courts. And by the poor girl, if you mean Stephanie, the court will also decide her guilt or innocence based on the evidence, not me. That’s how the law works.”
I wanted to knock some sense into him with my fist. Never had a man working for me frustrated me the way Moody did. “Time’s up. Do I have your support?”
Moody shot up so fast you’d think his chair was on fire.
“I don’t have to take this shit from you.” He paused at the door, giving me a hard stare that he probably thought would have me shaking in my boots. “You can expect a call from the mayor.”
I rolled my eyes at the empty doorway. According to the addition I’d made to my contract before I scrawled my John Hancock on it, if Jim John wanted me gone before my year was up, he would have to give me a letter terminating my employment signed not only by him but the town manager and all three commissioners. It wasn’t going to be so easy to get rid of me. I was pretty sure I had all but Jim John on my side. And that was only until I found out what Moody had on the mayor.
By the evening shift change, I hadn’t heard a word from Jim John. Nor had I seen Moody since our morning meeting. Truthfully his absence made for a much improved atmosphere in the building.
As the evening officers arrived and the day shift returned to the station, I gathered them in the lobby. “I have some good news,” I said, getting their attention. “As soon as you fill out the form Tommy’s about to pass out and get it back to me, we’ll be able to order your new uniforms, courtesy of your mayor.”
Whistles and enthusiastic clapping filled my ears. “You’ll get one dress uniform, one logoed black leather jacket, five dark blue polo shirts with our logo, and three pairs of black cargo pants.” I held up a picture the uniform company had sent me.
“Those are awesome,” Sarah Griffin said, and everyone vigorously nodded.
They were. I’d like that uniform for myself, but settled for what I’d already picked. Wearing something different from my officers set me apart, which was an important thing to do, and giving them the super cool uniform scored me points.
“The second bit of news you’re going to like, your next paycheck will have a five percent increase.” I waited for the huzzahs and cheers to die down. There was enough money in my new budget to give them even more, but they didn’t need to know that.
“This is the only time there will be across-the-board increases. From here on out, your raises will be based on your job performance. Your first review will be six months from today. Whether you get a raise at that time will depend on you.”
Fortunately my new police department wasn’t unionized. In Chicago I’d never be able to get away with that. As they filed out, either to go home or on shift, each man and woman came up and thanked me. I felt pretty damn good.
Gene, my sole detective, the last to leave and the last to comment, said, “The mayor thought of this? Not likely.”
“Could be likely. Guess you’ll never know.” He rolled his eyes, making me chuckle. I followed Gene to his desk. “You in a hurry to get out of here?”
“I got some time.”
“Good. Grab that cold case file you’re working on and bring it to my office.” I stopped in the break room, got an RC Cola, which I’d seen Gene drinking previously, a bottle of water for myself, and a half bag of pretzels I saw on the counter.
“Tell me about the case,” I said, digging into the pretzels.
“Six years ago, Old Man Scroggins’s prize bull went missing—”
“Say again.”
Gene’s lips twitched. “Yeah, it’s a prize-bull cold case.”
“That’s what I thought you said. Go on.” God forbid the guys back in Chicago got ahold of this. I’d never hear the end of it.
“The Angus stud bull was valued at five thousand. Scroggins got a hundred-dollar stud fee per cow, plus room and board for forty-five days. He had a waiting list, people lined up, wanting their cows covered by that particular bull.”
I grinned. “Covered meaning getting it on?”
“You’re having too much fun with this, Chief.”
“Impossible not to.” A missing prize bull beat a murder cold case any day. “Any suspects?”
“Scroggins accused his neighbor, Roland Hancock, of stealing Beauregard and eating him.”
I tried to keep a straight face. I really did.
“Thought that would tickle you,” Gene said when I laughed.
“Sorry, this is too good. I assume Hancock’s place was searched?” I paused before adding, “Of course, if he ate the evidence, I guess there was no proof?” Gene sat back in his chair, and I could tell he was trying hard not to laugh. I couldn’t resist throwing out the line from an old commercial. “So, where’s the beef?”
That finally did it. He slapped his palm on his leg as he burst into laughter. “Stop it, Chief,” he gasped.
I shrugged. “I’ll try. If the bull’s been missing for six years, do you really think you’ll find it now?”
“That’s not the problem as much as there’s been an ongoing Hatfield and McCoy situation between the two families ever since. Patrol’s out there two or three times a month because one of them’s taken a potshot at the other, or some such nonsense. The day’s going to come when one of them gets hurt if we don’t put a stop to it. Roland didn’t steal that bull, much less eat it, but Old Man Scroggins can’t seem to get that through his hard head.”
“And you know that how?”
“I grew up with Roland. We played ball together. He was the pitcher. I was his catcher. He won us the state championship our senior year. I know him. He didn’t do it, Chief, but he’s getting real tired of the old man messing with him, so I told him I’d look into it.”
I took the file from Gene. “Whose case was it?”
“Captain Moody’s. He was the detective back then.”
“Of course he was.” Opening the folder, I flipped through the meager report. “Not much here, but I’ll go through it with a fresh pair of eyes. Not sure we’ll get anywhere, but who knows, right?”
Gene stood. “Thanks, Chief.”
“No, thank you. Seriously. I never thought I’d be investigating a kidnapped bull case.” Damn, I loved this town. “Now go home to your wife and kids, Gene.” By the hint of a smile, I knew he’d figured out when and why I used one of my officer’s first names.
After he left, I put my feet on my desk, leaning back in my leather chair. After reading the report twice, I recalled some
thing I’d seen in another of Moody’s old notes on another case. After double-checking that I’d remembered right, I closed both folders, locking them in my desk. Beauregard hadn’t been turned into hamburger patties, and I knew who had him. Damn Moody and his incompetence.
25
~ Jenny ~
“You so did not!”
I shot Autumn a wide grin. “Did too.”
She reached across the table, poking me in the arm with a finger. “You actually spent the entire weekend with our new police chief?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Oh my God. He’s so hot. Is he really that hot? I mean in bed? He’s definitely hot to look at. Are you going to see him again? What did—”
“Autumn, shut up.” I had to laugh. Her eyes were about to bug out. “Yeah, he’s that hot. In bed and out.”
It was Tuesday, my day off, and we’d gone to Asheville to do a little shopping in Biltmore Village and have lunch. She was collecting more items for her trousseau—I didn’t even know brides did that anymore—and as long as we were spending her money, I was good.
I took a bite of the fried green tomatoes and moaned. “So freaking good.” We were at the Red Stag Grill in the Village. One thing I loved about eating with Autumn was that we always shared our food. Today we were splitting the fried green tomatoes and a bohemian hunter’s platter.
“Back to your police chief.” Autumn forked the last olive on the hunter’s platter.
“Hey, I wanted that.”
“Too bad.” She popped it into her mouth, then pointed her fork at me. “Talk.”
“He invited me to go with him to the mayor’s barbeque Saturday afternoon, and I didn’t go back home until Monday morning. That’s pretty much it.”
She smirked. “I highly doubt that.” Her expression turned serious. “That’s awful about Sean. Is he still in critical condition?”
“Yeah. I talked to my parents this morning. They said there’s been no change. The good news according to the doctors is that he lived through the night.”
“Damn Stephanie. I bet she was drinking.”
I wasn’t going to repeat anything Dylan had said to me in confidence, even to my best friend. “I guess we’ll find out soon enough what happened. Nothing stays a secret in the valley.” When the waitress brought our check, I grabbed it. “My treat today.”
“Okay. I’ll get the tip.” She put a ten on the table.
We were on our way out when Chad and his father walked in the door. Crap. Their office was downtown. What were they doing in the Village? Before I could take off for the bathroom or a back door if there was one, Chad saw me.
“Jenn!”
He rushed over, taking both my hands. I wanted to jerk them away, but his father was watching, and I didn’t want to embarrass Chad. Stupid softhearted me.
“Hello, Mr. Perrine,” I said when he approached. “Nice to see you again.” Not really. I’d never liked him much.
He gave me a curt nod. “Jennifer.”
I eased my hands out of Chad’s. “Ah, Autumn and I were just on our way to…” I gave her a helpless glance.
“On our way to an appointment for my wedding dress fitting.” She glanced at her watch. “We’re going to be late, Jenn, so we really need to go.”
I’d never been good at lying, and Autumn knew it. She, however, could come up with a story on the spur of the moment to cover any situation. That particular talent had kept us out of trouble with our parents many times growing up.
“Yeah, we have to go.” When Chad seemed about to protest, I grabbed Autumn’s arm and we took off. Mr. Perrine had never liked me, probably thought a bartender wasn’t good enough for his son. I’m sure he was happy to see me out of the picture. Chad called after me, but I kept going.
“Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, he walks into ours,” Autumn drawled, deepening her voice.
I laughed at her impersonation of Rick Blaine from Casablanca. Autumn loved old movies, and I’d watched probably every classic in the world with her through the years. If you didn’t know Autumn, with that gorgeous blonde hair of hers, those sky-blue eyes, and a smile that could melt the hardest heart, you’d think she was an angel. So not true. Growing up, Autumn had always been the instigator in any trouble she, Natalie, Savannah, and I got into. She was also the one who, when we got caught, could talk our parents into going easier on us than they should have.
“Speaking of old movies, I got Dylan to watch Arsenic and Old Lace with me the other night,” I said as we headed to the first store.
“Did he like it? If he didn’t, you’re not allowed to see him anymore.”
Ha! Like that would stop me from seeing him. “He thought it was hilarious.”
“‘Look. I probably should have told you this before but you see… well… insanity runs in my family… It practically gallops,’” Autumn said, quoting a line from the movie in her best Mortimer Brewster voice. She sighed. “God, Cary Grant was so sexy.”
“I bet if he were still alive, you’d leave Brian for him.”
She vigorously nodded. “Without looking back.”
Too bad he wasn’t still alive then. We didn’t see each other as much since she’d met Brian, and I missed that, especially with Savannah in New York now. I suppose that was what happened when you grew up and life took you on different roads, but that didn’t mean I had to like it.
“I hate buying bathing suits,” she said when we walked into the first store.
She had a list of things she’d need for her honeymoon, and since Brian was taking her to Hawaii, she had three suits on the list. A one-piece, a conservative two-piece, and a bikini. “Covering all possible scenarios?” I asked, leaning over her shoulder and reading the items on the screen of her phone.
“Exactly. Brian has friends who live in Hawaii, and we’ve been invited to a pool party, so a one-piece for that. The bikini’s for Brian.” She shot me a wicked grin.
“He’s going to look funny wearing it.”
“Smart-ass.” She held up a yellow suit.
“Not your color. Here, this one.” I handed her a blue bikini that was a perfect match to her eyes.
“Ooh, nice.”
“I still don’t understand why you think it would be bad luck to move into your new house,” I said as she loaded her arms with bathing suits to try on. The house was gorgeous, but Autumn had this weird idea that she should only live in it as Brian’s wife, so they were residing in her apartment until the wedding.
“I just do, okay? We’ll spend our wedding night in it, then leave for Hawaii the next morning.” She grabbed my hand. “I’m so happy, Jenn, that it scares me. Like everything’s too good to be true.”
“Hush! You’re not going to wake up and find out it’s all a dream.” I pinched her. I didn’t like the ominous shiver that tickled my spine at her words.
“Ouch.” Laughing, she rubbed her arm.
“Just wanted to prove you’re awake and this is real.” The second she smirked and waggled her eyebrows, I knew something outrageous was about to come out of her mouth.
“Well, I am pretty sure I was awake last night when Brian brought whipped cream and cherries to bed with us.”
I put my hands over my ears. “TMI!”
Her eyes sparkled with happiness and the mischief that was always in those blue orbs. “You should try it sometime…well, not with Brian. I’d have to kill you. With your sexy police chief. Bet him how many cherries—”
“Autumn! Stop it.” We looked at each other and burst out laughing.
I’d stand as maid of honor when my bestie got married. Savannah would be home for Autumn’s Christmas wedding, and I couldn’t wait for the three of us to be together again. Autumn and I shopped till we dropped, and then I drove us back to Blue Ridge Valley, where we were meeting Brian at Fusions.
“Why don’t you call Dylan, see if he wants to meet us for dinner?”
“He’s probably busy.” We weren’t in a relationship, exactly
. Not of the boyfriend/girlfriend kind. We were just having some fun until it was time to go, so I didn’t feel comfortable asking him out on a double date with my friends.
“Doesn’t hurt to ask.” She grabbed my phone out of the console cupholder.
“Don’t you dare.” Although I kind of hoped she would. If he didn’t appear to appreciate being called, I could always blame it on her. She punched in my pass code. Autumn was always forgetting her phone, so since she often used mine, she knew my code.
“Voice mail,” she whispered. “Hi, Dylan. This is Autumn, Jenn’s friend. We’re on our way to meet Brian at Fusions for dinner. Thought you might want to join us.”
“I can’t believe you did that.”
She snickered. “Yes, you can.”
“Truth.” Would he show up? I hadn’t heard from him since he’d kissed me good-bye yesterday morning. Maybe he’d only been looking for a quick tumble in bed with no plans to see each other again, but I hadn’t gotten that impression. This was me we were talking about, though, and we’d already established that I was a lousy judge of men.
“I don’t think he’ll come,” I said as I parked next to Brian’s shiny new Lexus.
“Guess we’ll know soon enough. Don’t tell Brian about that scrap of black silk masquerading as lingerie I bought, okay? That’s a wedding night surprise.”
“My lips are sealed.”
26
~ Dylan ~
I was in the shower when Jenny’s friend left her message. My plan for the night had been to finally get the last of my stuff unpacked, but that lost its appeal as soon as I listened to Autumn’s invitation to dinner, giving me a chance to see Jenny.
Several times during the past two days, I’d picked up my phone to text or call her but had stopped myself. I had no idea how she felt about me. Sure, it was obvious she enjoyed my company, and I wasn’t even questioning that she thought the sex between us was good. Damn good.
