Shea Callahan lifted the small box of personal items and carried them onto the porch of the small ranch house she’d recently purchased. A note tacked to her front door stopped her in her tracks.
Squelching the urge to read it, she pulled it free and dropped it into her box. Already running late with new deputies to meet since all the prior ones had left with the retirement of the former sheriff, she wanted to be at the office bright and early. Whatever someone needed so urgently as to leave a note could wait a few more minutes. “Come, Heidi.” Her German shepherd bounded after her.
She climbed into the driver’s seat of the Ford pickup she’d traded for her sedan and backed from the dirt drive to start her new life as the sheriff of Misty Hollow. It wouldn’t be easy. She’d already heard rumblings in town about whether or not a woman could handle the job despite her taking down a ring of evil men a few months ago and helping bring the mayor down for his crimes a few weeks ago.
The morning mist clung to the rolling hills as she drove through town, past the old courthouse with its weathered stone facade and the diner where she’d noticed locals gathering for their morning coffee and gossip. The whispered conversations had stopped when she’d entered yesterday, all eyes tracking her movement to the counter. She’d ordered her coffee black and left without acknowledging their stares, but she’d felt their judgment burning into her back.
“Welcome, Sheriff.” Doris Belwright, the station’s receptionist, greeted her. “The new hires will be here by nine as you requested. Except for Deputy Sheriff Trevor Bolton who covered for us during the night. He’s in the bullpen.”
“Thank you.” Shea passed through the bullpen. The desks were empty except for scattered reports and half-empty coffee cups that spoke of the overnight shift’s activity. She set the box of her things on her desk and surveyed the small space. The office felt bigger than it had during her interview, the weight of responsibility settling on her shoulders like a heavy cloak.
“Coffee?”
She whipped around, reaching for the gun on her hip.
A handsome man with hair the color of dark chocolate and eyes like the Arkansas summer sun held a mug toward her. “Welcome, Sheriff.” He smiled, revealing dimples in both cheeks. His gaze dropped to her hip. “Don’t shoot me. I give up.”
“Sorry.” She took the cup and set it on her desk before thrusting her hand toward him. “Sheriff Callahan.”
“Trevor Bolton.” He gave her hand a firm shake. “I didn’t know if you took cream or not.”
“Black is fine.” Her gaze flicked to the box on her desk, then back to him. Something about his easy manner put her on edge. In her experience, men who were this friendly usually wanted something.
“Well then, I’ll let you get settled in.” He gave a nod and backed out of her office.
Shea placed the mail on the desk in a pile to one side to go through after the morning meeting. She placed a photo of Heidi on the corner of her desk, her favorite coffee mug, and a pencil holder in the shape of a sheriff’s badge that her best friend, Becky, had given her as a congratulations gift. That was it. All the personal effects of her office. The space still felt stark, impersonal, but it would have to do.
She plopped down in the leather chair behind the battered wooden desk, noting the scratches and water rings that spoke of years of use. “This is where we’ll spend a lot of our time, girl.”
With a soft woof, Heidi moved from under her desk and jumped onto one of the two chairs across from Shea reserved for visitors. She’d have to get the dog a bed for the office.
The note from her door caught her eye again. Unable to resist any longer, she unfolded it. The handwriting was shaky, uncertain: “Sheriff, my husband’s been missing three days. Police in the next county won’t help. Please call me. Martha Henderson.” A phone number was scrawled beneath.
Shea’s stomach knotted. A missing person case on her first day. She folded the note and slipped it into her pocket, making a mental note to call Martha after the meeting.
By the time she’d checked emails, replied to the ones she could, and organized the work she’d dole out at the meeting, nine a.m. arrived. She motioned for Heidi to stay, then headed for the conference room. Thanks to a tour from the former sheriff, Westbrook, she knew where everything was, though the layout still felt foreign.
“Good morning.” Shea took up a position at the front of the room and eyed the five men staring at her. Their expressions ranged from curious to skeptical, with one—a man in his fifties with graying temples—looking openly hostile. “I’ve already met Deputy Bolton. I’m Sheriff Callahan. Please introduce yourselves.” Since she’d gone through their files, she already knew their descriptions, ages, and their backgrounds, but having them tell her their names might break the ice before she gave them their orders.
“William Butler. Folks call me Bill,” the older man said, his tone clipped. He’d been passed over for the sheriff position twice in his career, according to his file. That probably explained the hostility.
“Richard Bombeck,” said a man in his early forties with kind eyes and prematurely silver hair. He seemed more open than Butler, though still reserved.
“Lance Billings,” offered a lanky deputy who couldn’t have been older than thirty. His uniform was perfectly pressed, and he sat ramrod straight like he was still in the military.
“Mark Cutter,” said the last man, also in his thirties, with calloused hands that suggested he’d worked construction or farming before joining law enforcement.
“Thank you. I’ve posted the schedule for everyone in the break room. We’ll all take our turn at manning the office during night hours.” She hoped her smile hid her nervousness. The silence stretched uncomfortably. “We’ve had a slow morning as far as complaints go. I’ve got Cutter and Butler on tonight’s shift, so the two others are free until then. Is everyone okay with three nights on and four days?”
Heads nodded, devoid of smiles. She could practically feel their doubt radiating across the room like heat from a furnace.
Her own smile faded under their stern expressions. It would take a while for her to earn their trust. “I want open communication between us, Deputies. If you feel uncomfortable for any reason, I want you to come to me. If you have a gut feeling about one of the cases assigned to you, I want to know. We’re all partners here.”
Her gaze landed on Bolton, the only friendly face looking at her. As deputy sheriff, he was one rung under her, hired by the former sheriff. Hopefully, she could trust him to have her back. “Any questions?”
“Yeah.” Butler crossed his arms, his weathered face set in hard lines. “You ready for this job after what happened up on the mountain?”
She frowned. “What do you mean?”
He shrugged, but his eyes never left hers. “Takes a lot out of a person being hunted and killing men in hand-to-hand combat.” The words hung in the air like a challenge.
Out of a woman, he meant. Heat crawled up her neck, but she kept her voice level. “I wouldn’t be here if I couldn’t handle the job.”
“She proved herself capable when she helped Westbrook bring down the former mayor.” Bolton shot her a look, then locked gazes with Butler. The tension in the room ratcheted up another notch.
Butler’s jaw worked like he was chewing on words he wanted to spit out. Finally, he stood. “If that’s all, Sheriff, I’ve got paperwork to catch up on.”
“That’s all for now,” Shea said, watching as the men filed out. Bombeck offered her a small nod of acknowledgment. Billings and Cutter remained expressionless. Only Bolton lingered.
“Don’t let Butler get to you,” he said quietly. “He’s been doing this job longer than anyone, but that doesn’t give him the right to be disrespectful.”
“I can handle Deputy Butler,” she replied, though she appreciated the support. “But thank you.”
- Publisher : Winged Publications
- Publication date : December 31, 2024
- Language : English
- Print length : 322 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1965352375
- ISBN-13 : 978-1965352373