A Minute on the Lips

They both waited while Oscar floated across the kitchen to Jackie’s office. He came back with what appeared to be the first metal chair ever made. Rust dotted the legs, and Andi wondered if metal ever got dry rot. When he climbed on top, she moved behind to catch him in case the metal gave up the ghost.

Oscar yanked on the handle, and the window rose soundlessly.

“Why is that window unlocked?” Jackie’s face was a brilliant red, and Andi wondered if the three hairs he had left were going to run away in fear.

Oscar shrugged. Andi did, too. “Well, I’m going to take a look outside. I’ll let you know if I find anything new, Jackie.”

* * *

MARK DID HIS best to contain a grin when Andi turned the corner into the crazily clean alley behind the diner, saw him leaning against the wall and cursed silently. He’d have to give Sheriff Jackson credit. No matter how often he caught her off guard, she recovered quickly. This time she straightened her shoulders and resumed a precise march.

“What are you doing back here, Mr. Taylor?” She didn’t meet his stare but obviously looked to his left and right in what she’d call “searching for clues.” There were none. He knew that very well.

“Just waiting on you, Sheriff.”

Andi pulled out her phone to take pictures of the alley. “You didn’t touch anything, did you?” There was a scowl on her face. Mark figured it was an automatic reaction at this point. He decided then and there to change it. Automatic smiles were so much better, made for easier working conditions. And her smiles were really nice, probably because they were rare.

He shook his head. “No, ma’am. I used to work with the police a lot. I only invaded one crime scene without permission, but I learned quickly not to do it again. The detective had a good six inches and a hundred pounds on me.”

“Did you destroy any evidence that time?” Andi glanced back to watch him.

“Nah. I got lucky. My guardian angel kept me out of trouble that time or maybe it was dumb luck. Either way, I’m pretty sure the only reason I’m standing here today is because Detective Wright yanked me back by the scruff of my neck just as I was about to make a fatal error.”

Andi was curious. He could tell by the way she turned her head in his direction without really looking at him. She was also determined not to ask. “Okay, do you want to tell me what you’re doing back here? Other than standing right beside the scene I’m investigating?” He was cramping her style. Good. That would make him impossible to ignore. She’d already given him more than her normal blank-faced “no comment.”

“Just want to make sure I’ve got enough details for my story, Sheriff.” He glanced around the alley. “I don’t see much of interest back here.”

Andi shot him a peeved glare.

He held up both hands. “Don’t shoot the messenger. Tall Pines may be the only place in the world where even the back alleys are litter free.”

He ticked off his observations on the fingers of one hand. “Pavement means no footprints or tire tracks. Window’s got no scrapes or scratches. Traffic on a weeknight is almost nonexistent so the thief had the opportunity to come in through that window, even with a stepladder, but there’s nothing here to say he did.”

Andi propped her hands on her hips. “There’s no proof that he or she did, but the window was unlocked so I can’t rule it out.”

“Not much to go on, is it?”

Andi shook her head. “On the bright side, no one murdered the mayor or robbed a bank, either.”

They walked back toward the end of the alley.

“Still, you know Jackie’s going to make your life difficult until he has someone to point fingers at.” He shrugged. “And, of course, there’s the fact that you don’t like loose ends.”

Andi frowned at him. “How do you know my feelings on loose ends?”

“Good guess.” He surveyed her neat uniform, tidy hair, polished boots and precise steps. “Let me help.”

Andi raised both eyebrows, communicating her surprise and disbelief. “Why would you want to help me? What’s in it for you?”

“I know it’s not easy to deal with an unhappy Jackie. Plus, it’s good for me, too. People read the Times for news and stuff. This would be the news. Most of the time, I’ve just got a whole lot of the stuff.” He thrust both hands in his jeans pockets. After what felt like a full minute of contemplating his arms, Andi locked both eyes back on his face. He moved closer as if he was about to tell an important secret. Andi started to lean back but managed to hold her ground. “And, if helping you out with this case means that from now on you’ll be a little more open to sharing information, I consider it worth the effort.”

When he stepped back, Andi inhaled deeply and blinked before she said, “Mr. Taylor, you and I both know why I won’t be accepting your offer. Besides, I’m really good at this. You just go ahead and toss your lure in the lake, okay? I’ll let you know how it all turns out.”

Mark whistled. “Hmm, a low blow.” He reached down and grabbed her hand to slow her forceful retreat. “Sheriff, no matter how hard you work today, there’s going to be twice as much tomorrow. Twice as many crooks. Twice as many questions with no answers. You should learn to enjoy each day anyway. The work will always be there. Don’t forget about life.” He trailed his thumb over her pulse and the smooth, warm skin of her wrist before he let her hand slide out of his.

* * *

REFUSING TO RUB away the odd warmth lingering on her wrist, Andi turned and walked over to her SUV. The sun had risen, so instead of a nice, shaded truck, it was a metal box set on broil. Add that to the fact that she’d probably had her weekly intake of caffeine between the ride over to the diner and Oscar’s ninja coffee skills and the close proximity to the newspaper editor and Andi was starting to feel a bit steamed and a whole lot jittery. She needed air-conditioning, a gallon of water and some distance. It was no wonder her fingers were tingling like that. It probably had nothing to do with Mark Taylor.

Taking a deep breath, Andi yanked open the door and managed not to take two steps back from the heat blast. Leather seats were such a bad idea.

Still, she was satisfied that she’d managed to stand her ground with Mark Taylor even if she hadn’t actually gained any. Andi dropped down in the driver’s seat with a wince at the heat baking through her uniform pants, started the car and pulled away from the curb. As she reached down to crank up the air conditioner, she looked in the rearview mirror. Mark Taylor was standing at the edge of the curb watching her drive away with that smirk on his face. Andi was suddenly less sure whether she was holding her ground or losing the battle and she just didn’t know it yet.

CHAPTER THREE

THE SHORT TRIP back to the office was lengthened by multiple stops for nervous tourists who were darting into the streets outside the designated crosswalks. If the pavement hadn’t been hotter than the sun, Andi might have pulled over and issued some stern warnings. Jaywalking was illegal—it was a safety issue. Scaring people straight was part of the sheriff’s job, but the mayor didn’t appreciate that.

When she finally pulled into her designated parking spot, Andi turned off the ignition. She might have rested for a bit except she was afraid of baking her brain. She slid out quickly and slammed the door. Her palms still had a slight tingle going on, the effect of a massive amount of caffeine. Obviously.

“Morning, Sheriff.” Lori had taken Nettie’s spot at the dispatch desk. Nettie worked early mornings, when things were a bit slower and she didn’t have to deal with as many citizens. Andi envied her the right to choose.

Lori and Andi had gone to school together, but Lori stayed in Tall Pines to marry, divorce and remarry. Every greeting she issued might come with a smile, but there was also the edge of sharp teeth and the hint of a grimace. She’d worked for the old sheriff and might resent Andi taking his spot. He was her father, after all. Still, a job was a job and in Tall Pines, no one quit a good job on the principle of the thing. They were just too hard to come by. So Lori performed right on the edge, well enough to keep coming in every day but not so well that it could be misconstrued as approval or anything other than a deep-seated wish to inflict nonfelonious harm.

Lori and Andi had a history anyway. Lori had been homecoming queen and head cheerleader. Andi had been president of the math club, a desperate overachiever intent on winning a college scholarship. She’d snatched valedictorian out of Lori’s pom-pom-waving paws at the last minute and still congratulated herself on that now and then. Lori probably didn’t think about it much. She had two beautiful little boys to show off. Pictures lined the wall beside the dispatch desk. The towheaded twins had to be about eight years old. Their names were Alexander and Andrew and they were perfectly identical. When they came in, Andi had no idea which was which and settled for a jovial and nonspecific “boys” whenever she had to address them directly.

Andi’s small pangs of jealousy hadn’t driven her to put up pictures of her cat, Mojo, on the same wall. Not yet.

“Morning, Lori. Is there anything urgent?”

“Nope. Dan’s headed out to check on the one call we’ve got. Mrs. Haley thinks there’s been someone prowling around her garage at night.”

Andi nodded. This prowler would probably be just like the last, a deer knocking over the chairs on Mrs. Haley’s porch, but the woman had a shotgun and an active imagination. It would be a good thing to check out.

Andi waved at Dan as he stood up from one of the four desks crammed into the large room. It was time for the patrols to change over, so both Dan Jones and Jimmy Monroe were there. Jimmy was writing a report, and Dan had just finished checking any notes left from the previous shift. It was a small office. There were six full-time deputies for the entire county and reserves who helped out as needed.

Jimmy looked up. “Anything we need to know about the incident over at Jackie’s?”

Andi scratched her forehead as she tried to figure out how to answer. “Well, his trophies and the money and everything else in his safe were stolen. He’d corralled Oscar, his busboy, Wanda Blankenship and Mark Taylor when I got there. I couldn’t see any signs of a break-in, and Jackie swears the door was locked when he got there.”

Dan crossed his arms over his chest and Jimmy leaned back in his chair. Andi could smell Lori hovering behind her. She had a thing for strawberry bubble gum.

“So it’s somebody with a key,” Dan said. “Should be easy enough to figure out.”

Andi agreed. Mostly. “Unless it’s a random thief who’s good with locks and safes.”

They both shook their heads. “Doesn’t seem likely.”

“Except...I can’t rule it out, either,” Andi said.