Sheriff Bruce Jenkins motioned to the sitting area on the side of his office. “Thanks for coming in. I know you’ve got a lot going on.”
“I appreciate you making the time to see me.”
Bruce nodded, offering me a bottle of water as I sat. “We’re desperate for a search and rescue team leader for the county. Phyllis left some big shoes to fill when she retired, and we haven’t had the right candidate come along since.”
“It’s a job that requires a lot of different skills.”
Bruce studied me thoughtfully. “Tell me how you see it.”
I nodded. “You’ve got the organizational piece. You need to run trainings, meetings, and searches. Facilitate schedules.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Then there’s the morale piece. So much of SAR is making sure your team gels. That they get the support they need if there’s a tough callout. That there’s an element of fun in it all as much as possible because these people are volunteers.”
Bruce nodded. “That’s something a lot of the applicants have overlooked. Anything else?”
“The most important piece is that you can give your all to the search. You know I grew up doing this. My dad had us learning how to track before we could read.”
A grin stretched across Bruce’s face. “That doesn’t surprise me.”
I chuckled. “He loved what he did. Still loves it. And he passed that on to all of us. You need that love to stay invested. Because there will be times when the outcomes aren’t happy ones. And you still have to go. Because families need that closure.”
Bruce drummed his fingers on his knee. “I’ll be honest. You’re overqualified for this job. I looked into your company after Law told me you were interested in the position, and I worry you might get antsy and leave me high and dry.”
Annoyance bubbled to the surface. Proving my staying power was becoming a familiar refrain. I shoved the frustration down. “Can I be honest with you?”
“I’d appreciate it if you would.”
“I left a girl behind when I took off.”
Bruce arched a brow.
“And not just any girl. The one who makes everything settle when you’re around her. The one who gives you peace and a safe place to let everything go.”
“Been married three times.” Bruce’s eyes flashed as he spoke. “I know better than most that what you’re describing there is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing. Something you’d be a fool to let go of.”
“I was a fool. I hurt her. I’m trying to make it right. Want to prove to her that I’m in it for the long haul. And I missed my family. I missed these mountains. It’s time for me to come home for good. And I can’t imagine a better job to have while doing that.”
Bruce huffed out a breath, leaning back in his chair. “Hell. The job’s yours if you want it.”
I grinned so widely that I probably looked a little deranged. “Romantic at heart, aren’t you?”
He laughed. “I’m going to tell my wife you said that. And I’m going to tell her that little story of yours because it’s gonna make her get all nostalgic about our story. Might even convince her to slow dance with me tonight.”
“Sounds like you found the right one in the end.”
“I did.” Bruce stood, extending a hand. “Now you make sure you do, too. I’ll email over the paperwork. We’ll run your prints and all that jazz, but I don’t expect there’ll be a problem.”
“Been background checked more times than I can count.” And the truth was, if I’d wanted to hide anything in my past, I could’ve done that, too.
“Then you start in two weeks.”
My brows lifted at that. I thought for sure he’d want me to start tomorrow.
“It’ll give Law a chance to catch the son of a bitch who’s terrorizing people in your neck of the woods.”
“I appreciate that, sir.”
“Call me Bruce. And remind Law that he’s got my people whenever he needs them.”
I shook his hand. “I know we’re both grateful.”
We said our goodbyes, and I made my way out of the sheriff’s station, texting as I went.
Me: How’s everything at home?
A reply flashed on my screen as I climbed into my SUV.
Cricket: Grae and I called for strippers. I wouldn’t come home anytime soon.
I barked out a laugh. Apparently, my every thirty-minute check-ins hadn’t gone unnoticed.
Me: Hope you had the officers check them for weapons first.
Cricket: It was a little awkward since the strippers were dressed as cops.
I shook my head.
Me: I’ll be home in about thirty.
Cricket: I’m heading into work. The non-stripper cops are driving me.
Damn. I’d forgotten that Wren was working the later shift today.
Me: Okay. I’ll pick you up at two. I’m gonna stop by and see my parents on the way home and then I’ll take Shadow for a run.
Cricket: You don’t have to pick me up.
Me: I’m picking you up.
Cricket: Bossy.
Me: You can boss me around later.
A new text popped up on my screen. It was a group text sent to me and Wren.
Grae: Would you two stop sexting? Wren and I need to bawl our eyes out for the fifty millionth time as Beth dies, and then she has to go to work.
Me: I’d rather come home to strippers than Little Women AGAIN.
I shoved my phone into the console and pulled out of the parking lot, a smile still pulling at my mouth. God, I’d missed this: the razzing from Grae, the banter with Wren, feeling like I had my family back.
Turning off the main road, I headed in the direction of my parents’ place. I hadn’t bothered to check if they were in. It was on the way back to Cedar Ridge and just a small detour up the mountain.
In a matter of minutes, I was punching in the code and the gates were opening. By the time I’d parked in front of the house, my mom was pulling open the front door. “This is a pleasant surprise.”
But I didn’t miss the worry on her face. “Everything’s okay. You were on my way home from a meeting, so I thought I’d drop in.”
The tension in my mom’s face eased into a more genuine smile. “I made you and Wren a pie. Some cookies, too. They’re just cooling. Come on in.”
“Marionberry?” I asked hopefully.
“Do I look like a fool?”
“No, you certainly do not.” I bent and gave her a hug. “What kind of cookies?”
“It isn’t always about you, you know,” Mom said, leading me into the house. “They’re snickerdoodle.”
Wren’s favorite.
“I’ve become pretty partial to snickerdoodle over the years.”
Her expression softened. “Because you’re a smart man.”
“Holt,” my dad greeted from the dining table where he was working on a puzzle. “Come help me find this danged corner piece.”
My mom sighed. “I don’t know why he does those things. They only raise his blood pressure.”
“I heard you,” Dad called.
“I wasn’t whispering,” my mom singsonged. She carried a plate of cookies over to the table. “Any updates from Lawson?”
I shook my head as I grabbed a cookie. “Not yet.” I was beginning to worry that we would need more evidence, and that meant another crime.
Pulling out a chair across from my parents, I sat. “I met with Bruce Jenkins today.”
The puzzle piece my dad had been flipping between his fingers stilled. “About the case or something else?”
“About the SAR job.”
Mom’s face lit up like a kid at Christmas. “About you taking the job?”
“He said it’s mine.”
My dad was quiet for a moment, and an unsettling feeling swept over me.
“Dad?”
He stared down at the puzzle. “I don’t want you taking a job because I laid a guilt trip on you.”
“I’m not. I swear. But I won’t lie, you’re a part of the decision—you all are. I miss my family, this town, SAR. I missed Wren.”
Tears gathered in my mother’s eyes. “How does Wren feel about all this?”
“She doesn’t know about the job yet, but she’s coming around to the idea of me.”
Dad barked out a laugh as he wrapped an arm around my mom, nuzzling her neck. “I had to talk Kerry around to the idea of me, if I remember correctly.”
She swatted at him. “I thought he was nothing but an adrenaline junkie bad boy.” She gave him a quick kiss. “But I reined him in right quick.”
“I let you rein me in.”
“Whatever makes you feel better,” Mom huffed.
Dad turned back to me, his expression sobering. “I need to say something, and I don’t want you to take it the wrong way.”
I braced myself as my mom squeezed his hand tightly.
“I’ve thought of Wren as a daughter from the moment Grae latched on to her, and I realized her parents were selfish wastes of space.”
I gripped the edge of my chair, the wood digging into my palms. “I’m glad she has you.”
Worry deepened the lines on his face, and I couldn’t help the stiffening in my muscles. “What is it?”
Dad shook his head. “You’re both finally getting what you’ve always wanted. I don’t want anyone taking that from you.”
But I heard the words he really meant. Someone wanted to finish what Randy and Paul had started, and Wren could be next.
