Valerie Hansen - Small Town Justice

“Don’t be ridiculous. He was not only tried and convicted, he confessed.”

“Because he was threatened. So were my parents. Mom sent me to live with an aunt in New England during the trial to keep me out of danger.”

“That doesn’t prove a thing except that your mom was paranoid. Maybe your whole family was.”

As he continued to observe her, he saw her scan the parts of the garage she could see from where they stood. She was plainly nervous. Wary. Uncomfortable. Considering what she’d just admitted, he didn’t blame her.

If he’d had the option he would gladly have hauled her truck to another garage and washed his hands of her.

It didn’t dawn on him that his thoughts were so transparent until she said, “Look. I know you don’t really want to deal with my problems anymore. Try to think of me as just another nameless customer. Once we get through this, I promise I won’t bother you again.”

“Of course you will.”

“I don’t understand.”

A deep breath and heavy sigh helped settle him enough to speak his mind without letting rancor overwhelm him. “You don’t have to tell me more about why you came back. You intend to stir up trouble. It’s a given, particularly now that I’ve seen how you operate.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes. Really. Once you latch on to an idea, you haven’t got sense enough to drop it, even when it’s wrong.”

“Listen, Mr. Colton. The folks around here were so sure R.J. was guilty they did that very thing to him. He was convicted in the court of public opinion long before he ever stood before a judge.”

“Not true. He had a fair trial. I was there.”

Her shoulders slumped, and she looked away as if viewing the past before she said, “Sadly, I was not. My parents thought they were sparing me by keeping me in the dark. All they were really doing was giving my imagination free rein. That was a mistake. Now I have to go back and start from the beginning if I want to understand.”

“How do you propose to do that?”

“Court records, among other things. As I said, I’ve already talked to people at the county courthouse and requested other information that’s in the public domain.”

“Terrific.” He knew he was scowling and gave himself permission to continue. “My mother is just getting her life back together and you come along to ruin it.”

“This has nothing to do with your mother.”

His voice rose. “She was married to the man your brother ran down and left in the street to bleed to death. How can you say it has nothing to do with her? It has everything to do with her.”

* * *

Serenity had two main streets and two highways that intersected. Jamie Lynn knew she was currently on Third Street and that her motel was located on Highway 62. As soon as Shane’s back was turned, she slipped out the front door and headed toward courthouse square. From there, she figured she could easily get her bearings. There was no danger. Nobody would expect to see her dressed like a nurse just getting off duty.

One thing was definite. She was not going to spend one more unnecessary moment with any Colton if she could help it. This would mark a new beginning to her quest.

Ulysses trotted along beside her as if he’d strolled those roads all his life. As soon as they reached Church Street and could walk on sidewalks instead of the outside edges of narrow pavement, Jamie Lynn stopped worrying about passing traffic.

Looking down at her exuberant pet made her smile, as always. “What a good boy. I wish you could tell me how to relax the way you do,” she crooned.

He rewarded her with a wag of his tail and a glance before continuing to sniff his way along their route.

The afternoon was still warm and the air so clean and fresh she could almost feel it healing her sore throat. There was also peace and ambience to be enjoyed here; something she had neither remembered nor expected.

Traffic circling the square was heavier than she had anticipated, so she paused. Proceeding directly to the courthouse would entail extra crossings. Sensibly, she opted to take the long way around instead.

Flashes of buried memory began to surface. A few stores and even nearby homes seemed familiar, and not in a negative way. The same thing had occurred when she’d been exploring the old farmhouse, but she had not expected to experience such clear recollections anywhere else.

“I’m supposed to hate this place,” she muttered to herself, disgusted to be feeling almost comfortable.

A family was coming out of the tiny library, the excited children clasping books and dancing for joy. An older couple was entering the café on the west side of the square. The name over the restaurant door didn’t ring a bell but the building itself certainly did.

Jamie looked ahead and saw a sign for the police station. Good. If she couldn’t locate the motel once she turned the corner, she’d backtrack and ask someone in there for directions.

Cracks in the sidewalk where tree roots had lifted the paving slowed her briefly. That, and Ulysses’s insistence that he sniff every post and corner and square inch of the walkway.

Steep concrete stairs led up to the glass doors of the police building. They, too, were familiar. Perhaps it would be prudent to check here before proceeding. After all, she was already on their doorstep.

Ulysses made the first couple of high jumps, then pulled back so she’d pick him up and carry him the rest of the way. Traffic continued to pass, the drivers cautious because there were no stop signs to regulate right of way on the corners.

Jamie got to the top landing. Tried the door. Found it locked.

With her dog still tucked under one arm, she used her opposite hand to shade her eyes and peer inside.

The building was vacant.

She put Ulysses down and began searching for an explanation. That was when she saw the crudely lettered, faded sign taped to one wall. The entire Serenity Police Department and the sheriff’s office had moved to an address out of town on Highway 9!

From her higher vantage point she assessed her surroundings. Nine North bordered that side of the square. If she hadn’t been on foot she’d have followed it then and there. However, as things stood, she supposed it would be best to keep going and locate her motel.

For the first time since abandoning Shane Colton she was starting to wish she’d let him drive her. The worst part of that notion was the realization she was behaving exactly the way he’d described. Foolish and stubborn.

Jamie Lynn murmured, “Oh, well, what’s done is done,” bending to scoop up her short-legged pet for the trip down the steep stairway.

A second before her hand touched him he yelped and jumped away.

Startled, Jamie was caught off balance. She lurched. Dropped to her knees. Sensed an unmistakable ripple of fear. Was she simply reacting to the high-strung dog?

There was no time to speculate further.

Something crashed above her. Tiny shards of safety glass from the thick doors began to rain down.

She huddled over her little dog, unsure what had happened but taking her cues from him.

Together they crouched on the cement threshold, trembling, frightened, waiting.

Nothing more fell. Someone shouted from the street, “You all right, lady?”

She raised her head slightly to call, “I think so.”

Bystanders were gathering on the sidewalk in front of the deserted building. Some were quiet. Others were talking or yelling.

A figure broke through their ranks and raced up the steps.

When Ulysses began to wiggle and wag his tail, Jamie made eye contact with the new arrival.

It was Shane Colton. And he looked mad enough to spit nails.

FOUR

Shane hovered over her. “You just had to do things your way again, didn’t you?”