Tyler Anne Snell: Small-Town Face-Off

On the same side of the table was the one face she didn’t recognize, a pretty young woman with curly blond hair and a smile that looked genuine. Before Mara could stop the thought, she wondered if Billy found the woman pretty, too.

“Mara, this is Cassie Gates,” Billy said, making the introduction. “She’s training to be a dispatcher.” Mara couldn’t stop the confusion that must have crossed her expression as to why a dispatcher, a trainee dispatcher, was in the room with them when the woman answered the question herself.

“I’m the youngest of six siblings, most of whom have a kid or two under their belt, so I’m very experienced in the art of keeping little ones entertained when their mamas need to do something important,” she said, voice as sweet as her appearance. She flashed a quick smile at Alexa and addressed the toddler directly. “And what’s your name? I bet it’s something pretty.”

The entire room seemed to wait as Alexa peeked out at Cassie. There was nothing like waiting for a toddler’s judgment. Seemingly based on some unknown factor, there was no telling how a child would react to something new. That included people. However, instead of hiding away again, Alexa seemed intrigued. She looked back at Mara for a moment, as if asking for permission.

“This is Alexa,” Mara introduced them with a smile, showing Alexa her approval of the woman next to them. She might have been a stranger to her but she wasn’t to Billy. Mara trusted his judgment. And Alexa trusted Mara’s.

“Well, what do you know. That is a pretty name,” Cassie said, animation in her words. It reeled in Alexa’s attention. The blonde reached for a bag next to her. From her seat Mara could see it was filled with books and toys. Billy had prepared for the morning, despite short notice. “If it’s okay with your mama, how about we go next door and play in the sheriff’s office? You could even help me read this.” Cassie held up the children’s book Pat the Pet and Alexa nearly lost it.

“Dog! Dog,” she exclaimed, already trying to get off Mara’s lap.

It earned a surprised laugh from Cassie. Mara reached into her own bag and produced the same book.

“Welcome to her favorite book,” she said to the trainee. “She likes petting the dog the most.”

Mara gave Cassie permission to go next door and play, since Alexa seemed to have lost any doubt about the woman as soon as the book had come into view. Mara didn’t miss the way Billy’s eyes stuck to the cover of the copy Mara had brought along. With more than a twinge of guilt, she realized that, like the stranger who was Cassie, he hadn’t had a clue in the world what his daughter did and didn’t like.

But Mara couldn’t change what she’d already done and turned to face what was left of the group. The men each gave her a friendly smile. Suzy, on the other hand, gave her a stiff nod. While the other two had known about their working relationship, Suzy alone had known about Mara and Billy’s romantic one and her sudden departure. As one of Billy’s closest friends, Suzy probably knew better than even her how he’d handled it, too.

“Now, Mara,” Billy started, setting a tape recorder in the middle of the table. “If you could start at the beginning, when the man named Beck visited you.”

Mara repeated the story she’d told Billy the night before, making sure to give them as clear a picture as she could of Beck. Before she could finish describing his clothes and car, however, a man knocked at the door. Despite his dark complexion, Mara mentally likened his expression to “looks like he’s seen a ghost.”

“Excuse me, Sheriff, we have a problem,” he interrupted. Like fans passing on a wave in a football stadium’s stands, Billy and his staff became visibly tense.

“What is it?” The man hesitated and looked at Mara. “It’s fine. Tell me,” Billy added, showing that Mara’s presence didn’t bother them with whatever news he had.

Which wasn’t good news at all.

“We just got a call about two teens who are being taken to the hospital,” he started. “They were both overdoses.”

Mara’s eyes widened. She asked him what everyone else was thinking.

“Of what?”

Bless him, he didn’t hesitate in responding to her, though Mara would have been happier if it had been with a different answer.

“Moxy. They overdosed on Moxy.”

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