Kara Larkin - The Sheriff With The Wyoming-Size Heart

Davenport’s shortsighted intolerance made Riley’s blood boil. A huge percentage of the resources of both his department in the county and the police department in the city was spent on juvenile crime. Drunkenness, vandalism, truancy, drug use, violence, reckless driving—he’d often wondered how much of it could be attributed to boredom.

He finished the article, which covered a meeting the opponents had held the night before, and tossed the paper back to Wade. “I’m starting to really hate the good commissioner.”

Hitting the intercom, Riley drummed his fingers on the desk until the line clicked open. “Liz, will you call Ellie at the radio station and tell her I want to make a plea for the youth park and have it look like news?”

Liz laughed. “You must have seen the paper. I’ll get right on it.”

When the intercom clicked closed, Wade snagged a chair with his boot, pulled it a little closer and sat down. “I’m not sure it’s a good idea for you to come on too strong about this.”

“You have as little patience with the golf course bunch as I do.”

“But I’m not running for reelection.”

“What’s that got to do with anything?”

“Maybe nothing. Maybe everything.”

Wade’s grave tone gave Riley reason to listen. They’d joined the department as deputies the same year, and Wade had given him the first kick in the pants to run for sheriff. Wade had no aspirations for the job himself, but the political advice he’d given Riley had always been shrewd and consistent. “Okay, what?”

“Davenport’s acting like this issue is his ticket to reelection, and his enthusiasm for the golf course is winning him a lot of friends.”

“What does that have to do with my campaign?”

“If he views you as his opponent, you’re the one he’s going to fight.”

“Let him. He’s wrong, and if people understand the issue they’ll know he’s wrong. The county could pour three times as much money into crime prevention and not accomplish what The LAFF Place will. We’ve got everyone who cares about kids on our side. That’s a lot of committed voters.”

“Those committed voters will support you only if you’re still the favorite when the election rolls around. If Davenport can floor you, he’ll kick you while you’re down.”

Riley let Wade’s apprehension skim through his mind for about two seconds before shrugging it off. With almost six weeks until the election, he could deal with anything Davenport lobbed his way, and in the meantime, he had his hands full trying to find a child care solution for Ariel.

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