He ordered a bucket of chicken at the drive-thru, and when he brought it into the car, it smelled so good he couldn’t wait to get home to dig in. As he pulled from the window, he took a leg right from the top of the bucket and ate it while he drove. Tossing the bone in the bag, he wiped his greasy fingers on his pant legs best he could, so as not to gum up the leather on his steering wheel.
When he got home, his phone had finally recharged. A series of tones and whistles flooded in all at once.
He’d missed a call from Natalie during the game.
Her ears must’ve been burning from all that talk with Courtnie.
He played back the message. Her voice carried a bounce that made him happy. She was thrilled with the news and was on her way.
“I’ll meet you in your office in the morning,” she’d said.
Yes.
It had turned out to be a good day.Maybe the Blue Ridge Mountains aren’t too far away.
The following morning, he showered, shaved, and took way too long deciding which tie to wear.
He wondered if Natalie would stay in town with her friend for a few days.
Stick to business first.Although Courtnie’s prodding hovered in his mind, arguing the contrary.
When he got to his desk, he could hardly concentrate on his email for glancing at the clock and wondering when Natalie would show up.
It was after nine when his desk phone rang.
“Detective Fellowes,” he answered.
“Mrs. Maynard is here to see you.”
“Send her on back.” With a nod of satisfaction, he pushed back from his desk. As he did every time he got a call like that, he stepped out and leaned against his doorjamb.
She walked down the hall, but this time she wasn’t wearing the high heels that he’d gotten used to clicking down the hall. He didn’t bother to hide his smile. He was glad to see her.
“How are you?” he asked as she got closer.
“I’m doing great after getting that message from you. I can’t believe it.”
“I told you I wouldn’t give up.”
“Thank you, De… Randy.”
“Come on in.” He led her into his office rather than the conference room where they usually met. It was small, but he wasn’t ashamed of it.
She made a beeline for the pictures on his bookcase. “Is this your family?”
“Mom and Dad. Yep, and that’s my brother with the surfer dude’s hair. He’s kind of a free spirit.”
“He looks like you. Sort of. Like a Saturday version of you,” she said with a laugh.
“I tell him he looks like the milkman.”
“That is so wrong!”
“It’s a family joke.” He sat down and leaned back in his chair. “Me, Mom, Dad, and that’s my older sister, Courtnie… we all have brown hair and blue eyes, and then there’s Freedom. Black curly hair and brown eyes. Seriously. Where’d that come from?”
“Stop.”
“It’s probably where I first got my skills to become a detective. I love figuring stuff out, and as a kid, I was convinced he wasn’t a Fellowes.”
