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“I already got my budget increase. I can’t give two shits about what the mayor thinks.”
“Why do I find that hard to believe?” Allison planted her hands on her hips and stared Reid down, or at least tried to. The man was a stone, cold statue who didn’t budge.
“The answer is no.”
“Ready when you are,” Larry said from behind her. A smile spread across Allison’s face, and she turned around to her cameraman. She’d interview Mrs. Trainor in the next segment. Right now, she was going with the story that guaranteed a bigger reaction. Besides, maybe she did feel a little bad about how she spun that story on the boardwalk. Reid wasn’t incompetent as sheriff. If anything, she felt safer knowing he was the one protecting the town. Now it was her turn to pay him back and right her wrong.
“I’m ready,” she said to Larry, taking her microphone in her hand. Larry counted down, and at one, Allison began. “This is Allison Winters here on Barnacle Lane, where a pothole has been wreaking havoc on the citizens and their tires. While here, I have bumped into none other than the local hero and our very own sheriff. He has come here on his own dime to repair this destructive pothole.”
Larry panned the camera down, hopefully getting a good shot of the garden pothole.
“Sheriff Reid,” Allison said and turned to Reid, microphone out, except he wasn’t there. She gasped at the empty space and scanned the area for the ungrateful jerk. She was doinghima favor here. She even called him a local hero, for crying out loud. He could have at least had the decency to stick around. “Sheriff Reid,” she said one more time, trying to keep the unease from shaking her voice.
Somehow, the sheriff disappeared into thin air.Think. Allison was a reporter and good at her job because she was quick on her feet. She plastered a smile on her face and stared right at the camera. “It appears the sheriff has been called away.” Her eyes landed on Anna and Mrs. Trainor coming up the sidewalk behind Larry. “We’ll get to him later, but now let’s talk to the person who informed me of this treacherous hole, and the woman who turned it into a garden while she patiently waits for the town to do their job and repair the tire popping crater.”
Allison conducted the interview, and by the end, she was happy with the report, but definitely not happy with a certain sheriff.
“This is Allison Winters for WC News. Back to you, Sandra.” She held her smile until Larry signaled she was off, then let out a loud breath as he lowered the camera. “Can you believe Reid took off like that in the middle of a broadcast?” she said to Larry, who was checking his watch. They had plenty of time before his movie started.
“The guy’s told you; he doesn’t like being on camera.”
“I was going to make him look like the town hero. A pure good-for-the-soul spot on the afternoon news.”
Larry shrugged. “I don’t think Reid cares about any of that.”
She rolled her eyes, unable to control the movement. “Everybody cares about looking good to the public.”
“Some people are more private than others. Maybe it’s time you respect his wishes.”
“Really Larry, throwing the guilt trip at me? What happened to always doing what you have to in order to snag the best story?” Larry was the one who encouraged her to go after the leads, to push her way to the front and ask the questions that needed to be answered.
He shrugged. “Guess with my daughters getting older, and I see how much of their lives are being put on the internet, I have to respect someone who wants to keep their privacy in a time when everyone is posting what they’re eating for dinner.”
“Spoken like a true old man.” Allison winked, and Larry let out a big belly laugh that shook his whole body.
“I really am getting old. I just don’t understand kids these days.”
“Keep talking, Larry. You’re getting older by the second.”
“All I’m saying is maybe Reid is on to something. We don’t need to tell the world all the details of our life.”
Larry headed to the van, and Allison’s thoughts drifted to the letter in her pocket. She didn’t need to pull it out to know what it said. She’d memorized it before shoving it away.
I saw you yesterday at Joe’s Lobster House.
I was surprised. You’re usually only there on Wednesdays.
You order a lobster roll and fries but never finish the fries.
I watch you and wonder what would happen if I put arsenic in your ketchup.
Maybe one day we’ll find out.
She swallowed as she recalled the typed words. Her mind lingering on arsenic, and then Wednesday. The only time in the last two weeks she had gone other than her usual day was when she was with Luna and Presley. Was this sicko there? Watching her with her sister and her niece? Or did he just see her social media and was trying to scare her?
She hadn’t thought much about it earlier, but now the letter weighed not only her pocket down, but her mind as well. If Reid had stuck around, maybe she would have shown him. She reached for the letter, slipping it from her pocket when her phone vibrated in her other pocket. She shoved the letter back in place, forced the threatening words to the back of her mind, and smiled at Presley’s face on the screen.
“Hey P bug.”
