AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The phone began to ring. It was almost 5 pm, perhaps the office workers had already left for the day. I drummed my fingers on the dark brown surface of my desk impatiently. The call was finally picked up on the eighth ring. “This is Raylene.”
“Evening, Raylene. Glad I caught you. This is Sheriff Logan Grey down at headquarters. I’m wondering if you can get me the personnel file for one of your paramedics on staff?”
“Of course, Sheriff,” said the woman. “Who is it?”
“Ainsley Adams.”
A few minutes later, my computer pinged with the sound of an incoming email.
“Got it,” I confirmed. “Thanks for your help, Raylene. You have a good night.”
“You too, sir,” she replied.
I clicked off the call and scooted closer to my screen, my back straightening. I opened the attachment the hospital had sent with Ainsley’s personnel file and resume and read through the documents eagerly. She was from Spokane, the largest city in Eastern Washington, and had attended both high school and college there, graduating with a degree in Emergency Medicine Technology. She’d completed the necessary state requirements for licensure as a paramedic. In addition to the resume, she’d filled out a basic employment questionnaire. There were several other human resources-related forms related to her hiring, pay grade, and contractual agreement with the hospital, but nothing that gave me any other information about her background or personal life.
Hm. I scratched the stubble on my chin and opened up a new browser, itching for more details. I navigated to Facebook and logged into my personal account. My pulse quickened. Why was I so eager to learn everything I could about the new paramedic? Was it only because of my investigation, or could it have something to do with the fact that I found her so attractive I could barely think straight whenever I was around her?
I typed in her name on the search bar and held my breath. There was only one Ainsley Adams that popped up, and it was her. Her beautiful smile radiated from the photo displayed on her profile and I couldn’t help but smile in return. I clicked on it and began to scroll through the information shared with the public. My eyes drifted to “Relationship Status.” She was married? Damn, I hadn’t expected that. My heart sank, and I hated myself for it, even as I went straight to photos. Who was the lucky guy? Huh. Edward Adams was a big, blonde bloke who looked about as intelligent as a box of rocks. An electrician. Nothing wrong with that profession whatsoever; in fact, it had been my uncle’s livelihood before he retired. I stared at the photo Ainsley had posted of them on their wedding day. Was it just me, or did she look almost a little too posed? Like her smile didn’t light up her eyes. They didn’t seem well-matched, either. Granted, they were both young and attractive. I grit my teeth as I admitted to myself that Edward was the type of guy who would draw ladies’ attention, but something seemed well, off. Not who I would have pictured Ainsley with. Then again, I wouldn’t have pictured her with anyone…Except for me.
A mirthless chuckle escaped my lips. I was an idiot. It had been too long since I’d enjoyed the company of a woman, and I was losing it over the first pretty girl who walked into town.
I clicked through the other photos. There were several of her with a clique of girlfriends, laughing together around dinner tables or house parties. A couple of images featured her with a smiling older couple, who were obviously her parents. She’d inherited her red hair from her mother and her high cheekbones and full lips from her father.
I shifted to her posts and scrolled through them. Surprisingly, there weren’t many. Then again, she could be one of those rare people who aren’t on social media 24/7 like the rest of the population these days. It appeared silly memes were her preferred topic, especially those featuring popular celebrities and notable figures in the media or various baby animals dressed up in ridiculous costumes. In other words, nothing particularly notable.
Exhaling, I closed out of Facebook and powered off my computer. I clasped my hands behind my head and propped my feet up on the desk. Closing my eyes, I breathed into the stillness, listening to the rhythm of my own heartbeat as blood pumped through my veins. My headache pulsed in tandem to it. Ainsley was just a regular young woman, the kind you’d encounter anywhere. A recent college graduate and a new bride. I wondered vaguely what made her and Edward decide to move out to the peninsula. Nothing unusual about that, though. They were from Washington State and probably had visited the area before and fell in love with the majestic views of water and rainforest out here. Many others had done the same. I sighed. She was completely, utterly normal.
I opened one eye. Too normal. My spidey-senses tingled. That was it…She was too perfect, as if such a thing existed, which I knew it didn’t. She seemed to come from a perfect happy little family, have the perfect college experience, the perfect wedding, the perfect job. There was nothing wrong with any of it which was weird. She didn’t even post on social media with the types of personal observations, rants, or emotional bits that served as windows to a person’s values, beliefs, and character that most people did, at least on occasion. And that was just plain weird. Could she be hiding something? If so, what could it possibly be?
I glanced up at the clock. It was almost 6 pm and my stomach was beginning to growl. I needed food, and a good night’s sleep.
Heaving myself to my feet, I stretched my tired limbs and reached for my coat on the rack by the door. I shrugged it on and grabbed my keys, letting myself out of the office and into the empty, stark station hallway. Closing the door behind me, I locked it and made my way to the exit. Bernice was just sitting down at her desk at reception to begin the night shift.
I waved to her on my way out. “Have a good night, Bernice,” I said.
She smiled and patted her gray bun. “You too, Sheriff Gray.”
I exited the building and walked out to the parking lot, not bothering to lift the hood of my jacket over my head. Instead, I let the rain fall, enjoying the coolness of the drops as they blew across my face in the night wind. I was hot with the combination of exhaustion and passion, my desire to determine what…or who had caused the deaths of three young men in the prime of their lives, and to figure out just what Ainsley Adams had to do with it, if anything. I was going to stick to her like glue, whether the mysterious paramedic liked it or not. The problem was, I feared that I might end up liking being close to the beautiful suspect a little too much.
Chapter Three
Ainsley
The heavy door swung open.
“We will see you now,” said the prim, gray-haired woman sitting at the head of the long shiny mahogany conference table. She motioned toward the lone empty chair opposite her.
I stepped into the cavernous room at Reaper Headquarters where the Council was gathered, biting my lower lip out of habit like I always did when I was feeling especially nervous. I took a seat in the high-backed chair and scooted myself closer to the table, the casters making an audible squeak as I rolled across the floor.
My father, who was seated to my right next to my mother, met my gaze and lifted one of his bushy eyebrows curiously. My mother was biting her lip just like I was. Guess the apple doesn’t fall too far from that tree.
“Why did you ask to meet with us this evening, Ms. Adams?” asked Councilwoman Raven, crossing her thin, bony arms over her tweed jacket. One of the gold buttons gleamed in the overhead light. “Frankly, I was enjoying a nice soak in the tub with a glass of sherry when your request came in, so this better be important.”
Heads nodded around the table, and I caught murmurs of “here, here.”
“Um…” I began, looking around at the Council members. Suddenly, I had a frog in my throat and started to cough. My eyes began to water. My parents both leaped up and rushed over to me. My dad pounded me on the back.
“Not…helping…” I managed to squawk, lurching forward.
