“Thank you, Reverend Carlson,” Tom started in a voice so rough and creaky he stopped, cleared his throat, and leaned closer to the microphone. “I appreciate the opportunity to speak here this morning. It’s fitting, because church is a place for confession and forgiveness. I need to do the first and hope, in time, you’ll grant me the second. But first I need to, uh…” He trailed off and dragged a white handkerchief across his sweaty forehead. “I resign as Mayor of Bluelick, effective immediately, and withdraw my candidacy for re-election.”
A stunned silence followed his announcement, and then a rumble of conversation swept in as people digested the news.
Melody grabbed Ginny’s arm. “Did you know about this?”
She could only manage a head shake. Tom started speaking again and she strained to hear over the din of the congregation’s reaction to his news.
“I know this comes out of nowhere, and I apologize for letting you down, but the truth is, I let you down well before today. I let all of you down—my neighbors, friends…my family. I am deeply ashamed to tell you, during my tenure as mayor, I accepted payments from the sheriff in exchange for renewing their contract with the city.”
This time an audible gasp arose from the pews, and Ginny let hers fly right along with everyone else’s. She never admired Tom, but she never dreamed he was on the take. Did Shaun know? She replayed their phone call in her mind. Yes, he’d definitely known this morning. When had he found out? How long had he kept his father’s secret?
“I want to assure you I acted alone. Nobody else in Bluelick participated in any way. Nobody knew anything about this until last night, when my son Shaun came home and caught me red-handed. It is a sad moment, as a parent, to look into your child’s eyes and know you’ve failed as a role model and forfeited his respect. I would like to publicly thank Shaun for being an honorable man, and requiring me to do the right thing. With his help, I contacted the FBI, confessed, and pledged to cooperate with their investigation, which has already commenced. Sheriff Butler and other officers within his department have been suspended from service pending a full inquiry. To that end, I’ll be accompanying federal investigators to Louisville today and…well…I probably won’t be seeing you for a while.”
Conversation broke out all around as people processed the information.
“Oh my God.” Melody turned to her. “I’m sitting next to the new mayor of Bluelick.”
Ginny shook her head and a punch of panic pushed all the air from her lungs. “No. Uh-uh. I don’t want it this way.”
Josh leaned across Melody and pinned her with a serious stare. “Man up, Boca. This town needs you. Now more than ever.”
Commotion in the center aisle saved her from answering. Brandi stalked toward the pulpit, shaking off a dark-suited man who tried to rein her in. “Tom, tell this man I can’t go to Louisville. I have an appointment with the landscaper tomorrow morning, for that lap pool you promised me…” Her whiney tirade trailed off into an indignant squeak as the suit snagged her arm, spun her around, and marched her back the way she’d come.
Tom’s voice pulled everyone’s attention to the front of the church again. “I-I know my apologies can’t repair the damage I’ve done, but I offer them anyway, and urge you not to let my shortcomings taint your view of our public servants here in Bluelick. You have a fine, dedicated city council, and a mayoral candidate with all the ethics, gumption, and good sense you could ask for in a leader. I hope you’ll give her your support. Thank you.”
The two men in dark suits stood as Tom descended the pulpit, flanked him, and whisked him out the door, and that’s when it hit her. Tom Buchanan is in custody.
Shit just got real.
Chapter Seventeen
“Hey, Miss Mayor.”
Ginny looked up from the small reception desk separating her waiting area from the rest of her salon and smiled at Grady Landry, hovering half in, half out of her door. “Yes councilman?”
“Got a minute?”
“Sure.” She dropped her pen and gestured him to a seat in her empty waiting area. She was in-between appointments, trying to be productive, but his presence alleviated her need to stare at the minutes of last night’s city council meeting—her first as mayor—and pretend to focus while her mind stubbornly fixated on Shaun.
According to Tyler, Shaun had gone to Louisville with Tom, but he’d been away for over a week now. Was he ever coming back? She’d hoped against hope to see him at her victory party last Tuesday at Rawley’s, or at her expedited swearing-in ceremony last Friday morning. She’d missed him like a vital organ, picked up her phone a thousand times to call him, but never followed through. What would she say? Sorry about your dad. Sorry I doubted you. Um…by the way, I’m in love with you.
Of course, he hadn’t contacted her either. For all she knew, he’d kissed Bluelick good-bye permanently this time. He’d never wanted to get swept up in local drama, but circumstances and his own moral compass had landed him a central role. Who would blame him if he preferred to forget the place existed? Family didn’t hold him here anymore. Tom had already put the Riverview house on the market and taken an apartment in Louisville. Justin had been shuttled to his mother in Atlanta, and Ginny had declined to press charges for vandalism because she’d just as soon not have him back—even for a day in court. Nobody had seen Brandi since the infamous Sunday. Rumor had it when the Feds had spit her out she’d returned to Rabbit Hash.
“How are you holding up, Grady?” she asked as he lowered his oversized frame into a chair. The last week hadn’t been easy on a lot of people in Bluelick, including the city council. Despite Tom’s assertions he’d acted without the knowledge or participation of the rest of the council, current and past members had endured long, sweaty hours of questioning by the Feds. Ginny, too, had spent quality time with investigators, and walked away with her nerves stretched to the limit, even without the cold eye of suspicion on her. The story had brought out regional and local press, who’d hovered like vultures over the town for days, before finally moving on to a high school football scandal in another county.
“Hanging in,” Grady said. “Are you feeling effective, having your first major proposal as mayor unanimously approved?”
They’d voted last night to establish the Bluelick Police Department and approved an initial budget. She laughed. “Under the circumstances, I’d have to say the proposal sold itself.”
“Not at all. You sold it. After you left, the other council members and I had a little chat about who we might tap to be our police chief. We’re not fighting a daily battle against criminal elements here, thank my maker, but we need someone with law enforcement training, who knows when to deter by presence, and when to take action, and has experience coordinating a small team. Ideally, someone local.”
She winced. “The local part is the kicker. There are plenty of deputies looking to exit the sheriff’s department at the moment, but rightly or wrongly, they’re tainted by Butler and his bad apples. This community needs a chief of police they can trust in the role from the get-go, not someone who might earn their trust over time.”
“Yep. We couldn’t agree more. And we have the perfect candidate. Shaun Buchanan.”
Her heart skidded to a halt, and then took off at double-time. “Shaun?”
“Sure. He convinced his own d