Bentley’s eyes were bright with excitement. “I’m on it, Chief.”
“Also, her computer is missing, a MacBook Pro, the dark silver color. Check all the pawn shops in the county.”
“Will do.”
When he was alone, Tristan swiveled his chair to the side and stared out the window. There was one more obvious suspect, one he’d been waiting for Skye to volunteer the name. Had it not occurred to her, or was she trying to protect him? Did she still have feelings for Pretty Boy?
Chapter Twenty-Eight
As soon as she arrived at her office, Skye changed into one of the uniforms she’d picked up from the cleaners, then dug her spare badge out of her desk. Feeling like a sheriff now instead of a victim, she settled in to work. Thirty minutes later, sighing at the constant interruptions from her people asking how she was, she sent out a group text to her deputies to come in for a meeting. Those on patrol were to come in if they were able.
Johnny stepped into her office. “Did you still want to see me this morning, Sheriff?”
“Yes. Close the door and have a seat.” She waited for him to get settled. “First, thanks for your work last night on my apartment fire.”
“I don’t need thanks to do my job.”
She smiled. “Okay. Then thank you for not gossiping about what happened.” She’d heard other deputies who knew he’d been there last night ask him about her apartment fire, and he’d given vague answers. She appreciated that, and it reassured her that she was making the right decision.
“The only answers to their questions would have been speculation. That’s how rumors get started.”
“And understanding that, among other reasons, is why I want you as my chief deputy sheriff. I’m hoping you want the job. Randal’s last day is a week from Friday, so if you accept the promotion, I’d like to make the announcement today.”
“Yes, I want it. I won’t let you down, Sheriff.”
“I know.” She smiled. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t offer you the job. Starting today, you’ll be spending your time with Randal.”
“Sounds good.”
“Send Randal in.”
“I’m just glad you didn’t let Mason bully you into giving him the job,” Randal said when she told him who would be replacing him. “Johnny’ll do a good job for you.”
“He will.” And there wasn’t a chance of Mason bullying her into anything. “I think everyone’s here, so let’s go talk to them.” She grabbed the small gift bag sitting on her desk, then followed Randal to the breakroom.
She scanned the room, noting who was here. All but three of her deputies had come in. The missing ones would hear what was said here soon enough. “Good morning, everyone. I have a few things to go over with you. I guess most of you have heard by now that there was a fire at my apartment last night. It was intentional.” She waited for the gasps and comments to finish.
“We don’t know who it was, so if anyone hears anything that might lead us to the culprit, I want to hear from you immediately.”
“What evidence do we have?” Bradley Burns asked.
“There is no ‘we’ on this one. The police department is heading up the investigation.”
There were some mutterings about that, which she ignored. She didn’t blame them for wanting to be involved when someone was threatening their sheriff. It had taken a year, but she was finally feeling like she belonged here. It felt good. Really good.
“Quiet, everyone. I have some other things to talk about. One is that Mason is no longer with us.” She still wasn’t convinced Mason was behind her apartment fire, so that was all she was going to say about him.
“’Bout time,” someone muttered.
She couldn’t agree more. “Now to some good news. As you know, Randal is retiring. Johnny is being promoted to chief deputy sheriff.”
There where whoops, slaps on Johnny’s back, and congratulations. She could tell by everyone’s reactions that she’d chosen well. When the hoopla died down, she pointed at Randal. “Come over here.”
“Oh, you’re in trouble now,” Bradley teased.
Randal comically widened his eyes. “Should I be afraid?”
She laughed. “Be very afraid.” She truly loved these people, and wasn’t that just awesome? When he stopped next to her, she put her hand on his shoulder. “I took the job as an outsider, having no idea how I’d be treated. You welcomed me, told me my first day on the job that if anyone had a problem with me, they’d have a problem with you. I can’t tell you how much that meant to me.”