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“You’re welcome. See you in a few hours.”

As she dragged herself toward the bedroom he’d pointed out earlier, she cried, her cheeks slick and her nose running. She and her girls were warm and dry. They had a roof over their heads, clean clothes on their backs, and a comfortable place to sleep. Shaw had said he was a conservation officer.

He was wrong. Apparently he hadn’t looked in the mirror lately, because from where she stood, he was an angel.

* * *

“How about tomorrow at ten?”

Shaw made a note in his calendar. “Sure. That sounds perfect. Listen, thanks so much, SheriffMcEvers. I really appreciate it.”

“You’re very welcome. It sounds like they’ve been traumatized enough. If we can do the interview in a neutral place where they’ll be more comfortable, that’s fine with me. By the way, do you think they need legal representation?”

“Oh, no. Nope. They haven’t done anything wrong. And I know that she’ll tell you whatever you want to know as long as she doesn’t feel threatened.”

“Good. So I’ll see you tomorrow morning at ten. May bring Aaron with me if he’s free.”

“That would be great. I’d love for them to meet him. See you then.”

“Yes, sir. Bye.” He’d been on the phone with CarlyMcEvers for three whole minutes and his respect for her had grown even greater than it was before. She seemed like a kind, considerate person. He hoped Cherilyn and the girls would see her that way.

A soft rap came from the door, and Shaw opened it to find a woman standing there, a very pretty, sweet-faced woman. She had a little girl with her, and one look at the child told him who they were. “Maisey, right?”

“Yeah! You’re Shaw, right? Good to meet you.” She held out a hand and Shaw took it, wondering at its softness but also its tight grip. “I hear I have some shopping to do.”

“Listen, thanks so much. I really appreciate it. But they’re asleep right now and?”

“You have any of their clothes?”

“Yeah. In the washer.” He stood there for a minute, then felt like a complete idiot. “Geez, sorry. I’m so rude. Come on in. And who do we have here?” he said as he bent down to smile at the child.

“I’m Murielle. Did you know my daddy is a deputy?”

“I know your daddy. He’s a good guy.”

“Yes, he is.”

“And who’s your friend here?”

Murielle held up the stuffed dragon. “This is Donnie. He’s my bestie. And Maisey is my mom now. She loves me, and I love her. My mommy died, so Maisey does mom stuff now.”

He’d heard that story, and he made a mental note to ask Aaron about it. “Oh, well, it’s nice that you’ve got a mom now.”

“Yeah. She’s the best. Do you have kids I can play with?”

“You could, but they’re asleep. They’ve had a hard time, and they’re really tired.”

“Oh. I know how that is. A bad man stole me. I was very scared.” Her gaze left Shaw’s face and she stared at her little dragon, stroking his head as she sighed. That left him even more curious.

“They’re very scared too. There’s a bad man in their life. But I’m trying to keep him from finding them, so don’t tell anybody they’re here, okay?”

“No! I won’t. I don’t want him to get them. Mommy, can I play with Donnie on the front porch?”

Maisey glanced at Shaw, and he nodded. “Sure, baby. Just come back in if you need to, and don’t wander away. Stay on the porch.”

“Okay, Mommy. I won’t. Come on, Donnie. There’s rocks out here that you can blow fire on.” She shuffled out the front door and closed it behind her.

“She’s adorable.”