Page 6 of Wild Card (Foster Bro Code #2)

Dalton

Sheriff Hale emerged from his office Monday morning with a female deputy. His smile was smarmy as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

“Listen up, guys!” he called. “I want to introduce our newest deputy, Chloe Parks.”

Chloe took a step forward, her posture straight but rigid. “I’m looking forward to working with you all.”

Sheriff Hale chuckled. “And I’m sure they’re looking forward to working with you . We don’t get a lot of pretty faces around here.”

Chloe stiffened, her jaw tight.

Oh, geez.

“Are you saying I’m not pretty, Sheriff?” I asked to divert everyone’s attention before Chloe rightfully lost her shit. “I’m hurt.”

Hale’s eyes narrowed, but Deputy Zach Larson laughed and patted my shoulder.

“Don’t worry, Harvey. You’re the prettiest deputy of them all.”

“Why, thank you, Zach. I was feeling unappreciated.”

“As I was saying,” Hale ground out. “Deputy Parks should help us better balance the workload. We’ll spend the week showing her the ropes.” He glared at me. “Harvey, take her on a ride-along so she can gaze at your pretty face all day.”

“What about Lawson?—”

“Lawson’s about to clock out,” Hale said. “Sing’s on jail duty. You’re patrolling. So roll out.”

Hale headed for his office. I dogged his steps. “Hold up, Sheriff. Maybe she should get a tour of the office today. Hold off on the fieldwork?—”

Hale turned around. “Are you questioning my orders?”

I dropped my voice. “You know I prefer to work alone.”

“Too bad. You’ve gotten too big for your britches lately. Time to remember I’m the sheriff here, and you’re not.”

He shut the office door in my face.

Damn it. Sheriff Hale knew what had happened in Phoenix. He knew my partner, just a rookie, got shot on my watch. I didn’t want to be responsible for a deputy on her first day on the job.

“Is there a problem, Deputy Harvey?” Chloe asked in a clipped voice behind me. “I assure you that I may be a woman, but I’m just as capable?—”

I turned. “Let me save you the trouble, Deputy. I don’t like to drive with anyone, male or female. It has nothing to do with you being a woman.”

She dipped her head. “All right. Then suck it up, pretty boy. We’ve got a job to do.”

She passed by a smirking Ava and headed for the glass doors leading to the parking lot.

I snorted a laugh as I followed her. “Pretty boy?”

“Well, weren’t you the one bringing up your pretty face to the whole department?”

“I just did that because…” I trailed off, unsure if she’d be more or less offended to know I’d rushed to her rescue.

“I know why you did it,” she said. “I’m not a damsel in distress. I can handle myself.”

“And I’m not a white knight,” I said. “I was just trying to protect the guys from an ass-kicking.”

She shot me a surprised glance.

I shrugged. “I have a sister who doesn’t put up with anyone’s shit.”

Chloe laughed, her face relaxing for the first time since she’d come out of the office. “Thank you for saving me the trouble, then.”

“No problem.” I pulled out my keys as we neared my patrol car.

It was a dark blue SUV with a yellow badge emblem painted on the door, with the words Elkhorn County Sheriff’s Office emblazoned on it.

“Just do me a favor and listen to every word I say today. I don’t care if we’ve encountered a rabid raccoon or a sweet-looking old lady. I make the call on how to handle it.”

I expected her to push back about her qualifications, but she nodded. “You’re in charge.”

I unlocked the doors, and we got in. I started up the engine and reversed out of the parking lot.

“That was easier than I expected.”

“Well, I grew up in Granville,” she said. “I know better than to underestimate a sweet-looking old lady.”

I laughed. “No shit? I grew up there too. Class of 2010.”

“Oh, so you’re practically a retiree,” she said with a grin. “Class of 2020.”

“Oh, you really are a baby,” I said, trying to quell my unease. Chloe wasn’t Shane. Her fate didn’t have to be his. “Is this your first time on the job?”

“I did a short stint with the police department in Hayworth,” she said. “Got tired of dealing with drunk college kids.”

“Factory workers and farmers are more your speed?”

“They are if they’re not hitting on me while I try to do my job.”

“That might be asking a lot,” I said, thinking of Axel. My badge had never stopped him.

I didn’t think Chloe was his type, but who knew? All his flirting might be genuine—or it might be a big game. Just a manipulation to gain an advantage when he was on the wrong side of the law.

That I didn’t know for sure bothered me more than it should have. Nothing could happen there, so he could play all the games he wanted. It was up to me not to give in.

I pointed toward the passenger window, eager for a distraction. “We’re passing Jerkers Soda Shoppe on your right. The diner serves great burgers, and deputies get free MoonShakes, so we take breaks there pretty often.”

“MoonShakes?”

“Vanilla shake with Oreo crumbles, but you can add other ingredients too. It was created around the time of the moon landing, so they named it MoonShake as a gimmick. The name stuck.”

“Cool.”

“Fieldhouse is our only sports bar,” I said. “We’ve got two others. Ball Breakers Pool Hall, which we’ll pass on the way to Granville, and a gay nightclub named Glitter Balls. It’s further north, so we won’t be passing by.”

“I’ve been there for a drag show with friends,” she said. “What about Riverton Community College?”

“They have campus police, so we leave them to it unless they call in for backup.”

We drove past City Hall, Gold Community Bank, and my favorite coffee shop, Mug Shots, before reaching the highway that would take us out of town. I flipped on the blinker and turned left.

“Heading for Granville, I take it?”

“Yep. We try to have one deputy patrolling in the area every day, though state police are nearby and can respond to emergencies too.”

“Granville have many of those?” she asked.

“That require law enforcement? Not too many. The occasional shoplifter or domestic call. Honestly, I spend more time taking trespassing reports and listening to farmers bitch about bored teens partying in their fields.”

“Sounds about right,” she said with a chuckle. “We used to go out to Sam Murphy’s place, and he’d get so pissed at — ” She stopped short. “Why are you grinning like that?”

“Like what?”

“Like…” She swore under her breath. “We’re going to Sam Murphy’s place, aren’t we?”

“Yup. Got to follow up on his report of a stolen steer. I fixed his fence for him last time I was out here?—”

“You did what?” she asked, sounding surprised.

“Oh, did you think working for the sheriff’s office was all traffic stops or emergency calls? Hell, we get up to all sorts of chores in these rural areas. I’ve done everything from fence repair to roadkill cleanup.”

Chloe looked a little green around the edges, so I decided not to give her the details of that story.

Instead, I pointed as we passed by Ball Breakers Pool Hall, Anarchy Ink, and a sex shop named Blush.

“We get a few calls out here. Mostly bar fights. Though we get a few calls out to Fieldhouse as well, to be fair.”

“Where there’s beer…” she said.

“Pretty much.”

We drove past the Forrester auto shop and junkyard, and the landscape shifted from city to country in a heartbeat.

Cornfields stretched on either side of us, broken up periodically by old farmhouses and one sad, rusted-out trailer park.

The Prince farm came up on our left, mostly an event venue these days, but they hired security, so we didn’t go out there much.

When we arrived at Sam’s place on the edge of Granville city limits, the old man was nowhere to be seen. Chloe got out of the car ahead of me.

“Hey!” I said sharply as she started toward the fence lining his field without so much as glancing around.

She froze, turning to look at me. “What?”

“Don’t just go charging into the unknown. I take the lead.”

She glanced at the empty field. “But no one’s here, and even if Sam Murphy saw me, he’s not likely to attack.”

“Presumptions like that can get you killed,” I said. “Behind me. Now.”

“Yes, sir,” she muttered, striding back toward me.

I could tell by her gait that she was angry, but I wasn’t taking any chances with a young deputy. I swept the area with my gaze, searching for any signs of activity, then pointed toward the figure standing next to an old barn.

“Sam’s out there. You may not have seen him, but he sure saw you. Always take note of your surroundings before proceeding. Don’t assume no one’s there. Be sure of it.”

“All right,” she said. “Sorry, sir.”

“Working a rural area is different from city patrol,” I told her while we waited for Sam to cross the field.

“There’s wide-open spaces. In some ways, it seems safer.

Properties are spread out. Population is thinner.

But that means it’s much easier to let your guard down and miss something.

We can’t afford to be complacent. Sometimes we stumble on illicit activity because perps think it’ll go undetected out here. ”

“Like what?”

“I broke up a dog-fighting ring about a year ago. Lots of nasty people involved. Lots of money changing hands. Had to call in the state police.”

“Jesus,” she said.

“We had a meth lab explosion that killed a firefighter out this way too,” I said. “So don’t assume it’s all missing cattle and broken-down fences, all right?”

I was laying it on a little thick, but she was a rookie who needed to use caution because she didn’t yet have the instincts years in law enforcement would give her.

Sam reached the fence. “Ah, Deputy Harvey, you’re back. I didn’t think I’d ever see you again after you spent two hours on my fence.”

I grinned. “Just needed to make sure my handiwork was holding up.” I slapped the fencepost. “Any sign of the prodigal steer?”

“Oh, he turned up overnight,” Sam said. “Had to chase the fucker around. Nearly had a coronary getting him into the pasture, but he’s back where he belongs.”

“Why didn’t you call Ed for help?” Chloe asked.

“Because Ed would hold it over my head for—” He paused, eyes sharpening. “Don’t I know you, young lady?”

“Nope,” she said quickly.

“Deputy Parks is new to the department,” I told Sam as I turned, scanning our surroundings. A handful of cattle grazed a few hundred feet from the fence. An old tractor sat rusting in the sun. Everything looked quiet on the home front.

“Parks. I know that name, don’t I?”

“It’s a common name,” she said evasively, turning to me. “This fence sure looks solid, Deputy Harvey. I guess our work here is done.”

“Deputy Parks is Granville born and bred like me,” I told Sam.

“I’m sure we’ve never met, though,” Chloe said with a nervous laugh. “I never got out this way much. Is it time to move on, Deputy Harvey? Lots of ground to cover.”

“Well, I don’t know. Sam, do you have any reports to make while we’re out here?”

“Well,” he said slowly, “the dang kids in town were partying out here last weekend. Set a bonfire. That’s not safe.”

“It sure isn’t.” I smirked at Chloe. “What do you think about kids partying in Sam’s field, Deputy Parks?”

“I think we should head into town and remind those kids what’s what,” she said, voice stern. “I’ll head back to the car and make a note so we don’t forget.”

She hurried away.

Sam raised a bushy eyebrow. “She looks like she could be one of those kids. How young are you taking them these days?”

“Too young,” I said, thinking of Shane’s baby face. “Always too damn young.”

“Ain’t that the truth?” Sam said. “Have a good one, Deputy. I’ll call you next time my fence breaks down.”

The saucy fucker winked at me.

I laughed. “If you think that’s the best use of a law officer’s time…”

He grinned, revealing two missing teeth. “Need to make sure my property is safe! I’m just a poor old man.”

I snorted. “Nice try, Sam. We both know if you were that old, you’d have called Ed for some help with that runaway steer.”

When I returned to the patrol car, Chloe was sitting with her head ducked. “Did he remember me?”

“Don’t think so.”

She gave a relieved sigh. “Thank god. What next?”

“We’ll drive along the county’s southern border, then double back to Granville and stop for lunch. If any calls in this area pop up, we’re on them.”

She nodded. “You going to be uptight every time I get out of the car?”

I cast her a look. “Might be.”

“You want to tell me why?”

“You don’t know the job yet. You’ve got no practical experience.”

“That’s not actually the reason, though.” Her eyes bored into me. “We both know Sam was no threat.”

“Maybe,” I said. “But I know it because I’ve worked with him before. My judgment is based on my interactions with him as a deputy. You can’t make assumptions on how people will behave because you lived in Granville and think you know them.”

“Maybe, but we weren’t on a call. If we’d been responding to a report?—”

“It doesn’t matter,” I cut in. “You don’t always choose what you walk into. Just ask Shane.”

“Shane?”

“Never mind.” I hadn’t meant to say that.

Her forehead creased. “Who’s Shane? Is he a deputy? I don’t remem?—”

“No. Forget I mentioned him. I shouldn’t have. He’s got nothing to do with you.”

She eyed me for a long minute. “Seems like he has something to do with you, though.”

My heart twisted. “Put on your seat belt. Until a call comes in, I’ll drive, and you can tell me what an unreasonable hard-ass I am.”

“Well, I don’t know about a hard-ass,” she said.

“More like an overprotective big brother. But as a woman in this job, I have to tell you, Harvey, that’s the last thing I need.

People already want to assume I’m timid or weak.

So whatever happened with Shane, you need to put it away and let me do my job. ”

If only it were that easy. I’d told the sheriff when he hired me that I needed to ride alone. I didn’t want the stress or worry of a partner ever again. I also didn’t want to take out my guilt and regret on another officer.

But I was doing it right now with Chloe, who got enough shit for being a woman. I wasn’t hung up on her gender or her size, though. Because Shane had been a big dude. A tough dude. I was stuck on how dang young she was. How much potential she had, the life she could live—or lose.

Just like Shane.

“You can ride with Lawson tomorrow,” I murmured. “He won’t be so overprotective.”

She frowned. “I can’t decide if you think that’s a good thing or not.”

I sighed. “Neither can I.”