Just as she was probably about to mortally offend the major, the sheriff walked through the door.
“How’d it go, Sheriff?”
“High school wrestling match. Partial success.” Gage Dalton was a tall man with a face scarred by burns. Long ago, when he was a DEA agent, he’d been the target of a car bomb. He still limped from his injuries, and even now some of his movements exhibited pain.
She spoke again before he could pass. Major Duke was already rising from his chair. Gage wasn’t going to escape this, either.
“Sheriff, this is Major Daniel Duke, Larry Duke’s brother. You need to speak with him.”
Gage raised a brow on the unscarred side of his face. “Come with me, Major. My office is open.”
The two men disappeared down the corridor, and Cat expelled a long breath, only just then realizing she’d been holding it. Tense. Lots of tension surrounded the major.
The dispatch desk crackled to life with a call. “Burglary at 1095 Elm Street. Need backup and forensics.”
Cat wished she were able to answer the call. She had a strong feeling she wouldn’t escape the major.
A HALF HOUR LATER, as she finished up comparing reports, Gage called from the hallway.
“Cat, could you come in here, please?”
Oh God, she thought. She glanced at the dispatcher, an elderly crone who smoked like a chimney under the No Smoking sign. She had learned quickly that Velma was a fixture who must be respected. A couple of deputies had told her that the only way Velma was going to leave her job was toes first. Cat had learned that Velma mothered them all.
“Good luck,” Velma said in her smoke-roughened voice.
Apparently, Velma had gotten the same kind of impression from their visitor.
Cat squared her shoulders and marched back to Gage’s office. Maybe, just maybe, he’d found a way to contain this man. It wouldn’t help anything to have the major interfering with the investigation. He could jeopardize the case.
“Hey, Cat,” Gage said when she reached his office. “Come on in, close the door and grab a seat.”
Close the door? Gage almost never did that. She followed his request, sitting only a foot away from Daniel Duke. Who, she had to admit, was attractive. He would have been more so if she hadn’t seen the subzero chill in his gaze.
She turned her attention to Gage, hoping he had a solution.
“It seems,” he said, “that Major Duke is determined to assist our investigation.”
Oh boy. Gage describing it as assistance probably didn’t bode well.
“I can understand the major’s concerns,” Gage continued. “If he wants to talk to people around the county, I can’t prevent him. There’s nothing illicit in that. But I’ve also made it clear that he’s going to have to stay within the law so he doesn’t destroy any case against a murderer. I’ve also made it clear that we will enforce the law, so he’d better not interfere in any way with our investigation. He won’t be helping if we have to arrest him.”
Cat nodded, glad Gage had made those points. Unfortunately, she sensed there was a big but on the way. Worse, her presence in this room probably pointed to involving her in some capacity.
She couldn’t zip her lips any longer. “Is Major Duke suggesting we can’t do our job?”
She knew that wasn’t it. This was a man who needed to take up his lance for the sake of his brother. He needed to be involved. Still, she wanted to make her disapproval clear.
“I don’t think that’s it,” Gage answered. “He’s just not constitutionally capable of sitting on the sidelines, are you, Major?”
“No.” A single syllable saying more than a page full of words.
“Anyway,” Gage went on, “I can’t prevent him from walking around asking questions or looking for some obvious clue that we need brought to our attention. Within the law, of course. So, we need to coordinate. You have a background in homicide investigations, Cat. You’ll be our liaison, keeping me informed at all times. And, Major, if Deputy Jansen says we need a warrant for something, listen to her. We can get a warrant fast enough from Judge Carter if there’s probable cause.”
Oh man, Cat thought, feeling everything inside her become as taut as a guitar string. A brick wall and a concrete one had just met, and she couldn’t tell which one of them had won. At least it appeared that Gage had gotten a few concessions.
But playing liaison on this? While she’d be glad of the change of pace, being more deeply involved with a murder investigation, she didn’t want to do it this way. What was more, she’d known Larry, and that had been the primary reason she wasn’t on the case. Why had Gage chosen her? Just because she had some experience?
She looked at Major Duke, fearing that trying to keep him in line would be like bull riding. Then she accepted the inevitable. This was her assignment, and even though it might put her on the wrong side of the investigation, in terms of her involvement, it was still important, and Gage thought it necessary. She had one burning question, however.
“How much information from our investigation should I share?”
“Whatever you deem necessary.”
On her shoulders, then. Lovely.
GAGE HAD VELMA call another officer in to take over desk duty. “Seems like you two may need a bit of discussion. Get yourselves over to the diner for coffee, maybe lunch.”
Cat smothered a sigh, figuring she was going to have to reinforce Gage’s limits over coffee, and probably endure a brain picking by Major Duke.
They crossed the street together and walked halfway down the block to the City Diner, known to everyone as Maude’s diner because of its cantankerous owner. Cantankerous or not, Maude was another of those people around here who was both a fixture and well loved. This kind of thing was also a part of the charm of living here.
For the first time, she faced the seated major across a table. She
