of his eyes. In the lifetime I had known him, first as an officer (he gave me my first speeding ticket) and then as the chief, I had never seen him smile. “You can’t cause enough trouble in Duck. You have to come down here.”
Sam and Max weren’t the only ones in Duck and Corolla with competition issues. Chief Michaels and Chief Peabody never had a good word for each other. They could be equally as uncivil with residents they felt overstepped their bounds.
“Chief, I’m not here to cause any trouble. I’m sure you know that Sam is missing—”
“Yeah. We’ve had an APB out on him since we searched his home and office. We’re doing so in an effort to assist the Duck police. You didn’t have to come up here and check on us.”
“I wasn’t,” I said flatly. “I came up to help find Sam. I think he might be in trouble.” I told him what I knew of Sam’s disappearance without divulging information I’d gathered from his personal effects. I didn’t think Chief Peabody would believe me.
“That’s real nice of you, Mayor. But we can take care of our own. And I’m sure you know that calling us out like this isn’t a good idea unless you know something pertinent to finding Sam.”
I glanced at Kevin and the answer came to me. “We have reason to suspect that Sam has met with foul play.”
Chief Peabody looked at Kevin too. “Is this your lawyer, Mayor? Is he helping you look for Sam?”
“I’m Kevin Brickman.” He stepped forward and shook hands with the chief. “I own the Blue Whale Inn.”
“I heard about you.” The chief squinted at him, the sun in his eyes. “Helping her meddle in police affairs isn’t a good idea.”
“Mayor O’Donnell does have some pertinent information.” Kevin told him about the man with Sam.
“How did you figure out Sam was out here at all?” the chief asked.
“We talked to the outfitter,” I answered. “Then we spoke with Mr. Watts here, and he told us the same thing.”
The chief turned his cold gray eyes on Tom Watts. “So what do you know about this? And why haven’t you reported it to the police?”
“I didn’t know the police were interested,” Tom said. “News doesn’t make it this far out very quickly. I’ve been here for the last two weeks. I told Dae that I saw Sam with the man she described. That’s it. They said they were going to see the horses.”
“I think we found Sam’s Segway about half a mile from here,” I added.
“What makes you think it belongs to Sam?” Chief Peabody questioned.
“I don’t know for sure.” I shrugged. “But there is an abandoned Segway over there and it might belong to Sam. It shouldn’t be hard to check out the identification number and find out. I can call if you want me to.”
The chief’s face hardened into an even more disapproving expression, if that were possible. “I think we can handle this from here, Mayor. No offense, but it’s best for civilians like yourself and Mr. Brickman to mind your own business. We don’t need any of your hocus-pocus down here in Corolla to maintain the law. Have a nice day.”
Chapter 10
It was getting late, and there was no way to argue with Chief Peabody without telling him about the hocus-pocus that had led me here. He called in some reinforcements and took Tom off to one side, maybe to ask for more details. Maybe not.
“We should be getting back,” Kevin said. “I think he has the idea anyway.”
“You could’ve told him you were with the FBI before. Maybe that would’ve made it sound more convincing.”
“Former FBI agents aren’t usually best buddies with the police. It’s not something I advertise.”
I realized my remark was out of line and apologized. “I know. I guess I didn’t want to sound like a nut job. You’re right, though. At least they’re going to look for him. I hope they find him and he’s okay.”
“But you don’t think so, do you?”
I couldn’t answer. The visions were too new. The darkness at the end of the fear and the running could mean anything. I was taking it to mean that something bad had happened, but maybe not. I truly hoped not.
We headed back to Corolla on the sand trails and turned in the Segways when we got there. I still needed time to go home and change before the town meeting. I wasn’t looking forward to it, especially since I was coming home from Corolla without anything new to share.
“I know I’m not in law enforcement,” I said to Kevin as we got back in his pickup. “But Sam’s actions don’t seem to be those of a man who’s running away because he killed someone.”
Kevin nodded. “I agree. I wouldn’t go get on one of those things and head out into the island. Logic dictates Sam going to the mainland and hiding out. Too many people know him here. That’s a bad thing, unless there’s someone willing to hide you.”
“I know it’s not enough to keep him out of jail if the police really believe he blew up the museum and killed Max. But maybe it might make them think about it differently.”
“Maybe. If he has a good alibi, that would be a lot better. It’s hard to beat a good alibi.”
“I guess we won’t know unless they find him.”
“You’ve done what you could for now.” He smiled at me. “At great personal risk too, I might add. I don’t know if I would’ve touched that scooter not knowing what I might find. You’re a brave person.”
“And foolish.” I laughed. “Don’t bother to deny it. I can hear it in your voice.”
We’d reached my house, and I hopped out of the truck after it had pulled in the driveway. “Foolish? I don’t know. Crazy might be more like it.”
“Thanks!” I slammed the truck door. “See you at the meeting.”
The house was quiet and dark when I got inside. Gramps had left a note on the kitchen table telling me that he was out doing volunteer fire department drills and that there was a casserole in the oven.
I glanced at the casserole and decided to skip it. I grabbed a granola bar from the cabinet and went up to take a quick shower.
I opened a new bar of soap and went through all the sensations that described where and how it was made. Already it was becoming routine to me. I looked at my hands as I got washed and wondered why the explosion at the museum had triggered this effect in me.
I thought about all those times my hands had tingled when I approached something valuable. It was one of the ways I decided what to buy when I went shopping for treasures. Maybe this new ability had always been there, lying dormant, waiting for some event—the explosion in this case—to set it lose.
Kevin wanted to protect me from making mistakes that might cause me to end up like his FBI partner. But I’d realized this afternoon, when I grabbed the statue and then the scooter, that I couldn’t shy away from this new aspect of my abilities. I couldn’t protect myself from it any more than I could keep myself from getting wet in a downpour.
It was here. It was part of me. Though it might be uncomfortable right now, I knew I’d master it. I’d learned from the best when my mother had taught me as a child. I appreciated Kevin’s guidance, definitely his backup, but with time, these new abilities and I would learn to get along fine together.
After getting out of the shower, I dried off and changed into a plum-colored knit dress that made me look like a sober and dignified mayor—with style. I wasn’t ready to be too sober or dignified yet.
I looked at my slightly sunburned face as I applied plum-colored lipstick and brushed my wayward hair. I’d spent all day with Kevin. It had been an enjoyable experience. In many ways, we seemed to fill in small gaps in each other’s personalities. It was exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time. What would I say to everyone, especially Shayla? I didn’t want Gramps planning our wedding already, but I knew he’d be interested too.
That’s one of the problems with small-town life, but it was one of the perks as well. People might be there when I didn’t want them to be—but then again, they were always there when I needed them.
I smiled at myself in the mirror. Being with Kevin was different than I’d expected yet everything I’d thought it could be.
I left the house and started walking down Duck Road toward town hall along with several other people headed in the same direction. The Duck Shoppes parking lot was full, always a barometer of how well attended a
