"Ever thought about repainting?"
"Every day. But there's no budget for paint. I'm lucky if I can get enough bullets for my gun."
Sasha looked uneasy. How could a sheriff protect the town if he couldn't even afford bullets? Harrison must have sensed her worry and put them to rest. He said, "I'm only kidding. I actually buy bullets with my own money. Not that I've ever had a reason to fire a single shot."
"Now you might."
"Yeah."
He responded with what sounded like sorrow and regret. And why not? He knew everyone in town. Everyone was a friend, everyone was as close as family. One of those like-family members were killing the others. It must have been like finding out your child was a serial killer. You don't want to see them punished but you know in your heart they must be. Sasha couldn’t even imagine.
She placed a reassuring hand on his arm and gave it a gentle squeeze. He gave her a brief smile and shrugged. "I'll do what I have to do."
"I know I don't know you well, yet, but I have a feeling you're going to do a fine job. I bet this town is lucky to have you." Internally, she berated herself for speaking the word yet. It had been so stupid. The implications of that word haunted her and she regretted it. But the hint of a small grin on his face eased her worry. Maybe he had enjoyed the word? Perhaps he enjoyed the subtle meaning behind its uttering. She wanted to know him better. She found him attractive. Could he possibly have deciphered that from one simple word? She thought so. He seemed an intelligent man.
"Look out your window there. You can see our water tower. The entire town’s water supply is stored there. It draws water from a large, underground reservoir on a daily basis. From what I understand, the tower has to resupply daily as each gallon is used. You wouldn't think such a small town goes through so much water. I guess we're very thirsty."
Now it was her turn to notice the upward inflation, or had she imagined it? Sasha was certain the sheriff was flirting with her but could not be sure. The thought was a welcome escape from her normal life. It had been many years, since high school in fact, since a man had given her the feeling of fluttering butterflies in her stomach. She felt juvenile. She felt free.
Brent had never made her feel like a woman. He never bought her flowers, never told her how beautiful she looked, and didn't even try to flirt with her. To him, she was nothing more than an object. He abused her and used her body for his sexual needs. She was nothing but a dumpster. And that dumpster was his property.
A man had once made the mistake of calling her beautiful at a bar one night. Flattered, Sasha thanked the man and hid the blush which had broken out across her face. Since that particular compliment was scarce in her own life, she couldn’t help but accept it. She needed some form of positive reinforcement in her life and if it had to come from a stranger then so be it.
But Brent was none too happy. He had leaned out from behind Sasha and yelled at the man, the beer on his breath wafting into her face. Brent was vicious and angry but the other man merely laughed him off. He added insult to injury when he told Brent to go to the bathroom and splash a little water on his face to cool off. Brent's embarrassing response had been, "Oh, I am cool, buddy. Far cooler than you. You're gonna be jerking it tonight with nothing but your tears as lube and I'm gonna fuck this woman so hard she won't walk straight for a week." Of course, Brent found it hilarious but Sasha found it disgusting and humiliating. All the other women in the bar made faces at them, some of them laughed. She couldn't take it anymore. Sasha stormed away. Before she made it out the door, she heard the man say, "Guess you’ll be using your tears tonight, buddy." The bar had a good laugh. Even Sasha felt a smirk touch her hot face, though she did her best to hide it.
Brent was furious now. He stood up and approached the man, hell-bent on teaching him some sort of lesson. To this day, Sasha regretted what she had done next. She had dragged Brent out of the bar and to the car, stopping the fight before it started. She wondered what would have happened had she let him fight the man. He was young, he was in good shape, and he didn't seem the least bit frightened of Brent. Maybe he could have taught Brent a lesson that night. Who knows, maybe it would have given Sasha the courage to leave him and ended up with a man who truly appreciated her. It could have been the man at the bar for all she knew.
No, instead she endured a rage-fueled car ride home as he screamed at her for allowing another man to hit on her. As if it were her fault a man had called her beautiful. Clearly, she had been flirting to get his attention. He belittled her and stripped away all of her worth. Then, he established his dominance over her like he had so many countless nights before. As usual, tears rolled down Sasha's cheeks and she could do nothing but dig
