Vera squealed in excitement and joy. Over a hundred votes ahead! That was a landslide! “Oh, Orville, you did it!” She threw her arms around him. “I’m so proud of you!”
He hugged her tightly, saying in his gruff voice, “Couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Speech!” someone called out. “Speech!”
The cry was taken up by the crowd, and Vera said, “I think you’ll have to go up there and say a few words. They won’t take no for an answer.”
“Oh, bother,” he grunted. But he waved to the crowd and climbed the short staircase to join the mayor at the podium.
“Ah, here’s our new police chief,” the mayor shouted. “The floor is yours, Orville.”
Orville looked over the crowd, and seemed rather overwhelmed for a moment. But then he straightened up and said, “Thank you. Quite honestly, thank you to everyone who voted for me. It means a lot to have your trust. And for those of you who didn’t vote for me…well, I’ll earn your trust. I mean to serve Shady Hollow as best I can and uphold the law, just as Chief Meade did for so long. He’s a fine public servant too, and even now, he’s at the station, working his shift just like he should. I want to thank him for many years of dedication to our town.”
Vera started clapping, and others soon joined. Feet stamped in approval. This was a good speech, short and sweet.
Orville waved once more, yelled a final thank-you to the crowd, and left the stage as fast as he could.
In anticipation of this outcome, Orville’s campaign team had planned a victory party at his headquarters. It felt like most of the town decided to attend. Joe Jr. had set up the catered food—mostly sandwiches and snacks and pies that were getting doled out as fast as Joe and Esme and Rosie could slice them. A band set up in the corner, playing music that the happy guests all shouted over, adding to the din.
Vera and Lenore stood to the side, munching on their favorite treats while watching the party.
“Turned out pretty well,” Lenore admitted. It was about as cheerful as the raven ever allowed herself to be. “And now Meade will get to spend even more time fishing, so it all works out.”
Orville approached Vera, bowing. “Care to dance?” he inquired.
Vera smiled and put her paw in his as they walked to the makeshift dance floor. Orville’s history with dance lessons was—to say the least—spotty. But he had the enthusiasm of the crowd, which helped a lot. He and Vera whirled around the dance floor to the beat of the music, and she couldn’t help beaming with joy, delighted with her beau, her town, and her life in general.
Just then, Meade rushed into the room, his eyes wild.
The music faltered, the trumpeter playing an inadvertent solo until he realized his bandmates all stopped, staring in shock at the sudden appearance of a bear, and not just any bear, but the losing bear of today’s race. The arrival jarred everyone to silence.
“Oh, no,” Vera muttered. “What’s he up to?” She feared that Meade, not reacting well to his loss, might have gotten some foolish notion into his head. Perhaps he was going to make a scene and embarrass himself, or make life difficult for Orville.
But the older bear skidded to a halt well before he reached Orville. He burst out with panting breath, “It’s all gone wrong! You’ve got to come quick!”
“What’s going on?” Orville asked, worry on his face. “What’s gone wrong? Was there a miscount?”
“No, it’s much worse than that!” Meade shouted. “I went to check on the prisoner, since he’d been so quiet all evening, and when I got there…the cell was empty. Thomas has escaped!”
Chapter 19
To say that the scene turned to chaos would be an understatement. Creatures who overheard the initial outburst shouted in alarm, and the rest of the partiers were already murmuring and muttering about the two bears who just fought over the race for police chief. Vera glanced around, noticing the agitation of the crowd and the shift in the mood.
Orville was pumping Meade for more details about the escape, asking if Meade had fallen asleep and if the keys were all still accounted for.
Vera pushed herself between them. “Stop it, both of you! None of that matters now. If Thomas is at large, we’ve got to get to Dorothy!”
“Before he does,” Orville added grimly.
“She left for home less than half an hour ago,” Lenore said. “She might not have arrived yet.”
“Lenore, if you fly, you can find her much faster than any of us can get to her.”
“But in the dark,” Lenore said uncertainly, “my eyes aren’t so good. If she’s under tree cover, I might miss her entirely.”
“Heidegger,” Orville said suddenly.
Of course, Vera thought. Orville was a quick thinker, despite his sometimes-lumbering manner. The owl would have no problem searching for Dorothy, even in the darkest night. “That’s perfect. Where is he?”
She scanned the crowd, but Orville chose a more direct method, roaring out Heidegger’s name over the rest of the creatures’ heads.
An awkward silence descended. “Heidegger, get over here!” Orville called again. “You’re not in trouble,” he added, a useful note for those discovering that a bear wants a word.
A moment later, the owl rose on buff-colored wings, sending an instinctive chill through the hearts of some of the smaller guests.
He settled down before Orville, ruffling his feathers. “I say, sir, there’s no need to shout, especially on such a festive occas—”
“Listen up, Heidegger,” Orville cut in. “I have a mission for you.”
The owl perked up, chest puffing out. “A mission?”
“Yes. You must fly toward Mirror Lake, to the Springfield house. If you see Dorothy Springfield on the way, fly down to her and let her know that Thomas has escaped. And don’t leave her side
