“Where are they going?” she asked.
“I don’t know, Chief. I don’t think they’re going to the house.”
“See if you can catch up.”
Prompted by Meghan’s words, Oliver leveled the truck along Sixth Avenue, trying to close the distance between the Suburban and UTV. Every time it took a corner, Oliver stomped on the gas. The last turn, the truck fishtailed. Oliver recovered without overcompensating too much. The UTV braked hard and skidded to a stop at the intersection of Caribou Drive and Ptarmigan Way.
Nathaniel, smug and self-confident strolled from the vehicle while the new arrivals watched. He chose the passenger side of the Suburban to approach seeing Meghan wasn’t behind the wheel.
“Chief Sheppard,” he said. “Is there something I can do for you?”
Nathaniel looked a lot like his father, with his mother’s complexion and poise. She saw the young men from the plane watching them. They whispered between watching Nathaniel facing off Meghan a few meters from the UTV.
“I’m curious about your friends.” If they hadn’t talked about the interaction at the terminal, the reason following them was vague — Meghan’s blatant and pointed statement about the ‘no alcohol’ rule for the city was significant. The youths needed to know she was on to them.
Nathaniel, taking the lead on the comment, gave her a half-smile. “I didn’t know you were into younger guys, Meghan.” A melodramatic lasting look followed the statement as if Nathaniel hadn’t objectified her before that moment.
“It’s Chief Sheppard, Mr. Warren. You ran a stop sign on Lagoon and Fifth. And frankly, you’re not that interesting and certainly not that important.”
“You know someone might think you’re harassing me because I’m the mayor’s son.”
“You like throwing your dad’s notoriety around; more that I think of you as anything more than a misguide youth.”
Nathaniel looked browbeaten. He hadn’t encountered someone who overstepped his words before Meghan. She’d learned from experience that often males who thought they were above the law didn’t factor that law enforcement officers were smarter than they were. He barely had a high school education and lived in a privileged house.
“Tell you what,” Meghan said. Since Nathaniel hadn’t found any veiled insult to lob back, she took the lead. “Have your friends come over here and empty their luggage.”
“Why in the world would they want to do that?” He had a look that suggested whatever contraband they carried into the city was something he already knew.
“Because I’m not interested in your friends thinking they can come here and throw away traditions and shit on our town.”
Nathaniel’s eyebrows hopped on his forehead. “Our town?” he repeated. “You’re not from around here, lady.”
Oliver, a quiet observing giant, only had so much patience. Hearing someone disrespect his boss made him take action. He started to get out of the Suburban. Meghan reached across the bucket seats to snag Oliver’s jacket.
“Tell you what; you go get a warrant from the magistrate. See if she’ll give you something based on a little ‘hearsay,’ and I’ll make sure our lawyer has harassment statements from my friends and me.” Feeling better about having the last word, Nathaniel stomped through the snow away from the truck.
Challenging Meghan and Oliver to follow them, the UTV kicked up ice and snow as it sped off toward the winding tundra road. Oliver waited behind the wheel.
“You want me to go after them?” he asked.
“No, let’s head back to the station.”
The truck lurched left back toward the city hall. “You think they have booze with them?”
“I do,” she said. “I think the mayor’s son is a little punk who thinks he and his friends can do whatever they want.”
“I never had any trouble with Nate,” Oliver said. “He’s lived a good life and gets whatever he wants. I don’t know nothing about his friends.”
Meghan took the statement as someone who knew the city and the people in it a lot longer than her. Her mood soured. She felt bad for saying something negative about Nathaniel. Ultimately, Duane got his information from sources all over town. While his son might not tell him about the interaction with Meghan, Nathaniel was the type of person to vent his frustrations to anyone who listened.
“I hope whatever Lester needs is better than all that,” Meghan said. She slumped back in the seat and watched as snow began to fall in town, illuminated by the streetlights.
Chapter Five
Lester Grave, Kinguyakkii police lieutenant, typically had hours that worked opposite Oliver and Riley Winters, the newest member of the department. Meghan allowed her crew to sort out the details of everyday operations. She didn’t worry about micromanaging her officers; there was enough of that happening in the city with Duane. She had faith they understood their roles and how to handle twenty-four days between three officers. Meghan dealt with the rest of the everyday business that flowed between the rest of the surrounding villages. She also juggled the budgets and paperwork that went with running a rural police department.
She saw the look of concern on Lester’s face that suggested something happened before they arrived from the airport.
“Glad you’re back, Chief,” he said. It was pleasant and to the point. Then he delivered the next piece of his greeting. “We need to get to Noorvik.”
Meghan went through the small swinging gate that separated the front public space from the rest of the department. While only Authorized Personnel had access to the rest of the department, it never stopped the mayor. However, he wasn’t arriving in town until the evening flight. That meant Meghan had time to leave before he came.
She unlocked the door to her office, went inside, and dropped the suitcase and backpack.
“What’s going on?”
