a child crying,
but it's impossible. It cleared the forest and traveled to the
water too quickly like it was in flight too fast for any child. We
had a few incidents. A team on the lake reported an attack on them
while a man in my group broke his arm. This morning we heard and
saw nothing, not even evidence of a child roaming the area.” Andrew
reported.
“ Do you think there might
be some connection between Robert’s death and the missing
child?”
“ I don’t think a missing
child and a heart attack victim has anything in common.” Andrew
said wondering why the sheriff would think otherwise.
“ Good then I’ll close them
both.” Martin said relieved and glanced out of the window then
turned back to Andrew. “Well old boy, you always wanted my job, now
you’ve got it.”
“ Martin…” Andrew managed
shocked.
The phone on the desk rang.
Martin interrupted before Andrew could
say anything else. “From now you’re the new acting sheriff,
congratulations. I’ll be out of your hair in just a minute.” He
snapped up the receiver and turned his back to Andrew. “Hello… Yes
dear… I’m leaving in a short while… Speak to you soon.”
Andrew turned and left the office. He
walked back to his desk, sunk into his chair and remained frozen.
Yvonne leaned forward staring at him.
For a moment Yvonne waited, her
curiosity got the better of her. “What did he do to you in there?
You look like he took you to the cleaners.”
“ He’s leaving.” Andrew
said softly.
Yvonne looked at him not surprised.
“Did he say where he’s going?”
“ I don’t know. All I know
is that he’s leaving and I’m taking over his job.”
“ He needs to get away to
clear his head. Maybe he meant that you’ll have his job till he
gets back.” Yvonne said and tried to lift Andrew’s mood.
“ He’s not coming back. I
heard him speaking to Janet, and it sounds like he’s going home.”
Andrew felt more disappointed than sad.
“ I wonder what he did. His
expressions are always of fear and horror. A man who recently lost
his wife and son goes to the pub for a week or two. He picks a
fight and gets the living daylights kicked out of him.” She paused
thoughtfully. “Perhaps no one will fight him or something else’s
going on. Something he did that’s so inconceivable that he
struggles to live with it. Have you looked at him lately? I mean
looked at him?”
“ He’s broken, such a
softhearted man who loves his wife more than life itself. He can’t
hurt a fly, not even if he tries.” Andrew defended in Martin’s
absence.
Yvonne sighed. “Well good for him, now
he can snap out of this and live his life again. At least we don’t
have to put up with his temper anymore.”
“ That’s mean. He’s still
my best friend, even if he treats me like yesterday’s garbage. I’m
worried about him.” Andrew replied softly and lowered his
head.
Yvonne’s voice turned gentler than
Andrew had ever heard it. “Then you need to be happy for him. At
least his wife’s taking him back. I’m sure they’ll come and visit,
at least I hope he won’t forget you.”
Andrew sighed deeply. “You know,
you’re right. I should be happy for him. I sure will miss
him.”
“ Did you mention the case
to him?” Yvonne changed the subject as it became too soppy for
her.
“ He closed the case
because we couldn’t find the child and it has nothing to do with
Robert’s death. I can’t see any connection between the two cases. I
wonder why he might have thought that they perhaps have something
in common.”
Yvonne lifted her shoulders. “I don’t
know, he’s in his own world most of the time, but I can tell you
something for nothing. There’s more to these cases than we’re used
to seeing.”
“ What do you
mean?”
“ Nothing happens in this
town and we’ve gotten too use to that. Maybe because we don’t want
to see more, we’re overlooking something of grave
importance.”
Andrew sat for moment