Page 36 of The Girl and the Lies

“I agree,” Sam says. “I imagine if there was harassment or someone committing a crime on the low, it makes sense to bring that up to superiors. But this is another level. This makes it sound like even the smallest slight could be reported and lead to consequences. And that totally depends on what the other people in the company think of as appropriate or not.”

“Gideon knew something. He was ready to report an inappropriate relationship, but for some reason, he didn’t finish that email and didn’t send it. I really want to know who else in the company has been sending those kinds of reports recently.”

“And if they might line up with the same people who have been getting threats?” Sam asks.

“It’s a strong possibility,” I say. I sigh and pull my hair up into a ponytail to get it off my neck. “Anyway, enough about my day at work. How did the candidates’ night go tonight?”

“It was good,” he says. “It seemed like just about everybody in town showed up. The children’s ID stuff was really popular, which was good. I was glad to see how many parents were getting their kids’ pictures taken and their fingerprints and everything. I handed out all of the flyers that I had printed up and spent a lot of time talking to people about all the issues and things. I think that was my favorite part. Just getting to hear from people what they want to do to make Sherwood better and how I would be able to help as mayor.”

“That does sound interesting,” I say. “You’re getting to see the town from a different perspective now. You’re going to do great as mayor. Everyone already knows and trusts you, and they know that you have the best interests of Sherwood and everyone in it at heart. They’ll know that you are going to do everything you can to make the town the very best it can be.”

“Well, I think that’s true for some people, but Colby Flannigan was still getting his fair share of attention too. I don’t want to get myself too comfortable just because I already have a position in the town. He’s really well respected, and people might lean toward him more because he’s a little older than me.”

“I don’t think that’s going to matter,” I say.

Colby throwing his name into the race is a fairly new development. We didn’t think Sam was just going to coast right into the position of mayor of Sherwood without any opposition, but we didn’t know who was going to also be vying for the position.

“We’ll just have to see,” Sam says. “But it keeps me focusing on my campaign and making sure that people know I’m running and what I stand for.”

“You’re doing a great job,” I tell him. “For someone who has never been in politics like this before, you’re handling it really well. I’m so proud of you.”

“Thank you,” he says.

“Did everyone else have a good time?” I ask.

I know that Dean and Xavier were in town, and I think Dean mentioned that Owen will be hanging out with him for a couple of weeks as well.

“They seemed to. Cupcake was there. She and Xavier were walking around holding hands the whole time,” Sam says.

“How did he look?” I ask.

“Happy,” he says. “Really happy. A little more confident, a little more focused. He even schmoozed a bit with the other attendees and didn’t scare anyone off.”

It’s exactly what I want to hear. Cupcake came into our lives unexpectedly but has effectively made her place with us. She clearly adores Xavier for everything that he is and doesn’t want or expect him to be anything else, which is just the way it should be. But it’s Xavier’s reaction to her and to their gradually blooming relationship that has been more difficult. I know he is still settling into the idea of her, trying to get used to the thought of having another person in his life in that way after losing Lila at such a young age.

Learning about the girl he adored so deeply and lost when he was only a teenager was just another part of Xavier that none of us knew, something that he’d kept locked inside him until the moment he knew he needed to share it. It was heartbreaking, but it helped me understand him a little bit better. I know Cupcake is good for him, and it makes me happy to hear that he is letting himself learn to feel this again.

The sound of my phone ringing on the kitchen table the next morning pulls me away from the cinnamon rolls I’m making to tuck away in Bellamy’s freezer as a thank-you for letting me stay with them throughout this investigation. I’m planning on making the drive back to Sherwood to visit Sam and want them to have something delicious while I’m gone. Wiping my hands off on my apron, I go to the table and see it’s Detective Fuller calling.

“Hey, Detective,” I say, putting the phone between my ear and shoulder so I can go back to the dough while we talk.

“What are you doing?” he asks.

“I’m making cinnamon rolls,” I tell him, immediately struck by the tone of his voice. “Why? What’s wrong?”

“You need to get to Ander Ward’s house as fast as possible,” he says.

“What happened?” I ask, my stomach already sinking.

“Sabrina Ward is dead.”

The Ward house is surrounded by emergency vehicles and blocked off from the road with crime scene tape when I arrive. Curious neighbors stand on the opposite side of the street, watching over the shoulders of officers positioned to hold them back. I park behind one of the cars and pull out my shield so I can show it to the officer standing close to the crime scene tape.

“FBI,” I tell him.

He lifts the tape for me, and I duck beneath it, rushing toward the open front door.

“Detective Fuller?” I say to an officer who’s standing just inside the house.

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