Page 61 of By the Book

“Not for one second.”

I hold her gaze, searching for any sign of her faith wavering. But she doesn’t waver. I know her, I know the nervous look in her eye when she’s trying to convince herself of something. And it isn’t there. With a smile, I concede. “Stay for the interrogation. As long as you don’t get any ideas about trying to follow up on his answers.”

“I’ll be good, I swear.” She holds her hand up and bats her eyes at me.

“Hmm, where have I heard that before?” I challenge with a smirk.

Thus far, Ivy’s track record of keeping this promise to me has been subpar. But I want her here, watching in secret. Knowing she’s behind me, literally and figuratively, will only help.

I scoop up the folder and kiss her forehead. “You watch from here.”

Crossing into the next room, a familiar sense of ease floods my veins. I feel totally in control when I’m interrogating someone. I always learn something, always. People give up more than they realize through seemingly innocent responses. I might not tie up a case perfectly each time, but I do walk away with more than I had before.

“Jackson,” I say coolly. Taking a seat across from him, I allow myself a moment to relax back in the chair.

“What did I do?” he demands, an air of desperation in his voice.

“I went down to town hall the other day, had a chat with old Fitzy. He gave me some applications of yours.”

I open the folder and withdraw the first one, turning it so Jackson can read it. He had been denied seed money to open an outdoors store. He also hadn’t submitted all the required forms to be considered. I lift the second application and then the third, laying them out before him.

“Applied three years in a row. Denied three years in a row. What happened?”

“The mayor can’t see my vision. No crime on my end.”

“And what’s your vision?”

Jackson shifts in his chair. “I’m sure you read the applications. It’s all in there.”

“Well not all of it though, right? You have no business plan. So why do you think you have more of a right to the money than the people that did the work to apply?”

This strikes a chord with him. “You think that little girlfriend of yours did more work than me?”

I keep my face still, giving no sign of reaction to his mention of Ivy. He just called her my girlfriend, an assumption made by the note left earlier as well. It also tells me that he knew she received the startup fund, he’s familiar with the businesses he’d need to target for his revenge.

“I’ll ask again, what’s your claim to the money?”

“I’ve been a member of this community for forty years. I know what the town needs and what would make money. While everyone else is out here chasing a dream, I calculated what my product needed to be to have success.”

“But you didn’t actually calculate anything. That’s the problem, you can’t even get started. If you don’t like my guess though, tell me—why do you think you didn’t get the funds?”

“Our mayor picks his friends for things. Period. Just like how you’re sitting here as sheriff while people like Chuck had seniority.”

A second try to ruffle my feathers. If he was smart, he would have stayed on the topic of Ivy.

“I was voted in. Besides, you know it isn’t up to a town mayor to decide the county sheriff.” I fold my hands together on the table and smile. “What do you do for work? Since you haven’t opened this store.”

Jackson curls his lip, as if wishing to snarl at me. “I work a fishing charter.”

I already knew that. But it lends so nicely to my next question. “So, you probably need access to the harbor for that?”

“Smarter than you look, Sheriff.”

“What happened to your key? I know you went to Barney for a replacement.”

“Is it a crime to lose a key?”

“When is the last time you had it?” I ask, my tone dripping with curiosity.

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