Page 28 of River
“Because of your coffee comment. I thought authors stayed up all night to finish before their deadline and that they drank a lot of coffee to stay awake.”
“Could be, but I don’t know a single writer.”
“Then, what’s your profession?”
“I’m a police officer.”
She lit up. “For real?”
It pleased me that she didn’t wrinkle her nose up, so I smiled and nodded before taking another sip of the weak coffee.
“My sister married a policeman.”
That got my attention. “How many siblings do you have?”
“Five. Two sisters and three brothers. None of them are my biological siblings, but we’re very close.”
“Lucky you. I’m a single child, so I’ve always been envious of people with siblings.” I dug my foot down in the sand a little.
“How long have you been with the police?”
“Six years. I’m in the canine patrol with Nala, my German shepherd.”
“Oh, wow. You’re a dog person then.”
“Yeah, I’ve trained Nala from when she was a puppy, and now that she’s four, she’s a skilled police dog.”
“You must miss her.”
“I do. She lives with my colleague Camilla while I’m traveling, and I call them every week. Nala lights up every time she sees and hears me.”
“Is she still working for the police while you’re gone?”
“Yes, Camilla takes her to work with her and King, Camilla’s dog. Nala would miss it too much if she had to stay home all day. She’s used to being active, and she’s one of the best dogs on the canine force. It would be a shame for them to not use her.”
“Do you miss your work?”
“Yes and no.”
River watched me, waiting for me to elaborate. “It’s a rewarding job in many ways. Once, we found a missing five-year-old boy in the forest. I’ve never been prouder of Nala than that day. But often, our work is darker, and I’ve seen things I wish I could unsee.”
We sat for a while looking out over the ocean while tourists were starting to drift in with their beach towels and coolers. None of them came close to us though, and so I asked, “I’m a little surprised that your sister is married to a policeman. How did they meet?”
“He took a bullet for her when she was seventeen.”
“Oh.” I frowned. “That sounds dramatic.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You’re not a very thorough researcher, are you?”
“What do you mean?”
“When you said you researched me, what did you learn?”
“Who you dated. That you’ll be twenty-six on November the first, and that you live in London and work as a model and YouTuber.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes. What did I miss?”
