Page 29 of The Map Home
“Well, itwould’vebeen weird if it wasn’t just a couple weeks before Christmas, but I did see someone dressed in a Santa costume. I only noticed because they came around from the side of the building.”
“From the town square or from the other side?”
“I think from the square? I was watching some videos so I can’t be sure.”
“Any idea what time that was?”
“It had to be around six or so? I went inside to get warm and help open up after that.” Josh sounded grumpy about it.
“Other than the costume the person was wearing, did you notice anything else? Were they tall or short, carrying a big bag, walking with a limp?”
Josh missedThe Fugitivereference, but a shake of Donna’s shoulders told Dakota she had not.
“No. They were just in a costume, you know? I don’t think they were carrying a bag or anything, but I kind of only saw them out of the corner of my eye. Maybe they’d been to a party or something and were just getting home. That’s not a crime, is it?” That last comment had an edge to it.
“It is if you’re drinking while under age and then accept rides from sketchy friends,” Donna interjected.
“Thanks, Josh,” Dakota said hastily. “I’ll let you get back to work now, but I might have some more questions for you later.” To Donna, he said, “Should I reach out through you?”
“Certainly.” Donna rattled off a phone number, and Dakota quickly wrote it down. “I need to get back to cleaning up.”
Realizing the interview was over, Josh practically ran back behind the counter.
“He seems like a nice kid,” Dakota said to Donna. He remembered the one time he and Tad had been on the receiving end of a “don’t be stupid” lecture from Waylon. He hadn’t even wanted to go to the stupid party they’d gotten in trouble for. Dakota had wanted to run away and hide in a cave for the rest of the school year. Waylon must have known what he was thinking because he’d pointed a thick finger at Dakota and said, “Don’t even think about it.”
“Oh, he is. He just needs to use his brains for thinking. If you think of anything else you need to ask, don’t hesitate to reach out.”
Lingering in front of CCs, Dakota contemplated Josh’s early-morning Santa sighting. What had Santa Claus been doing, and could they have somehow been involved with the toy theft? Dakota wanted to dismiss it as just some random person.
Josh hadn’t noticed if the person was carrying anything, and it seemed to Dakota that a bundle of toys would’ve been bulky enough even for a mostly oblivious teenager to see. He also admitted to himself that he wasn’t much older than the kid and that, contrary to what Josh said, the Santa could have been heading toward the square instead of away from it.
He’d started back to where he’d parked the cruiser when his cell phone vibrated. Tucking his notebook away, he pulled out the phone. It was Tad.
Of course it was.
T:I’m holding you to the Christmas tree
Dakota thought for a minute, then smirked and typed back,That sounds uncomfortable. Hitting send, he tucked his phone away again and allowed himself to enjoy an image of Tad, sputtering and maybe a bit red-cheeked at his response.
TEN
Tad
Tad was starting to get seriously cold, but he was avoiding his parents by lurking in an alcove across from CCs and waiting for them to leave or turn their heads so he could take a few more shots of the tree all lit up. There’d been so many folks at the festival yesterday, and he thought a solitary shot would look great on the front page.
He sent another quickthank youthat he’d seen Penny and Waylon first up to whoever was watching over him. The last thing he needed was his mom gushing and getting loudly sentimental about Tad’s work while his dad felt obligated to bang him on the shoulder and say, “That’s my boy.”
They were sitting close together, almost like kids on a date, bundled up underneath an outdoor heater in front of the coffee shop. They both had coffees, and Tad could seriously use one about now, but it really wasn’t worth being embarrassed in public and made to feel as if he were a kindergartner. He dragged a fingertip across his upper lip, feeling the mustache growing there. If his folks couldn’t see him as a full-grown adult,how was Dakota ever going to accept that Tad knew what he wanted? And what he wanted was Kota.
Also, what were they doing in town so early on a Sunday? Whatever the reason, they were having an intense conversation, and he realized he could probably walk right past them and they wouldn’t notice him. Thatalmostmade him quit lurking and go find out what was up.
“Tad Gillespie, are you loitering? There’s a law against that in this town. Maybe I should arrest you.”
Tad muffled a squeak as he just about jumped out of his skin. “Fucking hell, Kota, you scared me!” He turned to face Dakota.
“Sorry.” Dakota had a small grin playing on his lips and did not look sorry at all.
Tad let his gaze rake over Dakota. He looked good in his deputy uniform. Really good. For the thousandth time, Tad reminded himself about the Friend Zone, even if he did have dibs on marrying Dakota when they were thirty. It was less than five years away. Maybe a marriage of convenience wouldn’t be that bad.
