They said goodbye and he headed for home, but every mile he drove away from Shelby felt just as wrong as not being home when his family and community needed him.After being gone for one day he realized how strong his ties to Sandy Point really were.But Atlanta was only about four hours away and they’d both agreed there was something between them worth exploring.He wasn’t willing to give her up, so he’d have to make it work.
*
The smell ofthe burnt wood, and smoldering ash hung in the air as Wes surveyed the damage to the Sandy Point pier.The A-frame roof held the Hart name in bold navy blue letters at the front of the old fishing pier.Tourists would come to walk the boardwalk where there was an ice-cream shop, souvenirs, beach chair and umbrella rentals in the summer, and live bait could be purchased during the fishing season.Each vendor rented the space from the Hart brothers trust, which they’d inherited from their dad.
“It wasn’t an elegant fire.They just shoved two of those pretreated firepit logs up under the boardwalk slats, tossed some gasoline on it and lit it,” the Chief of the Fire Department said.
He’d agreed to meet Wesley at the site to discuss the now four recent fires in town, each started differently but he’d be a fool not to assume they were related.
“Amateur but effective,” Wes noted from the ten-by-ten section of the boardwalk that was now charcoal black, and a portion of the railing that matched.
“Indeed, just like that mailbox torch someone lit, probably one after the other.I’d say someone is trying to send you a message, Sheriff.”
“Maybe it’s the fact that I’m not actually the sheriff,” Wes said, feeling for the first time like he absolutely needed to run just to shut whoever this was up.
“You think they’re telling you not to bother?I’m at a bit of a loss.Obviously we’ll treat these all as linked, but there seems to be no rhyme or reason, which will make it difficult to solve, unless someone gets caught.”
“Now there’s an idea—if we can set a trap, we can draw them out.”
“But if you don’t have a clue who it is.How will you set a trap?”
“I have yet to commit to running for sheriff, but Samuel Shepherd has already made it clear he thinks he’s the man for the job.”
“Lord help us,” the chief said.
“If I say I’m not running we could see if the fires stop, but then we’ll never catch them.If I announce my campaign with a big event to mark the start of my bid for sheriff, we can see if they take the bait?”
“I don’t love the idea of enticing them, but you were going to be running for sheriff anyway weren’t you, Wes?You can’t leave this town in a Shepherd’s hands.”
“No, I guess I can’t.”He knew deep down this was where he belonged.Even if at some point he thought he would do something else with his life, being in law enforcement was his calling and he loved it.
“Alright, Sheriff, just let me know where and when.In the meantime I’ll keep the shifts fully staffed in case our fire starter strikes again before the main event.”
Wes still was still hesitant to commit to being Sheriff of Sandy Point for the next five years, but he did know he couldn’t abandon the town now.Not with an arsonist taking shots at his family and no other viable front-runners for the job.He needed to speak to Miles about his plan though, because if someone was trying to run him out of town, he needed to make sure no one else got caught in the crossfires.And he needed to figure out how much to tell Shelby.He didn’t want to discourage her from getting more involved with him after he’d just talked to her about not staying in Sandy Point.He was walking a very fine line between doing what was right and what he wanted.
*
“Well of courseyou’re running for sheriff.Since when was that up for debate?”Gran said, slapping her hand down on the dinner table.
Dalton grinned and looked at Max, who also had a big smile on his face.Only Brooke had the decency to pretend not to be amused by Gran’s outburst.
“Uncle Wes, you gotta run for sheriff because I’ve been telling all my friends, all year my uncle is the law in this town.If you aren’t sheriff then what do I got?”Max said.
Now it was Wes’s turn to try not to laugh.“Well your stepdad was a Navy SEAL, and now he’s the town doctor, and we all know your mom is basically running the hospital.”
Max sighed.“Ya but you catch the bad guys.”
Dalton patted Max back.“And don’t forget Levi is an All Star Baseball player.”
“It’s just not the same.Kids are really into cops this year.”
Everyone laughed.
“What about great-grandmas giving out hugs and ice cream?”Gran said, holding her arms open wide.
Max smirked and got up to give gran a big hug.“Obviously, Gran.You’re the coolest.”Then he winked at Wes over Gran’s shoulder.
“Your boy is getting too smooth.He may need to run for sheriff—he’d make a better politician than me.”
