June forced her face into neutrality.
“Victoria,” June drawled, eyeing the woman wearily. “Were you following me?”
“I saw you from the store across the road,” Victoria told her. “I thought I’d catch you and save myself the time of having to hunt you down or get your phone number.”
June forced herself not to react to herhunt you downquip and stood her ground.
“Is there something you wanted?” June asked.
Victoria took a step closer. She lowered her voice, just enough that it felt intimate without being friendly. “Yes,” Victoria said. “There is.”
“Okay…” June said carefully, eyes narrowing suspiciously.
“Let me be very clear,” Victoria said, tilting her head and still smiling faintly. “Don’t try and come between Holt and me.”
June felt heat rise behind her eyes, but she kept her voice controlled.
“Holt and I are working together,” June said. “Not that it’s any of your business.”
Victoria’s smile stayed fixed.
“Of course you are,” Victoria said. “And I’m sure you are telling yourself it’s purely professional.”
June’s fingers curled around the strap of her purse.
“What is your point?” June asked, gritting her teeth. “I’m in a hurry and don’t have time to stand here being analyzed by you.”
Victoria’s eyes sharpened.
“Just don’t get any ideas of rekindling your failed romance with Holt,” Victoria warned. “I’d hate for you to gethurt.”
June’s breath caught.
“Are you threatening me?” June’s eyebrows rose as she gaped at the venomous woman.
Victoria’s eyes widened slightly, and she let out a small, delicate laugh.
“No,” Victoria said with a soft shake of her head. “I'm giving you a piece of friendly advice.”
June’s voice stayed calm, though her pulse pounded. “I don’t need your advice,” June said.
“But I’m giving it anyway,” Victoria drawled. “So my conscience is clear if you end up getting hurt.” She gave June a snide smile. “Have a good day,June.”
With that, Victoria spun around and walked off, leaving June feeling like she'd been slapped.
June pressed a hand to her chest, trying to steady her racing heart. Victoria's message had been crystal clear: stay away from Holt or face the consequences. The casual cruelty in her voice, the way she'd smiled while delivering the threat—it was like being back in high school with the mean girls, except the stakes felt so much higher now.
Victoria had just made it clear that she would fight dirty to keep Holt, and June wasn't sure she had the strength for that kind of battle.
4
HOLT
The conference room at the Sandpiper Shores Police Station felt smaller than usual with two federal agents sitting across from Holt and June at the worn wooden table. Agent Sarah Murdoch from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service sat with her hands folded precisely over a manila folder, while Agent Kyle Bradford from the Forest Service leaned back in his chair with the casual confidence of someone who had navigated inter-agency politics for decades.
Holt had called in favors to arrange this meeting on such short notice. Both agents had driven down from Gainesville that morning, and their presence meant the Henderson farm fire investigation could finally move forward properly.
"The jurisdiction question is fairly straightforward," Agent Murdoch began, opening her folder and spreading several aerial photographs across the table. "The fire originated on private property but jumped to federal land here." She pointed to a section of the photographs. "Approximately forty-seven acres of the Withlacoochee State Forest were affected."
