He lifted his arm to wave. Sheriff Merrow looked surprised. “Max, just the guy I wanted to see.”
“Me? What’s up?”
“I have something really important that I need to show you,” the Sheriff said. “Could you come inside, please?”
Max glanced at his watch, unsure if he had the time. “I don’t know. I don’t want to be late. I’m meeting Ruby for dinner.”
The Sheriff put a hand firmly on his shoulder. “I’m afraid I’ll have to insist.”
That was the moment Max should have run. But he didn’t. He allowed a modicum of trust carry him right inside the Sheriff’s office. Foolish, in retrospect. Then again, Sheriff Merrow looked like he was more than capable of giving chase and catching him, had Max tried to make a run for it.
He was shown into a room where a computer had been set up. “We got the video of the fountain area cued to when the paper sack was left behind.”
Max settled in to watch, expecting to see Howard, his disappearing client, or the mean guy in the green tux from the Black and Orange Ball bathroom.
He watched the silent video for several seconds before his eyes widened in shock. Then his mouth dropped open as he watched a man who looked exactly like him, except wearing a baseball cap, walk into the fountain area carrying what looked like a paper grocery sack. The man placed it on the ground. There were not many people around. The person in the video looked directly into the camera as if he wanted everyone to know who had left the bag behind before exiting to the left of the frame, rubbing a finger on his upper lip.
The Sheriff sped the video up to a few seconds before the explosion, then slowed the frames to show a circular pyre blasting straight into the air.
He was in trouble now. Even Max thought the man on the video looked like him.
All of his carefully laid plans had changed. He wasn’t going out to dinner with Ruby. The spells remained intact, but he hadn’t been able to call her because they took all his personal belongings and only offered to let him have one phone call.
He called Bubba, who had already left the business, which was closed for the night. Max left a message. He was allowed another call and promptly called Bubba’s home. No luck. Perhaps Bubba and Astrid had gone out to dinner. He called Bubba’s cell phone and left another message.
After three calls, Max wasn’t allowed to make any more calls. He should have called Ruby after all.
The Sheriff locked him in one of the station’s three cells, but at least he didn’t handcuff him before leaving him alone in the small cellblock to contemplate his miserable thoughts of no future.
He heard voices in the main office area, but not what was being said. He could have sworn he heard Ruby’s voice and then Bubba’s, but so far no one had come in to rescue him or post any credits for the security of his return for trial or whatever the human justice system did.
Maybe he just had to stay in jail and pace this small space until they found him guilty and sent him off to the nearest Earth gulag. Would Ruby visit him? Probably not. Why would she?
The urge to grab the bars, climb up and rage-scream for his release forced him toward the cell door. No. He wouldn’t let himself get crazed. He took a deep breath and let it out, trying to figure out what he could do to help himself in this circumstance. Nothing came to mind.
Well, Ruby came easily into his thoughts. Would she believe him once she saw the video footage of him in a baseball cap leaving the offending paper sack next to the fountain?
The Sheriff promised to contact Ruby and let her know dinner was off. Max wasn’t certain what she would do. Would she visit him behind bars? Or would she wash her hands of him? Leave him here to perish all alone. Like his family had back on Alpha-Prime.
The door opened and Ruby marched toward him, followed closely by Bubba and the Sheriff.
“Max?” she called out. She didn’t sound angry. She didn’t look embarrassed to see him like this, in jail, accused of another crime he didn’t commit. She looked…determined.
Max approached the cell door, placing his hands around two bars just above waist level, hating for Ruby to see him incarcerated.
“Are you okay?” Her fingers wrapped around his hands, her soft touch so welcome to both his spirit and his soul.
“No. I hate it in here. I want out.” He still had to tell her the truth. He’d wanted to say that he was fine, but that was a huge lie. He was about to crawl out of his skin and the urge to pace grew again.
“I don’t blame you one single bit.” She turned to the Sheriff. “Let him out. I’ll take responsibility for him.”
“It doesn’t work that way.”
“I will share responsibility for him,” Bubba said.
Sheriff Merrow pushed out a long sigh. “Look, I don’t like this any more than you do. But I can’t overlook the evidence of that video. Maybe he was compelled. Maybe someone made him do it, but that doesn’t negate the fact that it was Max Vander on the video.”
“Was it?” Ruby said.
