What the hell happened?
He heard the soft creek of the porch steps and looked in that direction.
The woman walking toward him had a drawn expression. Her eyes were filled with anguish.
And understanding.
“Hello, Ranger…”
“King, Ma’am.” He put out his free hand as he lowered the other to his side. “I’m Ranger McCrae King.”
She nodded slowly as she shook his hand.
He could feel that her palm was cool and damp.
Her granddaughter’s emotions had greatly affected her.
The love she felt could easily be seen in her eyes and felt in her hand.
Duval felt horrible.
“I… I’m sorry… I don’t know what happened.”
Missus Garcia gestured at his chest.
He looked down and she shifted to the side.
The sun that hit his chest wasn’t as bright as it was moments before, but it was enough to make the silver of his badge flared like the signal at a lighthouse.
“Your badge,” she confirmed. “When Ciela’s father… when he died, the first person to approach her was a Texas Ranger.”
He didn’t ask for details, but she continued on and he let her. If she needed to talk… to process her thoughts, he was happy to listen.
“Apparently, he was nearby when the call went out and he drove over to see if he could help.”
He nodded. “So my badge…”
She nodded. “It’s not you. Just that silver badge.”
Duval lifted his hand and covered it with his palm. “I’m sorry, Ma’am. I didn’t know.”
She touched his arm, giving it a gentle squeeze. “You couldn’t know. We didn’t either until she saw a news story on TV and she burst into tears.”
He nodded, thinking through her words. “I… Is there anything I can do to help?”
Before she said a word, he reached behind the badge and unpinned it from his shirt.
She saw what he did and gave him a watery smile as he put the badge in his pocket. “That might help.”
Her lips pressed into a thin pale line, taking all the color away. “I would invite you in… but-”
Duval held up his hand, shaking his head. “Oh no, ma’am. I wouldn’t dare…”
Her expression eased a little. She nodded and gestured back toward the house. “Do you need Noelle for something? I can go in and see if Ciela will let me take her for a bit.”
“No.” He gave her a single, decisive shake of his head. “I just wanted to drop off something to Noelle for work.”
She smiled at him. “Ah… I see. Well, thank you for coming back, Ranger King.”
