No Quick Fix (Torus Intercession 1)

“What’s the worst that could happen?”

The answering whimper was pretty damn funny.

November had been busy.

On Election Day, I officially became the new sheriff of Ursa, and in a surprise move, Sheriff Thomas said he was resigning immediately. He was ready to be done, I was ready to take over, and his son and daughter-in-law wanted him moved in with them before the holidays. I suspected he would enjoy living on Maui. He gave all his winter coats to charity.

Even though I already had a home, I bought Sheriff Thomas’s one-bedroom Craftsman bungalow and moved Huck in. I told him if he liked the place, he could make payments until it was his. Since it was love at first sight for him—I think it was the sunporch that did it, and the view of the mountains—he was fixing it up and paying me a little each month. Originally I told Emery that I was going to give it to Huck, but he cautioned me against that.

“Having only known Huck for a short time, I can still tell you that his pride is a serious thing.”

He was right, it was.

“What’s your point?” I asked him.

He ran his fingers through my newly cut hair, liking how it was short on the sides and back but still longer on top. I didn’t think a sheriff should look like a hipster, and he had agreed.

“I think you should let him make payments for, say, six months, a year, and then tell him it’s paid off and sign over the deed. That way his pride is protected, and the two of you are on equal footing instead of him owing you for not only his life here but his home as well.”

As I valued the man’s insight, I acquiesced to his plan.

The change in Huck was great for him, annoying for me.

He was healthy, eating regularly, working out, teaching self-defense classes at the dojo with Sensei Ozumi and, of course, since he was already certified to teach Krav Maga, he took the spot that had originally been offered to me. The part that agitated me, however, was the daily visits from women all over Ursa.

Somehow it had gotten out that Huck had a bit of a sweet tooth, and suddenly the office was inundated with baked goods. There were always women popping by to bring Huck a pie or some cupcakes or banana bread or cookies. So many goddamn cookies. Our office smelled more like a bakery than a jail.

“Why is that a bad thing?” he asked, stuffing a macaroon into his mouth. “I think it’s awesome,” he teased me, talking with his mouth full.

I threw up my hands in disgust.

We had to hire two new deputies because the resort Anne was building on Emery’s land was approved by a unanimous town charter, and Ursa had a whole influx of construction workers who had nothing to do at night if bingo at the Episcopalian Church didn’t do it for them. In response, two new bars and a brewhouse went up on the edge of town. I liked Ironwood, the brewhouse, but the bars were a bit skanky, and we got a lot of complaints. Huck and I took turns driving out there and stopping in at the bars, and the two new deputies, Simone Keller, who also volunteered with the fire department and had a serious round house kick, and Garret Nakama, Olivia’s teacher’s husband, who, it turned out, had been an EMT in Denver before they moved to Ursa. I offered to talk to the Fire Chief for him, but he said he preferred to be in law enforcement instead. Stop the blood before it started was his new motto.

As paperwork was not my strong suit, I hired Jenny Rubio to be our receptionist and clerk, and she took to the job quickly. She was especially understanding with the women, and men, who came in to report altercations with spouses, domestic partners, or estranged lovers.

Sadly, there was an influx of restraining orders to be served, and I got to be on a first-name basis with the district court judge in Whitefish. The only good part of that was Huck and I in someone’s home, man or woman, explaining the pitfalls of testing us, reinforced our already powerful bond. I had always liked him, loved him, but I realized almost immediately that he was more my brother than anything else. The first time I introduced him like that, I saw how quiet he got and how shiny his eyes were. When his mother visited, checking up on him, dragging Huck’s sister along, they were thrilled and relieved to see him so healthy and happy and engaged with the community. Both women were charmed by the never-ending array of desserts as well.

“No wonder you work out all the time,” his sister said to him, eyeing the assorted tins and decorative canisters and ribbon-wrapped pans. “I’d be as big as a house in days.”