A/N: Hey, guys. I'm so sorry it's been so long. I had several things stopping me from writing. One...I had a massive wave of depression wash over me for no apparent reason. Two...I had a bad case of writer's block. Three...I was dealing with stress over bills that need to be paid and doctor's appointments which I couldn't pay for. Four...I just got cast in the lead role of a community theatre play in my town so I've been dealing with that. Five...I had to retake some acting classes at my Talent Agency because I need to renew my contract ASAP, which btw I'm sure I won't meet the deadline cause I am stressed AF! And six...Time is not my friend in all of this. Clearly I have a full plate and it sounds silly saying that considering I spend most of my time in my bed just being depressed or anxious, but that also steals time from you. Mental Illness sucks! Anyway….None of you asked for my life story so here's the one you came here for. Lol I hope you enjoy this new chapter. I'm trying to get back into the swing of things, so forgive me if this chapter is not the best. Love you guys! MWAH!

The room fell silent for some time once Hiram and Hermione finished explaining the plot to their plan to Tom, FP, and Alice. Alice kept her hands folded together in her lap under the table with one leg crossed over the other as she just ran through the plan again in her head. Tom was leaning back in his chair with his hat in his lap as he rested one hand on top of it, the other one on the table in front of him, lightly tapping one of his fingers against the table top. FP held his cigar in one hand as he sat up straighter than the other two guests, conscious of his posture in this very prim and proper house.

At one point, Tom opened his mouth to speak, no sound coming out before he closed it again, letting out a small sigh. Alice did a lot of thinking before she could respond, knowing that she had to choose her words wisely around these two and FP just stared down at the table with no intent to talk at all.

Soon, Alice couldn't bear the silence anymore and she looked to Tom. "Is this legal?"

Tom finally snapped out of his little daze and looked into Alice's eyes, letting out another sigh followed by a small hum. "Well…" He paused for awhile, pretty much giving them the answer with his silence.

Alice took in a short breath before shaking her head to look at the Lodges. "Absolutely not. I'm not risking this. FP and I have families we have to think about."

"And so do I." Tom mentioned. "After Kevin's mother passed away...I'm all he has left. I can't do something like this. I could lose my job and my son."

"We understand that. But that's why we need you on the inside, Tom. So we don't get caught. The Feds won't even care about a little town like Riverdale." Hiram spoke confidently.

"I'm sorry. The Feds?" Alice said, unfamiliar with the term.

"He means the FBI." Tom answered. "The Federal Bureau of Investigation. President Roosevelt started this new law organization to catch national criminals. Mobsters. Right now they're only focused on larger cities where more crime takes place." The sheriff answered with incertitude and a hint of caution in his voice.

"Exactly why Riverdale is the perfect place for this to work." Hermione jumped in.

"Yes, but...what you're doing will make this town grow into one of the big cities the Feds come after. Maybe you should consider that before pursuing this." Tom warned.

"That's also where you come in, Tom. By the time that happens, you will have been promoted all the way up to an FBI detective, or agent, as they are calling them...and you can stop the Feds from catching us on the inside." Hiram explained.

"Hmm...I don't know. It all still sounds too risky. This won't just be some minor crime by then, Hiram. By then, I will have committed a crime directly against President Roosevelt. My punishment will be more severe than all of yours. I'm saying no."

"At least give it some thought." Hermione suggested. "It's a good deal, Tom."

Right at that moment, Sierra stepped in to take their half empty plates and FP's completely empty one as Tom stood, placing his hat back on his head. He softly smiled at Sierra and she smiled to herself, never looking up at him, but feeling his eyes on her and she continued to clean, refusing to make eye contact with him.

Soon, Tom snapped out of it again and looked down at the Lodges. "Thank you for brunch and for considering me. But if I were you...I'd call the whole thing off. Look around. You have it good. Take some time for your daughter. Be a family. You never know how much time you have left. Especially when dealing with the law in….in whatever way you do. This will only hurt you in the long run." He grabbed ahold of his sunglasses. "And don't think about asking any of my officers to help with this. I will know when I'm being double-crossed."

He looked at Sierra who was almost finished cleaning, though she was entranced by him, almost caught staring and she knew it the moment he winked at her and headed for the door. She looked away and cleared her throat, finishing placing everything on the tray before going out after him with the full silver tray in her hands.

Tom was halfway down the hall when he heard small rattlings behind him. He turned to see Sierra doing her best to balance the dishes atop the tray and he stopped, waiting for her to reach him though her eyes were low and she knew better than to look him in the eye.

"You look like you could use a hand. Are you the only-" Tom began to ask, but Sierra interrupted him.

"Yes, sir. It's just me." She finally made it over to him and tried to step around, but when she went right, Tom went left to block her and when she went left, Tom went right, chuckling a little causing Sierra to stand completely still. "May I please pass?" She asked him a bit shyly, still not looking into his eyes.

"Wait...Sierra, is it?" He asked in a sweet voice. Though he got no answer, he knew the truth because he'd heard Hermione say her name earlier. "I'm Tom. Tom Keller."

She still didn't look up at him, but she smiled. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Keller."

"No. Just Tom. Please." He extended a hand for her to shake it, but then remembered that her hands were full. "Oh...Right." He chuckled. "Sorry."

"It's...fine." She cleared her throat before trying to pass him again, but he wouldn't let her. She finally sighed a little and looked up into his eyes, about to say something snarky before she got lost in them and she felt a swarm of butterflies in her stomach as she lightly gulped. "You, uh...I liked what you said in there. The part about family...It's...It's very true. We never know how much time we have." Her own heart sank at those words, suddenly remembering that whatever this strange man was making her feel, it would never be able to become what she was unexpectedly hoping for already.

"Do you have a family?" He asked her, wishing he could see her hand under the tray to check for a ring, but he couldn't.

"I-I have some work to do." She quietly said, stepping around him successfully this time and turning to face him as she walked backwards. "Th-thank you for saying hello. No one ever does that." She genuinely smiled at him for the first time and Tom's heart skipped a beat at how gorgeous and breathtaking she was.

"Take care, Sierra." He smiled and waved at her as she got further from him.

She nodded in response to the wave and started to turn around, but not before she hit the wall behind her and the tray almost fell, but she luckily kept it balanced. Unfortunately, not balanced enough to stop one of the empty tea cups from falling to the fancy carpet below and Tom rushed over to help pick it up for her. He stood up straight and placed it back onto the tray.

"Oh, god." She whispered quietly with fear in her tone. "Did it crack?" She asked a bit panicked.

Tom picked it up again to examine it and then set it back down. "All good."

"Oh, thank god." She said through a big sigh of relief. She gulped again and for the first time in her entire life, she was grateful for her dark complexion in that Tom could not see how much she was blushing. Her cheeks as warm as the sun seeping through the mansion's large glass windows.

"Hey." Tom said, his voice suddenly a bit more husky than normal. "You didn't answer my question." His eyes instinctively fell to her lips.

She noticed and backed away a little, clearing her throat. "W-what question?"

"Do you have a family?" He wondered.

"Oh...Um…" She stepped away again. "I...have a daughter and my husband…" When she paused, she noticed Tom's expression sadden a little and it saddened her, causing her to stop her attempts at getting away from him and she finished what she was going to say, standing completely still. "He's a traveling musician."

"Husband." Tom said sadly.

"Soon-to-be ex." She decided to just tell him...though she'd never had a conversation like this with any white man before. It was something about his eyes and the way he looked at her...she knew it was okay with him. "He, uh...he cheats on me every time he's on tour, so...what's the point of trying, right?" She lightly chuckled before clearing her throat as her eyes fell to his lips as well.

Tom's brief sadness returned to shameful joy as he heard that and he stepped closer to her, his eyes locked with hers and she froze, her heart pounding. "Can I kiss you, Sierra?" He asked without even thinking first.

"M-Mr. Keller." She stepped away again. "You know we can't."

"Why not? I'm a widower, you're basically divorced. What's the harm?" He asked, stepping close again.

"You know perfectly well what the harm is." Sierra stepped back and Tom stepped forward and soon, her back hit the wall again and it took all her strength not to drop the tray in her hands. "We're from different worlds."

"What? The money? I don't care about that." He admitted. "Or are you afraid I won't get along with your daughter? I'm good with kids. I have a son her age"

"No. It's-It's not that and you know it." She said, getting a little annoyed now.

"Then what? I don't know what else could stop me from making you see the way your husband should have treated you."

"Our skin, Mr. Keller. Our skin will keep us apart. And so will they."

"Who?"

"Everyone." She gulped again.

"I don't care what everyone thinks. And I don't care about the color of our skin. It's the twenties. Things are changing." He placed his hand on the wall by her head and leaned in a bit closer. "Change them with me."

She let out a small sigh, her breath hitting his lips and the sheriff smiled. "T-Tom." She said quietly before biting her lip.

"Hm?" He said, not daring to move until she said it was alright.

"Why me?" She asked, almost in a whisper.

He leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Because you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen….And the moment I saw you….I already knew I loved you." He slowly pulled away to look her in the eyes.

Sierra just ignored everything she knew was wrong about this and closed the gap between them, kissing him as her grip on the tray handles tightened and she whimpered a little, feeling Tom smile into the kiss.

After what felt like an eternity in paradise during that kiss, they broke it and she stepped around him, heading for the stairs to go down into the kitchen with the tray and Tom groaned with disappointment, turning to watch her go.

Once atop the staircase, Sierra stopped and turned to look at him with half a smile as she tried to seem calm after what just happened, when inside she was giddy and jumpy. "Come visit me on my lunch break at three." She whispered loud enough for him to hear. "The maid's quarters is out back on the East side of the guest house."

Tom's smile reappeared even brighter than before and he nodded, putting his sunglasses on. Sierra bit her lip seeing him like that and then giggled before going down the stairs.

When she was gone, Tom almost didn't know what to do with himself, realizing he had to have just met his soulmate. He never felt like that with his late wife. Not even on their wedding day. He knew for sure that no matter what happened….he had to be with Sierra.

Just as he was about to go down the stairs to head out to his automobile, Alice and FP stepped out of the parlor and headed straight for the stairs, Alice descending the steps first with FP directly behind her. "You didn't even say anything in there." Alice said.

"I was thinking." FP admitted.

"About what? We're not doing it, FP." Alice demanded.

"No. You're right. We shouldn't….But maybe it's something to think about." FP suggested.

As the couple continued to argue, Tom headed for the stairs right behind FP, making his way down and out with them.

A/N: Okay, so this chapter ended up being much longer than I intended and more Tierra centric than I had intended, but I'm happy with the way it turned out and I hope you guys have no complaints. I'm trying to dig deep into each of these characters' personalities and who I want them to be in this compared to the show. I don't want them to be too different, but I want them to fit the timeline well and to make them believable in every chapter and every way so that the whole storyline makes sense. Anyway, I hope you liked it. Please leave your comments and reviews down below. MWAH!