Let your heart hold fast
Picks up about two weeks after "In Absentia." When an unexpected murder is discovered, the effects are wide reaching and everything threatens to come unraveled.
Ch. 1: Whispers
He wasn't drunk. Not really. He had certainly been more so than he was right now. He just needed to relax a little. That was all. Life was not exactly going the way that he planned on. Okay, that was putting it mildly. His life was currently a shit show and there didn't seem to be an end in sight that he could find.
Maybe he just needed a vacation. Some time away to regroup and figure out what he wanted to do now that he was completely free again. There really wasn't any real reason to hang around right now. No pressing obligations. He could probably round up a friend or two and take a fishing trip or something. No worries. Just his buddies and some beer.
He sure as hell didn't want to deal with any women.
He flopped onto the old couch that was the sole piece of furniture in his living room intended for sitting. He looked at the blank square of TV that hung on the wall and dismissed the idea of turning it on. There was never anything decent on anyway. Just mindless bullshit.
He should probably just go to bed.
Reaching up, he rubbed his hands over his face. He would call around tomorrow and see who was free this weekend. The day or time didn't matter to him. It's not like there was anywhere for him to be.
This town sucked. It was boring and there was no real nightlife other than the same rotation of bars with the same faces every time. He needed a job and those were about as hard to come by as fun. Apparently, they were even more difficult to keep.
The thought sparked frustration in him.
Fuck it all.
The idea of some new scenery was more than a little appealing. And, not just a weekend camping trip. There was nothing holding him here. He was unemployed. He wasn't married and didn't have any children. Sure, his family was local to the area. But, that didn't mean he had to hang around. There were certainly better areas than this one with more people and more opportunities.
A move could be exactly what he needed.
A fresh start. He was young enough for that. He was still young enough to do anything he wanted and not worry about other people. He should take advantage of that before it was too late.
See? He wasn't drunk. He was actually coming up with a real, viable plan to get the hell out of this place and move on to bigger and better things. He didn't care how cliched it sounded. The grass had to be greener on the other side. Hell, from where he was standing, there wasn't any grass at all.
Literally, anything would be better than this boring ass existence.
Slowly, he pushed up from his couch, swaying just a little as the room threatened to rotate on him. Not drunk. Yet. Maybe a little loose. That was all. Once he had his bearings, he headed for his bedroom. Now that there was some kind of plan in his mind, he felt better.
Somewhat.
He would worry about this tomorrow. Tonight, he just wanted to go to sleep. The evening had gone from fun to fucked up faster than he could have anticipated. There was no reason to prolong it at this point.
Slowly, he started for his bedroom.
It didn't occur to him to think about locking the door.
Sometimes he did. Sometimes he didn't.
It was a decent neighborhood. No one ever bothered him.
Sitting on the bed, he used his feet to slide his boots off and crawled up the bed finally coming to rest on his stomach with his face in the pillow. He didn't care about undressing or brushing his teeth. The thought didn't even cross his mind.
Within minutes, he was snoring.
He never even heard the door creak open.
xxx
"Winter is here."
Vic closed the door behind her. Everything about her posture echoed her sentiments. It was cold outside. She unzipped her jacket, shrugged it off, and hung it up before she walked over to the fireplace and stood directly in front of the fire.
Walt appeared from the kitchen and gave her a quizzical look.
"Snowing?"
She shook her head.
"Nope. Cold as hell out there, though."
"Hell…"
Vic flapped a hand at him, cutting him off.
"I know. Hell isn't cold. Whatever. It's damn cold. Okay."
"Okay."
He disappeared back into the kitchen. Vic stood for a moment longer, enjoying the heat the fire was putting out. Up until recently, it was rain that plagued the area. They were well over their normal average for the year at this point. Now, it seemed as though the rain was pushed out by a massive cold front that wasn't going anywhere.
Such was life in Wyoming where the weather was about a predictable as a manic fly buzzing around. Winter was the predominant season, frequently pushing its way in unwelcome well before the official date that announced it on the calendar.
As long as she lived here, she would never get used to the bone chilling cold. And, this was just the start and not as cold as it would get in the middle of winter when everything was covered in snow and the temperatures dipped below freezing. She pushed those thoughts from her head.
Winter back east could be its own sort of brutal, but it was nothing like this.
Vic wandered into the kitchen after Walt for another cup of coffee. No matter how many times she promised herself that she would curb her caffeine intake, she never really dedicated herself. With the exception of when she was pregnant at least.
Walt must have heard her coming because he was already pouring her a cup, which he offered her as soon as she entered the room. Vic took it with a smile and set about adding the milk and sugar she diluted her coffee with. Walt watched, as always, with a hint of amusement on his face.
He took his coffee black. Plain and simple. It was…such a Walt thing in her mind.
Vic leaned on the counter and sipped the coffee. It was definitely the good stuff. Like in so many other areas of his life, Walt believed in making coffee a certain way and he rarely deviated from it. There was no instant coffee in the cabin and she was fine with that. His method of making it might take a little longer, but the payoff was everything it should be.
The way he was watching her, she knew he was about to say something.
"You going to see Cady this morning?"
Vic lowered her cup and nodded.
"I am."
Transition number…hell, who could keep count at this point.
Once upon a time, she would have simply made the decision and went with it. She could be impulsive that way. Even now as much as she often fought that aspect of her personality. But, this was no time to jump into something blindly.
Her mother would never believe this.
She didn't just have herself to consider. It wasn't even just as simple as if it were her and Walt. There were other people involved who took precedence over everything else. Being a parent had a way of changing people. There was no denying that.
That was precisely why she and Walt were currently at home alone.
Julian was at school, of course. His schedule would remain unchanged for the most part with some minor adjustments if she went through with this. It was Anna that would require more consideration.
In her almost two years, they had been able to keep her at home so far. With Vic working a flexible job doing research for a private investigator and Walt running his horse boarding business out here on their property, they had the ability to trade off when the situation called for it and managing schedules was reasonably easy. If she went back to work as a deputy, that would change.
Realistically, the load on Walt would be heavy if they tried to keep Anna at home all day every day. She was still too young for school or even a pre-kindergarten program. They found a compromise in an older woman in town who ran a childcare program from her home. Right now, this was simply a trial to see how it went. No one had committed to anything. It would be part time a few days a week.
They would go from there once they were comfortable with how it was all going.
Baby steps.
Vic found it laughable when she considered how nearly everyone who knew her would call her hot headed and impatient. And, she was. But, being a parent changed you in ways you couldn't imagine. Especially in the patience department.
Her eyes dropped to her half empty coffee cup.
"I need to talk to Zeke, too."
"Even though you haven't made a decision yet?"
Vic looked up.
"I don't want to catch him off guard with this. I need to go to the office anyway. Can you pick up both kids?"
He nodded.
"Yep."
Vic finished off the coffee still left in her cup, cooling rapidly. Setting the cup in the sink, she tossed a smile his way and started for the kitchen entryway.
"Well…wish me luck."
"Good luck."
Vic grabbed her jacket, pulled it on, zipped it up, and was out the door. Eli was already out by the barn and lifted his hand in a wave as she slipped into her SUV. Vic waved in return, starting the engine, and adjusting the heat.
Winter was definitely here.
xxx
The barn smelled comforting and familiar when Walt walked in.
He always liked barns. Since he was a boy following his father around to different barns all over the area. While there were always differences from one barn to another, they shared similarities as well. One of those was the smell. The smell of horses, hay, and manure created something that was unique but familiar.
His own barns were no different.
Eli was already leading horses out into the pasture to get exercise. The young man paused and pushed up the brim of his ballcap.
"Morning, Mr. Walt."
"Morning."
"How's it going?"
Walt glanced through the stalls.
"Can't complain."
Eli nodded and continued on with the horse that he was already leading.
Walt inhaled the warmer air in the barn. When he emerged, Eli had taken up a position at the fence so that he could watch the horses as they trotted and ran around the pasture. They didn't seem to mind the cold morning air.
"How do you like this weather?"
Eli kept his eyes on the horses while he talked in a conversational tone.
"It's cold."
Eli smiled an easy smile, his posture relaxed.
"Yep. Feels like winter is here."
"That's what Vic said."
Eli gave him a quick glance.
"Does she like it?"
Walt shook his head.
"She does not and she will voice that with an extensive vocabulary."
Eli laughed and turned his attention back to the horses.
"Doesn't it get cold back east?"
"She says it's not the same."
Walt was inclined to believe her. He was aware at how much geography could affect the way temperatures felt based on humidity or simply a windy climate. She always said the cold out here hit different.
That could be said about Wyoming in more ways than just one.
Eli seemed to grow more somber and dug the toe of his boot in the dirt.
"How is everything?"
It was a serious question. Walt knew that. Eli was well informed about what happened a few weeks prior that pushed them all to the brink. As a matter of fact, he played a part in helping Vic. Walt was grateful for that. He was starting to see Eli less as a kid and more of a young man.
"It's…slowly getting back to normal."
That was the truth. They were all settling back in to their everyday lives. As much as they could. Thankfully, the effects of the ordeal seemed not as bad as anticipated on Julian. That was both his and Vic's concern. The two of them had weathered storms before. They would make it through this like they always did. Julian was their primary concern.
There were some bumps in the road. A few nightmares and he was clingy for a few days. But, there were none of the night terrors that plagued him in the past. They were both thankful that it was no worse than that.
"The little man okay?"
Walt nodded.
"He's getting better by the day."
Eli smiled slightly.
"He's a tough kid."
Eli would know. His own childhood was marred in a way that ran in the same vein as Julian's. His saving grace was his grandmother stepping in and raising him all on her own. The similar backgrounds created a unique bond between Eli and Julian. The young boy absolutely loved his older counterpart and Walt knew that Julian looked up to Eli.
That was fine by him.
He was certainly a good example of the kind of man he would like for his son to become.
"Vic is thinking about going back to work as a deputy."
He wasn't entirely sure why he felt compelled to tell Eli. Not that it was a secret. It wasn't. There were possible changes coming that might affect his schedule. That would, in turn, affect Eli and his job here. He might need to rely on the young man at certain times more than he already did.
He could tell that Eli was surprised by the news.
"Seriously?"
"Yep."
"That's different."
"Yeah. I think…it's been on her mind for a while."
Eli considered his words.
"Do you think this mess with that woman made her want to go back?"
That was a question he'd asked himself more than once since she first approached him with this idea. Knowing Vic, it wouldn't surprise him. In spite of what she told him, he always suspected she might want to go back someday. He simply hadn't known when that someday might be.
Now, here it was.
Considering everything they had just gone through, she was apprehensive when she first tossed the idea his way. She was, no doubt, gauging his reaction and trying to read him. Walt hoped that she could see that he was sincere in his insistence that he would support her if that was the road she chose to take.
"Could be."
Eli turned his attention back to the horses in the pasture.
The topic between them dropped and Walt didn't pursue it any faster. Walt turned away, pushing off the fence.
"I'm gonna get started on the stalls."
Eli nodded to him.
"I'll be there in a minute."
Walt paused at the door of the barn and looked up at the sky. It was an impossible blue with not a cloud in the sky. It was a welcome sight after all the wet weather they suffered through recently. It was certainly an improvement.
Walking into the barn, he started to work.
xxx
Cady was in her office when Vic walked into the department. After greeting Ruby, she wandered over to Cady's open door and leaned on the frame.
"Hey!"
Cady's head snapped up, her blue eyes landing on Vic.
"Hey."
Vic pushed up off the wall and walked all the way in, looking around.
"Do you have a minute?"
Cady nodded and gestured towards a chair.
"Sure. What's up?"
Vic sat down and leaned back in the chair.
"How is the deputy search going?"
Cady made a face that answered the question and sighed.
"I've had some really interesting applicants."
"Interesting, huh?"
That was never a good word.
Cady shuffled through some folders on her desk and pulled out one. Flipping open the folder, she slid some papers around, her eyes scanning over them.
"Yep, one guy is…fifty and looking for a career change. No experience in law enforcement or security. Another is…nineteen…"
She shook her head slightly.
"…with a juvenile record in South Dakota that's sealed and is a bag boy currently."
She paused again.
"And…a woman who didn't fill out half the application or attach a resume as requested."
Vic smiled slightly.
"Tells you she can't follow directions."
"Exactly."
Cady closed the folder and pushed it away.
"So…that's how it's going. Why do you ask? Do you have someone in mind?"
"Maybe."
There must have been something in her tone that pulled Cady's attention. Her eyes widened and she leaned forward a bit as though Vic was about to let her in on some secret.
"Unless it's you, I'm not interested."
She didn't give Vic time to respond.
"Vic?"
Vic held up her hand.
"I said maybe."
"But, you're thinking about it."
Cady prodded, a note of excitement in her words.
"I am."
"Have you talked to dad?"
"Yes, he says he supports whatever I want to do."
"So…why is it a maybe?"
Vic pushed out a breath.
"Because it's a big step."
Cady studied her.
"Why the change?"
Vic shrugged. In truth, she didn't fully know the reason behind her change of heart. It was just a nagging that had taken root and grown slowly, but steadily.
"I'm…not entirely sure. It's just…it's there. You know?"
Cady nodded a little.
"Sure. So…you're really thinking about this."
She was serious now.
"Yes. I'm really thinking about this."
"That would be so…great, Vic. Having you back…"
Her voice trailed off.
"…we've all missed you."
Vic smiled a little.
"Good to know."
"I don't want to rush you into any decisions…"
Vic didn't entirely buy that.
"…but…do you know when you'll be sure?"
Vic shook her head.
"Not…really. We're experimenting with some childcare this week. So…we'll see how that goes."
Cady smiled in spite of the non-committal answer.
"Well…let me know. I won't even make you interview for the job."
Vic snorted.
"Ha. Good to know. So…how is marriage treating you?"
"It's been good. We're…in a really good place right now."
"That's great. I'm glad. We should…get together one night. You and me."
"Sounds like a plan. I'll call you later and we can plan something."
Vic rose slowly.
"Sounds good. And…when I'm ready…we'll talk about this some more."
Cady stood up as well.
"Looking forward to it."
She trailed Vic to the door of her office where they paused. Vic looked out at the office and then back to Cady.
"It would be crazy to be back here."
"Life is crazy anyway. At least here you know it's coming."
Vic gave her a look with a smile creeping across her face.
"That's…a good point I guess. I'll talk to you later."
"Alright."
Vic raised her hand in a wave before stuffing her hands into the pockets of her jacket before she left the office and walked back out into the cold, looking up at the sky and the promise it seemed to bring with it.
Her next stop was to see Zeke. She texted him to see if he was in his office. With some luck, he was there. The drive to Sheridan would give her some time to clear her head and think about how she wanted to put this.
Zeke had given her a job that was exactly what she needed when she needed it. That wasn't a small thing in her mind. She was thankful for that. She considered him a friend at this point. When she walked in, he looked up at her and she knew he was waiting for her.
"Hey."
"How's it going?"
Vic shrugged out of her jacket and took a seat, not at her desk, but in a chair that was intended for anyone who found their way in to see Zeke about a case.
"Not bad. Kinda surprised you were in today. I know you have work to do."
He smiled.
"Yeah, someone was after me to catch up on my paperwork."
He gestured a big hand at the cluttered desk.
"Well, when I have to crawl your ass about it, it's a problem."
He laughed before he gave her a more serious look.
"What's going on, Vic?"
She shifted in her seat. She wasn't good at this kind of thing. Never had been. Never would be.
"I…"
In her mind, the best way was to just get it out.
"…I'm thinking about going back to my old job."
To his credit, he didn't have any visible reaction to her comment. He merely continued to look at her with the same serious expression.
"As a deputy?"
"Yes."
He nodded, reached up, and rubbed his jaw.
"You giving me your two weeks?"
"Not yet. I haven't…made up my mind."
A hint of a smile pulled at one corner of his mouth.
"I don't believe you would be here telling me this if you hadn't already decided."
"I haven't. Not really."
Zeke leaned forward, his arms on the desk, taking up most of the space.
"Maybe you just don't know it yet. You know…"
He paused.
"…it's okay, Vic. I knew you wouldn't be satisfied here forever."
"I'm not dissatisfied."
He nodded slowly.
"I know. But…you're…bigger than this place. You always were. I think we've both always known that. I understand. Being a cop…for some…is more of a calling than anything. I know why you left. I think I understand why you want to go back."
"Then, maybe you can clue me in."
He rose and came around the desk.
"You know who you are, Vic. Having a family might change that, but you are still you at the root of it all."
She took in his words and rolled them around in her mind. Maybe he was right. She wasn't entirely sure. She still wasn't comfortable with where her mind was going. It was a process.
Vic cleared her throat.
"Still, this is not my two weeks. I'll let you know when it is. If it is."
He flashed her a grin.
"Fair enough. In the meantime, do you want to get some work done while you're here?"
Vic let out a laugh, stood up, and walked over to her own desk.
xxx
"Up."
They were standing at the counter washing dishes when the small voice perforated the quiet that surrounded them in the kitchen. Walt glanced down to see Anna gripping the edge of Vic's shirt, looking up with clear hope.
"Mama…up."
Vic wiped her hands on her jeans and lifted the toddler onto her hip.
"What're you doing? Thought you were playing with Julian."
As if he heard his name, and he probably did, Julian appeared in the entryway to the kitchen. He peered at them.
"She got bored."
Vic looked at him.
"Okay. Are you bored?"
He shook his head.
"No. I can read?"
Vic smiled.
"Sure."
He disappeared from view. Vic set Anna carefully on the counter directly in front of her and continued to dry the dishes that Walt passed her, careful to stay directly in front of the squirmy toddler perched in front of her.
"How did your talk with Cady go?"
That was hours ago. But, the afternoon was busy with him picking up both kids and coming home to make dinner and deal with life in general. Adding children to the mix added a certain amount of chaos. While he wouldn't change that for anything, there were times he missed just being able to talk to her whenever he wanted without interruption.
"She got her hopes us."
"You knew that was going to happen."
"I know. I just…"
She ran the dish towel over a plate and set it aside.
"…if I change my mind, she's going to be disappointed."
"Do you think you'll change your mind?"
He was still trying to get a firm grasp on where her mind was. He knew she wasn't trying to keep anything from him. It seemed more that she was coming to grips with this herself. He knew from his own experience that wasn't always an easy thing. He could list the moments in his life where his mind and his heart disagreed and it was up to him to make the ultimate choice as to which would win.
Vic.
That might have been the biggest one.
It was easy enough to forget now, but when he first realized he had feelings for her, it was not an easy thing for him to deal with. For so many reasons.
She was married.
She worked for him.
She was younger than him.
He was broken.
They all mattered and none of them mattered. It just depended on what part of himself he listened to. Her own struggle was no different. He was well aware that she had feelings for him then. She hadn't kept it a secret. There was a time she would have been receptive without question if he made any advances on her.
Until her world was rocked.
"Walt?"
He looked over to find her watching him carefully.
"Hmm?"
"What are you thinking about so hard?"
Walt blinked, his mind clearing, and shook his head.
"Nothing."
Her head tilted and her eyes stayed firmly on him. There was no release to be found there.
"Liar."
She wasn't wrong.
"Nothing important."
"Right."
She still didn't believe him. He could see her debating whether or not to pursue it.
He could see the minute she let it go, or put off the discussion. Vic rarely let things go. When something took up residence's in her mind, that was pretty much the end of that. She was like a bulldog, tenacious and relentless.
Walt drained the sink as Vic wiped off her hands and tossed the dish towel aside. Lifting Anna, Vic carried her into the living room and sat down on the couch with her. Anna seemed to have relieved whatever momentary need for her mother brought her into the kitchen, and she slipped from Vic's lap onto the floor.
Walt took a seat beside her and they watched the kids for a few minutes.
I'm afraid."
The comment seemed to come out of nowhere. Walt looked her way.
"Of?"
He saw her chest expand with an inhale of breath. Slowly, she released the breath.
"Going back to a job that's so demanding."
"But…you want to."
She nodded her head slowly.
"Yes."
It was the first time she admitted it out loud with any degree of certainty.
Walt moved his hand over and placed it on her leg, his fingers squeezing just a bit.
"Then we'll figure it out. We'll find the right balance. You know…"
He paused, gathering up his thoughts.
"…you can't go back and live your life over again."
That was all he said. She would understand, though. Vic almost always did.
"Yeah."
She sighed and seemed to relax into the couch, some part of a load removed from her.
"It's bath time."
She started to stand up, but paused.
"I told you what you wanted to know. So…you owe me the same."
Their eyes connected momentarily before she stood up, swept Anna up off the floor, and headed for the bathroom. Walt watched her until she was out of his sight. After that, all he could do was hear her.
Her comment struck him.
They weren't that far removed from major issues that threatened to fracture what they had built between them. They were still working their way through a host of issues, having talks that weren't always comfortable. That was what really constructed a relationship in his mind. Vic's, as well. She expressed it to him on multiple occasions. It couldn't be good all the time. Making something like this last took more work than a lot of people realized.
They both knew that from previous marriages that were worlds apart.
Julian looked up at him, lifting his eyes from his book, eyeing Walt. The boy was perceptive. Much more than most of his peers. Their recent troubles, not to mention recent events, had more of an effect on Julian than anyone else in the cabin. But, like them, he was finding his way back to where he needed to be.
They all were.
"Good book?"
Julian nodded.
"Yes."
Walt smiled.
"Can I see it?"
Julian slid down from the chair and walked over. He handed Walt the book and the climbed up to sit beside him. The warmth of his son leaning into him was comfortable and dependable. It brought back memories of Cady at a similar age.
Walt looked at the worn out cover. He recognized the book as one he picked up used with Julian in mind. It was a book about horses which were one of Julian's favorite things on earth.
"I haven't read this one."
Julian looked up at him.
"Want me to read to you?"
He smiled at the offer. Julian was a good reader, eager to learn after his earlier life got him off to a slow start.
"Sure."
Julian took the book from him and started to read from his marked page. He read slowly, and with caution, stumbling over the odd word here and there that he must not have recognized outright. Walt helped him twice as Julian read on. It was a short book, intended for kids Julian's age, maybe a little older. When he was done, he closed the book and looked to Walt.
"That was good. Your reading gets better every day."
Julian smiled up at him, relishing in the praise. It did him good to see a smile on the boy's face. Things were definitely getting back to the normal that they all craved. That normalcy might shift some if Vic really did go back to being a deputy. But, they would manage. They would work their way through it like they were everything else that planted itself directly in their path.
They were getting better at that. Lots of practice lately.
He thought he heard Vic's cell phone ring. He must have been right since he heard her talking a couple of minutes later. Walt didn't pay too much attention and continued to read with Julian.
xxx
Vic turned off the water and sat down on the closed toilet lid, watching Anna splash her hands in the water with a smile. She'd already washed her while the water was running and it was still early enough for play time in the bath. So, she dropped some toys in the tub and sat down while Anna laughed and played. Vic watched her with a twinge of envy. It must be nice to live with such abandon.
Life only got more complicated as you went on and got deeper into it. There was a deep desire in her to protect that for as long as possible. Children deserved that. Knowing what Julian had gone through was proof of that.
The air in the bathroom was fragrant with the familiar smell of baby shampoo. There was something sweet about it that was incomparable with anything else that she could think of. There was something about it that just seemed so…innocent.
Fitting she supposed.
Vic felt her phone vibrate from her back pocket and heard the familiar ring tone that she was never motivated enough to change. Lifting herself up slightly, she pulled her phone free and looked at the number.
Cady.
"Hey."
She answered the phone in a good mood. The rest of her day had sprawled out peacefully and she didn't have any problem with that.
"You are never going to believe the afternoon we had."
Vic looked towards Anna, who was oblivious to her mother or anything outside of her bath. She was absorbed with dragging a small green washcloth through the water, churning out patterns that she slapped at with her other hand while giggling.
Cady's tone was one that was tired and somewhat resigned. Vic's attention was immediately drawn in. While it wasn't unusual for Cady to talk about cases, it was normally done in the routine of other conversations and not something she called about specifically.
"What happened?"
"We got a call about a smell in a residential house. Neighbor called it in."
That was never good. A certain smell normally indicated a dead body. A body that was left long enough to smell was either some overlooked medical issue that resulted in someone dying at home, or a death that someone didn't want reported.
The first wasn't all that bad. It was sad, of course, But, it was also straightforward. No evidence of foul play. The body was taken to the medical examiner for a cause of death determination and processed so that the family could be notified. That was usually where the investigation ended.
The second was an entirely different matter.
A longer, much more complicated one.
"Body?"
Cady didn't seem like she was a mood to be rushed. She clearly had a story to tell and was going to do it in the way that she wanted.
"I sent Zach and Ferg over to check it out. They uh…they knocked, but there was no answer. The neighbor came out and told them they hadn't seen anyone for a few days. You know that's never good. Anyway, Zach got the door open and they searched. The smell was coming from the bedroom. They found a body laid out in the floor. Been there for a while."
Vic kept her eyes on Anna while she listened to Cady.
"Accident or…?"
They both knew what she was asking.
"Not judging by the knife wounds and the bullet wound. Not to mention it looks like the victim was in a fight."
Vic frowned, still wondering what this had to do with her.
"So…a murder."
"Yes. A pretty brutal one."
She felt a pang of sympathy for Cady. Processing a crime scene was not a good time. It was a long, arduous process that was painstaking and back breaking. You normally left drained and with a headache at the very least. That was in addition to the fact that your back and knees normally hurt as well from kneeling and leaning. In a county this small, there wasn't a separate unit to process crime scenes or transport bodies. They did it all themselves from start to finish.
It was tiring, depressing work. The only reason you were able to push through was the satisfaction of solving the crime, knowing that the family would have some form of closure. It was the side of policework that no one liked, but was necessary. It was easy to dismiss the toll it took on a body and a mind. Those who hadn't ever done it could never understand what it was like to see the worst that humanity had to offer.
It was physically draining.
It was mentally exhausting.
Yet, here she was considering wading right back into it. She briefly wondered what that said about her. What did it say about any of them? Someone had to do it. Zeke wasn't wrong. There were times it felt more like a calling than anything else. There was no other way to explain how people were able to handle the stress and carry on with their normal lives.
"Vic?"
She realized she had gone quiet while her own thoughts invaded her conversation with Cady and pulled her out of the phone call. Vic cleared her throat and refocused her eyes back on Anna, who was still playing and not paying her any attention.
"Sorry. I uh…zoned out for a minute."
Her curiosity was peaked all over again. There was something in Cady's voice that rattled her a little. Cady wasn't new to the job anymore. Over time, she had acclimated to how it could be. Not to mention, her new husband was also a Sheriff with his own stories and cases. Carson Cooper headed up neighboring Cumberland County. His county was bigger and much more well-funded.
"Was it someone you know?"
Cady was quiet for the better part of a minute.
"Vic…it was Garrett Perry."