Chapter Two

It took the Sheriff about an hour to drive in from Independence, the county seat. Jeff Colton is the Chief Sheriff for Inyo County. He's a tall drink of water and he looks like a weight lifter. He's six foot two, weighing in at two hundred ten pounds, give or take a couple of pounds with dark eyes and dirty blonde hair. He's not just a weight man but an all around gym rat. As the sheriff, he runs a tight ship and that means his people hit the gym regularly, logging their hours. Since their jobs are hazardous he wants them in the best possible condition and he aggressively pursues that end. If you didn't want to give him the time you didn't work for him.

I'd set up the coffee pot after I'd called him and it was ready when Jeff got to my house. I met him as he came up the walk.

Jeff Colton is a handsome man. I'd always thought so. We'd dated for a couple of month's right after I'd moved here but with my confused feelings and the two of us not quite meshing as a couple gave us pause so we called it off. It was the right thing to do. He has since married the right woman for him and has two small daughters. Alaina, his wife, and I are both in the Woman's Club together and we get along quite well. Their two daughters, Jessa and Violet are adorable little munchkins. We're all good friends and see each other at social gatherings in town.

I ushered him in and brought him directly to the kitchen where we poured the coffee. When both cups were fixed to our liking we moved to the kitchen and finished the niceties of polite society. Since Jeff is a black coffee man it went pretty quickly.

When that was all done we sat at the table and Jeff pulled out his pad and pen. "So Alex, I want you to take your time and tell me exactly what you saw. Go slow."

I spent a few moments trying to bring to mind what I precisely did see. It had all happened so fast. Even as it ran through my mind like a movie, I wanted to be exact.

Jeff reached across and patted my hand. "Take your time. We need to get this right."

I nodded back to him and thought a moment longer. "There were three men. They came running out of the woods just the other side of my daffodil beds. They ran right though it like it wasn't even there. That's why I went to the door to tell them to stop. I was just about to open the door and I glanced out the side lights just as the last man ran by. He was carrying a handgun. I felt it was better to let them go and call you."

It was Jeff's turn to nod. "You did the right thing. Can you tell me anything more about those men; like distinguishing features, clothing types or colors? Did you hear any of them speak? Was there any particular thing that you noticed about them like a foreign flavor?"

Again I took the time to get it right. "They never spoke so no to that. Two of the men were over six foot tall; the other was five foot ten I'd guess. The shorter one had his hair tied back in a ponytail; dark hair. He was also the youngest of the men. He wore jeans and a red plaid flannel shirt with a down vest over it. The second one had bushy blond hair, not short but not long either, just sticking up and out. He wore slacks, a brown, collared long sleeved polo shirt and a sports coat, beige I think. The last man, the oldest, was balding with a dark fringe around his head. He wore a gray suit, white shirt and a tie with black loafers. That's all I remember, it happened so fast."

Jeff smiled. "You're doing fine." He stopped to have a sip of his coffee. "How did you notice them at first?"

I reached for my coffee and took a sip before answering. "I'd just gotten up from reading to make dinner when I noticed movement through the windows. Their flashlights told me where they were. I just couldn't imagine who was running through the woods in the dark. Kids have cut though the yard before so I thought it was them at first. Have I given you enough information?"

Jeff didn't say anything immediately. He can be a frustratingly taciturn when he's thinking. I thought that I might be processing what I'd told him. "You didn't see who or what they were after?"

I shook my head no. "I didn't, it was just them. I just saw them and the handgun."

Jeff stood up and moved to the door. "I'm going to go look through your garden and" he chuckled, "I'll try not to step on anything. I'll be back in as soon as I'm finished." He smiled. "I could use another cup of coffee when I come back in, please." He gave me one of his smiles.

I picked up his cup and went for more as he opened the door and went to the yard. When I came back to the living room I watched him meticulously scour my garden and the rest of the yard with his flashlight looking for clues and then turn to come back in.

Jeff stopped and dropped to one knee using his light to look closer at something on the ground. He rose and headed back to my door, let himself in and sat down opposite me.

I could tell by his thoughtful and questioning expression that something bothered him. He reached for his cup and sat back in his chair. He took a sip of his coffee. He looked over the rim of his mug and his eyes met mine. They were seriously questioning and extremely thoughtful. "Are you sure you told me everything? Did you leave something out?"

Watching him gave me a worry but the next question he asked took me by surprise. How could he think that? "I told you exactly what I saw. There were three men running through my yard with a gun. That's it. Why do you ask?"

Jeff shook his head and looked away from me. "I found a fourth set of footprints." He shook his head again as if he tried to make sense of it. "Early tomorrow morning a forensics team will be here. Don't move anything. Don't go to your gardens. Stay inside. Those men might be watching the house and you. If anything happens or occurs to you…or…I don't know anything at all, call me. I will get help here as soon as possible. I'm confused as to what is going on here." He gave another moment of thought. "Well, I'd better get home to the girls." He rose and handed me his empty mug, but no smile, no sign of warmth or friendship at all.

I put the mugs in the kitchen and walked Jeff to the door. I didn't know how to handle Jeff's confusion…distrust or whatever it was. "Jeff, what's bothering you?"

Jeff stood on the porch and jiggled the keys to the cruiser. He hesitated before answering as if he knew his answer would hurt me. "I'm not sure yet but what you told me doesn't mesh with what I found in your yard." He opened the cruiser door and got in. "Don't worry we'll get to the bottom of this tomorrow. Good night Alex."

Normally there is a less chilly ending to our discussions but not tonight. His comment hurt me deeply and I didn't know how to react. "Good night Jeff I'll see you tomorrow." I watched as Jeff turned the cruiser around and drove away. I felt that he didn't trust me anymore and that I hadn't done my best for him. I felt that loss of trust and it cut like a knife.

I stood rooted to the end of my sidewalk for a few seconds more as I watched Jeff's tail-lights fade in the distance. As I turned to face my porch a voice called out, not loudly or too clearly, but it was there. "If you're done chatting him up can you go and let me in through the basement window?"

That voice had come out of my past and startled me. "Gibbs? Is that you?"