22.

To say Sheriff Walls was unhappy was a vast understatement.

He tried to hide it. To his credit, Avery thought he kept a pretty decent poker face, but his eyes gave it away. Plus he was twitchy. He couldn't seem to sit still.

They had tried to separate her from Mark, and when she'd refused – they wanted to ask her questions about who knew what, but she wasn't under arrest, which Walls himself had mentioned, trying to lead her down one of the hallways.

Now she sat at a table in an uncomfortable chair, Mark leaning against the wall behind her. Walls was across from her with one of his deputies. Avery couldn't remember his name and didn't bother to ask. They were in the midst of a waiting game. She had no idea what Walls was waiting for. She was just sititng quietly, waiting him out. Watching him try to maintain the poker face but unable to stop moving.

He finally cleared his throat. "I don't believe Mr. Calaway's presence is needed here. Especially since he's a suspect in Rob Williams's shooting."

Avery raised an eyebrow at that. "I thought you wanted to ask me questions. That didn't sound like a question." He might have the advantage when it came to making criminals uncomfortable but Avery thought he was underestimating her. Yes, she was just an elementary school principal, but she knew body language. She also knew how to give enough rope for people to hang themselves.

"We'd like to know your whereabouts two nights ago. About 2 in the morning." Walls was smirking at her.

"The night of that fire? I was home. Of course you had a deputy parked right in front of my house so you already know that." If he thought he was going to pin that on her...

The admission that she had noticed the deputy stopped him from responding for several long moments. Then the smirk started to return. "Care to vouch for Calaway's whereabouts at that time?"

Avery shrugged. "Sure. He was on the phone with me. And then he was at my house."

Again, Walls took another of those long pauses. "Honestly, Avery. You're going to alibi the man who shot another man in the stomach?"

"It's Ms. Landry. And I'm not alibiing the man who shot Williams. I'm alibiing Mark." Walls grit his teeth. The sound was like fingernails on a chalkboard. Avery only raised an eyebrow. "Is that it? Because it seems like you went to an awful lot of trouble to get me in here."

Walls stared at her. Now the look was blank. Emily would have said the lights were on but nobody was home. He blinked and shook himself out of it. "There is going to come a time, Ms. Landry, when you'll wish you had cooperated with us."

She didn't need to turn her head to know that Mark had started to take a protective step forward. Sweet. But not necessary. She raised a hand to stop him before he could get up too much of a head of steam. "Was that another threat? Becuase I kind of feel like I need to remind you that I was married to a lawyer that loves that kind of thing. And we're still on good terms." It was something Mark wouldn't understand; Jack and Avery had been married and he had lived in the house, but he was an outsider and always had been. An unknown element to the local law enforcement office. "And you did it in front of witnesses this time."

"It wasn't a threat." But the way Walls spoke, through clenched teeth, told Avery he was itching to come across the table at her. He wasn't used to not getting what he wanted.

"That's in the eye of the beholder I guess. So we'll be going. And I'd appreciate if you'd call your dogs off. I don't need babysitting. Or a police tail. I was told that I'm predictable which means I'm not going to do anything surprising enough to warrant a 24-7 watch over me personally. Maybe you should make a few deputies investigate all the dead bodies that were found outside of town. Seems like it would be a better use of resources." Avery got to her feet, carefully keeping a straight face. Walls's complexion had gone an alarming shade of red. He was angry but holding on to it. Barely.

She and Mark were quiet until they got to her car. Ben was still there, hanging out near his own car. When he saw them he tipped a wave before getting into the car and heading home.

"Are you crazy?" Mark finally asked. But he laughed when he said it.

"You said rattle. I rattled." Avery shrugged. "Was it too subtle, do you think?"

Mark snorted. "Yes. Very subtle."

"But he's mad right? And angry people are way more likely to make mistakes."

"Another CSI observation?"

"No. Actually." Avery smiled. "Personal observations mostly. Kids get mad, they say stuff they wouldn't normally say. And most adults are really just giant kids. I minored in child psychology. Some of it really stuck with me."

"Now you have to be extra careful. Your daughter..."

"Safe at her dad's for a few weeks. I already arranged it."

"Maybe we should put you somewhere safe for a few weeks." Mark said, almost talking to himself.

"Bite your tongue. You need me." Avery pointed out.

"More than I ever thought I'd need anybody." Mark agreed, growing serious. "But we really do need to make you safe. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you, Avery."

"Are you going to get all mushy on me now? I can't even picture that in my mind." She pulled into her driveway and turned off the engine, dropping them into darkness.

"Not too mushy. But I need this..." He reached over and cupped the back of her head and pulled her toward him. And then he kissed her deeply until she was gasping for breath. "That helps." He finally said.

"We still haven't had supper." Avery pointed out as she led the way into the house.

"Food can wait. We can order a pizza. That'll give us at least half an hour."

"So you're after a quickie?"

"No. Just some time without the insanity involved. I'll order the pizza." He headed for the phone on Avery's laugh. She tossed her keys onto the kitchen counter and went to the the living room. And Mark made it a point to avoid all topics related to what was going on. Avery understood that they needed a break. Especially after confronting Walls on his own turf, even if it had ended as abruptly as it had begun.

The pizza had been good. Just spending some non-crazy time with Mark was even better. But they still had to deal with reality, as much as she wished it would stop intruding on them.

"So what's next?"

"Next? We're still trying to find enough evidence to get the state cops involved. I could go to the state attorney general and see what can be done about removing your elected Sheriff from office since he'll be under investigation. What I need to do is find something that connects the sheriff to any of Williams's dead wives, or any of the bodies that have been found outside of town. But he's a cop. A bad one but still. He knows protocol. He also knows which evidence to bury. And how to present. There's been a lot of suicides of drifters around here. Three to four a year, which doesn't sound like much until you think it's been going on for the better part of 30 years."

"Why? Is it like some sort of game or something?" Avery couldn't help but ask. The thought of that many bodies...and not a peep around town. Of course not. It had never been anyone local. Drifters, hitchhikers, people who were passing through who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. It made her sick to think about it.

"It might be. And it might be that he got the taste for it and can't stop. He's got the perfect set up here. He's in charge. Nobody questions him."

"Except for you."

"And now you." Mark sighed. "I really didn't want to get you involved, Avery. You have way more to lose than I do. And it's not worth the risk."

"I get that you want to protect me. But I think we're past that part. We just have to figure out how we're going to get Walls to trip over his own feet. That's all."

"That's all." Mark repeated with a humorless chuckle. "Man's made it his life work not to get tripped up."

"Yeah but why is he so fixated on you?" Avery asked with a yawn. Now that the drama of the day was done, and she'd eaten, she was getting a little sleepy. "Seems weird. You could have just come back to town, did your thing, and left. It's almost like he baited you into some kind of weird standoff. But what could the payoff be for him?"

Mark shook his head. He also smiled a little at her yawn. He shifted on the couch, stretching out, pulling her to sit between his legs with her back against his chest so he could hold on to her. "The night my mom died..." He trailed off. Avery waited him out. "I told you about them drinkin'. Celebratin'. And I called him out on it."

"And then you get back to town and he thinks you're the one that got away?" Avery asked.

"Maybe." But Mark sounded unsure. "He doesn't have a pattern. The dead bodies that I think are related to him are all different ages, races, different hair colors, different body types, different backgrounds. The only thing that connects them is where they were found. Just far enough out of town so that it wouldn't get connected to town. There were a lot of drownings though. That lake. Most were found with drugs or alcohol in their systems. Lots were written off as accidental."

Avery nodded, thinking. "Do they know your partner is here?"

"I don't know. I don't think so. Why?"

"Becasuse she's an out of towner. No ties to the town. And we haven't heard from her since yesterday."

Although Avery still sounded sleepy, her words were like ice being spilled down Mark's back. "Leah can take care of herself." But for the first time, he sounded unsure. Leah wouldn't go a full day without checking in. It wasn't how they operated.