Free Unbreakable by Nancy Mehl

table.
    â€œWhat happened, Sheriff?” Noah’s expression was grim.
    â€œSomeone ran him off the road. His horse must have bolted, and his buggy flipped. Threw him out. Poor old guy never had a chance.”
    The news hit me like a ton of bricks, and I sank down to the floor without even realizing it. It had to have been the man in the red truck. Whether it was on purpose or not, he’d finally killed someone. Avery.
    Papa hurried over to me, kneeling down and wrapping his arms around my shoulders. He didn’t say a word, just held me.
    â€œI-I didn’t mean to upset the young lady so much,” Ford said. The distress on his face seemed real. He didn’t know many people in Kingdom personally, but he’d met Avery a few months ago when a body was discovered on the road thatled to Kingdom. It was difficult not to like Avery Menninger. Even for the sheriff.
    â€œHope was almost run over this afternoon on that same road, Sheriff,” Noah said, pointing at me. “I’ll bet it’s the same man.”
    Ford scratched his head. “Well, it coulda been an accident. Those buggies aren’t fit for the road. Just a little bump and they fold up like a cheap lawn chair.”
    I flushed with anger. “This was no accident, Sheriff. That’s too much of a coincidence.”
    He folded his hefty arms across his massive chest. “Young lady, if you was almost struck by a vehicle, why didn’t you call the Sheriff’s Department? That don’t make much sense, now does it?”
    Tom sniggered as if Ford’s statement were humorous. The sheriff swung around and slapped his son on the face. Several people in the room jumped at the sound. Tom put his hand on his cheek, his features locked in a grimace of rage and humiliation.
    â€œYou shut your mouth, boy,” Ford growled. “There’s nothin’ funny about this. A man’s dead. A good man.”
    Tom’s eyes locked on mine, his eyes burning with anger. I felt as if he somehow blamed me for his father’s actions.
    The sheriff stuck his finger in his son’s face. “You get yourself out to my car, Tom. Right now. And you wait there until I’m done here.”
    With one last hateful look, Tom spun on his heels and walked out the front door, slamming it so hard the windows rattled. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sophie sneak out behind him.
    I struggled to my feet, Papa helping me up. An unusual boldness, fueled by exasperation, filled me. “Whether I should have called you to report what happened has nothing to do with anything,” I said forcefully. “I’m telling you that someone tried to run me over on the very same road. And on the same day. You need to look for the driver of a red truck. It’s obvious he’s the person who killed our friend.”
    Ford scowled at me. “I don’t need you to tell me my job. I’ll be lookin’ into it. If we’ve got some idiot out there playin’ cat and mouse with anyone, even you people, I’ll get to the bottom of it.” He snorted. “But I’m gonna need a little more to go on than just tellin’ me it was a red truck. We got lots and lots of red trucks in this county, miss.”
    â€œIt was a Ford, Sheriff. Red, like Hope said.”
    Everyone turned and looked toward the front of the room. Jonathon had come in unnoticed. His face was pale. “Tinted windows on the sides. Caught a glimpse of the driver through the windshield, but I couldn’t see his face. He was wearing a cap, some kind of ball cap, pulled down low. Nothing really unusual about the truck that I can remember. Pretty standard. Except the driver’s door might have been dented. I’m not sure if it was the sun’s reflection or if there was an actual dent. I was busy trying to get his attention off Hope.”
    â€œAnd just who are you, young man?” Ford said, looking displeased. If he really wanted