Free Dylan's Redemption by Jennifer Ryan Page B

her. Boy, that got her going, but good. A few days later, you graduated and disappeared.” Lynn waited to see if he’d tell her anything about his relationship with Jessie and if he’d left because of her.
    He’d already signed up with the army by the time he took Jessie to the prom. What was he supposed to do? They were kids, she was only fifteen. He couldn’t run away with her. What would he have done with her? He had a contract with the military and lived in the barracks. He served a tour in Iraq and another in Afghanistan. At the time, he had nothing to offer her and no real way to take care of her. If he’d known about Buddy, he’d have found a way to make it work.
    Hell, she’d scared him. He’d never experienced feelings that deep, ever, or since. For him, it had always been Jessie. During that time, it had always been him for her. Now, she didn’t want him to touch her. She refused to stay and talk to him.
    It made him ache to think about the anger and sadness he’d seen in her eyes this morning.
    If anyone deserved to be angry about her past, it was Jessie. He wanted to help her heal some of that hurt. Maybe then they could make a life together.
    “Sheriff, are you listening?”
    He pushed those thoughts aside and tuned back into Lynn. “What? Sorry.”
    “Work slowed down. Get on home to Will before things pick up again.”
    “I have work to do on the computer. I’ll head out shortly.”
    She turned to leave his office, but he called her back. “Lynn, is there anyone I should know about who’s in the same situation Jessie was in when she was young? Anyone? A child or a woman who needs our help?”
    Lynn kept her ear to the ground, knew who slept with whom, and who had skeletons hidden in the closet. Dylan hated to think he’d overlooked someone who needed help.
    “You took care of Shannon for Owen, though that was a whole other twisted kind of thing.”
    Didn’t he know it.
    “You know about the Dobbs woman. Several calls came in about her husband knocking her around some nights. I heard there’s a boy in the third grade. He’s been having a real hard time of it. Seems he’s gotten into trouble for bullying the smaller children in his class. His mama does her best, but she doesn’t have any help. Her husband ran out on her a few months back. Ask me, the boy is neglected, and he’s acting out at school because of it. Perhaps if someone stepped in now and gave him and his mama some help, you could prevent that boy from growing up and being more than just a bully. I’m sure a stern talking-to about being kind to others from the sheriff just might turn him around. His name is Jimmy Boyd. I’ll get you their address.”
    “If you hear anything you think I should know, my door’s always open.”
    He held back a laugh as she beamed and avowed, “Looks like you’ll make a fine sheriff for the county, much better than Sheriff Leland ever was. A lazier man, I’ve never met.”
    Which explained why Buddy got away with everything that happened to Jessie. If the law didn’t care, who did?
    Alone, finally, he set to work on discovering some of the answers to his many questions about Jessie.

 
    Chapter Eight
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    J ESSIE PARKED BEHIND her brother’s truck and cast a glance at the other twenty or so vehicles parked along the road next to the cemetery. Maybe more than one funeral was planned for today. Her gaze scanned across the expanse of lawn and headstones to where she’d picked out the plot. Everyone stood around her father’s grave site waiting for the funeral to begin. She wondered how all these people found out about the proceedings. Who knew Buddy had so many friends?
    Unprepared to see all these people, she hesitated but bolstered her resolve and moved forward. Just like she always did. About thirty men and women watched and waited. It didn’t look as though any of them were particularly sad over Buddy’s death. Too busy studying Brian, several of them spotted her and literally