Free In Safe Hands by Katie Ruggle

flat.
    â€œYes.” Dredging up her conviction, she met his eyes. “Especially when a boot fell out of the bottom of the tarp.”
    Daisy desperately wished she could tell what he was thinking, but the sheriff had that impassive look down pat.
    â€œWhat kind of boot?”
    It was only after she sucked in air that she realized she’d been holding her breath during the silence. “It was black, or maybe just dark-colored.” She closed her eyes and tried to picture it lying on the packed snow that covered the road. “I’m pretty sure it was a man’s boot because of the size.”
    â€œCan you show me where you were standing when you saw this?”
    â€œSure.” She pushed away from the counter and led the way through the living room and up the stairs. It made her neck prickle to have a near stranger following her, even if he was the sheriff. She couldn’t stop herself from glancing over her shoulder at him a few times. He looked around as they walked through the house, and his sharp gaze seemed to take in every detail.
    When their silent train of two finally reached her bedroom, Coughlin moved around her and stepped toward the window. Daisy lowered her shoulders from where they’d been hunched around her ears, relieved to have his focus on something other than her.
    She stood next to him, keeping as much distance as she could without seeming weird—or weird er . Despite his poker face, Daisy was pretty sure the sheriff thought she was an odd duck.
    â€œThe squad was parked there,” she said, pointing at the spot on the street. “The deputy walked between the empty house and the Storvicks’, carrying the bod—uh, the large thing .”
    â€œDeputy?” He turned his head to look at her. “I thought you couldn’t see the person’s face. Do you suspect anyone in particular?”
    â€œNo. I don’t know any of the deputies—just Chris. He showed me a picture, and the only ones I could really rule out were the two women and a couple of skinny guys. Chris said one was…um…” She tried to remember his name. “Deputy Lorenzo?”
    â€œDeputy Lawrence?”
    â€œThat’s it!”
    â€œWhy do you think it’s a deputy, then?”
    â€œBecause of the SUV?” It seemed so obvious to her, but just his asking the question made her doubt her logic. “Chris said it could be anyone who had temporary access to a squad car, but it just made sense that someone driving a sheriff’s department vehicle would be a deputy. Oh, and Chris said the boot prints matched his.”
    â€œDeputy Jennings is right about the squad.” The sheriff returned his gaze to the poorly lit scene in front of them. “If we start making assumptions, we could miss the truth just because it doesn’t fit into the too-small box we’ve created.”
    She felt slightly chastised, although she did like the “we” he’d used. It made her feel included in the investigation. “I have a video of him on my phone. It’s not very clear, but you’re welcome to take a look at it.”
    He looked at her for a long, silent moment before repeating in a flat voice, “A video.”
    â€œYes.” Relieved to have an excuse for avoiding his penetrating stare, she pulled out her cell and found the video footage. Holding her phone so the sheriff could see the screen, Daisy hit play. While he watched, she eyed his face nervously, looking for his reaction, but his expression was impassive.
    As the clip ended, Daisy dropped the hand holding her phone to her side. “I know it’s dark, but maybe it could be enhanced and lightened with video-editing software?”
    â€œMs. Little.” Once again, he was focused on her, and it was an effort to hold his gaze. “How long has it been since you’ve left this house?”
    Although she’d suspected that the questions would eventually come