Free Jessica Beck - Donut Shop 17 - Old Fashioned Crooks by Jessica Beck Page A

said stubbornly, still reeling from shock about how quickly
things had just changed.
    “Suzanne, we
couldn’t wait on Jake forever,” George said.   “He told me himself that he didn’t want
the job, and I had to do something, for the town’s sake.”
    “I get it,” I
said.   “I just didn’t think that it
would all happen so fast.”
    “There wasn’t
much choice.   Anyway, we all thought
you deserved to know about it before it became official.”
    “Thanks for that
much, anyway,” I said.
    “May I have a
word with you in private?” the new chief asked me softly.   I didn’t like the look in his eyes, and
I couldn’t read his expression.
    “Actually, anything
you have to say to me you can say in front of my stepfather and the mayor,” I
said.   Let him try to isolate me
from my support and see where it got him.
    “As you
wish.   I understand that you
consider yourself somewhat of an amateur sleuth.”
    “I’ve never
called myself that,” I said.
    The new chief
shrugged.   “But it’s true
nonetheless, isn’t it?   While my
predecessor here may have allowed you some latitude investigating crime as a
private citizen, be warned that I will not.   In my opinion, there’s no room in police
business for a rank amateur.”
    “That’s a little
harsh, don’t you think?” Chief Martin asked.
    Chief Tyler
stared at him for a second before he spoke.   “I’m not surprised that you feel that
way, given that she’s your stepdaughter, but that doesn’t make any difference
to me.   I won’t have her muddying
the waters in any of my investigations.”
    “Hang on a
second,” George said in an amiable manner.   “Maybe we’ve all gotten off on the wrong foot here.   Chief Tyler, you should know that Suzanne
is a valued member of our community.”
    “I don’t doubt
it, but unless she’s carrying a badge, she’s just going to get in my way.   Your honor, you might not like the way I
run the department, but I can’t take orders from you.   You can change your mind about hiring
me, or fire me later at any point you wish, but you might as well know up front
that you can’t tell me what to do, or how I should run my department.”
    I half-expected
George to cut him loose on the spot, but to my surprise, he merely nodded.   “The point is a valid one.   After all, it’s your department.”
    “Thanks for
nothing, old friend,” I said to him, and then I stormed off back to my Jeep.
    “Suzanne, let me
explain,” George said as he started to follow me.
    The mayor might
have had a perfectly rational reason for behaving the way he just had, but that
didn’t mean that I had to like it, or even make nice with the new chief of
police after the scolding that I’d just received.   Chief Tyler had made it pretty clear
that he didn’t care all that much about my opinion, so why should I care about
his?
    As I drove past
the three of them, I saw Chief Martin mouth the word “Sorry” in my direction,
but I didn’t offer him any response, or even acknowledgment.
    I was too mad to
trust myself.
    Things had
suddenly been turned upside down, but there was at least one comfort in what
had just happened.
    I still had until
the next morning to find Rick Hastings’ killer before I had to worry about the
wrath of Chief Tyler, and I meant to get busy.   If it meant that Grace and I had to stay
up all night tracking down the killer, then we would just have to do our best.
    It might be a
long shot, given the current state of our investigation, but it was all of the
time that we had left, and I meant to make the most of it.

 
    “So, what was the
big secret?” Grace asked me as I walked up the steps to her front porch.   She was out there waiting for me, but I
wasn’t all that eager to deliver the news I’d just received, especially not
after the reception I’d just been given by the new police chief.
    “Apparently
there’s a new sheriff in town,” I said, trying to lighten my