A month after meeting Liv, I was spending more time with her than my wife. With me putting in long hours at the station for this case, Joy and I were even more like ships in the night than usual. When I was home, I was either eating, sleeping, or thinking about Liv and her story. Whenever Liv needed a break from her story, I’d bring her coffee or water, and we’d talk about our lives. On a few occasions, we’d even managed to make each other laugh.
Liv was gorgeous when she smiled. This observation only made my heart hurt worse for her.
Dad’s office was sweltering when I walked in. Like the rest of the precinct, it didn’t have any air-conditioning at the time. A small metal fan from the 1960s whirred on the edge of his desk.
“Hot for November,” I said.
“It’s Georgia,” he replied.
The chief himself sat in his enormous chair with a paper fan in hand, waving it at his face. He tugged at his collar as I entered. This time, he didn’t stand.
“Sergeant,” he said, “why don’t you have a seat.”
It wasn’t a question. I kept my hand on the half-open door.
“Please,” he added.
The politeness meant he didn’t want to have this conversation. Reluctantly, I shut the door behind me and stepped further into the room. Normally, Dad would’ve stood for me. I don’t know whether the heat or his hesitation toward me was to blame for him remaining seated this time. Nevertheless, he didn’t stand, and he didn’t shake my hand or even clap me on the shoulder. Feeling more and more like a little girl being scolded, I sank into the metal folding chair in front of his desk. I took off my hat and set it in my lap, running a hand through my hair.
“Dad,” I began.
He raised a hand to stop me. “Andie, I’m not just your dad. I’m your boss.”
Fuck. It was going to be one of those talks.
I swallowed. “If this is about the Reyes case—”
“It is,” he said. “But humor me first. Sergeant… I never should’ve put you on this case. I see that now.” He sighed. “That day when you walked in the station, when I said you were reassigned, I saw your face fall. That was when I realized I’d made a mistake.”
“But you didn’t make a mistake,” I said. “That other case… that case was just like every other case I’ve handled.”
“That’s my point. Look, for as long as you’ve been on the force, we’ve never had any problems, you and me. Most of the folks around here would say the same.” He leaned back in his chair, put his hands together, and steepled his fingers. “You’re a hell of a cop, Andie. Dependable, and passionate. But that passion might get you in trouble.”
“If I’m here, that means it has,” I said.
I’d handled the Reyes case by the book. As strange as it was, no one could deny that.
So far, I’d formed a bond with Liv. I’d gotten her to trust us and to open up, to tell us things she might not have told any other officers here. She trusted me.
When I’d spoken to Claire’s parents, I’d even managed that without falling all over myself. Honestly and objectively, I couldn’t understand what I’d done wrong. Not one single thing. But, if the chief had called me into his office at the beginning of a shift like this, I must have done something out of pocket.
“With all due respect,” he said.
“Whenever people say that it means they’re about to say something disrespectful,” I said, shaking my head. “If you have something bad to say to me, say it. I don’t want to waste time dancing around whatever this is.”
He ran his tongue over his teeth. For a minute, I worried I’d pushed him too hard. Instead, he looked at me with something like respect as he launched into what he’d brought me in to say. “I’m taking you off the Reyes case. You’re too attached. I need someone more objective.”
I pounded my fist on the desk. “You can’t!”
“I absolutely can,” he replied. “And I am. I’m your boss, Sergeant McCollum. You need to calm down.”
Calm down. A minute ago, he’d admired my passion.
“Officer Lyle isn’t experienced enough for this,” I pleaded. It was a lousy excuse, but it was the most objective thing I could come up with in the heat of the moment. He’d cornered me. “She… she needs more time before she can handle something like this on her own.”
“I’ll put someone else on it with her.” He quirked an eyebrow at me. “Is this going to escalate, or can we talk like two adults?”
Rage simmered under my skin, but I nodded. I wouldn’t get what I wanted if he thought I was just being insolent. “Sir.”
“I also didn’t ask you for feedback on your partner, just so we’re clear.” He shook his head. “I don’t know what’s gotten into you, and it worries the hell out of me. Your behavior toward Miss Reyes—”
“Liv insisted I call her by her first name. I was only trying—”
“Let me finish, Andie. Shit.” He leaned back in his chair, shaking his head again. “This is exactly what I’m talking about. That attitude. That’s not something you would’ve showcased before this assignment. That’s why I want to take you off this case.”
My pulse was pounding in my ears. I had to bite my tongue to keep from firing off a retort that might’ve gotten me suspended. Joy’s job didn’t bring in enough money for the both of us. As much as I hated to say it, I was the breadwinner. I had to keep this job or both of us were screwed. At that moment, I was glad our child hadn’t made it or there’d be another mouth to feed—and I felt a pang of guilt for ever having thought that.
“If you take me off the case, what happens to her?” I asked.
“Miss Reyes will be well taken care of,” Dad assured me. “We can keep Officer Lyle assigned to her for consistency, and I’ll let you help me choose your replacement.”
“Replacement,” I repeated. Was he firing me?
“For the case,” he clarified. “Trust me, you’re not going anywhere.”
I worked my jaw as I considered what the fuck he was saying. Why did he think he had to take me off the case? What the fuck did that mean, that I’d gotten too attached? Didn’t he want me to be invested in my cases?
“I don’t understand,” I answered honestly.
“You don’t have to understand. You just have to comply,” he said.
It was the same song and dance I’d gotten for my whole life in this town. The rules didn’t need to make sense. They were the rules. They were there for you to follow, not to question. For most of my life, I’d fallen in line. Hell, I’d been so happy to follow the rules that I’d pledged myself to protect and enforce them. Wasn’t that what I should’ve been doing here? Why was the chief getting in my way?
“What?” Dad demanded. “What are you looking at me like that for?”
I shook my head, sighing. “I don’t want to do this.”
“No one said anything about what you want. Do you think I want to sit in here and have this kind of talk with you? Hell no. I have about a million other things to do, and more pressing reassignments to deliver.”
“Then what am I doing here?”
“Your partner complained.”
“Who cares? This isn’t about my partner.”
“First of all, I care. Second, you’re right, but I can’t just disregard her.” He ran his hand over the top of his head. “She’s… she’s worried about what’s best for Miss Reyes, that’s all.”
“Bullshit,” I said. It came out more loudly than I’d intended, but there was no going back now. “If she was concerned about doing the best thing for Liv, she’d want to keep me on the case. We’ve developed a rapport. She trusts me.”
“That’s the problem,” Dad said. He laid his hands flat on the desk, palms facing down. “You’re Icarus flying too close to the sun, to rehash an over-hashed analogy. This level of attachment isn’t good for anyone.” He paused. “I hate to ask this, but… do you have a crush on her?”
I bristled, even though I couldn’t deny it. “Doesn’t matter.”
He sighed. “You’re a married woman, Andie.”
“Maybe not for long.”
His face softened first, then his voice. “Is it the job?”
I wasn’t sure what the most honest way to answer that one was. There was a big picture window behind the chief’s head, so I redirected my gaze to the setting outside it.
“Been a long time coming, but meeting Liv helped.”
“See, the more I hear things like that coming from you, the more convinced I am that this is the right thing. That I’m making the right decision.”
“You can’t take me off the case. Please, Dad.”
“I wish there were another way, but you know I can’t play favorites — or even look like I might play favorites.”
“I’ll—I’ll try something else,” I said. “A different approach. I’ll back off, okay?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Dad asked.
“What if I let Lyle handle most of the questioning that’s left?” I said. “I’ll hang back a little more, like she’s been doing. That way, Liv — Miss Reyes — can talk to her instead of me.”
“Hm. It could work,” Dad said. “Of course, there’s the chance she’d just ask to talk to you, anyway.”
“Well, yeah. I can’t do anything about that, though. I can hardly be blamed for Miss Reyes’s decisions.”
“No, Andie. I suppose you can’t.”
“Where does that leave us, then?”
“Not far from where we started,” Dad said. “Look, if I had my way, I never would’ve even pulled you into my office for this. Seems like a massive waste of time as well as energy. I’ve got parents calling in about missing kids and this girl claiming she’s seen killer mermaids, and you’re the only one around here who can make heads or tails of any of it. I’d prefer to keep you on the case, but I need to know that I can trust you.”
“You can trust me, Chief,” I said. “You know that.”
“So, you’ll back off?” Dad asked.
“Yes,” I said. “I’ll let Lyle take the lead. I can be… less familiar.”
“And, if Miss Reyes engages you in conversation, don’t be cold,” Dad said. “Just don’t be pulling overtime or overnight shifts or anything. We can’t afford to botch this one with the GBI breathing down our necks.”
“I know, Chief.”
“Thank you,” Dad said. “And hey, Andie?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t make me regret this.”
I nodded. The pressure was on me to do a good job with this case, to prove that I could handle even bigger and better cases. The opportunity had been a long time coming. I wasn’t wasting it. When I got back to the interview room, Liv had her head down on the table. Her eyes were closed. At first, I thought she might be sleeping.
“Sergeant,” she said.
I sat in the chair across the table from her. “Are you ready to get back into it?”
“No, but I figure that’s why you’re here.”
I felt for her. I really did. She’d been through hell — I knew at least that much, even if I didn’t know the full extent of it yet. From her appearance alone, I could tell I was in for the interview of a lifetime.
“The sooner we get through this, the sooner we can let you go,” I said. Immediately, I regretted my choice of words. “Not that we’re detaining you or anything, of course. You’re free to come and go as you please.”
She raised her head and smirked. “I know, sergeant.”
Of course she did. She’d been coming and going. I needed to pull it together.
“Are you ready?” I asked her.
“Yeah,” she said. “I’ll play.”