As Cole worked his way out of the room, a policewoman in her fifties reached to shake his hand. She had short, blonde hair and pleasant features. “Agent Huebsch, I’m Ann Mara, Prairie du Chien’s Chief of Police. I hope you’re wrong about the killer being from our town.”
“I grew up here and I wouldn’t like it much either, but one way or another I want to find him soon, no matter what his hometown is.”
Cole felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see another hand extended. He shook it and the big trooper said, “I’m Sergeant Art Clark. I’m the lead for our contingent of state troopers working this case with you.”
Cole said, “I’m glad to meet you both and to have your help. I don’t like to fight over jurisdictional issues. We’re all on the same side and our only objective is to get the killer as soon as possible. Can I assume we’re on the same page?” Both nodded their assent.
“Good. Is the Sheriff here?” Cole asked.
Mara shook her head. “When you called and asked us to pull our teams together, the sheriff was out on a call. The dispatcher said a farmer outside Soldiers Grove called in a report this morning that someone stole three of his hunting rifles. The sheriff’s like me. We both like to take calls to show our guys we don’t mind getting our hands and boots dirty. Soldiers Grove is at the furthest end of Crawford County, so he was nearly fifty minutes away when we told him about this meeting. There are a lot of back roads between here and the Grove.”
Just then the door opened and a short, square man in a sheriff’s uniform strode in. When he saw Cole his face lit up and he lengthened his stride. He yelled. “Whoa! Cole Huebsch! The man! The myth! The legend! Finally come home to see his brother!” Sheriff Fwam Vang reached Cole and wrapped him in a bear hug, lifting him off his feet.
“Ooofff! I had twenty-four good ribs before that hug,” Cole laughed, as Fwam set him down on the tile floor. “Good to see you, Fwam.”
“Man, Cole, where have you been? Lotta people miss you around here,” he said. He looked at Mara and Clark and said, “This guy is a damn hero. He was a big deal in Prairie, the biggest deal ever in our high school. And not because of being maybe the best wrestler Wisconsin ever produced. But because of who he is in here.” He pointed his index finger at Cole’s chest for emphasis. “Biggest heart of any dude I’ve ever known. In high school, he could’ve pushed other kids around or picked on ‘em, but he did the opposite for guys like me. I had two strikes against me. I was short and I was Hmong. I looked different from all the other kids. I was a year behind Cole in school and he made me feel like somebody…called me by name in the hallways. The rest of the kids didn’t look at me funny after that, and nobody, no matter how big or old, would push you around if they thought Cole was your friend.”
Fwam’s eyes were getting leaky and Cole’s face was turning red. “You’re full of it, Fwam. I noticed you back then because we needed a one hundred and one-pounder on our wrestling team. You were one of the few guys in school who could make that weight and had potential.”
“Bullshit,” Fwam said. “You did talk me into going out for wrestling, but not for yourself. That was to help the team and even more to help me, I think. You helped me get stronger and learn to defend myself. I got so much confidence from the sport and from you that it completely changed the direction I was headed .”
“You were good.” He looked to the others. “He made it to state twice and lost a close one in the finals his senior year.” Cole nodded to Fwam. “I was proud of you. To have never wrestled until your freshman year and to work so hard that you almost won state. Unheard of.”
“Well, I had you to thank for it. And it took some of the sting out of that last loss at state when I saw you up on your feet clapping for me. Coach said you skipped practice at Marquette to cheer me on.”
He looked at the police chief and trooper again and said, “It wasn’t only me, though. Cole made everyone feel like he was your friend. I remember having a typing class with him his senior year and Cole made a point of sitting next to Mary Fuller. Mary was the shyest girl in the whole school. She always looked down when she walked. Couldn’t make eye contact. And she hardly talked to anyone. But Cole got her to open up. The first time he got her to laugh out loud the whole class stopped for a second, even the teacher. But after that, it became pretty routine. Mary came out of her shell and blossomed.” Fwam nodded at Cole and said, “Keep in mind he was pretty much just a kid himself back then.”
Cole was trying to keep from blushing and mostly failed. He said, “Yeah, well, you were always telling stories and I think you might be stretching this one a bit. But I’ll take any kind words I can get.”
Fwam looked at Cole for a moment. “You know, Mary and I ended up getting together. You had something to do with that. You weren’t around for it, but we got married twelve years ago. Still together. Best thing I ever did.”
Cole took a step back and sized his old friend up. Fwam looked like he was maybe five three and one fifty or so, a lot of it muscle. He couldn’t help but think that Fwam fit their current description of the killer perfectly. He knew Fwam would figure that out, too, when he was read in on the briefing by his deputies. He said, “I wish I was back in town for pleasure, Fwam. It’s anything but.”
They shook hands all around again and started heading for the door when a police officer rushed in. “You’re gonna want to turn on the news!” he shouted excitedly.
“Which channel?” Chief Mara asked her officer.
“I don’t think it’s gonna matter,” he said.