Page 3 of Chasing Forever


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Knowing he'd been caught red-handed and wasoutmatched in speed, Grayson finally came to a stop and hisshoulders slumped. He slowly turned back towards Maddy, voicecracking with either puberty or sadness… or both. "I'm so sorry,Officer McAllister. I want to buy Call of Duty. Everyone's going tobe playing it all summer, but my mom said it's too expensive. And,she says it’s too violent anyway. I know Mrs. Daniels keeps ahundred-dollar bill stashed in her purse for emergencies, and thisis an emergency. If I don't play online with my friends, I willbecome the social outcast for the summer. Come September, I'll haveno friends left." He kicked an imaginary clump of dirt. He was soyoung.

Younger than she'd felt at that age. At leasthis rebellion came in the form of videogames, rather than sneakingout for a beach campout. The sneaking was the best part, althoughshe later discovered her parents were onto Aiden and herschemes.

Maddy took pity on the poor kid. He lookedalmost comical with his dark hair now standing on end, wearing themost dramatic frown she had ever seen. She gently took the pursefrom him and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Grayson,I'm sorry about the videogame. I understand wanting something sobadly it hurts. Let's put this in perspective: attorney fees are alot more than $100, trust me, I'm sure my brother charges a lotmore than that. Look at his fancy new office."

She gestured to Aiden's office, located in aprime location one block up from Beachside Avenue. AidenMcAllister, Attorney at Law. Their mother clearly had made a strongimpact on the decor. Coastal gray cedar shingles, crisp white trim,topped off with an anchor-shaped knocker on the front door.

She looked back to Grayson. His lower liptrembled. Tears flooded his eyes. He was just barely holdingon.

She hadn't joined the force to arrest youngkids, rather to guide them away from a dire path. She'd rather helpthem tonotbecome criminals. As her mother had done formany potential juvenile delinquents.

"On the other hand, Mrs. Daniels could usesome help weeding her front yard after her knee surgery. Let'sreturn her purse to her, and you can apologize for stealing it.While we're there, I’ll mention your excellent gardening skills.Hard work is much more likely to convince your mom that you'reready for Call of Duty. And, we'll consider this community serviceyour sentence."

Maddy was tempted to smooth that mussed hair,wipe away those tears and tell him life wouldn't always be soconfusing. But she knew that wasn’t true. Life would be a hell of alot more confusing as he grew up.

Grayson managed a weak smile and looked up atMaddy. He handed her the mask that he'd been clutching in hishands. She smiled back, took him by the shoulders and aimed hisbody towards Mrs. Daniels’ house up the hill. "Go on now,” sheshooed him along, “I'll call Mrs. Daniels in an hour to check onyour progress. If anything is missing from that purse, I’ll know,and I’ll come knocking."

"Thanks, Maddy. I'm sure glad I ran into you,and not Ian," Grayson hollered as he ran up the hill. Ian, Maddy'ssomewhat partner, had a reputation for being more of the bad cop ofthe pair. Maddy found the comparison laughable. Although Ian was atleast a head taller than her own 5’7” and could manage afrightening glare, he was far more of a sucker for a sad story thanshe was.

Ian was a few years younger than Maddy. He'dvolunteered with the department while still in high school and hadproven himself to be worth the lack of experience. Andrea, thechief of police, had initially hesitated when she hired him lastsummer, but he’d caught on quickly. It was shortly after Maddy washired after she had come home to Seaview, leaving a detectiveposition at the Seattle Police Department.

Andrea had quickly appreciated the decisionwhen she saw how smoothly Ian had stopped a vicious drunken brawlamong some of the fishermen. He had made use of his young age,stepping in the middle of the fight and acting drunk and confused,until a punch had flown over his head and he blocked the fist fromending up in the other fisherman’s face. Andrea had partnered themtogether while they both learned the Seaview police-ropes, hopingMaddy’s more tempered approach would soften his jump-right-inapproach.

Maddy smiled, shaking her head at how fastGrayson had run up the hill. Her enjoyment was abruptly disturbed.From behind her, a familiar, and painfully unwelcome voice,interjected, "Just letting the kid off the hook? You may as wellearmark a cell for this future felon."

Chills ran down her spine. The previouslypleasant salty breeze took on a noxious odor. Her tongue suddenlywas made of sawdust. Swallowing the knot in her throat, she turnedto find Dylan, her dreaded ex, smirking. Smirking like he owned theplace.

There wasn't a day that went by that shedidn't kick herself for failing to see past his handsome face andcharismatic façade in the beginning. With his nearly-white blondhair, lanky build, and dashing smile, he'd been irresistible to herteenage self. The smile that now set her teeth on edge.

"Dylan, I didn't know you were in town.Thanks for your opinion, but it's not welcome. I've got work todo." She started to cross Beachside Avenue to head the two blocksup the hill to the station. Town was bustling with tourists as thesummer was warming up. Maddy hardly noticed the crowded streets,the noisy laughter of folks meeting up for a weekend getaway.

Dylan stalked alongside her. He swept a rarestray curl out of his face and scowled. He smoothed the lapels ofhis perfectly tailored navy suit with coordinating starched shirtand metallic tie. Maybe she'd flustered him right back?

Doubtful. The asshole always took everythingin stride. Particularly her attitude.

"I just got back. Thought I'd bring thisfishing village into the twenty-first century. I'm negotiating acontract with a major cruise ship owner right now. Seaview will bea major stop for a new North Atlantic route." He looked downBeachside, greed dripping from him like a hungry rottweiler.

She followed his gaze. Where he no doubt sawthe potential for money and power, she saw a charming fishingvillage and artsy tourist hub. The boats at the north end of therow were just docking for the day. Young families, collegestudents, and retirees carrying bags overloaded with tourist-shopbooty. Beachside Avenue and its tributaries were made up of aneclectic, coastal-inspired collection of tourist shops, restaurantsand pubs, an old-fashioned-yet-modernized movie theatre, day-tripadventure tours, and a wooden boat builder. The town was in no wayhurting.

Sure, it still heavily relied on fishing, butits tourism trade was bustling. Maddy had always appreciated theartsy vibe around town. Perched with a perfectly gentle-sloped hillin a dreamily arced coastline, framed neatly by a large spit thatmade for calm beaches, the town pulled in tourists from all overthe region.

She couldn't stand the idea of theobstructing the incredible view with a huge ocean liner, thepeaceful streets trampled by folks invading for a two-hour shoppingspree and lunch break. She'd seen how small-town shops were run outof business by cruise-owned gift shops. She’d hate to see Seaview’scharm crushed. Its locals wouldn’t survive it.

She knew Dylan well enough to know, withouteven seeing the object of his gaze, that he was looking to the endof the street at her father's fish processing plant and docks. Halfof the town worked out of those docks. For the past two centuries,fisheries had driven the local economy financially and culturally.The building and docks needed updating, but they operatedefficiently and safely. Removal would mean most of the locals wouldbe forced to re-locate to find work. Her father was working on aplan to re-vamp the entire business, to make sure it supported thetown for another two centuries.

Dylan had worked for her dad the summer aftertheir senior year of high school. Dylan loved to sail and assumedthat meant he would make a good fisherman. After a rough two weeks,he announced that he was meant for a bigger future than that of amere fisherman. Maddy had tried to pretend that was true at thetime, defending her boyfriend, but she’d always known it wasbecause he couldn’t handle the hard labor. Not that he wasn’tstrong; she knew too well his physical capabilities. But, he wasmore of a thinker than a doer.

Disgusted, Maddy refused to acknowledge himfurther. Her lips pressed tightly together, she turned her back onhim and walked swiftly toward the station. What an ass. She stillregretted that she had dated him for so long. That she had datedhim at all.

Before she’d started dating Dylan, Aiden andChase were skipping school more than attending, avoiding her to“keep her out of trouble,” and she knew it was time to take herfuture seriously anyway. The three of them had been inseparablesince the seventh grade. Her brother and his best friend were ayear ahead and had always found themselves in trouble. Maddy hadalways skipped the rabble-rousing anyway.

She’d always had big plans. Rather thandwelling in the self-pity of loneliness at the loss of her friends,and a broken heart from the crush she’d always held for Chase,she'd started socializing more with her twin brother, Ronan, andhis crowd. All in advanced classes and clean lifestyles, shefigured that would suit her better anyway. Dylan had proved eagerto help her get back at Chase and had swiftly helped her lose hervirginity. Everyone thought they'd be married and established as apower couple by now.

What a fool she'd been. She was shaking withfury. She refused to let him see how he could make her cry, evenafter all these years.

His hateful eyes followed her the entire walkback to the station. A chill ran down her spine. She feared hismotives for returning were not simply financial. The way he’dlooked at her. Looked down his nose at her decisions. Finishing herstack of paperwork at the office suddenly sounded incrediblyappealing. It took a concerted effort to not sprint up the crowdedsidewalk.

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