I smiled at her, grateful to have her support. “Thanks, Mrs. Numi.”
“Of course.” She gave Kyle and Pervis a reproachful glance. “You boys should be ashamed of yourself, jumping on the bandwagon against Sheriff Callum.”
“We have concerns,” Kyle said gruffly. “We’ve had way more murders lately than in the past.”
“Oh, pooh.” She scowled. “Sheriff Callum solved every one of them too.”
“Yeah, but he didn’t do it alone,” muttered Kyle. “He had help.”
“Nope, he didn’t do it alone,” echoed Pervis. “He definitely had help.”
Kyle held up a finger as he announced, “The police department needs some new ideas. And I’m just the man for the job.”
Pervis nodded. “Kyle is just the man for the job.”
Scowling, Kyle gave his brother an impatient glance. “Don’t you have any thoughts of your own? How am I ever going to win this election if I have to do all the thinking?”
Pink painted Pervis’s face, but he held his tongue.
Mrs. Numi gave the brothers an impatient glance, and she pulled me aside. “How is Maxwell doing?”
“He’s doing pretty well. He’s got a few bumps and bruises, but he’s on the mend.”
“I was so worried.”
“We all were, but he’s safe and sound now.”
“Excellent.” She shook her head. “I still can’t believe River did what he did. Was he really seeking revenge for his sister’s death?”
I grimaced. “That was his motivation, but he had it all mixed up in his head. Max didn’t do anything wrong.”
“No. Well, of course not. Still, it’s very shocking. The gossips will have a field day with that story, I’m sorry to say.”
“Max will hate the fact people know about Lucinda, but there’s no way to keep it quiet now. It’s out, and he’ll just have to ignore what people say.”
“Yes.” She brightened. “Perhaps some good news will help him ignore it. Will you have him call me tonight?”
“Uh, sure. Any particular reason why?”
She nodded eagerly, rubbing her hands together. “Indeed, there is. The escrow company called me earlier. They think we can close early on Dr. Thornton’s new property.”
“Is that right?” Disappointment shifted through me, but I did my best to hide it. With all the drama, I’d almost forgotten Maxwell would be moving out soon. “I’ll be sure to tell him.”
She smiled. “He’ll be so thrilled to know he can move in sooner than expected. He just lights up anytime we talk about his new place.”
“Yeah. He’s excited for sure.” My face was tight as I forced a smile. But the last thing I wanted was anyone knowing how sad I was that Max would be moving into his own place. I wanted to support him. I was definitely happy for Max, but after living together for a while now, going back to living separately felt like a step backward in our relationship.
Mrs. Numi’s gaze followed Kyle and Pervis as they moved away from the Pancake Palace. They’d apparently given up on Mrs. Numi and were makingtheir way down the sidewalk, handing out fliers to anyone they met along the way. Many of the people waved them off, but some took the papers.
“What do you think Kyle’s odds are of becoming sheriff?” I asked.
She lifted her perfectly penciled brows. “Slim to none. I hope.”
I smiled. “Yeah, I don’t feel too threatened by Kyle. Now, the guy Michael Raiden is apparently backing? That’s a whole other ball of wax.”
“Yes, Liam James. I saw the banner earlier. I sold him his house here in Rainy Dale a few years back. He’s an interesting man. Charismatic.”
“Great.” I groaned.
