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Before he could ask for any more information, she was gone.
Seeing no point in staying, he made his way back to the sheriff’s office. Daniel had promised him that he’d be sheriff as soon as Daniel was ready to retire. Of course, Daniel had also warned him that he needed to get the town to love him, and to want him for the position first. Slade had a lot of work to do to get where he wanted to be, but he loved the challenge. Slade had no intention of leaving, or finding a job elsewhere. He was content to be a deputy in a small town.
Entering the office, he saw Cassie was on the phone, so he gave her a smile, and headed back into Daniel’s office where he found his boss signing off on a few things.
“You had a productive morning,” Daniel said without even looking up. “Talking to some people in the trailer park.” He finished signing a sheet of paper before looking up.
Taking a seat, he stared at Daniel. “I was asking some questions is all.”
“What about?”
Gritting his teeth, Slade got up, and closed the door. “I was asking a few questions about Cassie. She’s my neighbor, and I was curious about her.”
Daniel tilted his head to the side. “Why didn’t you ask her?”
“I didn’t want any trouble.”
“You think talking about her behind her back won’t cause trouble?” Daniel leaned back in his chair. “You have no idea about women, do you?”
“I know a great deal I’ll have you know. What do we know about the asshole that hurt her?”
Daniel laughed, and Slade didn’t know why. As far as he was concerned, this wasn’t any laughing matter. He wanted to know what the fuck the bastard found funny.
“Wow, do you believe in that little curse that’s on your two houses?”
“No, I don’t. I wanted to know more about Cassie. She’s so uptight, and she doesn’t date. I just … can’t a guy have some curiosity?”
Daniel sighed. “I guess you’re right. The fucker’s name was Andrew. He doesn’t live around here anymore. His dad still does. They own one of the big factories.”
“They’re one of the rich families?”
“You got it.”
Slade sat back.
“And I don’t want Andrew back anytime soon. I saw what it did to Cassie after that bastard broke her heart. He used her for what he could get, which was points in a damn game. Last I heard, and from what I’ve seen, Cassie has never dated since.”
“I don’t like the fucker.” And Slade didn’t even know him.
“You don’t have to like him. You want to know why Cassie doesn’t get close to anyone, then I’d say Andrew is a pretty big reason. After being dumped, and your entire … experience gossiped about time and time again, I’d say you’d be very … careful next time.”
“What about her dad?” Slade asked. He wanted answers, and he wanted them fast.
Daniel leaned forward. “You want to tell me why you’re asking all these questions?”
“I told you. I want to know more about my neighbor.” There was no other reason.
“Right, okay. If you must know I tracked Bill down myself.”
Slade waited, curiosity eating away at him.
“He’s dead. I went and identified him myself. Got into a fight in the city, and it went ugly. Ended with a bottle being smashed, and jammed into his throat. It was an ugly way to die, but I had a feeling that Bill was making sure someone killed him.”
“She doesn’t know?”
“Nope. She doesn’t.”
Running a hand down his face, Slade couldn’t help the feelings that were rushing through him. He felt bad, and angry, also sad for her. She hadn’t lived a great life. In fact, from everything he’d been told, her life had been incredibly shit.
