Behind the Badge Read online

  In typical adolescent form, Abel glanced up from his tablet and asked, “How long is it again? I’m already bored.”

  “It’s a ten- or eleven-hour drive depending on how many times we stop. And how can you be bored? We just got in the car.”

  “There isn’t any internet, so I can only play a few of the games on my tablet.”

  Shelly rolled her eyes since her son’s complaint didn’t deserve a comment from her and pulled her eyes toward the road. She wasn’t overly thrilled for the long drive either, especially since she had only ever traveled to Carson on a private plane chartered by Cassidy and her team.

  Shelly followed the movers out of the city, thankful that Cassidy and Harlan were allowing her to store their things in their garage until they could find a place to stay. Cassidy had mentioned during their call in the morning that she had found a place for Shelly to rent, and it would be ready for them after the weekend. The woman could move mountains if she tried, and Shelly made sure to tell her as much before ending their call.

  Once the city was out of view, Shelly sped past the moving truck to begin their own journey. She wanted to make good time knowing that they were going to stop for lunch and dinner on the way.

  They were only two hours into their trip when Abel decided he had had enough of slouching in the back seat and begged for a stop to stretch his legs. She knew the booster seat he was required to use wasn’t the most comfortable of things so she breathed a sigh of relief when they came upon a sign for an upcoming rest stop. She would never admit that she had needed to stretch her legs too.

  “Alright, we’re just going to use the restroom then grab a few snacks from the vending machines. Do you remember the rules for leaving the bathroom alone?” Shelly had struggled with this part of being a single mom. Abel wanted to feel like a big kid and use the bathroom by himself, and she understood, but she was always wary of strangers.

  She waited patiently for Abel to reply. “Do my business, talk to no one, wait for you.”

  “And. . .” she prompted.

  “Scream if I have to.”

  “Good. I’ll meet you right here.” She gestured to a spot against the wall and watched as he sauntered into the men’s restroom, then she made her own way to the female restroom.

  Luckily, they both exited at the same time and before long, they were making their way back to the car with arms full of junk food. Shelly usually made sure that they were eating well-balanced meals, but nothing made a road trip better than junk food.

  Reds and oranges filled the sky as dusk fell around the ridges of the Smoky Mountains and Blue Ridge Mountains. This was her favorite part of the summer nights in the south. The sunsets here were some of the most beautiful she had ever witnessed and one of the things she was excited to witness on the long summer nights.

  “Hey, we’re getting close, about an hour away.”

  “Really?” her son asked excitedly as he pulled his gaze away from the movie he was watching and looked out the window.

  “Yep.”

  “Cool, will Aunt Cassidy be waiting for us when we get there?” Abel added. Cassidy had been in his life as long as her child could remember, and he lovingly referred to her as his aunt. She also happened to spoil Abel like crazy whenever she visited.

  “She will. We’re staying with her and Harlan for the weekend.”

  “Yes!” her son shouted, his fist flying through the air. “Maybe he can teach me to play the guitar and drums.”

  “We can always ask. Just don’t forget your manners,” she reminded.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  The excitement was palpable in the car. Not only because both of them were ready to stretch their legs, but they both loved the small town and the people that resided within its borders. There was something to be said for everyone knowing your business; it kept you safe. And safety was a priority in her life.

  After another hour on the road, Shelly steered the car toward Carson's exit, smiling as the three-lane interstate gave way to single lane road lined with pine trees. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest as they traveled the remaining twenty-minute trek to the small town. Main Street's lights came into view as they crested a hill and Shelly felt her body immediately relax. She hadn’t felt a sense of peace like that since she held her sweet son in her arms for the first time.

  Another ten minutes and a few turns onto barely noticeable dirt roads and Shelly turned the vehicle onto the recognizable driveway. She had seen pictures of the house Cassidy and Harlan had built on their land, but she hadn’t witnessed it in person. And what a house it was if her son’s gasp in the back seat was any indication.

  The statuesque farmhouse fit perfectly in the open field surrounded by large oaks and pines. Her car's headlights illuminated the front porch as they came around the final bend of the pathway.

  Parking the car in front of the unattached garage, Shelly barely had time to turn off the ignition before her door was ripped open. Her best friend stood impatiently, bouncing on her toes, as she waited for Shelly to exit. A tight embrace enveloped her as she stepped from the driver’s side of the car and she felt her body lean into the hug.

  “I am so glad that you’re here,” Cassidy whispered, then took a step back to gaze at Shelly at an arm’s length.

  “We’re excited to be here. Figured it was time to give in to your constant nagging.”

  “Oh, come on, it wasn’t that bad,” Cassidy said with a flick of her hand as she moved to the back of the car to open the door for Abel, who was anxiously bopping in his seat.

  “Three years, every time we spoke,” Shelly reminded just as her son freed himself from the car. Abel flung himself at Cassidy and Shelly repressed the sigh at her son’s ease of affection. While she had closed off her heart, her son gave love freely.

  “Let’s get you guys inside. Harlan said the moving truck is expected tomorrow. Do you have a change of clothes for the night?” Cassidy asked.

  “Yeah, I packed us a small suitcase.” As she unlatched the trunk and reached in for their small suitcase, Shelly inquired, “So, can you tell me about the place I’m renting?”

  “Oh,” Cassidy said nonchalantly as she gripped Abel’s hand and led him inside her house.

  “Cassidy.”

  Spinning on her heels her friend looked at her apologetically. “Look, I’m sorry. I haven’t seen the place, but I know it’s going to be great. It’s big enough for the two of you and just remodeled. Plus, it’s on the Sheriff’s land. How much safer could you get?”

  Shelly silently followed Cassidy into her home pondering her friend’s question. But all she could come up with was wondering what she had got herself into.

  Chapter Three

  He probably should have aired out of the cabin when he got home from work last night, but he had been drawn to the baseball game and couldn’t pull himself away.

  Stepping onto his back porch in the early morning light, he was immediately assaulted by the thick muggy air. It was going to be a hot and sweltering day and Preston could only hope that the new HVAC system he installed last summer at the cabin was ready to work hard.

  When he found the cabin on his property, it had always been his goal to rent it out. The house sat on a small clearing of land just within the tree line of his own house. Though they would share a driveway, the cabin was completely self-functioning. He even made sure the internet could be hooked up. After he initially fixed it up, he had asked Austin Connelly, a local architect and contractor, if he knew of anyone interested in renting the apartment, but nothing had ever come of it. Preston wasn’t sure if that’s because no one wanted to live on the town Sheriff’s land or if Austin was holding a grudge about his sister. It seemed like that one mistake was going to haunt him for the remainder of his life.

  Tossing his keys in the air and then catching them, Preston made his way toward his truck. The bed held the two cans of interior paint and the large buckets of exterior paint. Even with the paint sprayer he had rented for the
weekend from the hardware store, he wasn’t sure how he would get it all done in a weekend. Maybe he should reach out to Cassidy and tell her that renting the cabin wasn’t a good idea after all.

  Driving farther back on his property, the cabin came into view and Preston could no longer fight against his smile. He really did have a soft spot for the small structure on his land. It also gave him piece of mind that Shelly would be close by where he could keep her safe.

  He had done so much undercover work in his past that many of them melded together into one ongoing scene and persona. But his initial covert operation to infiltrate a mafia funded drug cartel would forever be etched in his mind. The drugs are what got the FBI’s attention, but the weapon and human trafficking are what put them at the top of the dismantle list. Preston was young and arrogant, and to this day, he would never forget the look of horror on the young woman’s face before she fell to the floor as they arrested her boyfriend and subsequently her until they could clear her of the charges. So many things had gone wrong that day; not only had he changed that woman’s life forever, but they learned that there had been a leak and the cartel knew someone was a mole. The group was smarter than anyone gave them credit for.

  Shaking his head, Preston rid his mind of his past blunders and turned off his truck. The day was already starting off hotter than normal, so the exterior painting would need to come first. Luckily, the cabin’s wood siding was still in good shape, but the paint's previous white coat had faded. Loading up the paint sprayer, he went to work getting the first coat of paint on the outside.

  It took three coats for the white to look as fresh and clean as Preston had wanted and as he cleaned out the sprayer with the hose attached to the house, he noticed the sound of a truck approaching. Turning off the spigot, Preston spun around to find a large black diesel truck approaching. He recognized the truck since he helped pick it out.

  Putting the sprayer on the ground, Preston walked over to the large truck as Dylan jumped down from the driver’s seat and rushed around the other side to open Sydney's passenger door. Then in the back of the cab, Austin and his wife Nikki exited as well.

  “Hey,” he greeted as he wiped his hands on his grungy jeans before holding his hand out for his friend. “What are you guys doing here?”

  As Dylan shook his hand in response, Sydney chimed in. “We’re here to help. We’re a little late because the men thought they had better ideas for furniture than us women. They were very wrong. That and the drive back from Asheville took forever.”

  “Wait; what?”

  Clarifying Sydney’s statement, Dylan said, “We figured you needed help, but would never ask. And we wanted to have furniture here for Shelly and her son. So, what can we do?”

  Preston wasn’t sure if he should hug the collective group or stare at them as if they’d each grown two heads. Sydney took the option from him as she reached out and squeezed his arm in a friendly manner.

  “So, what can we do?”

  “Um. . .I just finished painting the exterior. I was moving to the inside walls next. But first, I need to turn the main breaker on and make sure the HVAC kicks on.”

  “I’ll handle that for you,” Austin called out.

  “Thanks, I can show you where it’s located. The paint and supplies are in the bed of my truck if y’all want to grab those.”

  “Awesome. The furniture is on its way. Once we get it inside, Sydney and I will run out and grab some décor items, so it really feels like a home. We’ve seen Shelly’s apartment in New York, so we have an idea of her style,” Nikki added, making Preston feel like he had definitely bitten off more than he could chew.

  “Wow, I hadn’t even thought about those things. If those paint colors won’t work, let me know and I can run out for something different. I went with a neutral light gray.”

  “That’s perfect,” Nikki replied as she hitched her lithe body over the tailgate and sorted through the supplies, handing them over to Sydney and Dylan.

  Preston was left speechless as he watched the Connelly women take charge and direct their husbands toward various projects to finish before the furniture arrived. Thankfully, cold air was gloriously pumping through the vents keeping the hot summer air at bay, allowing everyone to tackle a room for painting. He wished that he’d had the forethought to ask Cassidy for Shelly’s favorite colors so that he could make the place feel even more like a home for her and her son, but while he was at the hardware store, he figured he would go with something neutral and she could change it if she wanted. He wasn’t one hundred percent sure she’d still want to rent his cabin once she knew that it belonged to him. He knew from the Harposia drug file and Shelly’s monitoring due to her ex, DeShaun, that she was wary of law enforcement. Many of his colleagues had accused her of being an accomplice to the cartel and pushing drugs through the restaurants and bars she had worked at. Even accused her of using mafia money to pay for school. Preston and two of the other agents that had worked undercover with him in New York and Raleigh knew her innocence and fought for her release from the investigation. Unfortunately, because of her ties to DeShaun, the FBI did keep an eye on her whereabouts.

  “The furniture will be here shortly,” Nikki called out from the smallest bedroom just as he finished the last stroke of paint on the living room walls. One of the features he liked best in the cabin were the high ceilings and picture windows. He had left the wood paneling on the ceilings, which gave the home a rustic look, and he hoped Shelly liked it. Painting ceilings wasn’t one of his favorite things to do.

  In the kitchen, they worked together to clean the painting supplies just as beeping alerted them to a truck backing up toward the cabin. Nikki rushed outside to help direct the delivery team where to place the large items. Preston should have jumped up and helped, but honestly, he was exhausted from painting in the heat all morning.

  It took about twenty minutes for the furniture to get set up in a way that Nikki was happy with before the deliverers left. Preston thanked everyone for their help, wondering if the Connelly family was finally coming around to him. He hadn’t expected any assistance with the cabin, but for the four of them to show up out of the blue meant more to him than any of them would ever realize, except for maybe Sydney. Even when she had only known him as Caleb, her campus police boyfriend that was really an undercover FBI agent, he had always told her how important family and friendship was to him. It was one of the major downfalls of his career choice; close relationships were difficult to maintain.

  “Thank you guys for the help today.” Preston didn’t want the group to feel obligated to stay. He knew they both had children to get home to.

  “It was fun. And Sydney and I will be back tomorrow with some items to decorate. . .if that’s okay. I never even asked. I’m so sorry.” Nikki tacked on an apology as if he would be upset that they stormed in today and took over.

  “It’s absolutely okay, it’s not something I had even considered and I’m sure she’ll love it all.”

  Consoled, Nikki smiled as she followed her husband out the cabin, Dylan and Sydney following closely behind.

  “Thanks again, guys.”

  Just as Sydney crossed the threshold for the cabin, she turned around to look at him, leaning her petite frame on the door jamb.

  “For the record, I think it’s great what you’re doing.”

  “What am I doing?” he asked in fear, unsure if Sydney knew about his past with Shelly.

  Instead of responding, Sydney shook her head and turned away from the entrance heading into the arms of her husband.

  More confused than ever, Preston closed up the cabin and headed back to the main house. Silently he strode through the back door into the kitchen, where he grabbed a beer from the fridge, immediately popping the top and gulping half the liquid in quick succession.

  Besides his heavy breathing, Preston decided that his house was too quiet; maybe to fight his wayward thoughts about Shelly coming to live on his property, he should get a pet.

/>   Yes, a dog would definitely fix that problem.

  ***

  Cassidy had taken Shelly and Abel around the downtown of Carson. Things had changed a lot in the two years since she had last visited. It was definitely bustling more than she remembered. Abel had loved every minute of the tour, especially when they passed one of the local farms that had horses grazing out in the field. Unfortunately, Cassidy and Harlan were headed back on tour for his band, Exoneration. They had only come home to welcome Shelly to town. The couple had even offered to let Shelly and Abel stay at their house for the next three weeks while they were gone, but she wanted her own space.

  The sun had been awakening the town for a couple of hours by the time Shelly and Abel made their way down the sidewalk glancing in all the store windows. A fabric store pooled mounds of fabric in their store window so delicately Shelly couldn’t help but stop and stare.

  “Mommy, I’m hungry,” Abel reminded with a tug on her shirt. She had promised him cinnamon rolls from Sydney’s bakery last night and he hadn’t forgotten. He jumped on her bed at the first sign of daylight, insisting that they go get the gooey goodness she had promised.

  “I know. We’re going.”

  The trip worked in her favor since her new landlord was meeting her at Wake and Bake at 9 a.m. Cassidy had assured her that the place was perfect and fully furnished, but Shelly was skeptical. She had lived in furnished apartments before and the furniture was always a disappointment leaving her having to disinfect all of the pieces before she felt comfortable even sitting on a couch. But Cassidy tried to put her at ease, explaining that everything was new, making Shelly feel even worse. She had a very eclectic style and seriously doubted the landlord would pick out items that she would have. But she would appreciate it either way. Shelly had enough money in her savings account that she could buy decorative items to liven up the place as she needed.

  As they approached the bakery, the door opened with a whoosh, surprising Shelly and the tall, dark man that was exiting.