A Better Class of Angels

“You going into the woods?”

“Yeah. If she did go into the woods to pee, she probably headed for the old levee.”

“What about the car? You wanna’ tow it?”

Jack exhaled again. “How long’s it been here?”

“I’ve been here an hour.”

“OK, call it in.” A vision of an middle-aged woman pounding on his deputy’s desk and demanding her car filled his mind. He took a deep breath and gave his head a shake. “Send it to the department garage, though. If she did just get lost in the woods, there’s no point in her having to pony up seventy-five bucks to the impound yard. I’ll go talk to the agent.”

He jogged across the narrow road and extended a hand. “Sheriff Jack Talburt.”

“Charlotte White.” She gripped his hand, shook it once, and then pulled away.

“I know you got better things to do than hang out here all day so what I’d like to do is send you into town with one of my deputies. He’ll get a formal statement from you while I see if we can find out what happened to your friend.”