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“A winning basketball tea my head

“Yeah, everybody started callingat me

“Fine, Win If I reht, you helped ride to my rescue, too, but I didn’t fly here to save a life I flew here to maybe save a life, but if we look at the evidence and Bobby Marchand is guilty of this crime, then the execution will have to move forward”

All hints of shts flashed across his face, he looked tired and years older “I know, and if he’s guilty, I’ll doBobby Marchand is my duty first”

I agreed with Newman, but I also knew that once the warrant arrived, there’d be a lot of pressure to finish it This was probably the most horrible murder this tiny area had seen in years, if ever They’d want the ain We had a few hours to figure out if there were enough grounds to vacate the warrant, or at least get a legal stay of execution under extraordinary circumstances while the evidence was processed

Hanuman’s sheriff’s station was roomier than I’d expected after the airport It had a front area big enough for two desks with room to add another if they were careful around the coffee machine There was one door in the back wall I sort of assumed that if they had a jail cell, it was back there, but you never knew in a place this small

Sheriff Leduc had to be at least five-eight, because my head didn’t coht he was carrying around his middle made him look shorter He’d had to fasten his duty belt underneath his stomach, so it fit more at his hips than at his waist You don’t have to hit the gy able to run at aa heart attack seems like a minimum for a police officer I wasn’t sure Leduc was at that minimum

He smiled and offered his hand, and we shook like ere actually on the same team I liked that and hoped it was true “Call me Duke Everyone does”

In ht, So your name is Duke Leduc, but I didn’t say it out loud I didn’t want to tease the ht

“Everyone pretty ,” I said I s me Anita That was fora badge Using last names also helped keep that professional distance that every woman in a mostly male-dominated field needs to keep

“Now, Anita—I can call you Anita, can’t I?” He smiled at me as he said it

I wanted to ask if he called Newman by his first na friendly, and that was good We’d need him on our side if we decided the warrant needed to be delayed It didn’t cost me much to let him use my first name

“Sure,” I said, and tried tomy teeth

Neas s so da citizens butchered fourteen hours ago We were all being so nice, it was al, as if ere there for a reason totally different from murder

“How’s Bobby holding up?” Newman said, and the smiles vanished from everyone’s faces