04

Chapter One

"Are you absolutely sure you want to do this?

Marley Anderson turned back to where her mother stood, studying her with care and worry in her gaze. Marley loved the older woman dearly, and the depth of her mother's feelings for her was apparent. Still, Marley couldn't help but think how she could do with a little more support and less second-guessing from her mother.

"Geez, Mom, we've been over this before. I need to get away from the city, from my failed marriage, and from everything that reminds me of it. This is precisely what I need to be doing if I ever hope to make any progress on the new book."

"Your marriage isn't a failure unless you give up on it, Marley. I know I still haven't given up hope of you and Sean reconciling," the older woman declared, her words causing her eldest daughter's eyes to roll.

"Um, Mom, I've got a divorce decree that says it's just that, and Sean has the petite blonde trainer who he cheated on me with, living with him. If those two things don't confirm to you that our marriage is dead and buried then... hell, I don't know what to tell you," Marley stated, with exasperation as she packed the last of her personal things inside the trunk of the SUV, closing the hatch.

"There's no need for condescension, young lady," Jane Anderson declared while narrowing her eyes at her daughter, wondering why the younger woman couldn't see the use in her wisdom.

"I'm sorry, mother. Please forgive me, but I really need to get on the road now. I've got over an hour's drive, and it's getting late. I don't want to be put in the position to have to navigate those mountain roads in the dark," Marley stated, as she fished her keys out of her front pocket and then leaned in to give her mother a hug while kissing the older woman's cheek.

"The house should be clean, and I spoke to Mrs. Smith earlier this week and told her to make sure the fridge and cupboards were stocked with the essentials. She was also supposed to check all of the pilot lights and to make sure that you were stocked with firewood," her mother said, as she leaned in the driver's side window. "Please take care of yourself, Marley. God, I wish that you wouldn't run away like this, but if you must, then promise me you'll be safe."

"I will, Mom. You take care and give Daddy a kiss for me," Marley responded, before slipping her SUV into gear and slowly edging forward as her mother backed away from the vehicle. And just like that, Marley was finally on the road and not with a moment to spare.

Hitting Four Hundred North, Marley rode in silence as she slowly watched the topography before her change; the foothills of the Appalachian mountains rising up before her. Finally exiting the interstate, she began her trek eastward, her mind slipping back past the events that had led her to today.

She and Sean had only been married for three years, the brash young lawyer getting himself firmly ensconced within his father's powerful and successful law firm of Anderson, Ebbets, and Wallace during that time. Marley, still riding the success of her first book, had been steadily attempting to put out new chapters on her second effort, but finding the going much more challenging the second time around.

Still, Marley had felt content within the confines of her marriage; content, that is, until her husband had returned home one day from work and uttered those five words that no spouse wants to hear.

"Honey, we need to talk."

Looking back, Marley could see the red flags now in retrospect. Sean, who already worked an inordinate number of hours as a junior partner at the firm, had begun to spend less of his free time with Marley, choosing instead to play golf or work out at the country club gym. Yet, despite all of his supposed vigorous activities, Marley hadn't noted a change in her husband's physique.

Then there was the change in Sean's sex drive. Their typical four and five times a week lovemaking had suddenly dropped off to perhaps once or twice a week, not that Marley had complained at the time, sex ranking much lower on her list of needs than things like emotional stability and good communication. Still, the precipitous drop in their sex life had at least registered in Marley's mind.

Lastly, and perhaps most telling, had been Sean's sudden need for privacy when it came to his phone calls. In the past, Sean had always done an excellent job of limiting his career bleed over into their personal lives. Suddenly, though, Sean had begun receiving tons of phone calls and texts in the evenings that always had Sean leaving the room for the privacy of his home office.

Still, Marley had been utterly unaware of what was coming, right up until the point Sean had sat her down and informed her he was filing for divorce.

The three months following their talk, had been brutal ones for Marley. She'd struggled with the dissolving of her marriage, the paperwork formally putting it to an end, leaving the pretty blonde feeling disillusioned with the state of matrimony as a whole. In the time since her divorce, Marley had sworn to herself that she'd never again fall prey to the potential cruelty of romantic love and all its seductive trappings.

Marley smiled as she noticed a sign pointing towards Camden Township, the small and quaint little burg that would be the anchor of her new life. The Mayberry-like city was home to just over twelve thousand souls and sat in a valley between two mountains, seemingly hiding its occupants from the rest of the world.

Marley couldn't help but smile to herself as she pulled into the outskirts of town, reducing her speed to just above the posted speed limit. The small village consisted of a main thoroughfare flanked by two adjoining streets on either side. The main street held a pharmacy, two banks, the town hall, the local police station, and several other privately-owned, small businesses. The flanking streets on either side were populated by a grocery store, a bowling alley, a small cineplex, a couple of bars, and the county recreation department, complete with numerous ball fields and a large indoor sports complex.

Marley had just passed through town and was beginning the circuitous climb up the mountain on the other side when blue lights lit up behind her, the momentary whooping of a siren catching her attention.

'Fuck,'

Marley thought, as she slowed and pulled over to the slim shoulder at the side of the road.

'This is just the way I needed to end my day.'

Turning on her flashers and shutting off the engine to her SUV, Marley rolled down her window and watched in her side mirror as a distinctive figure stepped out of the vehicle behind her and began to stride her way.

Chapter Two

Chief of Police Allison Gardner stepped out of her cruiser and strode towards the late model Jeep parked in front of her. She paused briefly to touch the rear of the car, leaving her fingerprints on the vehicle just as she'd been taught long ago.

As she edged forward in a deliberate stride, Allison, or Allie as she was known by her closest friends, took note of the heavily packed belongings in the back of the vehicle. But it wasn't until she reached the driver's side window that she

,

indeed, saw the driver for the first time.

Allie felt her breath catch in her throat at the sight of the svelte blonde behind the wheel. She appeared to have a slim and athletic build, her neck long and graceful as the blonde turned to look at her, the woman's features pleasingly symmetrical. She was easily the prettiest creature that Allie had laid eyes on in a long time, perhaps ever.

"Was I speeding, officer?" the sexy blonde asked, in a melodious voice that sent shivers down Allie's spine.

"No, nothing like that," Allie replied, finally finding her voice. "I just happened to notice that your vehicle was packed so tight that I couldn't see your rearview mirror, which means you couldn't see out of it, which is a road hazard."

Blushing slightly as she turned to glance at the offending mirror in question, the blonde said, "I'm sorry about that. I really did try to pack things as well as I could, but there was just so much of it."

"You must be Mrs. Anderson," Allie stated, noting the look of surprise on the pretty blonde's face; she added, "Mrs. Edgerton down at the bank told me someone had purchased the old Houston home up on the bluff."

"That's me, it's Ms. Anderson, though. But please, you can call me Marley," Marley replied, with a smile that showed her pearly white teeth to their fullest.

'God, is she sexy or what?'

Allie thought, as she stared down at the gorgeous creature behind the wheel of the car.

'The things that I could do to her..."

Shaking off the more prurient thoughts clouding her mind, the constable said, "I'm Allison Gardner and I'm chief of police here in Camden, but you can call me Allie if you'd like."

"It's nice to meet you, Allie," Marley replied, extending her hand through the open window, her long and graceful fingers stretching out towards Allie.

Allie took the proffered hand, feeling a tingle run up her arm as she did. Allie couldn't really understand the reaction her body was having to the town's newest member. Yes, Marley Anderson was stunningly beautiful; there was no disputing that fact. But Allison had long since sworn off the notion of romantic entanglements after the debacle of her near marriage to Stacey Bennett. These days, the only regular female in Allison's life was her dog, Daisy; the black labrador far more loyal and dependable than any of the women Allison had dated in years past.

These days, Allison's sexual needs were fulfilled by her vibrator and infrequent trips to the gay bars in Atlanta that always ended with her getting a hotel room and fucking some beautiful young lesbian waif into sensual oblivion. Allie simply didn't need more than that, and she certainly didn't need the entanglements that came with a relationship.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, too," Allie replied, as she tried to shake the obvious attraction she felt for the blonde newcomer. "If you have any problems, feel free to give me a call."

"I'll do that," Marley replied, as she accepted the business card Allison had produced from her upper pocket.

Excusing herself and wishing Marley good luck with her unpacking, Allison returned to her car and slid in behind the wheel of her cruiser, watching the Jeep pull away as it began its ascent up the winding mountain road.

'You can call me Allie? Really? Come on, Gardner, there's only a tiny handful of people that you allow to call you that, and yet you invited little Ms. Sexy blonde thing to call you that right away? Pathetic, Gardner, really pathetic."

Sighing, Allie performed a perfect three-point turn after checking for traffic and began the descent back into town, her mind replaying over and over the image of Marley Anderson's beautiful smiling face.

Chapter Three

Marley pulled into her new home on the bluff overlooking the town of Camden down below. The ten-acre lot her house sat on was beautiful in and of itself. It was heavily wooded with hardwoods of various varieties. Oak, sweet gum, and sycamore trees surrounded the wooden structure, casting the home itself into dark shadows as the sun began to dip down towards the crest of the mountain above her. Sighing, Marley disembarked her vehicle and set about the task of unloading her belongings and bringing them inside.

Marley had purchased the house sight unseen, using a local real estate agent who'd sent her copious amounts of pictures. The Cape Cod style home with a wraparound porch had been recently remodeled within the last year, its previous owners deciding to sell and move to sunnier climates in south Florida. Its exterior had been redone in a gray vinyl siding with maroon shutters adorning all the windows and dormers. White railings ran the length of the porch and covered the steps leading up to where the maroon front door awaited her.

Unlocking the heavy deadbolt on the front door, Marley stepped inside and got her first look at her new home. She was greeted by an open floor plan, the living area stretching out to her left with a large and spacious kitchen taking up the opposite side. The house had come fully furnished, the previous tenants leaving their things behind as part of the deal. Marley sat her bags down on the kitchen island and went in search of the rest of the house, knowing there were two bedrooms and an office overlooking the bluff that looked down over the town. Marley's grand plan was to turn the office into her writing studio.

The first door to the left yielded to show Marley her master bedroom. It was spacious and had plenty of east-facing windows to allow in the morning sun. The area opposite a queen-size bed held a sliding barn door that, when opened, revealed the master bath.

Back out in the hallway, Marley discovered the guest bathroom opposite her bedroom door, and just down from it, a small guest bedroom with a twin bed and a dresser.

At the end of the hall, Marley, at last, found her writing studio. The room appeared to have been initially designed as a sunroom with eleven four-foot windows ringing its perimeter on three sides. The room faced southeast and looked directly down over the small town of Camden, lights already beginning to twinkle down below as long shadows stretched over the valley thanks to the setting sun.

In the center of the room, facing the central bank of windows, was an old desk with a chair. A love seat with end tables bracketing it on each side was to the right. The left side of the room had plenty of empty space, and Marley had already decided to use it for doing yoga to start her day.

Marley spent the next two hours bringing boxes and suitcases into the house. She managed to organize and stage each container in the room where it would be unpacked before her grumbling stomach became too loud to ignore any further.

Grabbing her purse and keys, Marley locked up and made her way out to her Jeep, starting the engine and throwing the shifter into reverse before backing up and heading down her driveway. From there, Marley began her slow descent down the mountainside. As she went, Marley caught a glimpse of the last rays of the sun in her rearview mirror, the sight making her think of the pretty auburn-haired policewoman from earlier. Allie had struck a chord in Marley for some reason, perhaps the fact that the mid-thirties beauty held such a position of power. Even in a small town like Camden, surely that was an oddity. There had to be a story there, and Marley promised herself that given a chance, she'd find out what it was.

Wheeling the Jeep down Main Street, Marley pulled into the local diner, her stomach once again sounding off for her to hurry up. Exiting her car and locking it behind her, Marley made her way inside the well-lit diner and took a seat at the bar; where a tired-looking waitress nodded her way and grabbed a coffee pot and mug before sauntering over and setting the cup down in front of Marley.

"I'm Mary and I don't believe I've seen you around here before. Are you just passing through?" she asked, as she filled the cup with strong-smelling java.

"No, I actually just bought the old Peterson place up on the bluff. I just got into town today and stopped unpacking long enough to come fill my stomach up before doing a little grocery shopping," Marley replied, adding, "I'm Marley, by the way."

"Nice to meet you," Mary said, with a smile as she took out her ticket book.

"So what's good here?"

"You can't go wrong with Sam's meatloaf, and he makes an excellent bowl of chili, too. The burger and fries here aren't bad either, but I'd go with one of the first two if it was me," Mary said, tapping her pen against the ticket book.

Marley ordered the meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy with a side of green beans and watched as Mary placed the ticket in the window, a tattooed well-muscled arm reaching for it before it even had time to stop flapping in the breeze. Mary then returned to where Marley sat, drinking her coffee.

"So, why Camden?" Mary asked.

Smiling back at the nosy waitress, Marley said, "I needed to get away from the noise and distractions in the city. I'm a writer, and I thought the peacefulness here might do me some good."

"Written anything I might have read?"

"Maybe," Marley replied with a shrug. "I've only had one book published so far, but it got as high as number three on the New York Times bestsellers list."

"What was it about?"

"It was a mystery book about a series of murders in a small southern town. It was set in the sixties amidst all the free love movement and political unrest of that time. It was called "Freebird," and no, it didn't have anything to do with Lynyrd Skynyrd," Marley replied with a grin as she sipped at her coffee.

She watched as Mary wrote the title down, tearing off the ticket and shoving it in her pocket before asking, "Is it still in print?"

"It is."

"Great, I'll have to check it out, though I'm really more of a romance reader myself," Mary said, with a roll of her eyes.

"Don't feel bad about it, Mary. At one time or another, I think every woman has been hooked on stories of some longhaired stud riding up to save us from ourselves," Marley said with a laugh.

"Tell me about it," Mary replied, with a laugh. "What those writers don't include is the rest of the tale, including the part where the longhaired bastard steals you blind while he's laying around and mooching off of you."

"Preach it, sister," Marley said, holding out her right hand for Mary to give her five, the bleach-blonde waitress obliging her in solidarity.

Just then, Marley heard Sam yell that her order was up; Mary excused herself to retrieve the hot plate of food. Returning, she set it down in front of Marley, adding silverware wrapped in a napkin.

As she started to cut up her food, Marley said, "I met the chief of police earlier today, Allie, right?"

"She let you call her that?" Mary asked, with a raised eyebrow. "Wow, you must be somebody important then because that hardass hardly lets anybody call her that. It's either Allison or Chief to everyone else."

"Aww, she seemed really nice to me," Marley replied, as she popped a slice of meatloaf into her mouth, chewing the morsel and relishing in its taste.

Mary laughed in response, tilting her head to the right with a smirk on her face. "Oh, I can think of maybe one reason Allison would be so friendly to you."

"What's that?" Marley asked.

"Well, not to be telling tales out of school, mind you, but let's just say that ole Allison bats for the other team."

It took Marley a moment for the idiom to hit home, her eyes widening as Mary's meaning struck home.

"So she's gay?" Marley asked, her voice lowering an octave even though they were the only two present in the dining room.

"Proudly so," Mary announced in response." She was even engaged to be married to a local girl several years ago, but it didn't work out. Her girl went off to college and met someone else, people that know her well say it damn near wrecked poor Allison."

Marley parsed the information with what little she knew of the police officer. She was a beautiful woman and solidly built, carrying herself proudly behind the badge she wore. Marley couldn't help but wonder if there wasn't a story there, perhaps a character for the new book she was writing.

"Do you know how she got into policing as a line of work?" Marley asked, noticing Mary was looking at something over her shoulder.

"No, can't say that I do, but you can ask her yourself because she just pulled into the parking lot."

Marley turned to see Allison Gardner striding purposefully across the parking lot towards the diner entrance. Turning back to her food, Marley began eating again as the bell over the door rang.