51: The Beginning Chapter 1 Part 3

Lindsay sat for a moment as the laughter from Big Bob and Little Bob died down.

“Thank you, Cat. I’m sorry to bother you again,” Lindsay said.

Cat replied with a smile, “No problem. I’m here whenever you need me.”

“All right, you two,” Lindsay said, looking at both Bobs, “What do we do about this? I mean, it is a little funny, but this could be a real problem for everyone. Has this ever caused a problem as far as his ability to do his job? If he can’t talk to women, that takes out about half the county he can work with. That isn’t counting the fact that he may not even be able to speak to me. Can he talk to Cat?”

Big Bob put his hand up and explained, “So far, this hasn’t caused any problems. As far as we can tell, he only has that problem when he is face-to-face with a woman. If possible, he takes the report over the phone, and he does fine with Cat on the radio. When he does have to talk to Cat or any other woman face-to-face, he looks down at the notebook he always has with him. When he does those things, he’s OK.”

Lindsay looked at Big Bob and asked, “What happens when I meet with him for the first time?” 

Big Bob and Little Bob just looked at each other and then back at Lindsay.

“You plan on meeting with him?” asked Little Bob.

“I plan on meeting with all of the department employees so I can find out who they are from them, not their personnel files or second-hand information. How they all respond to me will give me a lot of insight,” Lindsay told him.

“That does make sense. Most people who take over as sheriff want to come in and change everything, or they change nothing. You sound like you want to change what needs changing,” Big Bob answered.

“I follow the adage, ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’ I want to find out if there is anything that is broken and then fix that one thing. I don’t believe in blanket firing or hiring or changing all department policies and procedures before finding out if what is in place still works.”

“Sounds like a good plan,” Little Bob said.

“OK, gentlemen,” Lindsay said as she looked at the two men before her. “Can you tell me what the general feeling is in this department about me taking over? Also, what about the people out in the county? How do they feel about everything that has taken place with the old sheriff quitting and me taking over for now?” 

Little Bob replied, “In the department, most of the people who were on your side when you were fired shortly after you, if they spoke up, and if not, they quit. As for the rest of the county, there are so many questions about everything that happened in the past few days, I’m not sure how anyone feels right now.”

“Most of the people who work here aren’t sure about anything right now, and I think most of the citizens of this county feel the same way after what’s happened,” Big Bob chimed in. “I’m not even sure what happened with the sheriff. What did the Commissioners tell you about it?”

Lindsay took a deep breath and let it out slowly, “All they told me was he was attacked by something. Whatever it was, it ripped the door and light bar off his patrol car. Then he quit. They also said that they had asked several others to take the job, and they all refused.”

“That is more than what I was told,” Little Bob said. “I did hear that the sheriff said you were right. You want to talk about that?”

“I don’t want to talk about it, and I’m sure he was just ranting after he had the crap scared out of him,” Lindsay answered.

“If you say so,” Big Bob smirked.

“All right, back to the people who work for this department. What are your opinions about our lovely day dispatcher? So far, I am impressed. I must admit I was a little disappointed Esther wasn’t here anymore, but I think Cat might be better,” Lindsay said as she looked at both Bobs.

The Bobs looked at each other for a moment as if they were trying to figure out who was going to speak first.

Little Bob started. “She is brilliant, well educated, and can handle anything that walks through that door. She also scares the ever-living crap out of me.”

Lindsay was slightly concerned about that answer, but looked at Big Bob, waiting for his response. Big Bob was nodding his head in agreement.

“Is there anything that you would like to add to what he just said?” Lindsay asked Big Bob.

“I did see her almost beat a guy to death while sparring with him at the gym. She didn’t even break a sweat. I agree with everything Little Bob said,” Big Bob answered.

“OK, I can live with that if she is as good at her job as I think. Big Bob, Little Bob, I still have a stack of files to go through. Is there anyone else I should pay attention to?” Lindsay asked.

Big Bob sat shaking his head no.

Little Bob answered, “Not that I can think of. Don’t worry so much. You know we have your back as much as we can. I just wish you would tell us more about what happened to you. Then maybe we could understand what is going on here.”

“I would tell you if I could explain it or remember it. I’m not even sure what happened,” Lindsay said. “You two are two of the best deputies I know. Will you keep me informed of anything you happen to hear about the mood out in the county?”

“Of course, we will, sweetheart,” said Big Bob as he and Little Bob stood to leave.

“You know, you shouldn’t call me sweetheart,” said Lindsay.

Big Bob smiled, “That wasn’t for you. That was for him,” as he pointed at Little Bob.

After the two Bobs left her office, Lindsay returned to reading the files. Most of the people who had been hired were former military personnel who had been stationed at the local military base. That was not a surprise to her at all. Her husband was, in fact, former military and currently a government employee working on the base. All the deputies seemed to have proper training and experience, and the same was true for the jailers and office staff. Thankfully, there were a few she knew and had worked with before and had faith in their abilities. She just could not stop thinking about the issue with Deputy Andy Baxter.

What would she do with a deputy who could not talk to women? Hopefully, she could help him get over it. The big question was how she would do that when she was a woman, and he would not be able to talk to her.