You’re a fighter. Look at everything you’ve overcome. Don’t give up now. – Olivia BensonJolene had been looking forward to Thanksgiving with her family. It had been weeks, if not months, since she had seen them. The last time that she had seen her family was after Ty got burned last month. Or was it the month before?It all seemed to blend into one long memory anymore.She had her suspicions about the triad. Jolene knew her brother better than he thought she did. She also saw the occasional looks and touches between the three of them. Maybe her mom’s new boyfriend would be there. JD had said that they were talking again but didn’t go into details. But they were all getting the daily pictures of her flowers. Jolene was glad that her mom was finally finding some happiness.Since JD was insisting on making his now famous apple crisp, she could try the dessert that everyone was raving about. At least she could still text and talk with her family. With that thought, she suddenly feared t

You normally have to be bashed about a bit by life to see the point of daffodils, sunsets and uneventful nice days. – Alain de BottonSheriff Gina Dawson firmly believed that a good leader would lead by example and sacrifice. Not by demands and special treatment. And that is why she volunteered to do a twelve-hour tour on the holidays. Every holiday. She always wanted to make sure that her deputies had time with their families. Especially those with young children.Her own kids were grown and most had kids of their own now. She enjoyed being a grandma. There were times that she wished she was not being a grandma on her own. But fate had its own plans. She learned that when she buried her husband of twenty-seven years. He was killed in a shoot out with bank robbers. Wasn’t that the stereotypical death for a cop? With them both in law enforcement, they always joked that at least one of them would die in a bank robbery. When the police captain and sheriff pulled her into the sheriff’s o

You are one decision away from a completely different life. – Mel RobbinsGina watched her brother drive away before approaching the Morgan City police officer. She could see the smoke coming out of his ears and hear the wheels turning. She wondered what the excuse that he came up with would be.Stress from the job.Kink got out of control.Holidays.Pick a pile of bullshit and that would be the line that he would try to feed her.“Sheriff Gina Dawson.” Gina said extending a hand as she stopped in front of the local cop.“Sergeant David Wells. One of my officers lives there.”“I’m aware. He’s currently in custody.”“I want to speak to him.”“No.” Gina said flatly resting one hand on her gun and the other on her cuffs.“Professional courtesy.”“No.” She shook her head slightly. “Come on. I’m his boss.” “If you arrested someone off the street and their boss showed up, would you let them talk to their employee?”“No.”“Good. You know my answer.”“He’s entitled to legal representation.”

It’s OK to speak up for yourself, be assertive and refuse disrespect. It doesn’t make you a bitch. It makes you someone who is setting healthy boundaries. – Karen SalmonsohnHelen was made to go sleep in the hotel room for a while. Reese was able to get her to stay in bed for about four hours of exhausted sleep. She was back at the hospital before five on Friday morning. The nurses made sure that both Jolene and Helen were comfortable. Willow showed up around seven with breakfast for everyone that was staying at the hotel and hospital. At nine, Colleen came and checked on Jolene before sending her down for surgery. Along with Helen and her family, Reese, Dean and Cheryl sat in the surgical waiting room. His sisters rotated through, making sure everyone had everything they needed. They had weathered many storms before and were prepared for anything. JD and Dean were watching a movie on a laptop in the corner. Cheryl was talking with Bunny about her pregnancy. Jaxon was half-heartedl

You can, you should and, if you’re brave enough to start, you will. – Stephen KingIt was because of the interest that the case was generating, mainly from Hank’s family, that Douggie scheduled a press conference for Monday. Reese hired a lawyer for Jolene and a second one for the family. They in turn immediately filed for a divorce and orders of protection. Douggie usually did not release pictures of crime scenes while the investigation was still going, but sometimes you had to fight with facts.And sometimes you had to keep your hand hidden. Like the fact that he had video footage of the locals not investigating and simply accepting the suspect’s word. But that could wait. After all, that would be a separate investigation.To set the public record straight, he commandeered the community room at city hall. There was a long table sitting up front with three chairs behind it. Three microphones sat on the black tablecloth. An emerald green banner hung across the front of the table wit