All Chapters of 51: The Series: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Lindsay got into her car and thought about what she was doing. She was not even close to being ready to return to that department after what had happened, much less to be in charge of it. As Lindsay started to drive, she thought about the many things she wanted to do that first day. One of the first things was to look through the personnel files so she knew who was working there. She had heard that several had been fired after voicing their disapproval of her termination.The first thing was to talk to Esther. Esther had been the receptionist and day dispatcher for so long that no one could remember her not being there. She was the one who truly ran that sheriff’s department. Ester knew everyone there and everything that happened, no matter what time of the day or night. It did not matter what the question was; if you needed answers, Esther was the woman to ask. Lindsay found herself smiling and looking forward to seeing Esther today. She would have coffee made and a smile on her face

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. Wh

Wren and Lindsay looked at each other, and Lindsay shook her head. Wren went to the door and opened it. “May I help you?” Wren asked.“I was told that the new sheriff wanted to speak with me. My name is Andy Baxter,” he said quietly.Lindsay was taking a drink of her soda and almost choked when she heard Andy. Who had told Andy to come to her house? Was he even going to be able to look at her? This could either be great because Wren was there, or it could go downhill quickly if Andy panicked.“Andy, please come in. Have you had a chance to eat this shift? We have pizza if you are hungry,” Lindsay said.“I…I…I’m fine, ma’am,” Andy stammered as he stared at her.“Wren, Deputy Baxter is probably the most highly trained deputy the department has,” Lindsay said. “Andy, this is my husband, Wren.” Lindsay could see the look of panic on Andy’s face when she asked him, “What can I do for you?”Andy had briefly looked up when he and Wren were introduced. Now, he was once again looking at the f

As soon as they got in the car, Andy started it, and Lindsay called the sheriff’s department to let them know they were leaving the area. She asked them to call the phone company for Rita and ensure they knew it was an emergency, and to please repair her phone as soon as possible. That was more than Lindsay needed to do, but she also felt it was the right thing to do. She also gave instructions that she was to be called if Rita called again.The drive back was pleasant and peaceful. It turned out that Andy was a good driver, so she was not nervous riding with him. She had ridden with some who made her want to kiss the ground when the car came to a stop. Lindsay surprisingly found herself enjoying the ride and gazing out the window at the stars. She could not remember the last time she had done either of those things. She was startled when Andy spoke.“Sheriff, you know more about that call we were on than you are saying, don’t you?”Lindsay took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. She w

“How did that call to Ms. Johnson’s house go last night? I heard it was you and Andy. Why were you with Andy, anyway?” Little Bob fired off without pausing in his work.“How did you know about that call?” Lindsay asked.“I could tell you that it's because I take my job seriously and keep informed about everything so that I can pass it on to you. However, the real reason is that my mother called me this morning. She and Ms. Johnson go to church together. You seem to have made quite the impression on her, and she is hard to impress,” Little Bob answered.“Well, thankfully, she was fine, but something damaged her phone box at the back of her house. As far as why I was with Andy, it was because Andy came to my house yesterday evening. It seems as though Big Bob had told him that if he did not come to talk to me, I would fire him. The call came in while Andy was still at my house. He wasn’t familiar with that area, so I went with him and drove,” Lindsay said. “Is there anything else you wa