The Bad Boy of Redemption Ranch - Maisey Yates Page 0,26
doing the interview.
She knew that it would be a panel of four people including the city manager, the mayor and a couple of council members.
When she walked in, she felt like she’d been hit with a brick, because of course the city council member that was present was Barbara Niedermayer.
And she knew she should feel sorry for Barbara.
For all the reasons Iris had said.
But Rose’s words were the ones that replayed in her mind over and over.
She’s mean.
“Hi,” Pansy said, moving over to the table and taking her seat across from the panel. “Nice to see you all.”
“You too, Officer Daniels,” said Jeb, the city manager.
“I’m ready,” she said.
Whether she meant for the interview to start or for the police chief job, she wasn’t entirely sure. But both were true, so it didn’t really matter which.
“Any progress on my missing wallet?”
Pansy gritted her teeth. “Not as yet,” she said. “But no one has tried to use any of the credit cards. Or produced your ID anywhere. It’s all flagged, so if it happens we’ll get a notice.”
“That’s not very compelling,” Barbara said, making a note in front of her. The others at the table didn’t seem very compelled by Barbara. Which made Pansy feel better.
“It says in your file that you have six years of experience on the police force.” That comment came from Mayor Lana Ramirez.
“Yes.”
“And your father was police chief.”
Pansy nodded. “He was.”
“But he was thirty-five when he took the job. Do you feel that you have the necessary maturity to handle the responsibilities inherent to this position?”
“My father was thirty-five,” Pansy said. “And he also had the responsibilities of a ranch and a family. My life is Gold Valley. I’m devoted absolutely to the community and to the people here.”
“And what are your feelings on the school being run at the Dalton ranch?” This question came from Barbara.
“My feelings on it? I don’t really have any. They met all the legal requirements to be able to do so.”
“So you don’t think it’s a problem that they’re bringing juvenile delinquents into town.”
“There hasn’t been any trouble.”
“One of the boys went missing last year and the search and rescue effort cost the city a substantial sum of money. Additionally, there was the break-in at my home.”
“Two incidents don’t make a trend,” Pansy said. “We are very fortunate in Gold Valley to have a low incidence of crime. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be issues. The town is populated by people. No matter where they come from, people aren’t perfect.”
She imagined that she should pander a little bit more, but she really didn’t know how. All she knew was honesty. Being straightforward. She looked up and she caught Lana’s eyes. The other woman seemed to approve. And maybe this was the strategy that Pansy should use anyway. Because it was proving that she could handle opposition. She didn’t know what else to do.
The questioning went on, and Pansy answered everything to the best of her ability. When it came to facts, she was completely certain of herself.
When it came to her qualifications, she was confident.
And when it was finished, she shook hands with the panel and walked out of the room, feeling energized.
She was going to be able to do this. She knew what she wanted. She knew that she was qualified.
And all of her concerns about West faded away because when it came to her work, she knew exactly what she was doing.
Then, her radio squawked. It was dispatch.
“Daniels.”
“There’s been a break-in at Buttercloud Bakery.”
Buttercloud was a small family owned bakery just off Main that had cakes and bread you could buy by the slice or as a whole, and served biscuit sandwiches all day. It was a fairly new business and was becoming popular with locals and tourists alike.
“I’m on my way.”
By the time Pansy arrived, the owners were there, surveying the broken windows.
“What was taken?” Pansy asked.
“The register was pried open, but we didn’t have more than fifty dollars inside. That’s gone. And mostly... A lot of bread. And Twinkies.”
Pansy shook her head. “I don’t understand. I mean, that window is more expensive than what was taken.”
“At least insurance will cover that,” said the owner.
“Yeah. Well. We’ll check for prints and all of that.” And when she was finished, and they ran them through the system later, she was not terribly surprised to discover that they were the same fingerprints that she had found on Barbara Niedermayer’s car.