Chapter 23
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CALEB
"I take it things are worked out between you and Ruby?" Dad asks as we sit on the back porch, nursing beers.
"Yeah." I give him a smile, grateful that he's present enough in my life to ask. "It was exactly what we needed. Could've done with a few more days."
He chuckles, inhaling deeply. "Couldn't we all?"
Molly is throwing a softball back and forth with one of her teammates, while Darren and Levi are working on Levi's jump shot.
"He's getting better at that," Dad says as he nods his head toward where Levi and Darren are playing.
"Yeah, he's hopefully going to make the middle school team this year." There have been a couple times where Levi's not been the best player on the court, but he's got more heart than anyone else I've seen play.
Dad takes another drink from his bottle. "He's worked hard enough for it."
Ain't that the damn truth? If it were up to me, he'd make it on effort alone, but I'm not the coach, and no one asked my advice. "How are things going with you?"
He sighs heavily, raking a hand through his hair. "Being chief of police isn't all that it's fucking cracked up to be."
I raise an eyebrow, curious. Obviously, I've heard murmurs here and there. At a place like a police station, there's always gossip. "What's been going on?"
He leans back, staring out at the horizon. "It’s a mix of everything, really. Staffing issues, budget cuts—you name it. The department's spread pretty thin, and it's hard to stay on top of things. I've got officers pulling double shifts just to keep up with the basics. You probably know that, you're pulling more hours than you really want to. I just don't think anyone realizes how close it is."
“Yeah," I nod my head, rubbing my hand along the chair I'm sitting in. "I'm working a fuck-ton more than I want. The money's nice, but I could tell that things weren't on the up and up like you hoped they would be once you took over. What you're dealing with? That sounds rough."
"It is," he admits. "And then there's the community. You know how it is. Half of them feel we're not doing enough, and the other half think we’re overstepping. It's a delicate balance, and I'm just not sure I'm the man to bridge the gap."
I nod, feeling the weight of his words. “Seems like an impossible situation, but if anyone can bridge the gap, it's you, dad. You were fucking made for this. I think you know that.”
"It can feel that way. But every once in a while, there’s a win. Like the drug bust last week on C shift. We'd been working on that for two months. It took a while, but we shut it down.”
"I know that felt good. Even though I didn't have anything to do with it, I was excited," I say, trying to keep things positive.
His eyes shine with pride in a job well done. "It did. It's moments like that which remind me why I signed up for this, even when things get tough."
We sit in silence for a moment, watching as Levi sinks a perfect shot. "You’ve always liked the challenge, though,” I say, trying to encourage him.
He chuckles, a bit of his usual warmth returning. “True enough. Keeps me feeling alive.”
"Well, we’re all proud of you.”
He glances over, gratitude in his tired eyes. “Thanks, Caleb. Means a lot.”
I take a sip of my beer, the evening settling around us. "Just let me know if there's anything I can do."
He nods, thoughtful. “Having family like you—sometimes that’s all I need.”