Chapter 45
I held Tanner’s hand, with Goldie tucked into my side as we stood on the front steps of the historic courthouse in the middle of Cedar Bluff.
Over a dozen different news stations, media outlets, and journalists waited at the bottom beneath a podium that had materialized from some storage room closet, I was sure.
It wasn’t every day a big story broke in sleepy little Cedar Bluff.
And while it felt good to finally be on the right side of it, I hated that there had been any story to tell in the first place.
The DA took the podium, looking like the bigwig, cocky prosecutor he was, as he released the official statement on the matter. I didn’t miss the way my lawyer, Anastasia Howe, a high-profile criminal defense attorney from the city, let him take the lead, standing just off to the side.
Waiting her turn.
My guess, she was going to make him sweat before it was over.
“After reviewing all the additional evidence submitted to the prosecutor’s office, all criminal charges filed against Rhea Dalton, of the Cedar Bluff Fire Department, have been dismissed.
There is no reason to believe that Ms. Dalton was involved in any part of these crimes against this town.
And therefore, we have reasonable suspicion to believe that she was targeted in an attempt to pin these despicable crimes on her.
In the end, she has been victimized by the true villain as well.
Effective immediately, the full staff at the District Attorney’s office will use this new evidence to prosecute the real culprits responsible for harming our town. ”
“All hail the hero,” Goldie whispered sarcastically, and I snorted, covering my mouth with my hand to make it look like a cough.
Goldie didn’t bother; she just beamed her pretty megawatt smile at the cameras.
The crowd murmured at the news. More than a few locals were joining the audience as we stood on Main Street in Cedar Bluff.
I couldn’t tell if they were more upset about me being framed, or that there had been time wasted trying to make me out to be the bad guy.
It seemed from the whispers making their way up to us that there was a little bit of both.
“And on that note,” Anastasia Howe confidently took the podium, commanding the attention of everyone else.
“While the State has determined that Firefighter Dalton committed no crime, the harm done to her reputation, livelihood, and standing in this community was not accidental.” A hush fell over everyone in the wake of the power radiating off the prim and proper woman, leading the charge.
“Effective immediately, my firm is filing a civil action suit against Bakewell Industries, its subsidiaries, and named individuals for a coordinated campaign of fraud, coercion, defamation, and reckless endangerment.”
Boom. That felt damn good. And I wasn’t even the one that got to say it.
There was a shift in the case for all of us. The entire thing was no longer stuck in a defensive move, defending my character by playing catch-up. It had become an offensive strike against those responsible for trying to ruin our town.
Anastasia continued. “We intend to prove that Bakewell Industries and its affiliates knowingly disseminated false information intended to implicate Ms. Dalton in criminal acts. These people not only tried to destroy Cedar Bluff, but they did in fact burn other towns, just like this one, to the ground using the same tactics and games. And it ends here. They’re guilty of defamation, civil conspiracy, tortious interference, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and worst of all, racketeering through a pattern of corruption spanning far and wide.
We are coordinating our efforts with federal agencies and exploring filing an official RICO case against those listed.
We also believe local cooperation played a role in this entire series of crimes against this town. ”
That was news, even to me.
Anastasia told us about the civil lawsuit last night, but this, the fact that there was possibly another inside force working with Celeste and Bakewell to cause all that destruction to our businesses, our livelihoods, for their own gain was a surprise.
That burned.
I didn’t gloat at the revelation; I didn’t cry or give in to the insurmountable relief inside me either. I simply exhaled, letting it all go with the wind.
The locals and the journalists froze, the same way I had.
Silently, coyly, looking around, wondering who could be behind the crimes.
While I didn’t love the idea of people pointing fingers at their neighbors in a sense of panic, if everyone was on alert, it would make flushing the snake out even easier.
Anastasia wrapped things up and then, with a single nod to me, as if I was the only one important enough for her time, she headed off to her chauffeured town car, idling at the curb for her.
A small, excited round of applause came from off to the side, but I couldn’t see who it was through the crowd.
“Gosh, she’s so glamorous.” Goldie sighed, watching her drive away before turning to me with wide-eyed panic. “Not that I was looking or anything.”
I snorted, rolling my eyes at her. “You could be wearing a blindfold, and you would still get caught looking at other women. But it’s fine, I’m confident enough to know you’re still coming home to me every night.”
“Well, she would, in theory,” Jasper cut in as he, Thomas, Elliot, and Travis made their way to us.
At some point, the Hayes’s kids joined, Emmie and Toby hanging out on the steps near their dads.
“But she’s been so preoccupied that there are no less than three dozen different flavors of muffins and croissants to make up for the charity tournament in two days, so—” he trailed off.
Oh yeah, I’d almost forgotten about that whole thing.
“Ugh,” Goldie groaned with a good-hearted sigh, “I suppose I can come out of my lair now that I know everything is back to normal again.”
“Thank God, too,” Jasper fanned himself dramatically. “I’m tired of being a boss babe. I just want to go back to being a bossy babe.”
I cackled and Tanner scoffed at his ridiculousness, but we all sobered up as my Chief made his way down the steps to us.
I had never particularly loved the dynamic between Chief Tolbert and myself, but I respected it. Chain of command was king in our world, and regardless of what I thought of him personally, he was a good chief.
But still, since the whole thing happened, and he sat by, watching silently if not even helping the police chief to arrest me over crimes he should have known I’d never do, the connection was frayed.
Cold even.
“Dalton,” he said, making his own space in the group, acknowledging Elliot and Thomas before looking me straight in the eye.
“I’m glad this whole criminal drama has been laid to rest.” There was something about the words he used to describe the single worst experience of my life that set me on edge.
“But we have other business to go over.”
“Okay,” I said, fighting the urge to scowl at the man. I was supposed to be on duty in less than twelve hours, and I couldn’t start off on the wrong foot.
“Your reinstatement is still pending. Until further notice, you’re still on administrative leave, without pay.”
“What?” I asked, shaking my head in disbelief as my ears rang. “But I was cleared. Exonerated completely.”
“I understand.” He said, almost flippantly. “But the legal system has no bearings over our in-house procedures and protocols. And we’re still investigating.”
“Investigating what, exactly?” Tanner barked. “The judge said there was no evidence. The call logs prove she was nowhere near the locations of the crimes.”
“We’re working through that.” Tolbert said, eyeing Tanner up as if he didn’t like being questioned by a cop. God, that cross-departmental hate ran thick with him. “And we will come to our own conclusion.”
“Jesus Christ.” I said, shaking my head. “I’ll never actually be good enough for you, will I?”
Shocked silence fell around us. I shouldn’t have said it, but I couldn’t stay quiet any longer either.
Tolbert wasn’t done with me yet, and with a look of indignation, he put the final nail in my coffin.
“Out of respect for public perception, you will not be allowed to participate in the upcoming charity hockey tournament either. People donated too much money to the event to worry about who is involved in their charity.”
The gut punch hit hard, and tears burned behind my eyes, which I refused to let fall.
I wasn’t a criminal. I wasn’t going to jail. But I was still excluded.
I was still not good enough to be an equal.
And that hurt even more.
A million quick jabs, and furious retorts flashed through my head at a thousand miles a second. I wanted to lash out and scream and cry about the injustice of it all, but I couldn’t.
Because as I started to unravel inside, I caught a glimpse of something at Travis’s side, peeking at me with wide, innocent eyes as she hid behind her dad’s leg. His little girl. Emmie Blake-Hayes.
Watching.
Waiting.
Silent as my nightmare unfolded in front of her.
I would not form her opinion of men or women with my reaction, even as deserved as it was.
Tanner didn’t catch on as quickly as I did, and he exploded at my side. A slew of words better saved for the jailhouse floor escaped his lips as he took a menacing step forward. Lucas and I both grabbed him, pulling him back out of the center of the group, and I stood in front of him.
Not because I agreed with what Tolbert was doing, but because I was better than that. And I refused to fall to my knees and beg someone to see my worth.
Never again.
I should have known better, though, because as I was calming Tanner down, Goldie let loose. Damn, did she let loose. That feral trash panda mentality she had described after my arrest shone through, bright and clear as day, as she threw her finger toward the chief, ripping into him.