Page 15 of Little Last Words

Sadie reached for it and squealed, “Kiki!”

“I thought you might like to have her with you.”

She wrapped her arms around Kiki, burying her head in its fur, and said, “My tummy hurts.”

I’d bet it did.

In addition to being in knots, she’d eaten her weight in ice cream.

“Maybe your tummy needs a rest from sugar,” I said.

“I can get you a glass of water,” Foley said.

She shot him an inquisitive glance, turning away as soon as his eyes met hers.

“This is my friend, Chief Foley,” I said. “He wanted to meet you. He has an important job. Do you want to guess what he does?”

She shrugged.

“He makes sure everyone who lives in this town and the towns and cities around it are safe,” I said.

“How does he do that?” Sadie asked.

“It’s his job. He’s kind of like a police officer.”

She narrowed her eyes, staring at him like she didn’t believe me. “No, he isn’t. Police officers wear black, and they have shiny metal things on their shirts. He’s not wearing black, and he doesn’t have a shiny metal thing.”

“I have a shiny metal thing,” Foley said.

“You do?” Sadie asked.

“Sure do. Would you like to see it?”

Sadie nodded.

Foley reached into his pocket and walked over, bending down as he pulled out his badge and showed it to her.

“Can I hold it?” Sadie asked.

“Sure,” Foley said.

He handed it to her. She folded it over in her hand, looking at it for a moment before returning it to him. “If you’re a police officer, why are you in a T-shirt and jeans?”

I knew why.

He hadn’t had time to change.

After I discovered Penelope in the bathtub, I’d given him a call. He was out running a few early-morning errands in San Luis Obispo. Given the news I’d discovered a woman had been murdered, he came straight over.

“Good question,” Foley said. “I, ahh … I … well … my uniform is being cleaned.”

She seemed satisfied with his answer and said, “Ohh, okay.”

The case of the missing uniform had been solved, but my curiosity about why she thought officers always wore black led to my next line of questioning.

“Have you ever met a police officer before?” I asked.

She began fidgeting with a button on her sundress.