1 Chapter 1

1

Gabby slowed for the red light at Eleventh Street and Highway 101. “Shit!” She saw the accident about to happen and reached for her cell phone and dialed 911.

The two vehicles slammed into each other, and the pickup with the California license plate spun around once as it crashed into a pole. She asked for an ambulance and a police officer. Reaching into the glove box of her pickup, she grabbed a set of handcuffs, donned her cowgirl hat, put her four-way flashers on, and raced to the car. She was certain it was Bill Wilson’s.

Bill shook his head, got out, and haltingly jogged away from the scene.

Gabby called to him, “Bill, stop. You just had a collision.”

He looked over his shoulder, ignored her, and continued to flee.

“Stop, damn it. You’re under citizen’s arrest.”

He had to be drunk again. She had no trouble catching him. Hell, he was over fifty, and she was a spry thing at thirty. She grabbed his wrist, and he pulled away. She did a leg trip take-down and had him in cuffs, stood him up, and brought him back as a Bandon police officer rolled up with emergency lights flashing. Bill smelled like a brewery. She nodded to Officer Sheldon Winchester, opened his back door, and tossed Bill in.

She said, “I want my cuffs back, Shel. I patted him for weapons, and he’s clean.”

An ambulance and fire rigs pulled up for traffic control and first aid. In the pickup, she spied a sexy young thing, looking confused and shocked. They got her onto a stretcher, strapping her down. Yes, sir, a sexy young thing. Was she Japanese or Chinese? With so many people around her, Gabby couldn’t tell. They whisked her away. Gabby waited patiently as Sheldon handled the scene, called for tow trucks, and did everything himself. Hell, this was Bandon, and they could only afford one officer on duty most of the time.

She finally got to give Sheldon her statement and how she arrested Bill.

Sheldon shook her hand and returned her cuffs to her. “Thanks, Gabby, you should become an officer. You kick ass.”

She laughed. “Of course, cowgirls kick ass.” As she turned, she saw a wallet in the street. She opened it and read the license from California. Aneko Watanabe, certainly Japanese. A tingle ran through her. She told Sheldon.

“Crap, I already have to process and book Bill for DUI and write the report.” He handed her a blank supplement page for his report for her to write on.

Gabby said, “She went to the local hospital. I can drop it off to her, and if you want, get all her details for the report. If you want.”

“Gabby, you’re saving my ass here. At least become a reserve officer. We need you.”

“Not in this lily white, heterosexual, male-obsessed little community.”

She grabbed the driver’s suitcase from the cab of the truck, jumped in her truck, and sped off. At the local general hospital, she walked in the ER door past the sign saying it was for patients only. She went to the nurses’ station.

“Hi, Amanda, I need to see the accident victim. Sheldon is alone again and has to book Bill Wilson for DUI. Sheldon asked me to help him out.”

Amanda smiled. “Sure. She’s in bed number one in the ER, waiting for X-ray results.”

Biting her lip, she headed in, hoping against all hope. She slowly pulled the curtain back and walked in. “Hi.”

The young woman seemed to be staring at nothing. “Hi. Who are you? Obviously not hospital staff.” She looked at the cowgirl hat.

“No, I’m not, I’m Gabby. I witnessed your accident, called it in, and arrested Bill, the other driver, for DUI and hit and run. He wasn’t sticking around. Again. Local town drunk. Officer Winchester was alone, as usual, and asked me to return your wallet. We found it in the street at the scene. He also needs all your information, full name, address, and so on for his report. If you want, I’ll take your statement, too, and write it up.”

She winced as she moved. “You’re a police officer?”

Gabby shook her head as she tried not to stare at the wonderfully sexy lass. Hard to tell with her lying on the gurney, but she couldn’t be over five-foot-three, maybe one hundred twenty pounds? Gabby cleared her throat, moved closer, and handed the wallet over. “Um, no, not an officer, just helping. I grew up in this town and know pretty much everyone. We’re a small town. Only one cop on duty most of the time.” She shrugged. “So, I’m helping.” She hoisted the suitcase. “I brought this, in case you wanted anything from it.”

The girl shrugged. “Okay, I guess. Thanks for my wallet. And suitcase. Yes, I’m glad it’s here.”

Gabby got a pen from the staff and wrote down Aneko’s vital info and her statement, which basically was she had a green light on Highway 101 and got hit.