Chapter 1

"Sylvia Porter?" the older man in the deputy uniform asked.

"Yes sir, I'm Sylvia Porter," I answer rising to my feet.

"Come on it," he said leading me into his basement office. Sheriff substations often end up in the basement of court houses, or so I'm told. For sure in counties with such a small population base, it has to help with the costs. The land mass of Warren county is huge but the population is small. When I got the request for an interview, I did a lot of research.

"Silvia, I'm Jim Webster. I am the chief deputy. For all intents and purposes I run the department. The Sheriff is not much of a hands on guy." he informed me. "He is more a planner and politician."

"I see, I'll try to keep that in mind, if you hire me," I said.

"Well you finished third in your class at Salem academy, that is a real plus. You also have four years of Military Police experience. Of that two tours were in Afghanistan," he said.

"It was the Air Force, so the experience was mostly sentry duty. Gate and airplane guarding was about all I did. Not much combat there, but a lot of walking back and forth. I did some CID work between deployments." I informed him.

"Well that's a lot more than most of our applicant have done. Frankly Sylvia I'm surprised you are even considering us," he said.

"Chief Deputy Webster, the economy is in shambles and you are one of the only places that agreed to interview me frankly. I think most want men, even though they can't say that," I said.

"Our problem is similar, but opposite. We have been sited in a report by a women's rights group. They say we don't have any female deputies. So we are under pressure to hire women. You would be our first, but not our last I assure you. We have ten deputy slots in the department and two of them need to be female."

"I see, so a more qualified male might be passed over to hire me?" I asked.

"Actually that is true in theory, but you are at least as qualified as any males who applied. However, I do worry about your ability to take care of yourself out there. We work alone and if you have a problem, it is a long time before help can reach you." Webster smiled at me as if hoping I would back down.

"I will certainly keep that in mind, when I speak with persons of interest," I suggested. "Fortunately I'm not all that prissy. I do not mind getting down and dirty, I have done that a few times," I admitted.

"If we should hire you, when could you start," he asked.

"The day after I found a place to live. I am staying with my mom till I find a place to work. She lives in Avery about fifty miles east of here. Commuting isn't really an option."

"Yeah, I can see that. I'll tell you what Sylvia, if you want the job it's yours." Webster said.

Since he was going to be my boss, I took a better look at Webster. He was at least six feet tall but certainly not much more. He might have been twenty or so pounds over weight. His hair was gray and thin. Except for the uniform he was just a typical middle aged man. Webster was close to or maybe even past sixty but not to far from it in either direction.

"Yes, I definitely want the job. I'll start looking for a place to live immediately," I said.

"There is an old motel on main street. It is just outside the downtown. I know the woman who operates it. I'll give her a call, if you like. You two can work out a deal while you look for a place," Webster suggested.

Ten minutes later I was standing in front of a woman I guessed to be 40 to 50 years old. "Hi there I'm Sylvia Porter. Deputy Webster suggested I come by," I said ... I was absolutely sure that Webster had called her.

"Yes, he just got off the phone," the woman said. Then she added. "I am Jennifer Wilson. I own this place. So how long will you be staying?"

"To be honest I don't know. I have to find a place to live." I said.

"I will make you a deal, so that you don't have to rush. In exchange for a discount you walk through the lounge in the parking lot. Just so that the lounge customers know that a Sheriff's deputy is keeping an eye on the place.' Miss Wilson said.

"What kind of discount?" I asked.

"A hundred bucks a week. That includes everything," she informed me.

"That sounds reasonable. You have a deal," I said. Since I had a few hundred dollars left in my savings account, I paid her for the first month.

After I left the fifty year old motel, I drove my ten year old Toyota back to my mother's house. "Well mom I got the job in Warren County," I said.

"You knew when you left, that if you didn't do anything stupid, you had the job," mom said.

"Yeah I know, but now it's official. I have to start as soon as possible. I rented a place to live up there, so I will be moving tomorrow," I explained. After talking to my mother I loaded half a dozen small boxes with clothes. I also had a pile of clothes on hangers. Most of the clothes I owned at that time had been purchased since I was discharged from the Air Force. Not quiet everything was new, but most of it was reasonably new.

I said goodbye to my mother early the next morning. I was on the road over an hour before I arrived at the motel. After I hung up all that I could, and filled the drawers with all they would hold, I still had two boxes left. I stacked them in the corner. I knew that the room was too small, but it would do for a while.