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“You agree with me?”
    â€œSomeone is behind all those little ‘accidents’ of his, but I’m not convinced it’s the mayor.”
    â€œWho, then? Surely not his mother?”
    He snorted. “Ginny? Hell—” he paused “—er, heck no.”
    â€œYou don’t need to guard your tongue around me, Chief Harte. I’ve heard a few epithets in my time. Probably some that would make even you blush.”
    â€œI doubt that. Anyone who uses words like ‘epithets’ couldn’t have heard too many raunchy ones.”
    â€œYou’d be surprised what you can hear in a school hallway.”
    â€œYou teach the fourth grade,” he exclaimed, appalled. “How bad could the cuss words get?”
    Her lips curved slightly, but she straightened them quickly, before the unruly things could do something crazy like smile, he figured. “I didn’t mean my students here, although I still certainly hear some choice language from them occasionally.”
    â€œWhere, then?”
    â€œWhere what?” She shifted her gaze down again, her fingers troubling a loose thread in her jeans.
    Why did she have to be so damn evasive about everything? Getting information out of the woman was as tough as trying to get those blasted climbing roses to grow in January.
    â€œWhere did you hear the kind of words that could make a rough-edged cop like me blush?”
    She was a silent for a moment, and then she took a deep breath and met his gaze. “Before I came to Wyoming, I taught for five years at a school on Chicago’s south side.”
    All he could do was stare at her. He wouldn’t havebeen more shocked if she’d just told him she used to be an exotic dancer.
    The fragile, skittish schoolmarm who jumped if you looked at her the wrong way used to walk the rough-and-tumble hallways of an inner-city school? She had to be joking, didn’t she? One look at her tightly pursed mouth told him she wasn’t. Before he could press her on it, though, she quickly changed the subject.
    â€œIf you don’t believe Corey’s being abused, what sort of trouble do you think he’s involved with?”
    He barely heard, still focused on her startling disclosure. Why did she leave Chicago? Did it have anything to do with her panicky reaction to him earlier? Or with her knee that still gave her trouble if she moved the wrong way?
    With frustration, he realized his burning curiosity was going to have to wait. Judging by that withdrawn look on her face, she wasn’t about to satisfy it anytime soon.
    He gave a mental shrug. He’d get the information out of her sooner or later. He was a cop. It was his job to solve mysteries.
    â€œI don’t know,” he said, in answer to her question about Corey. “But whatever it is, I doubt it’s legal. He sure looked scared when he came home and found me sitting with his parents.”
    â€œWhat do you plan to do next?”
    â€œTry to find out what he’s up to. I figured maybe if I can talk to him one-on-one, he might open up a little more.”
    â€œI take it you have a plan.”
    He nodded. “I’m coming to the grade school next month to talk about crime prevention, and he’s going to be my assistant. I expect it will take us several daysto get ready, which ought to give me plenty of time to find out what’s been going on with him.”
    â€œAnd he agreed to help you?”
    â€œHe wasn’t too crazy about it at first, but he finally came around. I think it will be good for him.” He paused. “If someone is hurting that kid, I’ll find out, Sarah. I promise you that.”
    She gazed at him, green eyes wide and startled at his vehemence. Tilting her head, she studied him closely as if trying to gauge his sincerity. Whatever she saw in his expression must have satisfied her. After a few moments she offered him a smile. Not much of one, just a tentative