Please Don't Feed the Mayor Read online

  “And there you have it,” Chad sneered. “This is Chad Chapman signing off from The Craziest Town in America.”

  As the show returned to its co-hosts, Pete turned off the projector and turned on the lights. No one said a word as Melanie stood there, stunned and horrified. Chad Chapman had lied to her. The whole thing was just a setup so he could make a hit piece about Fossett, holding it up to ridicule in front of the entire nation. The way he’d portrayed Shep as some sort of criminal canine made Fossett and its residents look like a bunch of boobs for electing him as their mayor.

  Bryce had tried to warn her, she thought, but she wouldn’t listen. How, she wondered, would they ever recover?

  Rod Blakely jumped to his feet and scrambled onto the stage.

  “Did you see that?” he screeched, pointing to the projection screen. “Can you believe it?”

  Melanie winced. She could only imagine the sort of criticism she’d be in for now. Whatever he said about her, though, it would be nothing compared to the censure she was already heaping on herself. She took a deep breath. This was her fault. The best thing to do was go up there and apologize, hoping her friends and neighbors didn’t run her out of town.

  Then Rod threw his hands in the air and cheered.

  “We’re famous!”

  At once, everyone was on their feet, cheering, clapping, and giving one another high fives. Melanie stood rooted to the spot. Was it possible this wasn’t a disaster after all? She looked over at Walt, who turned his hands up in wonder.

  As she stood there, dumbstruck, Melanie heard people in the audience speculating about how best to capitalize on their newfound stardom. Where had all these ideas about business opportunities, branding, and investment strategies come from?

  Bryce was right, she thought. There’d always been plenty of talent in Fossett. All it needed was for someone to fan that spark of potential into a flame, and from the looks on everyone’s faces, this fire was going to burn more brightly than any of them could have imagined. She’d done it, Melanie thought. Maybe not in the way she’d intended to, but she was the one who’d made it happen. She only wished she hadn’t driven Bryce away at the same time. She covered her face with her hands and burst into tears.

  “Hey there,” Walt said, giving her a hug. “What’s wrong?”

  Melanie turned and sobbed into his chest.

  “Isn’t this what you wanted?” He patted her back. “I’d have thought you’d be overjoyed.”

  “I am, Walt, but look what it cost me. Bryce will never forgive me.”

  He gave her a skeptical look.

  “Oh, I don’t think I’d give up on Bryce just yet, if I were you.”

  “But the things I said . . .”

  “Can’t be unsaid—by either of you—I understand that, but that man loves you. Give him a call and tell him you’re sorry. I think you’ll find he’s as sorry as you are.”

  She sniffled. “You really think so?”

  Walt laughed.

  “There’s only one way to find out.”

  Melanie bounced onto her tiptoes and kissed his cheek.

  “I’ll be right back.”

  CHAPTER 23

  Flakes of powdery snow fell as Melanie loaded the projector television into her Honda the next day. She’d decided to return the equipment to the rental place herself rather than ask someone else to do it. The truth was, she and Shep needed a break.

  The border collie was already on the back seat, lying on his side as he watched her get into the car. People had been coming into the shop all morning wanting to shake his paw or give treats to the new mayor, and Melanie had decided it would be better to take Shep with her than have him overindulge on their well-intentioned goodies. Heaven forbid he should ever say no.

  “If this keeps up, I’ll have to put up a sign that says: ‘Please Don’t Feed the Mayor,’” she told him as she started the car.

  It was only a half-hour drive into the city, but the winding roads and snowy conditions slowed them down and it was nearly noon before they pulled up in front of ABC Production Rentals. By that time, Shep was sound asleep and she was loath to wake him. It had been an exciting night for both of them; she was glad at least one of them was able to get some rest. After talking to Bryce, she’d been too keyed up to fall asleep until well after midnight.

  Walt had been right to encourage her to call. After their argument on Friday, Bryce told her, he’d been feeling pretty low.

  “I was wrong,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

  “No. You were right: I hadn’t been listening to anyone else. I think that’s why I was so upset when you said I was being selfish. I was so sure that I was right that I was determined to prove it no matter what.”

  “So what do we do now?”

  It was the question she’d been asking herself.

  “I guess I don’t know,” she said. “I mean, things may not have worked out the way I’d expected, but my plan did work. Making Shep the mayor has stirred things up and given people around here the push they needed to try out some of their own ideas. I don’t think that’ll change if we leave.”

  “I can’t let you do that, Mel. After all you’ve done I wouldn’t feel right depriving Fossett of its mayor.”

  She’d nearly broken down then. Melanie had been sure that once the election was over, the two of them could patch things up. Instead, making Shep the mayor had just thrown one more roadblock into their path.

  “But if I don’t leave, I won’t have you,” she sobbed. “I’ll always care about Fossett, but I love you and I don’t want to lose you again. Even Shep doesn’t want that.”

  “You sure about that?”

  She’d laughed a little at that.

  “Oh yeah. You should see him. He’s been carrying Mr. Stuffy around ever since you left.”

  “Well, maybe there’s a way to make us all happy,” Bryce said. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking in the last forty-eight hours.”

  “What about?”

  “How about we talk about it in person?” he said. “I have a few things to do up here in the morning, but I can head down after that.”

  “Sounds good,” she told him. “I have to drop the projector off at the rental place in Corvallis. How about if I give you a call before I leave?”

  Melanie looked up at the storefront. A sign in the window said: NO DOGS ALLOWED. She glanced back at Shep, who was still snoring softly on the back seat. She was only going to be inside for a minute, she thought. He’d be all right by himself. And the snow was no longer falling. She cracked the windows a few inches so he could get some air, then grabbed the projector and went inside.

  The manager stepped out from behind the counter to greet her.

  “Hey, it’s the TV star!”

  Melanie blushed as the only other customer in the store turned to look at her.

  “I brought your equipment back,” she said, setting it on the counter.

  “How did it go?” he asked. “Did everyone get to see the show?”

  She smiled.

  “Yeah, it went really well. Everybody was excited to see themselves on TV.”

  “I can imagine. We watched it here in the shop. I kept telling everyone how you’d rented a TV from us just the day before. They all said to tell you how cute your new mayor is.”

  She glanced back toward the parking lot. From that angle, it was impossible to see her car.

  “Speaking of whom,” she said. “He’s waiting for me in the car, so if you don’t mind . . .”

  “Oh, sure,” the man said. “Hold on, let me get your paperwork.”

  He reached under the counter and pulled out a cardboard box filled with receipts. Melanie felt herself wilt inside. She’d been hoping to just drop the thing off and run. Now she’d have to stand there and wait while he searched through the papers looking for hers.

  “My wife and I were thinking we might drive out to Fossett one of these days and look around,” he said as he riffled through the files. “Seemed lik
e it might be a good place to retire.”

  “Yes,” she said, trying not to sound impatient. “Fossett has a lot of things going for it.”

  The man pulled out a paper from the pile to take a closer look.

  “No, that’s not it.”

  Melanie looked around.

  “Would you mind if I just step outside a minute to check on my dog?”

  “I’ll check on him, ma’am.”

  She turned and smiled at a young man wearing a green vest with the letters ABC on the shoulder.

  “If you’re sure it’s not too much trouble.”

  “Oh, no trouble,” the boy said.

  As he headed outside, the manager pulled her receipt from the pile.

  “Here it is!”

  He set it on the counter and handed her a pen.

  “If you’d just initial here and sign at the bottom, we’ll be done.”

  Melanie took the pen and signed quickly.

  “Thank you so much,” she said.

  “Good luck,” the manager told her. “Maybe we’ll see you in town, eh?”

  “Sure.”

  The young man walked back into the store just as she was tucking the receipt in her purse.

  “Your dog’s just fine,” he told her.

  “Thank you,” Melanie said. “I appreciate your checking on him.”

  “Oh, it’s no problem. Your husband said he could keep an eye on him till you get back.”

  She looked at him.

  “My husband?”

  “Yeah. He said he’d wait for you in the car.”

  Melanie looked at the door and grinned. Was this the surprise Bryce had hinted at last night?

  That stinker. He should have told me.

  She hurried outside and glanced at the car. Bryce wasn’t in the car. In fact, she didn’t see anyone inside. What was going on? She rushed forward, suddenly terrified. What if someone had stolen Shep?

  Melanie was in such a panic that she didn’t see the man standing in the shadows. As she reached for the car door, he stepped up and grabbed her arm. She felt something cold and hard pressing against her ribs.

  “Don’t say anything,” he said. “Or the dog dies.”

  CHAPTER 24

  They changed drivers at an abandoned gas station a few miles from town. Melanie had been driving for nearly an hour, Colton forcing her to make capricious turns, doubling back on roads already traveled and changing speed erratically in what could only have been evasive maneuvers designed in ensure that they were not being followed. As Melanie stepped out of the car, she felt dizzy and disoriented.

  She glanced anxiously into the back seat. Shep still lay, head down, the rope around his neck bunching up the fur behind his ears. His breathing was slow but steady. On the floor below him lay a half-eaten dog treat, the means by which he’d been subdued.

  Colton followed her gaze and chuckled.

  “I never have known a dog that could resist a treat, even from a stranger. He must have realized there was something wrong after the first swallow, but by then it was too late. Greedy little bastard.”

  Melanie’s heart leaped as Shep’s eyes began to flutter.

  “I think he’s coming around,” she said.

  “Wouldn’t be surprised,” he said. “Xanax doesn’t last that long—especially if the dosage is low.”

  He sneered at Shep.

  “Don’t get any ideas there, doggie. That’s a slipknot around your neck: You tug, it tightens. Tug too hard and it’ll be lights-out for good.”

  Melanie clenched her teeth, feeling a surge of impotent fury.

  “Why are you doing this to us?”

  “Temper, temper,” he said. “Don’t forget who’s running this show.”

  Colton waved the gun, indicating that she should join him on the other side of the car.

  “Do what I say and you might just get out of this alive.”

  He shoved her into the passenger’s seat and slammed the door.

  “Now you just sit tight. I need to see a man about a dog.”

  As Colton walked around the back of the car to relieve himself, laughing at his own joke, Melanie saw her chance. She took out her iPhone and hurriedly dialed 911, then slipped the phone back into her pocket and listened to the phone ring, praying the operator would pick up before Colton got back into the car.

  “Nine-one-one. What’s your emergency?”

  She heard Colton zip his pants. She had only seconds to talk.

  “I need help,” she whispered. “Please don’t hang up.”

  As the door swung open, Melanie jumped and said a silent prayer that the operator would know not to speak. Colton slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine.

  “Where are we going?” Melanie said, unnerved by the tremolo in her voice.

  “That’s for me to know and you to find out.”

  He put the Honda in gear and peeled out of the parking lot.

  She put on her seat belt and closed her eyes. Emergency operators could use cell phone transmissions to triangulate a caller’s signal; with her phone number on an open line, they should be able to approximate her location. Of course, they’d be looking for a moving target. If there were some way for her to let them know what was going on, maybe it would improve the chances that law enforcement in the area would find them. She had to say something—anything—to let the operator know what was happening and where they were going.

  Melanie licked her lips, her mouth too dry to swallow.

  “Can I ask you something?”

  He shrugged.

  “Ask away. Doesn’t mean I have to answer.”

  “Are you Jesse Lee Colton?”

  Colton grinned.

  “Smart girl.”

  She nodded. At least the authorities would know who they were looking for now. She looked around for any landmarks that might help pinpoint their location.

  “We’re heading north,” she said as casually as she could. “There was a sign back there for I-5. Are we going to Salem?”

  “Nope.”

  “Where, then?”

  Colton jerked the wheel to the right, sending dirt and gravel flying as the car went briefly off the tarmac. In the back seat, Shep whimpered as the rope tightened around his neck.

  “What are you doing?” she screamed. “You’re going to choke him!”

  “That’s right,” he said. “And I’m going to keep doing it until you shut up.”

  She licked her lips again and pressed her back into the seat, waiting for Colton to calm down so she could try again. The rope hadn’t hurt Shep, she thought, only startled him. As long as he remained on the seat, he’d be okay—a safer bet than having the cops fail to find them. She pulled her feet up and turned her face to the window, hoping Colton would forget about her while she considered her next move.

  If he wouldn’t tell her where they were going, Melanie thought, perhaps she could say something about the area they were passing through. Landmarks, road conditions—lots of things might be able to give the operator a clue to their location.

  “The trees around here have all lost their leaves,” she said. “We have mostly evergreens out in Fossett.”

  “Mmm.”

  Then, a few minutes later:

  “Those hay bales are huge.”

  He nodded absently.

  “I grew up just ten miles from here. That’s about thirty miles from—”

  “What are you, a goddamned tour guide? I don’t need you to tell me where we are.”

  Melanie shrank back. The violence of the man’s outburst was terrifying.

  “But maybe,” he said, his eyes narrowing, “someone else does.”

  Without thinking, she rested her hand protectively on the pocket that held her phone.

  “What’ve you got in there?” he said, slapping her hand away. “Lemme see.”

  Colton wrenched the phone from her pocket and Melanie cried out in dismay.

  “Were you making phone calls while I was indispose
d? Hoping the cavalry might come and save you?”

  Melanie grabbed for the phone.

  “Help!”

  Colton backhanded her across the face.

  “Keep quiet,” he snarled as he broke the connection. “They were never going to find you out here, anyway.”

  Melanie cowered, feeling tears of pain and frustration well up. No one had ever struck her like that before. She put a hand to her cheek and felt the beginnings of a welt start to form.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Not enough cell towers to triangulate,” he said, miming a sad face. “That’s what you get for living out in the boonies.”

  “I don’t believe you,” she said without conviction.

  Then Colton gave her a sly smile.

  “But you know,” he said. “That’s not such a bad idea. Maybe we should call for help.”

  He opened the Contacts on her phone and started swiping through the names.

  “Let’s just see who’s in here.”

  As he searched through the list, Colton kept taking his eyes off the road and the Honda began to swerve. He crossed the middle line, overcorrected, and swung onto the right-hand shoulder, raising a cloud of dust behind them. Melanie’s heart was in her throat.

  “Don’t—please,” she begged. “Let me do it. Just tell me who you want to call.”

  She reached for the phone and he jerked it away, yanking the wheel at the same time and taking the Honda back into oncoming traffic. Melanie heard a horn blare and looked up. A semi was coming straight at them, its wheels smoking, its driver laying on the horn as he braked.

  “Look out!”

  She grabbed the wheel and jinked the car back into its lane just as the truck blew past, so close it made the Honda tremble. As the horn’s pitch dropped and then faded in the distance, Melanie realized her entire body was numb. If the truck had hit them, she thought, she’d never have felt a thing. She closed her eyes and prayed she wouldn’t regret her decision to stay alive.

  Colton, meanwhile, seemed not to have noticed the danger they’d been in. It was as if escaping death was an everyday occurrence. He pressed a button on the phone and put it to his ear.