His face hardened.
“The dog lunged at me.”
Brianna looked down at Kodiak.
He had not even left the space beside the booth.
The waitress near the counter whispered, “No, he didn’t.”
Rusk turned.
The woman went pale.
For two weeks Brianna had watched people in Ashford Ridge swallow words the moment a uniform appeared. The waitress looked terrified now that one had escaped.
Mara did not look at her.
That was smart.
She kept her attention on Rusk.
“Sheriff, move away.”
“You don’t give me orders in my town.”
“Then consider it a request from the person who will be asked why she watched you kick an animal and did nothing.”
Rusk’s eyes swept the room.
He was counting loyalties.
Brianna knew the look.
Men who built power through fear rarely thought in terms of right and wrong when control slipped. They thought in terms of witnesses.
He found too many.
Rusk backed away from the booth.
Brianna crouched beside Kodiak.
“Easy.”
His breathing hitched when she touched his ribs.
That told her enough.
“He needs a vet.”
The waitress grabbed her phone.
Rusk pointed at it.
“Put that down.”
The waitress froze.
Brianna looked up.
