Footsteps on concrete was what startled Ashton. He'd been doing push-ups out of boredom, just to see how many he could do before his arms gave out. Surprised, he jumped up. Norman strolled into his view and turned to look at him. Again? Ashton wondered what the guy wanted with him. Surely more than just to reminisce.

"Hello, Ashton," he said, his voice tired. He looked older than he was. "Bet you're wondering why I came back, huh? Well, it's not for your marvelous company. Someone's here to see you." He motioned to someone to come closer.

Ashton's jaw dropped when he saw Tim Gorges. The man had his hands shoved in his pockets. "Hey. I heard you'd been tossed in the clink. Thought I'd come see you." He rubbed his neck, eyes not leaving Ashton.

"Oh. Hey." Ashton walked over to the bars. "Well, I assume you're up to the same old stuff."

He nodded. "Ya. Hey, I saw your girlfriend today. She talked to me." He glanced behind him. "Um, I think you did pretty good." He gave Ashton a grin. "She's fine."

Ashton didn't like the way he was talking about Nicole, but he just smiled. "Thanks. If I get out, I'll be keeping her around for a while." Norman made a sound and Ashton looked at him. He was looking at the door down the hallway.

He noticed Ashton looking so he returned his gaze. "What?"

Ashton pressed his lips together and shook his head. "How's Nicole doing?"

Tim shrugged. "She's good, I guess. Misses you, though. We talked about you, actually."

Ashton's eyes grew larger for a second before he composed himself again. He gave him a smile. "Oh. Doesn't sound very interesting." He forced a small laugh that sounded fake even to him.

Tim smiled. "Well, not really. I had a chat afterwards with Nathan about it." His eyes changed.

Ashton studied his eyes. "Then it must have been something good." Definitely something different. He appeared more aware. "At least, I hope it was good."

Tim suddenly seemed wary. "Ya, pretty good." He tilted his head towards Norman, who now had his attention focused on them. Ashton gave his head a small shake and Tim's expression changed. "Well, I need to get back to the bar. I left my ginger ale sitting there getting warm." He turned and left.

Norman followed him. Alone, Ashton wondered just what Tim was going to tell him. Tim had been going to tell him something, he was sure of it. Before he could think much more about it, Norman came back.

"What?" Ashton asked, not in the mood to have another staring contest.

Norman shrugged. "I don't know. Man, I just keep thinking." He rubbed the back of his neck and kept glancing down the hallway. "You and Nicole were both kind of beat up by him. It's just making me start to question some stuff, is all."

Ashton watched him. He couldn't tell if he was being honest. All he knew was that he didn't trust this guy. "Well, Clive has always been the same. Nothing has changed. I should know. I lived with him for 18 years."

Norman stood there for a minute. Abruptly he walked over, unlocked the door, came in, and closed the door. He sat on the bench and patted the space beside him. Warily, Ashton walked over and sat. Once he was seated, Norman began, "I'm on your side. I want to help. You don't deserve to be in here. That's obvious. Well, to me, at least. I heard what that chick told Clive. Stuff appeared in your place?" He just shook his head and appeared to become frustrated. "That doesn't just happen!"

Ashton watched him for a long moment in silence. "No, it doesn't," he replied slowly. He leaned back against the wall. Norman leaned forward. "What's really up with you?"

Norman looked back at him. One eyebrow lifted. "What do you mean?"

"You look stressed and worried."

"Oh." He leaned back against the wall. "Well, I am really busy these days." Pause. "Mason asked me to call the state police. He says we need to get someone in here to investigate. I don't know if we do or not. If you'd asked a couple of days ago, I would've said we didn't need them nosing around here. Now, I don't know." He looked at Ashton. In that moment he looked younger than he was. "What would you do, Ashton?"

Once he got over the initial shock of being asked what to do, Ashton thought about the reasons behind this question. "I think you should, but then, what else would I tell you?"

"Good point." Norman faced forward. "Still, I think you're right."

They were silent for a long time. It gave Ashton time to think. There was more to him than meets the eye. Ashton just wasn't sure what it was yet.

"Remember a few years ago when Trisha was super sick, and she ended up with her appendix out?"

Ashton remembered it well. He'd been 16 and he'd spent all day at her house when she got back, and he'd done everything for her because she couldn't move. "Obviously – I've been her best friend all these years." He looked quizzically at Norman. "What do you know about that?"

He gave Ashton a self-satisfied smile. "I was there when she got sick. I was helping out Benson at the time. My parents and Benson let me ride up in the ambulance." He watched Ashton for a moment. "It's kind of cool, you know, when you get to sneak little kisses between the doctors and parents coming in the room."

Ashton had a brief moment of jealousy, but it went away as quickly as it came, leaving him feeling every bit the protective big brother. He cocked an eyebrow. "Oh. You dated Trisha, then? Funny. I've never heard about you, and she's always told me everything."

Norman looked smug. "Really. Well, I guess she didn't tell you everything." He rested his head on the wall and closed his eyes.

Ashton, for the moment, really didn't like him. He felt like Norman had done something awful to his best friend. But, he tried to tell himself, it was only some kisses a long time ago. Surely, they weren't together, and it meant nothing to her. After all, Trisha told Ashton that she was in love with him. He figured Norman was trying to get a rise out of him. "Oh, well." He leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. "So you came in here to tell me about Trisha?"

Norman abruptly stood and stretched. "Not exactly." He hesitated and then turned to look at Ashton. "I want you to see you can trust me. I thought it might make you see that I care for some of the same things you do."

Ashton could understand that, but he thought Norman could have gone about it in a better way. "Oh. I don't really have a reason not to." He supposed this was true enough, but something still told him not to trust this guy. "But okay."

Norman nodded, not looking at Ashton for a moment. "Yeah. Well, I need to get back to work."

---

The house was like a mini mansion. Nicole began wondering just what she was going to say when she went there. It slid right on by as Mason drove slowly. "What am I going to do, Mason? I can't just go waltzing in there and say, 'Mayor Gamble, I know your secrets, so I want you to write out a witness statement against Clive and if you do, I won't tell anyone.' I mean, that's blackmail!"

Mason's lip twitched. "I'd pardon you."

She gave him a sarcastic look. "Ha ha. Funny. But no, seriously! What am I going to say?"

They rode on in silence for a while longer. Mason pulled into his spot at the station but didn't turn the engine off.

"I don't know," he finally responded to her question. "But I do know you'll figure something out. You always do." He turned the car off. "I want my lock-picking kit back," he said as he got out.

Nicole laughed as she emerged. "I still need it, thanks."

He shook his head as he went around to the front door. She followed. "You do know I can only let you get away with so much?"

She shrugged. "That's why I didn't tell you." They parted ways at the sidewalk. While Mason went in the station, she continued on to the general store. Her mission was to find out about Norman, and since he'd been in love with Trisha, she figured she'd try there first.

The bell on the door rang when she pushed it open. Brandy was at the counter. She looked up. "Oh, hi Nicole!" she said, a smile spreading. "Did you say yes?"

"What?" Nicole walked over to the counter, not sure what she meant.

"Ashton said he was going to propose! Did you say yes?"

Nicole glanced around and nodded. She bit her lip. She thought no one else was supposed to know yet.

Brandy squealed. "Lemme see." She leaned closer.

Nicole slipped the chain out of her shirt and dangled it where Brandy could see it.

She oohed over it. "Wait a sec – aren't you supposed to wear that on your hand?"

Nicole glanced around as she slipped it back in her shirt. "Well, it's a secret right now. I mean, I told my parents and all, but the whole place isn't supposed to know yet. We're mainly waiting for this whole murder thing to blow over. It's so obvious to anyone that knows Ashton that he didn't do it."

Brandy nodded animatedly. "I know! He grew up here, so everyone ought to know him well enough to know that! But I guess no one does. It makes no sense. I guess defying his dad like that made some think he wasn't who they thought he was, but I don't see it that way at all. I say, if he thought there was something wrong, there was something wrong! I know him too well to not trust his judgement."

"Exactly!" Nicole glanced around. "Where's Trisha?"

Brandy flapped a hand. "Talking to her boyfriend or something."

That grabbed Nicole's attention. "Boyfriend?"

"Yeah. You didn't know?" When Nicole shook her head, Brandy continued. "Well, at some point she got a man. I don't know who he is or where he is, but she talks to him a lot. I know it's her boyfriend, 'cause once I picked up and this deep voice said, 'hey, babe,' and I was like, 'Bryan? What happened to your voice?' and then he asked for Trisha. I happily gave the phone to her."

Nicole tried to absorb this. "How long ago was that?"

Brandy thought. "Not that long ago. Maybe a month ago?"

A month ago. Didn't Ashton tell her that Trisha cried after seeing them together? That wasn't a month ago – that was just last week! "Cool." After a few minutes of small talk about Brandy's baby, Trevor, Trisha came back. When she saw Nicole, she looked surprised. "Hey, Trisha," she said brightly.

"Um, hey." She warily eyed Nicole. "What's up?"

She shrugged. "Nothing. I just came by to catch up."

Trisha glanced between Brandy and Nicole. "Okay."

"Want to grab some lunch?"

"I don't think I can. It's still my shift."

"Oh, don't worry," Brandy said, waving a hand. "Go to lunch. Have a good time."

Trisha's jaw set, but she just shrugged and walked around the counter. Together, her and Nicole went to the restaurant in chilly silence. They sat and ordered, and it wasn't until their food came that Trisha finally broke the silence. "What do you want?"

Nicole dipped a popcorn shrimp into cocktail sauce and popped it in her mouth. While she chewed, she tried to think of how to phrase it all. It needed to be perfect. Her cards needed to be in order. When she finally swallowed, she said, "You know I'm going out with Ashton."

"Of course. I think the whole town knows after he was all over you the other day." Trisha glared.

"What do you mean, all over me?"

"Oh, don't give me that." She rolled her eyes. "When you ate here with him, and he was all up in your hair and everything?"

"Oh. He wasn't all over me," Nicole protested. "I don't think that means what you think it means." A beat of heated silence. She sighed. Being like this wouldn't get her anywhere. "Look, Trisha, I want us to be friends, or at least on good terms. Ashton mentioned once that you said you cared for him. Do you still care for him?" She made her voice go a little high and gave Trisha what she hoped was a sheepish look.

For a brief moment Trisha's face softened but then went back to stone. "What does that even matter? It's not like you'll just up and leave him. I can tell that's not how you are."

Nicole bowed her head and fiddled with the shrimp. "You're right," she said, voice small. "But I still care." Which was true. She didn't like that the girl got hurt, but she wouldn't go back and change any of what happened. She peeked up at Trisha through her lashes.

A long, icy silence stretched on. Trisha glared at Nicole while she ate. About halfway through, Trisha sighed. Nicole hadn't touched any of hers after eating the shrimp. "Eat." Nicole gingerly picked up one shrimp and nibbled it. If for no other reason than she wanted things to go slower so she could think of what to say. Trisha seemed to be caving. She reached over and touched Nicole's forearm. "I've always cared for him, and I always will," she said, almost gently. She removed her hand. "Now eat. I can't stay here all day."

Nicole took a bite of the mac 'n' cheese. She watched Trisha for a moment. There needed to be a way to get back on track. It took a few moments to empty the small dish. She began on the shrimp when it hit her. "Brandy said you were on the phone when I came by, and she said it was likely your boyfriend, but if you like Ashton . . ." She trailed off, looking worried.

Trisha shook her head adamantly. "No! I would never steal someone's man!" She glanced around. "I was talking to my boyfriend. I've been seeing him for a couple of months now." She blushed and began pushing her food around. Her eyes didn't leave her plate. "I know him from a few years ago. We had a small . . . fling, I guess you could say. We didn't last more than a week. Anyway, he went off to college. He came back for spring break, and he noticed something was wrong. I told him about you and Ashton, and we got to talking. He began calling me at home. He came home from college, then he was gone for a few weeks. He came back and began his job at the police station. A month ago, he got into the habit of calling during my morning break. That's how Brandy knows."

Nicole watched her for a long moment. "Is it Norman?"

Trisha looked up, startled. "How did you know?"

Nicole shrugged, popping a shrimp in her mouth. "Something he said. After hearing you, I figured it out."

"Please, don't tell anyone." She reached over and grabbed Nicole's wrist. "If my parents find out-" Her voice broke, and she took a deep breath. "My parents can't know. Norman doubts Ashton's telling the truth, so my parents think he's this awful person, but he's not. They're loyal to Ashton first, anyone else at the station second. I know Ashton didn't do it, but I can't convince Norman."

Nicole watched the girl. She was afraid and worried. "Okay, Trisha, I won't tell them. I'm not sure who they are to begin with."

Trisha wiped her face, which was beginning to glisten with tears. "Georgia and Evan Losche."

Nicole nodded. "What do they look like?"

"Tall. I look just like my mother, but my dad's hair is lighter, almost blond. He spends a lot of time on the water fishing and stuff, and you can kind of tell. He's the only blond that smells like seafood."

Nicole nodded again. "Okay. I won't tell them, don't worry." Trisha nodded and sat back. "How does it work out with you and Norman, then, if you're trying to hide?"

Trisha smiled to herself. "Well, it's not that easy. We end up going down to the secluded beach a lot. You know, the one where they found Taylor?" She shivered. "We haven't gone back there since that day they found her. It just hasn't felt right. So lately we've been meeting up in the stockroom or a cell at the station. Since Ashton's there, we're going to just be going to the stockroom, I guess." She shrugged, but she looked much happier than she had before. She nearly glowed.

"What do you guys do for fun?"

"We've gone fishing before, and swimming at the beach. He's driven me around in the 'company car'." She giggled. "That was fun. We went out into the woods and took a joyride down some old county roads where no one lives. Totally got the car covered in mud." She grinned. "Then we had to wash the car when we got back to hide it. I think Mr. Dodd still chewed him out for it. Man just knows."

Nicole nodded. She was only half-listening. If they hung out on the beach, that would account for her losing a nail there. Maybe she hadn't had anything to do with it, after all. Ashton would be happy. She dipped the last shrimp in the sauce and popped it in her mouth. Trisha was done eating. "Ready?"

Trisha nodded and stood. "About Ash, though. I mean, it still hurt seeing you guys together. I'm with Norman, but I can't just turn those feelings off. It's less and less though. Every day they feel a little bit duller. Do you know what I mean?"

Nicole smiled sadly and nodded. She did. All too well. Just a couple of years ago she'd felt the same. "Yes." She swallowed.

Trisha returned the sad smile. "Well, I think I love Norman, so your man isn't in any danger. Besides, I don't think I could turn Ashton's head, not since he fell for you. Girls stopped doing that last summer, about the time you left. I noticed that fairly quickly." She began walking out of the restaurant. Nicole walked beside her. "Like, you came, you impressed him somehow, and then none of us can get him to look at us for even a second with any interest."

"Girls like him?" This didn't surprise her. She'd noticed as much.

"Oh, yes. The rumors only made girls want him more. He became this mystery and every girl that had a thing for a mysterious man – and even those that didn't – all kinda watched for him, tried to get him. I knew he'd never even date a local girl. I knew that when I started to have feelings for him, yet I hoped. Anyway, he always brushed them off. He'd flirt back once in a while, but we all knew he wasn't serious about it. None of us expected to get him. We all thought, 'hey, he's the sheriff's kid and he's gonna be the sheriff one day, too, so we don't stand a chance'." She shrugged. "But I got another policeman, so I am beyond happy." She grinned at Nicole.

Nicole returned the smile, happy to hear Ashton was safe, and happier to be able to deliver the news. "That's good, Trisha." When they arrived at the general store, Nicole headed for the station. She could make Ashton at least a little happier.