Zach was tired, and now he was frustrated as well. It was still early - not even eight o'clock, and he'd skipped dinner. On the way to the Roadhouse, the town's only real tavern, he thought about calling Quinn or Mick to keep him company, then discarded the idea. It was a small town; he was bound to run into someone he knew.

As luck would have it, there was a good-sized crowd that included a handful of his fellow deputies and other county employees. Several voices hailed Zach, ...