“Thanks, Avery. If it’s no good, I’ll have to get an officer from county to go up and notify her.”

“Yes, sir,” Avery said, and went back to the front desk.

Lon sat down again, then used his landline to make the call. It rang once, then three more times before someone picked up.

“Hello. Who is this?”

Lon grinned. Sugar Slade’s attitude had not mellowed with age.

“Mrs. Slade, this is Chief Pittman from the Blessings Police Department. I’m sorry to bother you, but we felt it imperative to let you know that your nephew Hoover has escaped from Coastal State Prison, and reports have him possibly heading this way.”

He heard her gasp, and then what sounded like a snort of disgust.

“Oh good grief! I don’t want anything to do with him. He was mean as a kid, and he turned into a downright nasty man when he grew up,” Sugar said.

“Yes, ma’am. That’s why I wanted to let you know. Just be aware. Lock up your car, and hide the keys somewhere in your house to be on the safe side. And if you even get a glimpse of him, lock yourself in the house and call me or the county sheriff’s office immediately.”

“Yes, I will, and thank you, Chief. Maybe we’ll get lucky and the state police will catch him before he gets this far.”

Before he could comment, she hung up in his ear. He shook his head, but at least the call was finished.

The next call he made was to the school superintendent. This was Richard Powers’ first year here in Blessings. They hadn’t been in school quite three months, so Powers had yet to prove himself to the parents. Lon was about to give him his first test.

He looked up the number to the superintendent’s office and made the call.

“Superintendent’s office. This is Merle.”

“Good morning, Merle. This is Chief Pittman. Is Mr. Powers in?”

“Yes, sir, he is. One moment, please.”

Lon heard two little beeps, and then Richard Powers picked up.

“This is Richard. How can I help you, Chief?”

“I need to give you a heads-up on an alert we received from the state police. A prison escapee is reported to be heading this way. I have patrols out, but as of yet he has not been spotted in the area. However, if he’s spotted anywhere, you’ll need to put everyone on lockdown until he’s apprehended. And just for your reassurance, I have a car patrolling the schools as we speak.”

“Oh! This is not good news. I’ll notify staff both here and at the elementary school to be aware of the possibility. We appreciate the police presence, for sure. Thank you for the warning.”

“Certainly,” Lon said, and disconnected. Now that everyone had been notified, he called Avery again.

“Yes, sir?” Avery said.

“The number for Sugar Slade was good. Everyone has been notified. I will be in the cruiser.”

“Yes, sir.”

Lon hung up the phone, grabbed his hat and keys, and went out the back way to his car.