Krys fumbled with the small key as she attempted to unlock her great aunt's old wooden cabinet. The old hag insisted on keeping all the good liquor in a place not readily accessible for drinking and it was only one of the things pissing her off presently. The other was her hangover, she just needed this door open to help with that. The dusty liquor cabinet resided in an ancient looking sitting room she’d never seen anyone use. The antique furniture was all covered in protective sheets and Krys had to wonder what the point was. Her great aunt never had visitors and was overdue to die sooner or later so the odds were this room was never going to be used again. 

There were a couple of couches and chairs set around an old wooden table in the center of the room. Krys was pretty certain this whole building had been the most hoity toity of places in its day and a great place for old white folks to plodder about like stuffy sloths. Krys was happy most of them were probably dead and she’d never have to deal with them. She finally got the key to turn and pried the door open. She grabbed a bottle that looked good enough and bit right into the cork, ripping it out and tossing it aside with a flick of her head. She took a deep swig of the contents and tossed herself down on one of the couches not bothering to remove the sheet. The liquid tasted like liquid shit but it was what she had on hand. 

“Christina Elizabeth Harper!” A decrepit nag scolded her from the apparently open doorway. Krys thought she remembered closing that but she couldn’t be sure of much with the pounding headache and all. Krys tried to focus her eyes on her great aunt for a moment but the sunlight streaming in from behind her was blinding. Krys responded with only one finger and for once it was actually her index. She took another deep swig from the bottle and leaned back into the covered cushions. She felt the bottle being wrenched from her hands and responded with two fingers, neither of them were index fingers this time. 

Her great aunt Helen gave her a frustrated sigh, Krys could hear her shoes tapping against the polished hardwood floor as she no doubt returned the bottle and re-locked the cabinet. “Get up and for Freya’s sake put some clothes on.” Her aunt demanded flatly. For the first time since she awoke minutes before she did a quick run-through of what she was wearing. A pair of boxer shorts and a single pink sock were all she found. She hadn’t even realized she wasn’t wearing a shirt up until now. Not that it mattered, She was hot shit and everyone had already seen anyway. Even then they were the only two living there. 

Her aunt crossed her arms. “The police will be here soon. Get dressed!” 

Krys groaned. She wasn’t sure what she’d done this time but she was sure some asshole was making something out of nothing again. Why did everyone in this town have to be such uptight dicks all the time? 

A loud knocking echoed through the spacious halls emanating from the grand entryway. Great Aunt Helen pointed at her with a warning glare before spinning on her heel and marching over to the large double doors. The sitting room rested quietly at the front of the house conveniently off the entryway and by merely pushing herself up by her elbows, Krys was able to watch as her great aunt waved at the mature sheriff and her beefy deputy. 

Krys wobbled to her feet, and crept up to the doorway making sure to keep herself steady as she tried to listen in. The Sheriff was a stocky middle aged woman with dark brown hair and dull blue eyes, who carried herself with the calm confidence of a senior officer. Her young deputy was a dirty blonde firecracker with a kicking pair of aviators and her thumbs resting casually in her belt loops. Both of them were in beige uniforms with matching khakis and heavy black boots. 

Great Aunt Helen turned her nose up at them, disgusted. “I don’t much care for you bringing firearms into my home, Sheriff.” She gestured at the holstered sidearms at their waists. 

The sheriff nodded casually. “I apologize but while we’re on duty we’re bound by-” 

Helen scoffed and began to raise her voice. “-So you keep saying but-” 

Whatever she was going to say was drowned out by Krys’s cry as her foot went out from under her and she tumbled to the hard floor. Before she knew what was happening the Deputy was already at her side helping her to her feet. 

Helen sighed. “Oh just leave the worthless drunkard.” 

The Deputy carefully propped Krys up on her feet supporting her with surprisingly strong arms. “I can walk on my own!” Krys managed to protest without slurring her words too badly. 

“I’ll take her on back to her room.” The Deputy announced. Her voice heavy with a southern twang Krys found charming. The deputy took an experimental step forward and Krys reluctantly copied her. It took a few steps to get into a rhythm but they began trudging down the hall to Krys’s bedroom. Krys heard her aunt and the sheriff continue their conversation in the distance, but it was impossible to make any of it out. 

The deputy shouldered the door to Krys's room open. The pervasive stench hit first, the floor was littered with discarded clothes and mostly empty fast food containers. Empty bottles and cans piled up around the edges of the room. The deputy carefully navigated the winding path leading to Krys’s bed. The gruff deputy glided with the grace of a dancer around the piles of miscellaneous detritus and debris and plopped Krys down safely on her bed in record time. 

Krys tried to lay back on her bed but encountered a hard cylindrical object hidden under the covers; it was too large to be a sex toy and too rigid to be a beer can. She reached under the covers and pulled the empty wine bottle out, tossing it away carelessly. The bottle clattered down into a pile of empty cans and dirty clothes. Krys stretched on her large bed and looked up at the deputy. The young woman looked distant as if trying not to look at her. Krys shrugged it off and groped around for the small plastic bag that she remembered being around her pillow. She couldn’t find her favorite top to save her life, but she was absolutely anal when it came to making sure her stash was easy to get at. The incriminating bag of pot was right where she left it and she pulled it into her lap without hesitation. She caught the Deputy staring at her as she rolled a joint on a bare leg. Krys puffed out her chest in the way she’d been taught to draw attention to her topside assets. 

“Like what you see?” Krys asked, tauntingly placing the joint between her lips. The deputy swallowed nervously and averted her eyes. Krys felt around the bed for a lighter but the deputy produced one from a pocket which Krys snapped open without missing a beat. She took a long drag and watched the curls of smoke curl through the air. She offered the joint to the deputy who was watching her out of the corner of her eye. 

“Can’t. I’m on duty.” She waved dismissively. Krys returned the joint and laid back on the bed patting the spot next to her. The Deputy flushed and averted her eyes again. Krys stifled annoyance rising in the pit of her stomach and rubbed her temple. “What are they saying I did? Cause you know me and-” 

The red-faced deputy coughed. “Naw darlin’, this has nothing to do with you.” 

Krys sat back up out of sheer disbelief. It wasn’t strange to see a patrol car driving up to the house. Krys found herself in the back of the Deputy’s cruiser a few times a week on average. Krys didn’t feel bad about it, she always made it worth her time but if this wasn’t about her then…? She couldn’t imagine Helen doing anything crazy like standing on a bar-stool and trying to pee off the side so she doubted the cops had any interest in her unless it was down to like… tax evasion or something stupid. 

The deputy thumbed at her lip and stole a quick glance when she thought Krys wasn’t watching. She cleared her throat and spoke softly. “You really don’t remember anything about the break-in last night?” 

Krys blinked, genuinely confused. “There was a break-in last night?” 

The deputy rubbed her eyes in frustration. “Hell yes there was! ...and I need to make sure we’ve got your story straight before you sit down with the sheriff.” 

Krys let out a long smoky breath. “I thought you said it didn’t have anything to do with me...” 

The deputy spun around and grabbed her by the shoulders. “You know damn well what I mean Kryseena!” 

Krys gave her a cheeky smile. “It's all good, you know I got you boo.” She tapped the deputy on the chin. “You just make sure you hold up your end.” 

The deputy’s face sagged as she turned away. “I’ll take care of it...” She made no effort to hide the guilt welling up inside her. “God help me I will take care of it...”