(Josie's POV)

The large golden clock on the steeple in front of us indicated that it was only three-o-clock in the afternoon. Exhaustion pulled at my shoulders and I tried to focus on the feel of Sam's hand cradling mine, on the way the sun was heating my hair, the promise of a rest in my future.

That was the thing about policing, there were some days that refused to quit.

Sam's fingers squeezed mine knowingly as we got to the front steps before letting go and letting me climb ahead of him, I looked back when we got to the top and threw me a wink. My cheeks warmed at the admiration in his gaze. .

The front doors were the same gold as the steeple and surrounded by the white building made the whole place seem all the more ethereal. I had never seen one of their churches before but wondered if they always looked so otherworldly.

An older gentleman in what had to be a tailored suit, held the door for us. He looked familiar but I wondered if it was just that he was classically handsome. The sharp lines of his face gave off movie star vibes. Crossroads was known to pull in celebrities so it wouldn't be shocking. Either way I couldn't place him and he hustled past and down the stairs as we moved inside.

Sam moved close and I caught the now familiar and completely seductive hints of evergreen as he whispered in my ear, "Warren Cross". Of course, the head of Crossroads.

I leaned closer whispering back to Sam as we made our way to the woman behind the desk at reception, "I wouldn't expect him to make many appearances here."

Sam inclined his head in agreement and then flashed a beaming smile at the lady behind the desk. Her name tag read, "Marian" and it was apparent that she took one look at Sam and was smitten, patting down her gray hair and batting her lashes. He made a point of reading her name tag, "Good afternoon, Marian. How are you today?"

Her cheeks became rosy and she gave a little giggle. My butterflies felt vindicated.

Same, Marian. Same.

"We were hoping that Mel was free to chat to us this afternoon." I loved that he was experienced enough to not share anything about why we were here or who we were. Chances of Marian assuming that we were interested in becoming a part of the community was high, which sadly would do a better job of getting us in front of Mel than the truth.

She looked down at the calendar she had in front of her and looked up, "He doesn't have much time today." Sam gave another big smile, "We don't really need much of his time. Maybe you could give us a tour after?" I reached out and reconnected our hands, squeezing and letting him know that I thought he was playing this perfectly, poor Marian.

"Let me see what I can do for you." His winning smile made her blush deepen and we stepped away from the desk to give her some space.

I moved closer to him, brushing my lips over his ear as I whispered, "So charming, Sam Taylor."

I could sense his embarrassment but he tossed me a wink and murmured, "Don't act so surprised, Luce."

I stayed close, breathing in that delicious scent for another moment, "Not surprised at all. I've always been charmed by you, Sam." Then I took a step back, and we stared at each other with ridiculous smiles on our faces until we were interrupted by a throat clearing.

Focus, Lucy.

Romantic thoughts pushed aside, I turned in time to catch the annoyance of Minister Mel. "Thank you for taking the time to see us, sir. My name is Lucy Baylor and I think you already know Sam Taylor." I grimaced at the rhyme of our names but soldiered on, "We were hoping to chat with you."

Annoyance was heavy in his tone as he said, "Yes, I know who you are and I know why you're here."

I should have expected the hostility. This was Lakeridge, after all. Sam spoke up, his house like honey, "It's nice to see you again, Mel. Although, I wish it was around better circumstances. Marian let us know that you don't have much time today but do you think we could take a moment of your time, in private?"

Mel looked like he ate a sour lemon and gave Mariam a squinty glare as he waved a hand into the back, "I suppose so, but I only have a moment. Follow me."

We walked behind the front desk and to the hallway behind, feeling a little more chill coming from poor, old Marian as we passed. Sam was ahead of me this time but gave me a little smile once we were in the back hallway and I could see the twinkle in his eye. I wanted to add to our silent joke, mentioning how his affair with the receptionist had sadly run its course. But, I satisfied myself by shooting him my own smile before wiping my face clean of any humour and following both men into a large office.

Mel led us away from his desk and towards the seating area on the far left. This office was bigger than the bedroom in my apartment back in Toronto. I took a seat next to Sam on the leather couch and sighed as it cradled my aching body. I didn't want to know what a sofa this comfy cost. The fight of this morning was making itself known right now. My surprised eyes met Sam's and he gave me a tiny smile along with his own sigh.

Comfiest couch I've ever sat in.

I ignored my relief and eyeballed the man sitting across from us. Mel's face was round and rosy and it could easily be seen as jovial; Assuming he wasn't' tossing out serious stink eye, like he was now.

"We know you don't have much time, so we'll get right to it. It's come to our attention that you were supposed to talk to Tanya Sanchez and her family the night she went missing?" I kept my tone polite and interested but his glare was rubbing me the wrong way and I'd had a day. So, I wasn't sure how long he was going to get my nice cop persona.

"I was, but they never showed up." He crossed his arms as if daring me to call him a liar.

Sam intercepted, his voice placating. He was better at keeping his tone syrupy. "That's in line with what Barb told us, Mel. Thanks. We're just trying to trace back her last few hours. What about the Lawson family? Can you tell us anything about them?"

Mel's face went white, "Why are you asking?"

Why so scared, Mel?

"Knowing the small town rumour mill, I'm sure you've heard about the death of Sylvie and Dave? And then with Brie also going missing, we're trying to figure out if there is a connection." Mel's eyes stayed locked on Sam.

His face was regaining his colour but his hands were twisting and I couldn't figure out if it was nerves or shock that was pouring off of him. He sounded a whole lot less hostile as he murmured, "The Lawsons? When?"

It was my turn to speak up, "Sometime between last night and this morning. We know for a fact that they were alive yesterday afternoon. We were over talking to Brie about Tanya."

I carefully traced Mel's features, he wasn't shocked about this. Then he surprised me by confessing, "I talked to them last night, they mentioned that you'd been there. I can't believe this."

He could be sharing because he wanted to be honest, as he was talking to two cops. Or he could know that I would be checking his phone records. I couldn't seem to get a read on Minister Mel, "It sounds like you were close with them. Can you think of anyone that would hurt them?"

Mel shook his head, "I was close with them, I try to connect with everyone in my parish but no. No, I can't think of anyone that would want to hurt them."

Sam spoke up, "My mom and aunt can attest to that. They think Crossroads is the best part of the community." Mel gave Sam a quick smile of thanks and then those teeth disappeared as Sam added, "We know that Brie got into a little bit of trouble a while back and that the church helped support them through that."

Mel shook his head, his voice rising, "I'm not going to air the Lawson's dirty laundry. Especially not now that they can't tell you their story themselves. Everyone makes mistakes." He made a point to look at his watch, "Look, I can't talk to you any more today. I've got a meeting in fifteen minutes."

We stood up and I reached out my hand, "Thank you for your time. If you think of anything that might help us find either of the girls or you hear anything about the Lawsons, this is my card. Call me."

He took out the card I was handing him and moved behind his desk, letting us show ourselves out.

Marian gave us a frosty look as we walked past her and I made a mental note to send Sam back to charm himself back into her good graces and find out her take on the families of these two girls. So, we made our way out into the sunshine with no more answers than we'd had before