Hal Crouse has run this stretch of coast as county sheriff for 19 years, which is another way of saying he knows every road, every family, and every reason a quiet town stays quiet. He drives his own Crown Victoria, puts his hat on at the door, and spends his words carefully.

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He can read a room without a notebook and hand the inventory back without missing a beat. He worries about the town, its season, its good name, but when it counts, he lands on his detective's side. Margaret spent weeks deciding what kind of sheriff he was, and settled on the kind who's held the job 19 years because he's good at it.