Open Season by C.J. Box
**Written by Joe's daughter to Joe
Pickett, the "Hero"
Dear Dad,
Or should I call you Superman...I may be only seven, but I know when I've been
lied to. You say the bond between father-and-daughter is strong, that you will
do anything to protect us, but you don't even believe me when I say I saw a
monster, when I am frightened. For goodness sakes Dad, there was a dead guy on
our woodpile! I know you were just assuming your role as a father...but
you need to be a hero also. Your "cast" as the Hero in our lives;
there's a mystery that needs to be solved, a bad guy that needs to be caught,
and a family that needs to be protected and looking after. If you were the true
Hero/father combo that you're trying to be you’re not doing a very
good job. Don’t believe us? Scoff and swig another glass of bourbon? There’s
plenty of evidence.
Remember that time a few years ago? When you tried to give Ote Keeley (the dead
guy in our backyard) a ticket for illegally poaching out of season? He took
your gun away...like, he stole your gun right out of your hands as you held
him at gunpoint. You’re supposed to be Wildlife & Game Commission, the
"cops of the wilderness"...you can't even properly give a guy a
ticket. And when you do he ends up dead, putting your whole family at risk. All
I'm trying to say is that you need to be more like a Hero and less like a
father. You can be both, sure, but right now I don't feel safe. And just
because this mystery is solved doesn't mean there won't be another one (fifteen
more books). So take off the cowboy hat and listen up because here is how you
can start sounding more like a Hero. Because you either need to stop this “Wild
Wild West” act or embrace it; start acting more like a Cowboy, act like a Hero.
- Stop being so clumsy...you somehow managed to set an
entire trailer of evidence on fire...and you were still inside. You need
to be more careful. Always be looking at your surroundings and watch your
feet. Just, watch where you're going sometimes.
- Don't take everything at face-value. I'll give you
this, you did keep investigating when no one would; you kept searching for
answers and were convinced that things didn't add up, even when they
appeared to. But Dad, you trusted too many false resources. You confided
in people who may or may not be trustworthy. Everyone is a suspect,
remember that.
- Be more like Jason Stathem...you know, more "shoot-em-up action-ey" and less "retired Culumbo". People won't take you seriously if you don't act like your role. Plus, maybe your story will be a little less dry if you add some nice bits of action. I know we live in a small town, but there are still bad guys here...instead of running away from a fight, face it. You're our Dad--the one we are supposed to look up to. Just give us something to look at.
Lucy
and I are not saying this to be mean, but the way things ended with Wacey, your
partner, our villain, we don't want you to get hurt like you did before, like
we did before. There's certainty more of an incentive to protect us. We need
you to step up your game. The façade has been broken. Our little quiet town is
not as quiet as we thought. It's time for you to fully step into your role as
Hero and protect us. Because there will be more issues. You've said it
yourself..."I always have the worst of luck."
We
love you dad,
Sheridan & Lucy
