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.I ran into the living room and grabbed my purse and coat, mouthing my thanks to my hostess.Katya was screaming, her tiny two-week-old lungs producing at an operatic level.Irina looked puzzled at my hasty exit, but she busied herself attempting to soothe her infant daughter.I slipped into my heels, opened the front door and hopped down the steps.I yanked on the heavy tow truck door and heaved myself into the cracked black leather seat, which squeaked out a well-worn welcome.“Let's go,” I yelled to the driver.His grizzled face looked puzzled but he merely shifted gears and headed the massive yellow truck in the direction of my car.The driver was probably used to dealing with frantic females, although I doubted any of his previous passengers had recently discovered a gun in a cookie jar.My ragged breathing subsided as we neared my car.There was no reason to panic because the teddy bear cookie jar housed a weapon.Since they lived so far out in the woods, Dimitri probably felt they needed protection.Owning a gun in the countryside was as natural as owning a dog.Or a pickup truck.The AAA driver parked his vehicle in front of my Prius.The driver, who introduced himself as Harley, grabbed an oversized flashlight that would have received my mother's gold seal of approval.His jaw worked from side to side as he directed the beam across my windshield.Harley leaned forward and scrutinized the round hole in the middle of the glass.A million tiny cracks spiraled out from the tiny hole.“Can you unlock the car?” he asked.“I'd like to check somethin’ out.”I delved deep into my purse, located my keys and beeped the car open.Harley slid into the passenger seat and rummaged around the carpet.Five seconds later he exited the car.“Open your hands,” he said.My cheeks flushed with embarrassment.Harley was going to lecture me about the multitude of empty Kit Kat candy wrappers that had burrowed under my seats.I waited for the sticky pieces of paper to fall into my palms.Instead I felt something hard and metal.No bigger than a.bullet.I screamed and the small metal object flew into the air.It landed on the asphalt, bounced on the pavement once, then twice, before it careened into the canyon on the other side of the road.Harley looked at me like I was crazy.I was beginning to think someone certainly was.“That wasn't a bullet, was it?” I asked.“Sure was.Although now I won't be able to tell what kind of gun it come from.Did you hear a shot when you was driving?”I shook my head.“Not that I noticed.The windows were closed, the radio was on, and I was concentrating on watching the road.The windshield shattered,” I snapped my fingers, “just like that.”Harley pushed his navy baseball cap back on his thick gray-streaked hair and shoved his gnarled hands into his jean pockets.He rocked back and forth mulling over the ramifications of a stray gunshot hitting my windshield.“Well, it coulda been a hunter, I s'pose.”“This late at night?” Unless they needed some venison or a rabbit for dinner, that seemed like a long shot to me.He shrugged.“There's all kinds a fools out there toting guns when they hadn't ought to.Would've been interesting to see if that bullet come from a rifle.”I couldn't imagine someone hiding behind a tree and deliberately shooting at me.Of course there was that mysterious gun in Irina's cookie jar.My evening was starting to feel like a B grade movie.“I gotta report this to the sheriff's department,” Harley said.“Since someone shot at you.” He walked to his truck and called back over his shoulder.“I'll call the office and they'll arrange for a patrol car to meet us.”I reached into my purse and pulled out my cell phone as I trotted along behind him.This time all five bars were lined up.That great big satellite in the sky was finally smiling down at me.“Don't worry,” I said to Harley, as I speed dialed my own personal contact in the sheriff's department.“I have it covered.”[Back to Table of Contents]* * *THIRTY-THREE* * * *Tom did not disappoint.He arrived with red lights flashing, sirens blaring and tires squealing.The official display was probably unnecessary, but he was at my side in less than ten minutes and I was grateful to have him there.Harley and Tom consulted while I remained in the tow truck attempting to stay warm despite the truck's sputtering heater.Another patrol car arrived with two officers, one female deputy and a guy who looked vaguely familiar.When he tromped past the bright headlights of the truck, I recognized Deputy Katzenbach, AKA, Buzz Cut, last seen at the Golden Hills Dance Studio the night Dimitri was murdered.After much discussion, the tow truck driver handed his flashlight to Buzz Cut.He glanced at me as he walked past the truck and I mustered a weak smile, which was met with a distinct frown.With a frustrated look on his face, the deputy shone the light down into the canyon.Were they looking for the missing bullet? The next time someone dropped a small metal object in my hand, I would look before I threw.Deep in thought, I started when someone rapped on the window.The heavy door opened with a groan and Tom's worried eyes met mine.“How are you holding up?”I tried to reply, but the magnitude of the incident, and the realization that I could have been killed, finally hit home.My shoulders heaved as I gulped back sobs.Grown women don't cry just because someone tries to shoot them.Tom gently lifted me from my high perch in the cab of the truck until we were standing inches apart.His comforting arms encircled me, as he stroked my back, letting the warmth of his body conduct its way into mine.I could have stayed locked in that position forever, hip to hip, thigh to thigh.I raised my head from his broad chest and a tremor quickened my heartbeat as our glances met.It was almost worth getting shot at to realize Tom had feelings for me.Almost.A shrill whistle pierced the silence and we jumped apart.Deputy Buzz Cut motioned for us to join him.Tom's long legs made it to the side of the canyon in three strides.I trotted after him.“Did you find it?” Tom asked.The beam of the flashlight was centered on a spot about fifteen feet down the ravine.I inched forward to get a better look and inadvertently jostled the deputy's arm.The flashlight fell out of his hand and landed with a thud on the wet soil.All three officers frowned at the clumsy culprit.“Sorry,” I mumbled [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]