alert, Eli inched the pantry door open, waited a beat, then stepped out into the gusting rain.
“Come on,” he muttered to the shadowy caller. “Give me a target.”
He got one ten seconds later in the form of a barely there movement that indicated the caller was creeping along the back of the house.
Whoever it was wore a long coat and had one hand pressed to the outer wall. The other hand—he couldn’t tell. Might be carrying a weapon, might be holding something else. Like another dead bird?
Able to just make out the flat rocks ahead, he jammed the gun in his waistband and went for a takedown. When the shadow lost its balance on the slippery ground, Eli knew it was over.
One solid tackle was all it took. Surprised by the ease of the capture, rather than plant a knee, he flipped his quarry over. And found himself face-to-face with a writhing, swearing female.
Even fully pinned, she bucked, thrashed and squirmed, twisting her head from side to side. At length, she settled for spitting at him.
“Stop fighting me,” he shouted above the wind. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
She either didn’t hear him or didn’t care, and spat again. Cursing now, Eli released her left hand. It flew straight up toward his face, but he blocked the blow with his elbow and snatched her hood back.
Bared teeth and furious eyes greeted him. In that same split second, she succeeded in freeing a knee and immediately aimed at his groin.
“Not tonight, lady.” He knocked it off to the side. “Who the hell are you?”
She tried to heave him up and off. “None of your business. Get—off—me!”
They shot wildcats in Maine, didn’t they? “Calm down,” he said again. “I’m a cop.
“Screw that, pal. I know Ty Blume and his deputies. You’re not one of them.”
Firming his hold on her wrists, he focused on her face. “You know Ty?”
It didn’t surprise him when Sadie dropped down beside him and squeezed his arm. “She knows Ty, Eli. And I know her. You can let her go, but do it carefully. She has a spiteful temper.”
The female snorted. “Pot, kettle, Sadie.”
“We mostly tolerate each other,” Sadie continued in an unruffled tone. “You remember my cousin, Orley, Eli. She’s a veterinary assistant by day and, I’ll assume, Ty’s watchdog by night.” Nudging his shoulder, she added an amused “Good thing you know your job, Lieutenant, because Orley here is also a former state champion in mixed martial arts.”
Chapter Eight
“We’ve been over this, Sadie,” her cousin maintained the following morning. “Yes, Ty sent me. But the word ‘spy’ never came up.”
“Implied’s as good as stated.”
Arms folded, Orley slumped down in the passenger seat. “The guy was worried about you. He couldn’t leave the station house, and he couldn’t get through to Deadbeat Molly, so he called and asked me to spend the night at the manor. Easy breezy.”
“There’s no easy in Ty’s world.” Sadie shoved her four-by-four into a lower gear for the descent to Ben Leamer’s farm. “He didn’t want me to be alone with Eli, and he had no idea if and or when Molly might show. Solution? Recruit a stand-in.”
Orley thrust up her bruised forearms. “You’re bitching, but I’m the one who got mowed down and pinned by Officer Sexy.”
“Lieutenant Sexy,” Sadie shot back, then made a growling sound. “If you think Eli’s so hot, why aren’t you with him instead of me? A tow truck was waiting with a new tire when we dropped him off at the fallen pine.”
Her cousin snorted. “News bulletin, sunshine. The überhot Lieutenant Blume only has eyes for you. He also only didn’t insist on going with you to Ben’s farm because he needs his truck back, and I’d already agreed to ride shotgun. He might have liked it better if Molly had done the honors, but her being totally anal and all, that wasn’t going to happen. The pharmacy must be unlocked precisely at eight a.m. She has OCD, you know. Undiagnosed,
“Come on,” he muttered to the shadowy caller. “Give me a target.”
He got one ten seconds later in the form of a barely there movement that indicated the caller was creeping along the back of the house.
Whoever it was wore a long coat and had one hand pressed to the outer wall. The other hand—he couldn’t tell. Might be carrying a weapon, might be holding something else. Like another dead bird?
Able to just make out the flat rocks ahead, he jammed the gun in his waistband and went for a takedown. When the shadow lost its balance on the slippery ground, Eli knew it was over.
One solid tackle was all it took. Surprised by the ease of the capture, rather than plant a knee, he flipped his quarry over. And found himself face-to-face with a writhing, swearing female.
Even fully pinned, she bucked, thrashed and squirmed, twisting her head from side to side. At length, she settled for spitting at him.
“Stop fighting me,” he shouted above the wind. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
She either didn’t hear him or didn’t care, and spat again. Cursing now, Eli released her left hand. It flew straight up toward his face, but he blocked the blow with his elbow and snatched her hood back.
Bared teeth and furious eyes greeted him. In that same split second, she succeeded in freeing a knee and immediately aimed at his groin.
“Not tonight, lady.” He knocked it off to the side. “Who the hell are you?”
She tried to heave him up and off. “None of your business. Get—off—me!”
They shot wildcats in Maine, didn’t they? “Calm down,” he said again. “I’m a cop.
“Screw that, pal. I know Ty Blume and his deputies. You’re not one of them.”
Firming his hold on her wrists, he focused on her face. “You know Ty?”
It didn’t surprise him when Sadie dropped down beside him and squeezed his arm. “She knows Ty, Eli. And I know her. You can let her go, but do it carefully. She has a spiteful temper.”
The female snorted. “Pot, kettle, Sadie.”
“We mostly tolerate each other,” Sadie continued in an unruffled tone. “You remember my cousin, Orley, Eli. She’s a veterinary assistant by day and, I’ll assume, Ty’s watchdog by night.” Nudging his shoulder, she added an amused “Good thing you know your job, Lieutenant, because Orley here is also a former state champion in mixed martial arts.”
Chapter Eight
“We’ve been over this, Sadie,” her cousin maintained the following morning. “Yes, Ty sent me. But the word ‘spy’ never came up.”
“Implied’s as good as stated.”
Arms folded, Orley slumped down in the passenger seat. “The guy was worried about you. He couldn’t leave the station house, and he couldn’t get through to Deadbeat Molly, so he called and asked me to spend the night at the manor. Easy breezy.”
“There’s no easy in Ty’s world.” Sadie shoved her four-by-four into a lower gear for the descent to Ben Leamer’s farm. “He didn’t want me to be alone with Eli, and he had no idea if and or when Molly might show. Solution? Recruit a stand-in.”
Orley thrust up her bruised forearms. “You’re bitching, but I’m the one who got mowed down and pinned by Officer Sexy.”
“Lieutenant Sexy,” Sadie shot back, then made a growling sound. “If you think Eli’s so hot, why aren’t you with him instead of me? A tow truck was waiting with a new tire when we dropped him off at the fallen pine.”
Her cousin snorted. “News bulletin, sunshine. The überhot Lieutenant Blume only has eyes for you. He also only didn’t insist on going with you to Ben’s farm because he needs his truck back, and I’d already agreed to ride shotgun. He might have liked it better if Molly had done the honors, but her being totally anal and all, that wasn’t going to happen. The pharmacy must be unlocked precisely at eight a.m. She has OCD, you know. Undiagnosed,
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