Light Magic

by Ellie Ferguson

  A slow smile spread across her face. Then she looked up, the smile gone. Good, she knew how to play the game. Now if she would play it on my side this once. If she would, I might be able to teach Annie a lesson about surprising me.

  “I guess I can call you boss now.” She grinned again and slid the file under her left arm.

  “Not yet. Annie hasn’t seen the changes I made to the agreement.” I walked around the desk to stand in front of her. “But I do have a favor to ask.”

  “Anything.”

  “You might want to hear it first.”

  She cocked an eyebrow and nodded for me to continue.

  “Annie sprung that one me.” I nodded to the file. “I don’t like surprises any more than she liked all the ones everyone kept springing on her when she returned to town.”

  I didn’t have to say anything else. Realization dawned on her and then she started to grin. Devilment danced in her eyes and I knew she’d do it. Just as I knew she would side with Annie to drive me crazy whenever she felt like it.

  After all, that’s what friends do.

  “She’s finished,” she said as the sounds of Annie saying goodbye to her client reached us.

  I watched as she left my office. I gave her enough time to join Annie. Then I crept to the door, being careful not to let Annie see me. Now I’d see how good of an actress Beth happened to be.

  “Well?” Annie asked.

  I looked around the edge of the door as Beth shook her head. I couldn’t see her expression but, judging from the slump of her shoulders, she was playing her role to the hilt.

  “She’s pissed. All but threw the file at me.” Beth waved the file in front of her and then tucked it back under her arm before Annie could reach for it.

  Annie looked as if Beth had hit her. Then her mouth firmed and she glanced toward my office. I ducked back behind the door before she could see me. At the same time, I heard her moving in my direction. I quickly moved across the office and had just dropped into my chair behind the desk when she pushed the door opened and stepped inside.

  “Meg.” She paused, as if unsure what to say. “Maybe I shouldn’t have just sprung it on you, but I thought you understood I wanted you to join the practice.”

  “What I understand is you forgot what it’s like to have people dropping little surprises on you every time you turn around.” I made air quotes around “little surprises”.

  She flinched and closed her eyes. I could almost hear her counting to five before she opened her mouth to try again.

  “Can I claim the best of intentions like they did?” she asked hopefully.

  I shook my head. As I did, she looked almost defeated. No, she looked like a kid whose mother just said she couldn’t have a new toy. Then I realized she might have another reason for being upset I hadn’t signed the agreement – her brother.

  “I thought you wanted to stay here,” she said, confirming at least one part of my assumption.

  I couldn’t stand it any longer. I smiled and moved around the desk. As I did, she looked at me hopefully. Then, realizing I’d been pulling her leg, she stamped her foot in frustration before turning to glare at Beth who stood, grinning, in the doorway.

  “You.” She pointed at Beth. “Are supposed to be my friend.”

  “I’m your best friend, but you deserved this, Annie,” Beth laughed. “She made a few changes to the agreement – changes I recommend you accept – and she signed it.”

  “Give me!”

  Not waiting for Beth to answer, Annie hurried to where she stood and grabbed the file. Without another word, she withdrew the partnership agreement. I watched, more than a little bemused, as she flipped through it, checking the changes I’d made . A short time later, she held out her hand, snapping her fingers. Beth instantly handed her a pen. Annie didn’t look up until she’d initialed and then signed the agreement. A moment later, she handed it back to Beth.

  “Get her a copy and then prepare the notice to the Bar and update our tax records, etc. Your mother will know what to do. In fact, let her do that. I’d like you to take care of getting a new sign for the office, business cards, that sort of thing. As for you.” Now she looked at me. “You got me. But that just means I have to try again later, when you least expect it.”

  “We’ll see.” I grinned and reached out to shake her hand. “Partner.”

  She laughed and pulled me into a hug. Then she stepped back. “Ready to go see what Lucas wants?”

  “As soon as you get Brigid.”

  Five minutes later, I settled the dogs in the rear of the Discovery. As I did, I wondered yet again what sort of favors Miss Serena had called in to get the SUV outfitted overnight for me. The back row of seats had been folded down and two dog cages sat side by side. My earlier exploration of the Discovery showed how they’d been secured so they wouldn’t move. With the dogs safe in the cages, I hurried to the driver’s door, ready to take the SUV for my first drive.

  “You know we could have walked,” Annie said as I pulled onto Main Street a few moments later.

  “Nope. After what happened Monday, we aren’t walking anywhere until this is over.” Not only did I have no intention of risking myself, I wasn’t about to let her be at risk. “So, did you know about this?”

  I didn’t have to explain. Not when she ran an admiring hand over the dash and leaned forward to look at the state-of-the-art console.

  “This specifically? No. But I had a feeling after what you said last night that she’d find a vehicle for you that wasn’t making you as paranoid as her Range Rover.”

  I nodded and signaled a lane change. I waited until I could safely turn into a parking space in front of the café. Well, to be more accurate, into two spaces. Yes, I was going to be one of those people I always cursed. But there was no way I wanted to risk a ding in the door the first day I had the Discovery.

  Ten minutes later, we were shown into Lucas’ office. He sat behind his desk. As he motioned us to the chairs in front of the desk, the door opened and Drew stepped inside. He hurried to stand behind his sister and me, resting a hand on each of our shoulders. I reached up and twined my fingers with his, glad he was there.

  “Lucas?” Annie prompted.

  He looked tired and I wondered if he’d gotten any sleep last night. He certainly hadn’t shaved. Shadows bruised the skin under his eyes. But his eyes were alert and he had the look of a predator on the scent of prey. Hopefully, that meant he had some answers for me.

  “I’ve been going over the video footage we got for the time of the attack on you, Meg.”

  He reached for his coffee mug and lifted it, grimacing. I guessed the mug was empty. Without saying anything, I squeezed Drew’s fingers and nodded toward Lucas. Whether he’d had the same thought, or he realized what I meant, he disappeared from the office. When he returned a few moments later, he carried a coffee pot and several mugs. He refilled Lucas’ mug and then poured coffee for me and for himself. As he did, he apologized to his sister and I hid my laugh at her frustrated expression behind my hand.

  “Thanks.” Lucas took a long pull on his coffee and then placed his mug on the desktop. “As I said, I’ve been going over the video footage. I never realized how many of our businesses have added security cameras, not to mention the ATM cameras. The attack was actually captured on one of the bank cameras, Meg. That will be important when we get the perp in court. More important was we were able to follow him and see what sort of vehicle he left in.”

  “Do you have an ID?” Annie leaned forward, her expression hopeful.

  “A possible one. It’s still a long shot, but it’s a place to start.” He turned his computer monitor to face us. “Meg, I’d like you to watch the video and see if you can add anything to what we see. Are you up to it?”

  For a moment I sat there, saying nothing. Then I nodded. I might not be up to it, but that didn’t matter. I had to do it. For Mom and for these people who, for whatever reason, cared for me. Most of all, I needed to do it for mysel
f. I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life looking over my shoulder, wondering where the next attack might come from.

  “Do it.”

  With Drew’s hand resting reassuringly on my shoulder and Annie holding my left hand in hers, I waited. As the first frame of the video feed appeared on the monitor, I reminded myself to breathe. Then I leaned forward, trying to make sense of the grainy images that slowly came into focus.

  A man, at least I thought it was a man, dressed in dark pants and a hoodie, moved purposefully down the sidewalk. He walked as if hunching over, his hands in the pockets of his black or dark blue hoodie. From time to time, he appeared to look up, as if taking in his surroundings. Several times, he bulled his way past others on the sidewalk, much as I remember my attacker doing. As he passed in front of the café, my breath hitched and my heart thudded. If this really was the man who attacked me, I’d soon be seeing it happen.

  I swallowed hard as the video changed. This time, I saw myself walking down the street from the law office, the dogs on either side. I tensed at the same time they did. Damn it, I should have been more aware of their reaction. They’d tried to warn me. But we were too new to one another and I was still learning their responses just as they were mine.

  The man came into frame and I hissed in a breath as he pushed back me. From this angle, I saw his hand come out of his pocket and move faster than I’d expected in my direction. Remembered pain washed over me as the video showed me stumbling into the side of the bank. God, it took place so quickly and no one, not even me, realized what happened.

  “Run it back, from the time he stabbed me. Slower this time,” I ordered as Annie’s grip on my hand tightened.

  Lucas did as I said. Watching the video, I kept my eyes on the man’s hands. I wanted to see the weapon.

  “There!” I pointed to the monitor and Lucas paused the video. Before I could ask, he zoomed in on the man’s hand as it appeared from his hoodie pocket. He held what looked like a modified knuckle knife. The blade was narrower than any I’d seen before, but that didn’t make it any less deadly, especially not tainted as it had been.

  Lucas stopped the video before the man stabbed me. When it resumed, the man was moving down the block away from me. I staggered forward, toward the café. Then the camera angle changed as he switched to another video feed. I recognized the angle and knew we were watching the feed from the law office’s security system.

  “No view of his face?” Annie asked as he disappeared around the corner of the building.

  “Wait.” Lucas said as the video feed changed again.

  We watched as the man strolled seemingly nonchalantly across the street to the parking lot one block over from downtown. He walked to a dark, older model sedan parked on the front row of the lot. Once next to the driver’s door, he stopped and looked around. I guessed he was checking to see if anyone had followed him. Apparently satisfied, he unlocked the door and slid in behind the steering wheel. The engine started, and the man slid the transmission into gear.

  My heart pounded so hard I expected it to pop out of my chest as he reached up and pushed back his hood. For a second only, the camera captured his face. Lucas froze the image. It was distorted between the angle and distance from the security camera across the street, not to mention the shadows cast by the car roof. But we had an image.

  Now if we could only get an ID.

  Lucas switched off the monitor and turned it back to its original position. Then he reached for his coffee mug, giving us time to take in what we’d just seen. My free hand once again reached for Drew’s and I drew strength from him and his sister. They anchored me, reminding me those images happened days ago and I was safe.

  “Did you recognize him?” Lucas asked.

  I shook my head. I couldn’t ever remember seeing him before.

  “Annie?”

  Like me, she shook her head. “Do you have an ID?”

  “Like I said earlier, we have a tentative one based on the plate return.”

  “Who?”

  “We’re tracking him down now.” Lucas shook his head before Annie could say anything else. “Once we know something solid, I’ll let you know. For now, keep an eye out for this guy.” He moved to kneel in front of Annie and me. “Meg, I’m going to increase patrols around Miss Serena’s and the law office. We aren’t going to let anything else happen. I promise.”

  I nodded, fighting the frustration and fear that battled deep inside me.

  “Drew, you’ve got patrol this morning. Make sure they get back to the office all right. Then coordinate with Cantoni to have someone driving by on a regular basis.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Annie, I hope you don’t mind but I called Judith and Miss Serena. They’ll be by at lunch to help up your security.”

  “I’m not going to argue.” She gave my hand a squeeze. “I want that bastard caught and I want to know why he targeted Meg.”

  “Not nearly as much as I do,” Lucas said. “I have one more thing to ask of you both. You need to act as if you know nothing about who this guy is. If you see him, stay safe and don’t confront him yourself. Call me and then call Drew. Leave it to us.”

  I couldn’t promise that, especially not if that son of a bitch in any way threatened the people I had come to care for so much.

  Chapter 25

  Two hours later, I once again climbed into the Discovery. Annie, along with Beth and Miss Olivia, stayed at the office, waiting for Miss Serena and Judith to arrive. I’d been tasked with picking up lunch at the café. Before letting me leave, Annie made me swear I’d not only drive to Miss Peggy’s but that I’d take Apollo in with me. After what we’d seen in Lucas’ office, I agreed. Most of the damage from the attack had healed but I had no intention of giving the guy a second-chance.

  As I pulled out of the parking lot behind the law office, I glanced around. Even though I couldn’t see anyone, I knew eyes were on me. Beth had called Lucas to let him know I’d be leaving and he’d had me wait ten minutes while he got everything in place. No, he wouldn’t tell us what. All he said was for me to act normally, park in front of the café and take Apollo in with me.

  Annie hadn’t liked it and, to be honest, I wasn’t thrilled. Lucas was using me as bait. I’d much rather be doing the hunting, but I’d promised to leave the investigation to him. Not that I planned to play helpless if the bastard who stabbed me showed up. I owed him and I wanted answers, answers he’d better be ready to give me.

  A few minutes later, I parked in a very conveniently located space in front of the café. For a moment, I sat there. I breathed deeply once, twice and third time. My heart beat faster than usual as I wondered if we might get lucky. Not that it would happen as long as I sat there. Steeling myself, I switched off the engine and climbed out. Doing my best not to look around, searching for danger, I moved around the Discovery and opened the hatch.

  “C’mon, Apollo,” I said as I opened his cage and clipped his leash in place. “Hier.”

  Apollo jumped down and waited as I closed the hatch. The Discovery gave a soft beep as the security system engaged. Satisfied, I led Apollo to the sidewalk where several café regulars stood looking at the SUV. One of them whistled in appreciation as he took in the Discovery’s lines. When he looked up at me, I chuckled softly as I recognized him. If anyone recognized the SUV’s quality, it was Jacob Smithson.

  “Nice,” he said as he ran a loving hand over the hood.

  “It really is.” I didn’t try to hide how much I liked the vehicle. “I’d be happy to show her to you any time, Mr. Smithson.”

  “Jacob,” he corrected. “You just be sure to let me take care of her the way I’ve been taking care of your mama’s Chief.”

  “Never doubt it, Jacob.” I’d be a fool not to.

  I excused myself, leaving him and several others discussing the Discovery. As I pushed open the door to the café, the bell jingled and several of those gathered for lunch turned to look in my direction. I recognized most of th
em as Miss Peggy’s regulars. Sitting at a two top in the middle of the café were a young man and woman. Even though dressed in civvies, I recognized them from the sheriff’s department. The young woman smiled and gave an almost imperceptible nod of her head, motioning for me to move to the back booth. I inclined my head in response, recognizing she was putting me in the most defensible position in the café.

  “What can I get you, Meg?” Janny asked as she appeared from behind the counter.

  “I’m on lunch duty, Janny.” I forced myself not to look up as the bell over the door jingled again. I pulled a sheet of paper out of my pocket and handed it to her. “That’s what everyone wanted. Can you get it for me?”

  “Sure, hon.” She glanced at the list and winked.

  Damn, was she in on whatever Lucas had set up?

  “Can I get you anything for while you wait?”

  I made a show of looking at the cakes and pie sitting on the shelf behind the counter. “How about a piece of your Mom’s chocolate pie? It’s been calling my name since I walked through the door.”

  “You got it, hon. Coffee too?”

  “Please.”

  As she moved to place my order, I gave Apollo the sign to lie down next to my chair. I wanted him on the outside, able to react, if trouble found me. Then I pulled my cellphone from my pocket. After sending a quick text to Lucas to let him know I’d made it to the café without anything untoward happening, I sent a second text to Drew. Damn but I’d feel better if he was there. Still, I had a feeling he was close and had to settle for that.

  “Here you go, Meg.” Janny slid a piece of pie and cup of coffee onto the table in front of me. Then she shifted positions slightly so no one else could see what she said. “Stranger coming.”

  I lifted my mug and blew across the top of it. As I did, I glanced toward the front door. Seeing the rather nondescript man in jeans, tee shirt and a light jacket, my heart skipped a beat. Carefully, I reached down with my left hand and tapped Apollo. He tensed but didn’t move from his place. All we could do was wait.