The Devil Wore Sneakers

by Nora LeDuc

  A flash shot from the muzzle. A crack of the bullet rang in her ears.

  Ali screamed. Lisa’s eyes widened as Lucy’s bullet whizzed past her head and Matt’s ear. The shattering of glass in the bar told her she’d hit the liquor.

  “That’s your best?” Matt’s voice taunted.

  “Warning shot. Step away from Lisa or the next one’s for you.”

  “I don’t believe you, Lucy. You would never harm another person.”

  “Wrong.” She aimed and fired.

  The click from the chamber boomed in the room, followed by silence.

  Then Matt’s chuckle broke the stunned hush. “I guess the alcohol is safe. Your gun jammed.”

  No! She pulled the trigger. Nothing.

  “Shall I give you absolution for trying to kill me? No? Then hand me my weapon. Maybe I’ll forgive you if you do as I say.” He nodded to the gun on the floor.

  “Hastings! Release the girl and put up your hands.” Noah Cassidy burst through the main entry. He aimed a handgun at Matt.

  Hastings swung around with Lisa in front of him. “Detective Cassidy, good evening. I doubt I’ll do as you say. I know I have something valuable to you and Teagan. Pity she’s not here to join us. I miss our private chats. Such a good girl, that Teagan.”

  Movement near the bar caught Lucy’s attention. Liam. Hope pounded in her chest. He crept toward Matt from the back hall. He met her gaze and raised his finger to his lips.

  She darted a glance to Matt.

  “Hand me my gun from the floor, Lucy.”

  “Don’t do it, Lucy,” Noah ordered.

  “If you don’t, she’s gone.” Matt fingers closed around Lisa’s throat.

  Fear glowed in the girl’s eyes as her oxygen disappeared.

  Liam’s long legs ate the distance between him and the priest. “You forgot me.”

  Matt shot a look over his shoulder as Liam’s fist slammed into Matt’s jaw. He sank to the floor. Liam grabbed Lisa and pulled her to her feet. Then he dove on top of Matt.

  Chapter 45

  Lucy stood paralyzed at the sound of Liam’s fist smashing Matt’s flesh and bone.

  Noah leaped into action. He pulled Liam off the prone man.

  “Get away from me, Cassidy. He tried to kill Lucy.”

  “I’ve got him.” Noah pulled Matt to his feet and slugged him. He crumpled to the ground. “That’s for Lisa. Get up again. I have one from Teagan. Now turn over, put your face to the floor, hands over your head.”

  Hastings moaned but complied. Noah cuffed him and recited his rights.

  Lucy shoved her gun on the counter and ran across the floor. Liam caught her in his arms. She pressed her face into his chest, inhaling the scent of dampness. “You’re here.” She was never letting go. Inhaling the scent of his wet leather jacket and his soap, she tightened her hold.

  “I’ll always come for you, Luce.” His heart pounded against her ear. He kissed the top of her hair. “I’m glad you’re okay.” His voice grew hoarse.

  “You and Noah sure took care of Matt,” Lisa yelled. She stood next to Ali, who was sitting at a rear table.

  “I’ve got to check on the girls,” Lucy said, stepping away from Liam. She wished she could stay with him, but the teens needed attention. She joined Lisa, who was reassuring Ali that Matt would never harm her again. Lucy hugged Lisa and then Ali, who whimpered for her mom.

  “Your mom will be here soon,” Lucy reassured her. She grabbed two towels from the bar, filled them with ice, and offered them to the teens. Ali refused. Lisa held the homemade ice pack against her cheekbone.

  Lucy approached the men hovering over Matt. Liam had grabbed the Magnum. She wanted to say something grateful, important, but too many feelings and questions spun in her thoughts, confusing her. So she asked a safe question. “Liam, how did you and Noah hook up?”

  “My truck went off the road because someone loosened my lug nuts.”

  “Matt sabotaged it.” Anger swept over her.

  “I’m okay, Luce. Noah was on his way to the Moose for Lisa. He picked me up. After a brief discussion over where we were headed”— Liam grimaced— “we came here.”

  “Yeah, when Liam and I arrived,” Noah said, “we entered through the back and heard what was happening. I texted Sullivan. I decided not to wait for him when things heated up. McAllister was supposed to be the lookout for the police while I took care of Hastings.” He frowned at Liam.

  “I told you nothing would keep me from Lucy, especially Hastings.”

  Lucy turned to him, unable to hold back the words clogging her throat. “Liam, I—”

  “Barley Police Department.” Sullivan entered and four of his men and three state troopers swarmed the room.

  “Take Matt Hastings to jail,” Lisa shouted, pointing at him. “He tried to kill me, Ali, and Lucy.”

  “I read him his rights,” Noah said. “You should repeat them so he can’t claim he was too stunned to understand them.”

  The troopers and two of Sullivan’s men surrounded Matt, yanked him upright, and repeated the legalities while leading him away. Sullivan circled the room and took pictures with his phone.

  Everything seemed surreal, like a TV show, as Lucy watched the action.

  “Chief.” An officer ran into the room and stopped on the edge of the gathering.

  Sullivan moved into the hall with his police officer and returned in seconds. “Officer Gary, read McAllister his rights. Take his weapon.”

  “What?” Lucy cried.

  “Chief Sullivan.” Noah stepped in front of him. “You and I both know you don’t have enough for a murder charge against McAllister.”

  “You’re wrong. My man just found one of Ryan Watson’s hunting rifles behind the Dumpster. He matched it to one of the missing rifles from the list on my phone.”

  “That’s a lie,” Liam said through clenched teeth.

  “Officer, rights.” Sullivan nodded to him and turned to Lucy. “Is that Hastings’s weapon on the floor?”

  Lucy nodded, and Sullivan snapped a picture, bagged it, and then the Magnum. Liam stood stoically while his rights were read.

  “I’ll get you a lawyer,” Lucy shouted to him when the officer finished. What had happened? How did a rifle from Ryan’s house get behind the trash?

  A click announced the handcuffs closing over his wrists. They strode toward the exit. Sullivan and his men surrounded him, keeping him from Lucy’s view.

  “Liam’s not a killer. You’re making a mistake.” Panicked, she sprinted after them.

  Noah blocked her path and shook his head.

  She had to do something. “Don’t argue with Sullivan,” she yelled to Liam. “Promise.” When he didn’t answer, frustration pushed her to detour around Noah, but he caught her arm.

  “Nothing you can do now. Later.”

  He was right. She nodded and he released her. She ran to the window and watched Liam disappear into a cruiser.

  * * *

  Sullivan phoned Ali’s parents and told her father and mother the good news. They agreed to meet at the station and then to take Ali onward to the emergency room. Finished with his call, Sullivan ordered everyone to follow him, but Noah insisted Lucy and Lisa should be checked out by a physician first.

  Their trip to the hospital was short, but the wait for the emergency room doctor lasted forever. Finally, Lisa was examined and then Lucy. The physician released them with instructions for Noah to monitor the women.

  They moved on to the station and gave their statements. Lucy questioned Sullivan about Liam without success. Exhaustion was taking hold when they left to return to the bar. The Moose crew along with Bella, Flo, and Gage showed up to meet them at the door.

  “What are you doing here?” Lucy asked.

  “Honey, it’s all over town,” Flo told her as they swept inside. “You guys took down the stalker and rescued Ali. We’re here to celebrate. Where’s Liam?”

  “I guessed you missed part of the town’s conversat
ion. Sullivan charged him with murdering my brother.”

  “What?” The hairdresser’s jaw dropped open. “Why didn’t I know that?”

  “Noah’s getting him a lawyer that will make the police chief sorry he thought about arresting him,” Lisa said.

  “Don’t worry,” Gage said. “We’ll get him released.”

  “Yeah,” Sadie said, “Liam’s an honest businessman. He never cheats a customer, never mind shoots his best friend.”

  “Everyone I know wants to drink their first legal beer at the Moose,” Chip said. “The police can’t put him in jail. What will happen to the Moose? Where will people get their drinks?”

  Lucy couldn’t help but smile at her friends’s efforts to cheer her.

  A new wave of adrenaline overtook her. She and Lisa spent the next hours talking to neighbors and townspeople who’d wandered in to hear their story as the storm eased. Noah phoned Teagan for the third time and reassured her they were all safe, and he’d bring Lisa and her car home the next day. Lisa and Lucy talked to Teagan and repeated they were well before returning the cell to Noah.

  More people appeared as the daylight faded into an overcast evening. They gasped or shook their heads, and they insisted Liam was innocent and would be freed.

  Noah called a lawyer who agreed to take on Liam’s case. Around midnight, the last customers left, and Lucy closed the bar. She gave Lisa her bed and took an extra blanket and pillow to the upstairs couch. Noah sacked out in Liam’s office for the night.

  Exhaustion overtook her as she collapsed on the cushions. Target snored from his place beside the sofa. Traumatized, he’d hidden under Liam’s desk until she’d coaxed him upstairs after a short walk.

  In the quiet, her mind repeated Liam’s words to her.

  I’ll always come for you.

  I’ll be there for you too, Liam. She pulled the blanket up to her chin and realized she’d never changed her clothes. Oh well, tomorrow worked for a shower and a fresh outfit. She closed her eyes.

  Noah checked in on them twice during the night. Lucy fell back to sleep after reassuring him. When she finally woke, it was nine am.

  Lisa was already in the kitchen sipping from a coffee mug. “Hey, you slept forever. I have been up for hours. Coffee is made.”

  “I’ll cook breakfast,” Lucy told the girl.

  “I talked to Noah while I waited for you to get up. He already showered downstairs.”

  “Good. I’ll give a holler when it’s time to eat.” She cooked eggs and bacon, and in an hour, her guests prepared to hit the road.

  She walked with them to the lot. Clouds and a gray sky dimmed the day.

  “You need a break, Lucy,” Noah said, standing by his vehicle. “Teagan wants you with her, and Liam won’t be arraigned for a few days. You should stay with us until then.”

  “I can’t leave. I have too much to do, but give Teagan my love.”

  She hugged Noah and gave the waiting Lisa one, too. The teen seemed to have sunken into silence, but her arms encircled Lucy and tightened for a moment before she stepped away.

  “Teagan will call,” Noah said, getting into his driver’s seat while Lisa jumped into Teagan’s vehicle. He started his engine, nodded, and they took off.

  Lucy waved goodbye as her spirits sank lower.

  She stood, inhaling the cool air. No one was watching her. At last, Matt was gone. She was safe, and soon Liam would be home. Think positive.

  But Sullivan needed to continue looking for Ryan’s true killer.

  The Moose crew arrived with new questions about Liam, which she couldn’t answer. At the bar, Lucy caught Hank alone and asked about Bella.

  “She was tired after spending the night ‘talking to Ryan.’” He ran a hand through his hair. “This morning she kept worrying about Liam. I don’t know what to do about her. Sorry to bug you with my problems. You’ve had it tough. Anything you need, I’m on it.”

  “Guess we both feel helpless, Hank. I’ll let you know if I learn more from Liam’s lawyer.”

  She sat in Liam’s office to work, but her mind refused to focus. Her gaze fell on Bella’s locket on the desk. Well, maybe she could help Bella and forget her own problems. Lucy grabbed the jewelry.

  Target perked up when she shrugged into her jacket. She clipped on his leash and they climbed Goat Hill. At the crest, she knocked on the second-floor apartment of the three-story green house. Target sat on the welcome mat beside her.

  Bella answered and stood looking at Lucy as if they’d never met.

  What was wrong with her? “I brought the locket you wanted from Ryan’s house.” Uneasy, Lucy held up the jewelry to jar her memory.

  “Thank you.” Bella smiled and was herself again. She fastened the chain around her neck.

  “I hope I didn’t wake you,” Lucy said.

  “I wasn’t sleeping. Come in. Any word on Liam?”

  “Nothing new, I’m afraid. Do you allow dogs inside? I have Target.”

  “He can come in with you. I thought you were Hank checking on me, though he doesn’t knock. I guess I’m feeling a little guilty because I called work and told them I’d be an hour late. I slept in a little, but didn’t tell them that. ”

  “If now’s a bad time, we can leave.”

  “No, you have to see my place. I never get company.”

  Lucy and Target walked into a sunny kitchen with checkered green curtains and a white tablecloth. “Your apartment is cozy.”

  “I like it. Now that you’re here, I’ll show you my teacup collection. This way.”

  Lucy blinked. So much for small talk. She followed Bella into a living room with flowered wallpaper and a beige sofa and chair. Teacups with saucers covered a folding table by the two windows facing the street.

  “Wow, you have a large set, Bella.”

  “Hank says it’s too drafty to sit by the window, but the draft doesn’t hurt my cups. He suggested I move the table next to my bedroom door.” She gestured toward the spot.

  Lucy turned in the opposite direction. On the wall hung a picture of Hank with a young boy. “Either one works. Who is the child?” Lucy edged closer. He was about seven and sitting on Hank’s knee. He looked like Bella.

  “Oh, that’s my nephew, Timmy.”

  “I thought Hank only had a little girl.”

  “Timmy lives with his mom. She and Hank never married. He goes to a special school. It’s hard for Hank to talk about him. That’s another reason he wants his daughter. You know, to make up for not having Timmy much.”

  “Does he ever visit?”

  “Once a month on Hank’s weekend off, he tries to bring Timmy here. His mother cancels a lot. He came a few weeks ago and she stayed the whole afternoon instead of dropping him off. You should come over with Target the next time he shows up. Timmy loves dogs.”

  “Does he?” Lucy walked closer to the portrait with something niggling in her mind.

  “Let’s have tea in the kitchen.”

  Lucy followed her hostess into the other room. She pulled out a chair and Target sat next to her. The dog watched Bella move around the stove and cupboards. He obviously thought a treat was coming his way.

  Bella turned and put a finger on her chin. “Hmm, you’re a lilac.”

  “I am?”

  “You are.” Bella walked to the corner hutch and grabbed a cup.

  The woman must have stashed cups all over the apartment.

  Bella set it down before Lucy. “Isn’t the painted flower pretty on the white china?”

  “Beautiful. Lie down, Target.”

  Her pet lay down and rested his head on his outstretched paws.

  “I knew you’d like the color.” Bella sank onto the chair across from Lucy. “Why did the police chief arrest Liam for killing Ryan? I bet that horrible Matt Hastings murdered everyone.”

  “When we went to the station last night, I found out Matt claimed to be hiding out in a homeless shelter a few miles from Hawick Falls the evening Ryan was shot. Sullivan is veri
fying his alibi. I wish I could help Liam.”

  “If Matt didn’t kill Ryan, then Sullivan should keep looking for the real killer.”

  Visiting Bella wasn’t working out the way Lucy had hoped.

  Bella’s eyes widened. “What about Ali’s boyfriend? Maybe he’s the killer. I hear a lot about crazy teenage killers.”

  Time to change the subject. Bella hadn’t even put on the water. Did she just want Lucy to sit and appreciate the cups? Her gaze fell on the opaque jar labeled Tea sitting on a shelf above the stove. “I’ll get the tea.” She rose from her chair and reached up for the container.

  “No.” Bella leaped up and cut in front of Lucy. Her eyes narrowed and her lips tightened, grim and threatening. “We can’t use those leaves. They dried up.”

  “Oh.” Bella’s strong reaction was stranger than strange.

  “I bought a box of Maple Leaf store bags,” Bella said as Lucy slipped into her seat. “I left them in the other room. I’ll get them and the cloth napkins I put away. The table will look pretty. Don’t run off. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.”

  What was going on with Bella and the tea? Was that the secret ingredient she’d added to the chocolate chips? Lucy stole across the floor. Target sat up.

  Lucy grabbed the jar and opened it. The leaves were green, not brown and shriveled. Did they have the same scent as her cookies? She inhaled. The fresh chestnut odor hit her senses, but as she stared down into the container, something black snagged her attention.

  What the heck? She tilted the glass jar and shook the contents to the side. The butt of a handgun appeared. Unable to stop herself, she reached inside and pulled up a .38 Special.

  Chapter 46

  Bella shot Ryan? Was it possible? Why? She loved him.

  “The tea bags aren’t—” Bella froze as she entered the room.

  Lucy snapped her attention to her. “You hid a .38 in the jar?” Why had she asked? Act normal and get out of here. “I guess you were scared after Ryan’s death.”

  “Yes. Hank gave it to me.”

  “Hank?” Was she lying? “Where did he get it?”

  “He…” She blinked several times. “I don’t know. I have to change for work. He doesn’t want me to tell people I have it. I—” She stopped rambling and wrung her hands.