Kiki Lowenstein Books 1-3 & Cara Mia Delgatto Books 1-3: The Perfect Series for Crafters, Pet Lovers, and Readers Who Like Upbeat Books!

by Joanna Campbell Slan

  The pain exploded like a bomb going off in my nervous system. Blood squirted out of my nose. My knees went wobbly. Dark edges blurred my vision. I tasted copper and thought I might puke. Or pass out. Or both.

  Focus! Stay with it or die!

  The blow had sent me reeling. I staggered sideways.

  It had also jarred Adrian’s hand, causing him a new wave of pain, forcing him to bend over in agony.

  I tripped over myself while swallowing mouthfuls of hot blood. Gravity was pulling me down—and taking me past Adrian. He reached for me, to keep me close, but the motion caused a tug on his hand. He whimpered this time, rather than crying out. I stepped back to dodge his grip. I coughed and sputtered, spitting blood. I couldn’t see clearly. I dropped to my knees, crawled under the desk, and headed for the other side.

  My shin crunched down on something. It was hard and thin.

  Adrian's knife!

  I scrambled for it wildly.

  Adrian was screaming and calling me all sorts of names. But he still couldn’t free himself from the desk. My fingers searched blindly as I tried to find the knife. I bumped it. My hand knocked it to the right. It spun crazily. I crawled out from under the desk and toward the shining lethal blade. Because I was exposed, Adrian managed to kick me in the ribs.

  The blow knocked the air out of me, and I rolled to one side, gasping helplessly. Then I heaved. I wiped blood from my face, but I climbed to my knees again. I thought about Tommy. I wasn’t going to let him down. I had to survive this.

  Concentrate, I said to myself. Concentrate or die.

  My eyes watered with pain.

  Adrian had gone very, very still. He was studying how to pull the pin out of his hand.

  Once he freed himself, he'd take his fury out on me. I couldn't risk fighting with him for the blade. I re-doubled my efforts, sweeping my hands in large circles over the floor. My left pinky bumped cold metal. The handle spun away from me. I grabbed for my prize.

  With the knife firmly in my grip, I rocked back on my heels in a defensive position.

  Focus! Get to your feet! Run for it!

  How could I run when I could barely see? My eyes were watering. I was choking on the blood streaming down my face. Adrian gave a grunt of effort, followed by a scream of pain. His hand flew free. He went hurtling backwards from my desk. With a loud crash, he banged into my tall bookshelf. Two volumes toppled to the floor. One clipped his shoulder as it fell.

  If I lived through this, I promised to buy more hardback books.

  I popped to my feet, grabbed the desktop to steady myself, and took one step toward the door.

  Adrian lunged at me. He grabbed the edge of my shirt. His face was contorted with pain.

  "You little—" He spoke in a husky tone. "I'm going to teach you."

  "Nothing," said another voice. It was deep and manly. "You’re going to teach her nothing. Put your hands in the air where I can see them. Move slowly. Step away from the desk."

  I expected to hear Nathan Davidson talking. To my surprise, Jason Robbins stood less than two feet away from me. He looked scary mad.

  But he wasn’t carrying a weapon. At least not one that I could see.

  How could he save me?

  "Cara? You okay?" Jason asked, quickly checking me up and down.

  "Yes." I touched my face. “I think so. Just a bit bloody. That’s all.”

  "Come over by me," said Jason.

  I kept my eyes on Adrian as I walked toward Jason. I continued to hold the blade in the air as if I knew how to use it. When I got close enough to Jason, his strong fingers closed around the knife.

  “You sure you’re okay?” he asked again.

  Adrian launched himself at us. But Jason stepped in front of me, shielding me with his body. In a flash, he grabbed Adrian's right arm and twisted, causing Adrian to turn a half-circle. I heard a snap.

  "Argh!" Adrian screamed in pain.

  With an elegant sideways move, Jason slammed Adrian against a wall. A painful crunch suggested that Adrian’s facial features had been rearranged.

  "I don't need a knife to kill you," Jason whispered into Adrian's ear. "The only question in is slow or fast? You’ve hurt Cara. Do you have any idea how mad that makes me? Guess."

  I heard a pop, like a balloon at a kid's party, and simultaneously Adrian howled with pain. The way he was standing suggested that his shoulder had been separated from the socket.

  "Cara?” Jason turned to talk to me. “You might want to call the cops before I really lose my temper and do something this jerk will regret.”

  94

  ~Cara~

  6 p.m. on Monday

  The Treasure Chest

  Officer Valerie Blaze wasn't impressed with Adrian Green's caterwauling. In fact, she all but ignored his complaints.

  After transferring Adrian into the custody of two other uniformed cops, she said, "Whatever you do, don't let this creep out of your sight. I think he’s got his passport and a plane ticket on him. Stick close to him at the hospital. Don't even let him go to the bathroom by himself. The minute they finish fixing him up, book him and get him back to the jail.”

  "Got it," said the fresh-faced young man.

  “Ditto,” said his middle-aged partner.

  Adrian was bookended by two uniformed officers. With every step, he complained loudly of the pain.

  I was happy to see the last of him.

  "Do we need to call an ambulance for you?” asked Officer Blaze.

  “I’ll be okay,” I said, although I wasn’t totally sure about that.

  “You really rammed that hat pin into his hand?" Officer Blaze asked me. "Pinned him to the desktop?"

  "Yes."

  Her chuckles caused the freckles on her nose to dance. "I'm impressed Ms. Delgatto. I had you figured for the fluffy bunny, pretty kitty type of girl. How'd you happen to show up just in time, Sir Galahad?"

  Jason shrugged. "Cara left her lipstick in my car. I dropped by to return it."

  "I probably won't need to paint more color on my face for a long, long time," I said.

  My nose had finally quit bleeding, but my shirt was streaked with blood that had dried on my arms and my chest. I could barely see out of my left eye. My lip stung. My ribs ached. I couldn't imagine how bad I must look. Despite all that, I did feel rather proud of myself. Adrian Green had roughed me up, but I'd gotten the better of him.

  Now he was going to jail, where he belonged—and my computer was exactly where I wanted it to be.

  "I can't believe that twerp waved a knife at you," said Jason. "You did a good job of defending yourself, Cara.”

  “I’m booking him on an assault with a deadly weapon,” said Officer Blaze. “He’ll be sorry he decided to flash that blade around. Are you sure you’re okay?”

  I turned my hand over. A bruise was inflating my palm to twice its size. Jason reached for my fingers, touched them gently, and said, "Is it possible that he broke your nose?"

  "No. I don't know," I amended my comment. "It hurts. I can't breathe. But I assume that's because he hit me so hard."

  “We definitely need to get you to the hospital," said Jason, as he wrapped a protective arm around me. I leaned against him. It felt good to have his arm around me.

  "I'll need a more detailed statement, but that can wait until you get checked over. Could you stop by the police station tomorrow, Ms. Delgatto?"

  "Please call me Cara," I said.

  "I'm Valerie.” She smiled.

  “What a mess,” I said. The floor was streaked with my blood, and one wall had a splotch where Adrian Green's face had hit it. But the most satisfying was the way that the crime scene guys marveled at the hole I’d drilled in the desktop. It was nearly a half an inch deep.

  I couldn't believe I'd done that. But then, my life had been on the line.

  "Maybe I should frame that desktop for posterity and label it, 'Don't mess with me,'" I said. "I am thoroughly sick and tired of people thinking they can shove me around."r />
  He and Valerie both laughed.

  “I think word is getting around that you can look after yourself,” she said.

  "Let's go, Cara,” said Jason. “Once the adrenaline wears off, you're going to be in a world of hurt."

  Valerie handed me her business card. “Call me anytime if you need me. Do you have a second set of keys? I’ll let the dog out and lock up when we’re ready to leave.”

  I thanked her profusely.

  Jason helped me into his car, buckled me in, and gently closed the door. He treated me as if I were made of fine china.

  After he started down the street, I asked, "Do I really look like kittens and puppies and cupcakes or whatever?"

  "No way," said Jason. "You look like Wonder Woman. Tough. Unyielding. Take no prisoners."

  "Really?" My nose was totally blocked. I didn’t sound like me.

  "No," he said with a chuckle. "Not really. You look like you. You're one of a kind, Cara. Boy, do you ever set the bar high."

  95

  ~Lou~

  6:15 p.m. on Monday

  Stuart Police Department

  Officer Valerie Blaze stood just inside the door to Davidson’s and reported on the scuffle between Cara and Adrian Green.

  “Was Cara hurt?” asked Davidson, his voice thick with concern.

  “Might have a broken nose. Bruised palm. Bruised ribs,” said Blaze. “But for the most part, she was okay. She did an admirable job of defending herself, sir. She’s with Mr. Robbins right now. He encouraged her to go to the hospital and get checked over.

  “Thank goodness that woman has spunk,” said the Police Captain. “I can’t believe that man dared lay a hand on her!”

  “I think that Mr. Robbins agrees with you. He was not gentle with Green. I think he dislocated the man’s shoulder,” said Blaze. “The uniforms will phone me when they’re on their way back from getting him treated.”

  “Good job, Officer Blaze,” said Davidson. “Let’s see what happens when our Mr. Green sits in a jail cell for a couple of hours. That ought to loosen his tongue.”

  Blaze left to write up her report. Davidson sent a text message. When he looked up from what he was doing, he colored slightly. Lou figured he was texting Cara.

  “Detective Murray? Care to take a ride with me? I want to hear what you learned from Mrs. McAfee.” Davidson grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair.

  “Sure,” said Lou. He was becoming accustomed to Davidson’s multi-tasking.

  Once in the car, Lou reviewed his visit with Honora.

  Her protestation that she would have cheerfully killed her husband, Frank, tickled Davidson. “I bet she would have. Sounds like an honest woman to me.”

  Davidson turned the car toward Hobe Sound.

  “Are we checking up on the Senator’s wife?” asked Lou.

  "No." Davidson shook his head. "Following up on a hunch."

  In short order, they arrived at the Winn-Dixie parking lot. "Come on," said Davidson, as he unbuckled his seatbelt.

  On their way inside the store, Officer Valerie Blaze text messaged Davidson that Green was in a jail cell.

  “Good,” said Lou. “That’s where he belongs.”

  Davidson walked up to the Winn-Dixie customer service counter. "Hi! I’d like to hear more about your program that offers points for discounts on gas."

  The woman explained that if you owned a Winn-Dixie card, and presented it when making purchases, you could earn percentages off on gas purchases.

  "Would you like to apply for a card?" she asked in a cheery voice.

  "Sure," said Davidson. With the application in hand, he glanced over it and asked, "Can I use my gas discount anywhere?"

  "Only at Shell Stations," said the clerk.

  Davidson thanked her for her time. Back in the police car, he turned to Lou. "Mr. Green is a liar. They didn't come here to buy cigarettes so Kathy Simmons could get a discount. Ollie's timeline shows Kathy buying gas at a BP Station later that same night. If she was accumulating points for gas, why go to a place that wouldn't offer a discount?"

  Lou nodded. "I am totally confused."

  "That's the goal," said Davidson. "Someone is trying to confuse us. Keep us off balance. Do you know where the term 'red herring' comes from? In England, to distract the dogs during fox hunts, they would literally drag a red herring on the ground to put down a false trail. Our killer has spent a lot of time and energy with all these red herrings. He or she is feeling pretty cocky right now."

  "So far, our killer has a good job of getting us to bark up the wrong tree," said Lou.

  “That’s about to change,” said Davidson.

  96

  ~Cara~

  8 p.m. on Monday

  The Treasure Chest

  Jason was helping me out of his Porsche when Nathan Davidson pulled up. The Police Captain raced over to where I was in the passenger seat, holding an ice pack to my face.

  "Cara? Are you okay?”

  Jason had been blocking the security light. When he stepped to one side, Nathan gasped. "What on earth? I can’t believe what he did to you!"

  “She looks worse than she is. Nothing’s broken. Cara’s kind of groggy because of the pain meds,” said Jason. “I’m going to take her inside and get some ice on her face.”

  “I have something for you. From Sid. In my desk,” I said, although I slurred my words.

  While Jason guided me inside, Nathan and Lou walked along behind us. I could practically hear Nathan growling with anger. When he saw the blood on the wall, he said, “Whoa!”

  Jack barked bravely from his crate. “Poor baby,” I said, cooing at him. “You were scared, weren’t you?”

  “That blood belongs to Adrian Green,” said Jason to the two cops. “Believe me, I wanted to do more.”

  I reached into the desk drawer and withdrew the manila envelope with the papers that Sid had printed for the Nathan.

  “I would have been at the funeral, but the Police Chief called a media briefing. Right after, we went into a meeting with the mayor,” he said. His eyes softened as he stared at me. “I am sorry that I wasn’t here to break up Adrian’s little farewell party.”

  Smiling hurt, but I tried to anyway. “I have good news for you. The password to Kathy's cloud storage account is Darcy+Kathy4Ever. It's inscribed on Luna's tags. It was also a tattoo that Darcy had on her arm."

  “I saw the same phrase on Kathy’s arm,” said Lou. “But it never occurred to me to count the characters.”

  "Good work," Nathan said, nodding at me.

  "There's more," I said. "At the funeral, Mrs. Simmons told me that her brother Wallace is the other boy in the picture. Wallace was hauled away to Dozier and never came back. I’m fairly certain that the picture of the boys and the Senator was taken up there in Marianna."

  Nathan nodded. “That is useful information. More than you know.’

  “It might not matter, but Adrian Green told me that he just got a big check. A publisher up in New York accepted his manuscript. He wrote a biography of the Senator. But here’s the weird part. It’s being published this fall. I don’t know a lot about book publishing, but that seems like a really short turn-around time to me. The book doesn’t sound like a real biography. More of a puff piece praising the Senator."

  Lou and Nathan exchanged looks. I couldn’t tell what they were thinking, but something passed between them.

  “Okay, let’s get you upstairs and off your feet,” said Jason, guiding me by the elbow. “I’ll come back downstairs and let your dog out.”

  I had another thought. “Adrian was planning to leave the country this evening. In fact, he has a ticket to fly out of Miami, first class."

  "He's not going anywhere," Nathan said. "Not for a long, long time."

  97

  ~ Lou~

  8:30 p.m. on Monday

  Stuart Police Department

  Davidson raced down the hall like a tornado whips through a street in the Midwest. He was that wound up and ang
ry. "Tell a trustee to bring Adrian Green to the interview room with me, right now," he said to Lou.

  Lou did as he was asked and then met Davidson back in the room.

  "How do you want to play this?" asked Lou.

  "I'm thinking 'shock and awe' should get this twerp's attention," said Davidson. "We know he isn't in this alone. There’s a woman involved. We both have an inkling who that might be. I want to scare Adrian Green into telling us who his partner is. I think that’s all we need to solve this puzzle."

  Green shuffled in.

  “The ER doc gave him oxycodone,” said the trustee.

  Green’s shoulder was in a sling, and his hand was bandaged, but he still looked defiant.

  "Mr. Green? You've had your one phone call. Detective Murray, will you Mirandize the suspect?”

  Lou did.

  “I want a solicitor,” said Green.

  “Very well,” said Davidson. “Please be sure to tell your lawyer that we plan to charge you with attempted kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, and two counts of murder?"

  "Murder?" Green's eyes snapped open.

  "Of Katharine Simmons."

  "I did not hurt her!"

  "There's also the death of Senator Josiah Wentworth."

  "What?" The man bolted out of his chair.

  "Sit down," said Davidson, "or we'll handcuff you to the table. You're already considered a flight risk."

  "I did no such thing! Not to Kathy! Not to the Senator! You've got it all wrong!"

  "Really?" Davidson looked mildly amused. "Then you better start straightening me out, because Mrs. Wentworth has been talking to me. She really bent my ear. We have her testimony, and the facts we need to put you behind bars for a long, long time. That is, if you're lucky. You do remember, don't you, that we still employ capital punishment here in the States? It's usually reserved for heinous crimes. I think that locking a young woman in the trunk of a car for three days and then suffocating her would qualify, wouldn’t you, Detective Murray?"