Читать книгу Honor And Defend - Lynette Eason - Страница 12

THREE

Ellen motioned for Lee to step back into the protection of the kitchen area. He frowned but followed her silent order. “Carly, heel.” Carly was at her side in a split second. She would stay right there until commanded to do otherwise. Ellen moved to the side window, staying away from the front of the door, and gently moved the curtain so she could see out.

Nothing. She flipped the porch light off, then let her eyes adjust. When nothing happened, her nerves tightening with each second, she eased the deadbolt to the right and slowly opened the door. Darkness greeted her. Stillness. At least no one shot at her.

Yet. Carly nudged her leg, her ears perked forward, attention on the outside.

“Who’s there?” Ellen called.

Again, nothing.

And yet Carly nearly vibrated.

She caught Lee’s eye. His frown deepened and he shook his head when he realized she meant to step outside. She frowned right back, moved out the door and slipped to the side, pressing her back against the wall of the house. She waited for Carly to pad out, then used her left hand to slowly shut the door. It was the best she could do to make herself as small a target as possible. She stood there, listening. Silence. No sound. Nothing that alarmed her.

She moved toward the steps, then froze when she heard a rustle to her left. She spun, lifting her weapon, wishing she had on her vest. But she could see nothing.

But her senses told her someone was out there. Watching. The hair spiked on the back of her neck. “Police! Who’s there? Show yourself,” she called. Then moved quickly in case someone decided to shoot in the direction of her voice.

But no bullets came her way.

Carly stayed right at her side, waiting for the command that would send her after whoever was hiding. But Ellen wasn’t ready to do that yet. As long as her own life wasn’t in danger, she wouldn’t let the dog go in blind. Ellen moved down the steps and out into the yard, taking cover behind the nearest tree. Her heart thundered in her ears.

Should she call for backup?

But no one had done anything yet. A flash of light in the direction of the kennel pulled her attention. She hesitated only for a moment. “Carly, seek,” she said and pointed.

Carly took off like a shot. Ellen moved quickly, following behind the animal. Sweat trickled down her back. She drew in shallow breaths and reached for her phone.

The sound of running footsteps just ahead of her reached her ears. She stayed behind Carly and whoever she was chasing only to stop when she heard an engine turn over and then a slight squeal of tires as the vehicle sped off into the night. At the edge of the road, Ellen bent and placed her hands on her knees. She took a long breath. Carly barked twice then settled at Ellen’s side. “Got away, didn’t he, girl?” Ellen slipped the dog a treat and Carly wolfed it down, proud of herself. Ellen scratched her ears and straightened when she heard footsteps.

“Ellen?”

She spun to find Lee behind her, only slightly winded. “What are you doing? Trying to get yourself killed?”

“Sorry, I had to make sure you were all right.”

“I can take care of myself. That’s what I’m trained for, remember?”

Again her words caused a flash of hurt to darken his features. She sighed. She was tired. It had been a long day. But that was no excuse to snap at the man and hurt his feelings. “Again, I’m sorry. I can’t seem to get the filters to line up with my tongue.” She paused. “I appreciate the concern. Next time it might best if you stay back, though.”

The mask fell away and he barked a short laugh. “You don’t have to pretty it up for me, Ellen. You’ve always been blunt. No sense in trying to change now.”

She felt the heat rush into her cheeks. “Well, when you put it that way...fine. Do you have a flashlight?”

“You want me to turn the floodlights on? Or would that put us in the spotlight?”

She hesitated. “I think whoever was snooping out here is gone, but we probably don’t want to make it any easier to spot us should the person double back. I’m nervous enough standing here in the moonlight.”

“Gotcha.”

Because while she’d heard the person drive away and Carly no longer seemed concerned, Ellen felt the need to take all kinds of precautions.

* * *

Still worried that the intruder might return, Lee entered the kennel where he used to keep the dogs he’d loved to work with. That was before he’d had to make other arrangements for them when he was sentenced to prison. Veronica had helped him out with that. He even knew that a couple of them were now working dogs, trained by his sister’s skilled hand and rehomed to help those who needed it. Anger at all he’d lost surged through him and he had to squelch it before it grew.

That was in the past, he reminded himself. He had a future now. A future that included this home, this kennel that he’d built with his own two hands in his backyard. Thankfully, Veronica had hired someone to keep the outside area cut and trimmed while she took care of the house herself. He supposed the house hadn’t been much work since no one was living there. Simply dust and vacuum once a week. His backyard had been another matter, though. And while this area might be empty at the moment, he hoped to fill it up soon with more puppies to train for people who needed them. After all, he still had the rest of his schooling to pay for.

One step at a time.

They’d left the puppies at the training center, so tomorrow he’d get the one golden retriever pup from Ellen. Dash. That little one seemed to need a bit more of his expertise than the other two. He grabbed the flashlight he’d come for and hurried back outside to find Ellen making notes on her phone. “You’re going to report this?”

“Yes. We need to keep everything documented. I don’t want whoever is doing this to slip through our fingers on a technicality. I’ve got the date, time and description of what I heard and saw—and Carly’s reaction, as well.”

He handed her the flashlight and she clipped the phone to her belt then flipped the light on. She aimed the beam toward the ground. “Follow me and let’s use both sets of eyes. You may spot something that shouldn’t be there before I would. Carly will let us know if anyone comes back.”

He moved closer to her. Drew in her familiar scent. He used to dream about that smell while he was in prison—and even before. A combination of vanilla and strawberries. He was glad some things hadn’t changed.

Even while his mind remembered, his eyes scoured the ground. They worked in a grid pattern. Up toward the road, then back. Finally, he pointed. “There. Near the gate.” She moved closer and aimed the light where he indicated. “The grass is pressed down. I’ve been meaning to get out here and cut it, but haven’t had a chance. With the rain a couple of days ago, it seems like it grew about a foot overnight.”

She pulled her phone off the clip and snapped pictures. “I don’t know what good the pictures will do. There aren’t any footprints to cast or anything like that, but I see what you mean about the grass.”

Her light flashed across something shiny in the grass and he bent down to pick it up then stopped. “Do you have a tissue or gloves or anything?”

“Not on me.” She moved closer and looked over his shoulder. Her nearness made him long for things he shouldn’t. She wasn’t going to be around any longer than it took to solve his sister’s murder. He needed to remember that. “I wasn’t planning on working a crime scene,” she said, oblivious to his inner turmoil. Good, he planned to keep it that way. “What is it?”

He drew in a breath and forced his thoughts to the object on the ground. “It’s the clip that keeps the gate closed. Some of the dogs can figure out how to lift the latch so I just use the clip. Someone undid it and gave it a toss.” He stood. “Be right back. I’ve got some paper towels and paper bags in the room I used to use as an office.”

He left her once again to retrieve the items. When he returned, he handed her a paper towel and she scooped up the clip and slid it in the bag. “We’ll send this off to Flagstaff and have them try to find any prints,” she said. “If the person wore gloves, it’ll be a lost cause.”

“Thanks. It’s worth a try.”

“If I were to go inside the gate, where could I get to?”

“Just inside the building I used as a kennel. It’s got some cages and dog runs out the back. I would put the dogs inside when the weather was too cold or too hot for them to be outside. But I keep the door leading into the actual building locked. There’s nothing worth stealing in there—just pet food, a few tools, water buckets, training toys...” He shrugged. “It’s really just a storage area.”

“This makes me nervous,” Ellen said. “Someone shot at us today and now someone is snooping around your home tonight. I don’t like it.”

“I can’t say it’s been the highlight of my week, either.”

She sighed. “All right. Let’s go back to the house. I want to make some phone calls.”

He led the way back into his kitchen. She settled into a chair with Carly at her feet and dialed a number.

“Who are you calling?”

“Two other K-9 officers in my unit. Tristan McKeller and Shane Weston. I’m going to ask them to take turns watching your house tonight.” She bit her lip. “I suppose I should call Chief Jones, too.”

While she made the calls, he rubbed his eyes and considered the past few hours. He had to admit he hadn’t realized what he was signing up for when he’d agreed to work with Ellen. He hadn’t realized how much the past would come back to haunt him. How much he would wish for what could never be. He watched her talk, examining her face, her expressions, her intensity. Beautiful, ambitious, smart... He sighed. And what was he?

Before he’d been arrested and imprisoned, he’d had big dreams. He’d been building his dog-training business and even had two college students who’d worked for him on a part-time basis. He’d also been attending graduate classes that would get him started on the path to becoming a veterinarian. And then he’d walked into a convenience store in the middle of a robbery. The clerk had been shot and he’d tried to save her. The robber had fled, and Officer Ken Bucks had arrived on the scene. Just in time to set him up. He’d held a grudge against Lee ever since a woman Ken loved had chosen Lee over him. Ken had never forgotten it—nor cared that Lee hadn’t returned the woman’s affection.

The anger bubbled, threatening to come to the surface once again. He blew out a sigh.

Why was he going down that path again? It was in the past. He couldn’t change what happened. He’d been in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong cop—and while the woman had lived, she hadn’t seen who’d shot her. The jury hadn’t believed Lee’s defense in the face of all of the evidence Bucks had managed to gather. False evidence. Manipulated evidence. Like altering the video footage.

“Lee? You okay?”

He jerked at Ellen’s question, then followed her gaze to see his fingers curled into tight fists. He relaxed them. “Yes, thanks. What did you find out?”

While he could still see the concern in her eyes, she didn’t question him further. “Both officers can help out. Tristan has a fourteen-year-old sister he’s raising, but she’s spending the night with a friend so he’s free for the first six-hour shift. Then Shane will take over.”

“Not having had the best experience when it comes to dealing with cops, I have to say I appreciate their help.”

“You got a raw deal with Ken Bucks. It’s time you realize we’re not all cut from the same cloth.” She smiled.

“I realize it. If you trust them, then I do, too.”

“I trust them. With my life.”

“That’s good enough for me, then.”

When Tristan arrived, Ellen introduced them and Lee sized up the rookie who was not just a member of the unit, but a good friend to Ellen. Lee felt a twinge of jealousy, but mostly he was glad she’d done well with her life and had people she could count on when she needed to. He wasn’t sure he could say the same.

She grabbed her keys. “I’ll be leaving now. Tristan, would you mind asking Shane to drop Lee at the training center in the morning? His truck is out of commission. I was going to come get him, but Shane’ll be heading that way.”

It didn’t escape his attention that she’d just gotten out of picking him up. And that his feelings were hurt by it.

“Happy to ask,” Tristan said, “but you and I both know it won’t be an issue.”

“Thanks.”

Lee pushed aside the hurt. Maybe she had her reasons for not wanting to swing by and get him. He nodded to his Keurig coffeemaker and the K-Cup tree next to it. The tree held about five different flavored coffees. The Keurig and the coffee had been one of the first things he purchased after he was released from prison. A splurge he hadn’t regretted for a moment.

“Help yourself.”

Tristan didn’t hesitate and Ellen smiled. “You just made a friend for life.”

Lee walked to the door but stayed away from the windows. Ellen followed him. “Be careful. You were with me when everything happened. If Freddie thinks we can ID him, he’ll be looking for you, too.”