Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 96641 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 483(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 322(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96641 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 483(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 322(@300wpm)
Wayne sighed. “It was worth a try.”
His brother headed out of the office as Wayne followed. Oliver quietly shut the door, and I sank back in my chair. I really did want to speak with Lisa, but I didn’t want her to attack me again. So, I gathered my belongings and was just about to leave when my phone buzzed. I looked down and immediately answered.
“Hi, Nonna. What’s up?”
“Hi, sweetheart. I thought I should make you aware that I’m going to go see Camille Rulegson tomorrow morning. She was Lenny’s girlfriend, may he rest in peace. Poor guy. Just wanted to make a little money and obviously fell into the wrong crowd. I decided to turn my attention to the Cupid case because I heard about the dead body found at your office, and that is just unacceptable. Plus, that miscreant shot you with an arrow.”
Dread slid through me. “I don’t think you should get involved.”
“Oh, yes, it’s happening,” she said. “My firm is taking this on. I’m going to Zoom with Thelma and Georgiana later today to plan for my interrogation of Camille. We haven’t quite figured out Zoom yet, dear, but I know I can do it.”
I barely kept from groaning. “Nonna, I think you mean interview, not interrogation.”
“Tomato and all of that, il mio tesoro.”
I loved it when she used Italian endearments. “I can’t talk you out of this?”
She snorted in a totally cool and elegant way. “Absolutely, not.”
I couldn’t let her investigate by herself. “How about we go together? I have a meeting first thing in the morning but I’m free after that. You could pick me up before we both go out and see Camille. All right?”
Nonna was quiet for a moment. “I suppose you could offer to be backup, considering my partners are in the Caribbean.”
Relief blew through me. “All right, Nonna.”
“Do you have a trench coat?”
“I have my old gray wool coat,” I said, wincing. “I think that will do.”
“All right, I’ll bring you sunglasses.” She ended the call.
I needed ibuprofen. My temples ached in a way that ticked through my entire skull to land in my neck. This was shaping up to be a bad day. I made my way out of the office and down the hallway to where Bud waited in full uniform, leaning against the wall. He straightened.
“You know, you could sit down once in a while,” I said.
He didn’t answer, his alert gaze focused on me.
All right. I might’ve gotten him shot, knocked out, and then fired upon more than once. Yet he made excellent backup. “I need to run an errand, and I wouldn’t mind if you were there.”
“If you’re running an errand, I will be there,” he said.
“Great,” I murmured. “You’re going to love Lisa Robinson.”
Chapter 32
After a brief argument where Bud wanted me to sit in the patrol car’s back seat, and I insisted upon sitting in front, I won. I may have winced a little and pretended my shoulder hurt worse than it did to gain sympathy. I wasn’t sure it worked because he rolled his eyes as he opened the front door. But yet, here I sat in the front, oddly tempted to play with the siren.
“Leave the siren alone,” he said, driving away from the main hub of town.
“I didn’t even move.” I kicked my feet toward the warm heater. “Bud, when are you going to forgive me?”
“For what? You haven’t done anything wrong.”
“Well, I got you shot at, knocked out, and attacked—more than once.” I winced. “You know, all of it was an accident.”
He flipped the windshield wipers on faster. “Of course, it was an accident. I’m not mad at you.”
That was somewhat reassuring. “You don’t seem to enjoy being around me.”
His snort was totally unlike him. “A guy can only take so many bullets, Albertini.”
I smoothed my slacks down. “You make a good point.” Perhaps I should reassure him of his safety. “I promise, we’re just going out to the antique store. You’re in your uniform, and you look tough. There won’t be any problems.”
His silence seemed disagreeable.
“I mean it,” I insisted.
“Fine.” He turned down the heat.
I watched as we entered a more rural area and glanced up toward the white-capped mountains. Thank goodness we’d had a heavy snowpack this year. It would be good for fire season in the summer. “How’s it going with the wife?”
“That’s personal,” he said.
“But we’re friends.”
Somehow, his shoulders straightened. “I don’t think we’re friends.”
“I think we’re friends.” I turned and stared at him.
A light flush crept over his broad cheekbones. “Sheila doesn’t like Idaho, and I don’t like living in the city.”
I perked up. “Which city?”
“Oakland,” he said.
I winced. “Isn’t Oakland full of crime? I just saw something on the news where businesses were telling their employees not to eat lunch outside of their offices in the city.”