Pit Perfect, page 13
Chapter 16
A brisk twenty minutes later, I was back at Parker’s place. I didn’t go inside right away. Instead, I went through the side gate into the backyard. Something Nadine said nagged at me to the point of distraction.
No alligator clip had been logged into evidence.
Sure, it had been night, and the snow was deep, but the clip had been right next to her hand. It should have been easily spotted.
Keith was in the back with a gorgeous black and white pittie named Rocko. He waved as I trekked to the back of the yard toward the fence.
Disturbingly, I could still smell Katherine’s blood where it had sieved through the snow and soaked into the ground. I toed the snow around where I’d seen the clip. It wasn’t there. I bent over and used my gloved hands to dig up the snow. Still no alligator clip.
“Whatcha doin’?” The low and familiar voice startled me as a large object hit my backside and, already off balance, I fell forward, ungracefully face-planting in the snow and rolled over onto my back.
“Smooshie!” I sputtered, glad that I hadn’t landed in the exact spot Katherine had died. The exuberant pittie put her paws on my stomach and licked my face before I could defend myself. I laughed. “Stop it.” She had perfected the sneak attack.
After I scratched her chest and gave her ear a cuff, she moved off me to sniff around. Parker held out his hand. I took it, and he hauled me up.
“Did you lose something out here?”
“Maybe.” I wasn’t sure if it was lost or if someone had taken it. Heck, I wasn’t even sure the darn thing was important. “I saw something near Katherine’s hand.”
His expression grew stark. “What was it?”
“A metal alligator clip. Do you use those here?”
“No. I don’t. I can’t say whether one of the volunteers might have brought one in.” His brow wrinkled. “Maybe a couple of teenagers snuck into the backyard to get high in the middle of the night.”
I shook my head. “This was sitting on top of the snow. If it had been there before she was killed, I think it would have been covered.”
“Maybe Katherine Kapersky was a secret pothead.”
An image of the uptight, well-dressed, and perfectly quaffed woman toking on a doobie flashed in my head. It was horrible of me, but I laughed. “You never know.”
“Did you find out anything about Ed from Deputy Booth?”
I blinked at the abrupt change in subject. “He was killed with some kind of pointed half-hook. Does that sound like anything you’ve ever seen?”
“No.” He squinched his eyes. “I can’t think of a single weapon like that.” Parker yawned, his teeth chattering at the end.
I rubbed my hands together. “It’s freezing out here,” I said. I looked at Smooshie, who’d just finished squatting to pee. “We should go in.”
“What about your evidence?”
“There’s nothing more to find out here except a case of frostbite.” I looped my arm in his and whistled for Smoosh. “Let’s see if there’s leftover spaghetti from the other night.”
We went inside, Smooshie right behind us. The second we were in the kitchen she had her nose up Elvis’ butt.
I gently pulled her back. “Stop that.” Her face, a myriad of excitement, made it appear as if she were laughing at me, but she listened and sat beside me at the kitchen table.
“You’re in luck,” Parker said. He held the refrigerator open, his body angled away from me. He’d taken off his winter coat, and his biceps flexed as he leaned forward. Goddess, he was handsome.
Parker blew out a long breath and grinned as he grabbed a covered plastic bowl and set it on the counter. “Hot or cold?”
“There are options?”
“I personally like it cold on bread with some butter, but my dad likes it cold on bread with mayo.”
“Like a sandwich?”
“Yes.” Parker laughed at my incredulity. “It tastes better than it sounds.”
“I certainly hope so.” I licked my lips and nodded. “Why not? I’ll take a cold spaghetti sandwich.”
Surprisingly, the cold spaghetti sandwich was delicious. Tangy and buttery and mmm-mmm good. It definitely hit the spot. When we finished lunch, Parker opened the fridge to put the food away and knocked a bottle of pinkish-brown liquid onto the floor. It busted, and a chunk of brown glass slid across the linoleum. I stood up, and Parker held out his hand.
“Careful now.”
The scent was acrid and medicine-like with some kind of alcohol base. “What is that?” My werecougar senses could barely handle the pungent aroma.
“It’s some medicine that Doc Petry gave me for Luke, the brindle pittie that I took in last week.”
“Oh.” I pinched my nose. I remembered Ryan Petry from Nix’s Bar. To be more precise, I remembered his fine backside. “What for?”
“Poor thing came to me with stomatitis. I have to swab the chlorhexidine over the ulcers on his gums along with antibiotics to clear up the infection.”
As he cleaned the mess, the solution smelled less like medicine and more like alcohol. I scrunched my nose and forced myself to inhale deeply. I’d smelled that scent before.
My stomach squeezed. It was similar to the alcohol I’d smelled on Katherine Kapersky. Was this more evidence against Parker? Or someone who worked at the shelter? Or maybe Dr. Petry had some involvement in the crime.
Theresa Simmons walked into the kitchen, a folder of papers in her hand. Her boots were wet with snow, but she’d dropped her coat at the door. She stopped, startled when she saw Parker stooped over the mess with a wet rag in his hand. “Do you want some help?”
“No,” he said. “I’m good.”
I noticed she had bruises on her right wrist, and her makeup was applied a little heavier on the left side of her face. Bile churned in my gut. I’d met her jerk of a husband the night before. Had he hit her? Was that another reason they weren’t getting along?
She smiled at me. “Afternoon, Lily. It’s nice to see you again.”
I smiled back. “You too, Theresa. How are you today?”
Her eyes clouded, and she said, with only the slightest hesitation, “I’m great. Thanks for asking.”
Was Jock Simmons a violent man, on top of being a womanizer and all-around douchebag? I remembered Theresa saying how unhappy he became after Katherine Kapersky was elected president of the town council. Had he finally had enough of solely venting his rage at Theresa and turned his attention to the woman who usurped his place of power?
I asked, “Did Jock make it out of Nix’s unharmed last night?”
I watched the thoughts in Theresa’s head stagger at my abrupt question. “What…I… Yes, I guess so.”
“There was a fire there last night,” Parker said. “Someone lit the place up and killed Ed Miles.”
“Jesus,” Theresa hissed. “I hadn’t heard.”
“It’s all over town,” a robust man about five-nine in height with a jolly round face said. Larry Davis, one of Parker’s volunteers. I’d met him the day before.
“I haven’t watched the news this morning,” Theresa said in her defense. “I’ve been at home working on the shelter’s bills today.”
“For which I am most appreciative,” Parker said.
I said. “I thought maybe the sheriff might have told you.” She was his daughter, after all.
Theresa shook her head. “I’m going to go and file these back in the office,” Theresa said. She gave Parker a pointed look. “We need more cleaning supplies. I’ll add it to our donation list on the website.”
“You’re the best,” he said.
Her expression warmed at his appreciation. “Thanks.”
When we were alone, I glanced at Parker, who was wringing out the washcloth in the sink. He turned to me as if he could feel my stare at his back. “What?”
“Someone is knocking that woman around.”
“No.” He tucked his chin, the corners of his mouth turning down in a frown of denial. “She’s fine.”
Was he really this oblivious? “You’ve never seen bruises on her before?”
He appeared genuinely baffled. “Nothing out of the ordinary.”
I could tell Parker believed what he was saying. Maybe I was reading the situation wrong. Or maybe, Jock being a wife beater was the reason Katherine Kapersky was able to keep the man under her thumb. A family law attorney with domestic violence on his record might as well disbar himself.
After lunch, Parker’s dad called to say my truck was fixed and ready to go. I could barely contain my excitement. I mean, I’m the kind of girl who usually likes to walk when I can, but the arctic weather made the activity unpleasant at best.
“Do you want me to run you over?” Parker asked.
“I’ve had my quota of people trying to run me over this week,” I replied.
Parker laughed. “I suppose you have.”
I shook my head. “I can get myself there. I’ll take Smooshie. Maybe take her on a ride around town. I’d like to do a little sightseeing around Moonrise, I think.”
“After everything you’ve had to see and deal with the past couple of days, I wouldn’t be surprised if you weren’t planning your escape.”
“You’re still here,” I said. His eyes softened. My heart skipped a beat. And I immediately wished I could take it back. “Besides, the sheriff has given me clear orders not to leave town.”
“Then I guess you’d better stick around.” He stepped in close enough that I could feel the heat of his skin. For a moment, his bright blue eyes met mine. I held my breath, my eyes closing as he gently touched my cheek with his fingertips.
“Lily,” he said, his voice hoarse.
I opened my eyes. “I…” Smooshie, thankfully, pushed her body against my leg and whined, snapping me from my delusion. I stepped back from him and grabbed my coat from the hooks next to the front door. I smiled as if I weren’t about to let him kiss me. “I’ll see you in a little bit.”
With Smooshie’s leash in hand, I fled (no exaggeration) from Parker Knowles.
Chapter 17
I barely felt the cold on the brisk walk to The Rusty Wrench. A few times Smooshie protested her inability to explore, but I worried that if I stopped, it would give me time to think about what almost happened. I liked Parker. Too much. Which meant, I needed to keep my distance.
My uncle's words kept playing in my brain. “Parker Knowles is human, Lily. You can play with them, but you can’t keep them. That’s the rules.”
Growing up in a town full of paranormals, never having to hide who I was, had not prepared me to go out in the world of non-parakind. The boundaries were blurring in an alarming way. Being a Shifter in a human world was harder than I ever imagined. Did I really think I could live beside them and happily watch them, detached and separate? I’m not sure what I’d thought when I left Paradise Falls, but whatever illusions or fantasies I may have harbored, they were now shattered.
Greer met me out front with my keys in his hand. “She’s running like a champ now.”
Martha the truck looked older somehow. It disturbed me to realize that the few days I’d spent in Moonrise had already started coloring the way I looked at the world. I tugged Smooshie’s leash as she sniffed around the asphalt then planted her nose directly in Greer’s crotch.
The older man jumped back and laughed. “Well, hello to you too,” he said.
“Sorry about that.” I took the keys. “How much do I owe you?”
“Forty-eight even,” he said.
I tilted my head and met his gaze. “What about the twenty-five for labor?”
“I figure the way you’ve stood by my kid the last couple of days, I could throw the labor in as a thank you.”
I quirked a smile at him. “Giving away service isn’t going to keep you in business.”
He chuckled, and it reminded me of Parker’s laugh. “I’ve got plenty, missy. Don’t you worry about me.”
“You sure?”
“Yep.” He gestured to the truck. “Now get going. I have an engine to overhaul.”
Impulsively, I gave him a quick, awkward hug and ignored the happily baffled expression on his face. “Thanks, Greer.”
I opened the driver’s door, and Smooshie jumped in as if she’d been riding with me for years. She climbed over to the passenger seat and sat down, her tongue dangling a good six inches out of her opened mouth as she panted with excitement.
I scratched her ear as I scootched in behind the wheel. “You like a good road trip, don’t you, girl?”
She barked in response. I put the key in the ignition and fired it up. Martha immediately started, her engine humming. I didn’t even smell the telltale sweet smell of leaking antifreeze. Greer Knowles might not be a witch, but what he did with my truck was nothing short of magic. I gave the horn a bump and Greer, who didn’t look up from the car he was working on, waved back at me. One cool dude. Parker came from good stock.
I avoided the treacherous four-way by exiting on the side street. The white crust of melted rock salt discolored the asphalt. Martha’s wheel wells were already rusted, the hazard of being an old vehicle in a cold region, so I wasn’t worried the salt would do more damage. The speed limit was twenty-five down most the streets. The main drag had a few sections that went as high as thirty-five. I followed Main Street until I saw a green sign pointing left that said, “Two Hills Community College—Home of the Beavers.” I snorted a laugh and glanced at Smooshie.
“I think Tizzy might like a college full of beavers.” Tizzy, Hazel’s familiar, had a thing for beaver Shifters. Talk about bad romance.
The pittie wagged her tail, and it made a clunking sound as it slid across the back of her seat and hit the door panel several times. She looked around, her body vibrating with eagerness. As if an invisible hand guided me, I pulled into the nearest lot and found a visitor parking space. The small campus was mostly long, one-story buildings with names like Anne R. Langtree Learning Center and Robert John Blackwell Technical Center. The sidewalks were salted and scraped clean, creating a maze of gray concrete in the fluffy white snow. Students with backpacks and satchels walked between buildings, their coats up around their ears, their heads down as they made their way to classes. With only Smooshie as my witness, I admitted, if only to myself, I was jealous.
A knock on my window startled me. Smooshie began barking. I recognized the shiny brown hair and symmetrically perfect features of the local veterinarian, Ryan Petry.
“Hush, Smoosh.” I scratched her neck and shoulder with one hand and rolled the window down a couple of inches with the other. “Can I help you?”
“I thought you might need some help,” he said. “You lost? The campus can be confusing to navigate the first time around.”
“I’m not lost,” I told him since it wasn’t a metaphorical question. “I’m just looking.”
“The admission’s building is the one on the left over there.” He pointed to one of the smaller buildings.
“I’m not enrolling. Really, I just pulled in to rest for a moment.”
“Do I know you?” he asked. He smiled, and it was breathtaking. I bet a whole lot of women fell helpless at his feet.
“I’m not from around here.”
“Still, I feel like I’ve seen you before.”
I decided to let him off the hook. “I was at Nix’s last night.”
He snapped his fingers. “That’s right. You were with Nadine Booth.” He gave me a crooked grin. “Wild about that fire.”
“Yeah, it was something else.” Smooshie crawled over my lap and pushed her nose against the crack in the window. Petry put his hand to her lips, and Smooshie licked his fingers. “Traitor,” I said out the side of my mouth.
“Hey, girl,” he said. “I see you found a partner in crime.” He glanced at me. “I immunized her and spayed her for Parker Knowles. Are you fostering or adopting?”
“She’s adopted me,” I said.
“I’m Ryan Petry.”
Now I smiled. “I know.” I shook my head. “Parker told me about you, and Nadine pointed you out last night. I’m Lily.” I rolled down my window about halfway and backed Smooshie up.
“Glad to meet you, Lily.” His green eyes shined like polished jewels in the afternoon sun.
“Me too,” I replied automatically. “I mean, it’s nice to meet you.”
“I know what you meant.”
“Did you leave before the fire started?”
“I was inside.” He shook his head. “I assisted a few ladies who’d had too much to drink.”
“A real hero, eh?”
He laughed. “Nothing like that. One of the girls was really out of it. Her friends couldn’t get her up from the booth.”
“Which one?”
“Her name’s Lacy. She’s a regular at Nix’s.”
Lacy had definitely been buzzed and giddy when I’d seen her, but she’d been far from pass-out drunk. “Wow. I didn’t think she’d had that much to drink.”
“She couldn’t walk.” He pursed his lips and shook his head. “I tried to get her out the front door near the booth, but it wouldn’t budge. I had to carry her out the back.” He put his hand on the roof of the truck at the top of my window, exposing his forearm. I could see some singed hairs around his wrist. He had gotten dangerously close to the flames.
“Where did you first see the fire?”
He squinted his eyes and looked up for a moment then said, “Near me, I think. Over by the pool tables. It happened really fast, and there was all that smoke.”
“Well, I’m glad you got out safe.”
“You too.” He glanced at his watch. “Better go. I got a class in five minutes.”
“You teach?”
“Veterinary Clinical Pathology Methods.”
“That sounds like a mouthful.”
“It’s a requirement for the Veterinarian Technology degree the school offers.”
“You better get going then.”
He hesitated. “Would you like to go out with me?”
“I don’t even know you.”
“That’s why I want to take you on a date. So you can get to know me.”
