there? Her heart was in her mouth as the seconds ticked by.
Then he began to kick the door, sending her dresser skipping forward a little each time. She raised her gun, aimed it at the door, closed her eyes and squeezed the trigger. Her bullet went right through the door, leaving a perfectly circular hole.
The kicking ceased. Had she hit him? Was he injured or worse? She repositioned the dresser securely against the door and waited. Shadow seemed to understand the danger and had hidden himself away beneath the bed.
The sound of a siren wafted in the distance. Kitty dropped to her knees with a groan of thanks. Immediately, she heard her attacker’s footsteps pounding down the staircase, scurrying away. As the siren grew louder, she gained enough confidence to heave the bed, then the dresser away, from the door and squeeze through the gap. From the top of the stairs, she saw the front door off its hinges lying on the hallway floor, pounded into pieces.
As she stared at the open doorway, it filled with Ryan’s figure, gun in hand, concern etched on his face.
“He’s gone,” she said.
“Are you okay?”
She nodded, biting the inside of her lip and blinking fast. She wasn’t okay and it didn’t take Ryan long to work that out. He holstered his gun, raced up the stairs and enveloped her in a hug, telling her she was safe, that everything was fine.
That kindness prompted the tears to really flow.
* * *
Ryan helped Buzz lift the new door from the delivery truck. The door Ryan had selected was strong and robust, much more secure than the old one and likely to withstand a barrage of bullets and kicks without giving way. Shane was inside the house, collecting the bullet casings for analysis, and Ryan desperately hoped that ballistics might give them a lead because his search of the area had yielded little more than some muddy footprints leading to the forest.
Buzz eyed the old door, in pieces on the deck. “What happened here?”
“Somebody tried to get in to the house,” he said. “To hurt Kitty.”
“Is she all right?”
“Yeah, she’s fine for now.”
Buzz pushed his baseball cap farther back on his head. “When I took your order over the phone, I had to tell my granddad I was delivering to someplace else.”
“Why?”
“He says we’re not to sell to Kitty anymore. He says we don’t want her business.”
“Well, you tell your granddad that this delivery is for me, because I live here now. I just became Kitty’s new tenant.”
Buzz seemed taken aback. “Granddad’s not gonna like that.”
“I kind of guessed he wouldn’t.”
Ryan motioned for Buzz to help him carry the door up the porch steps and onto the deck, where he leaned it against the outside wall.
“I can take it from here,” he said, signing Buzz’s delivery sheet. “Thanks for your help.”
“No problem, sir.”
Kitty came out onto the porch, carrying her cat under her arm. “Hey, Buzz,” she said. “Does your granddad know you’re here?”
“No, ma’am,” he replied. “But when Chief Deputy Lawrence called in an emergency order, I just went and found the door you needed from our warehouse and brought it straight on down to you. I’m not really supposed to work this late.”
Buzz puffed up his chest as if proud of himself for defying his grandfather’s rules.
“I appreciate that,” Kitty said with a warm smile. “Not many people around here would put themselves out for me.”
“Maybe,” Buzz said with a shrug. “But if we can’t help a lady in need, then what’s the town coming to?”
Ryan put a hand on Buzz’s shoulder. That comment revealed maturity and a sense of decency in this young man.
“You’re a good kid,” he said, sliding a tip into his top pocket. “It’s a shame that your granddad doesn’t follow your lead.”
Buzz nodded a shy farewell and made his way back to the truck.
“What’s the story with the Price family?” Ryan asked Kitty. “What happened to Buzz’s parents?”
“Buzz’s dad is Tommy Price,” Kitty replied. “Frank and Sheila’s only son. He took off when Buzz was in the first grade, leaving him with his parents.” She looked skyward, appearing to be doing some mental calculation. “I haven’t seen Tommy in about thirteen years now. Frank says he moved to Texas.”
“What about Buzz’s mother? What happened to her?”
“Elena was a girl from out of town, a drifter who sometimes stayed at a commune in the mountains and did casual work around Bethesda. After Buzz was born, she left pretty quick, giving Tommy parental responsibility. She never came back. It was a sad situation. I remember my mom offering to help out, but the Price family is proud. They didn’t want anybody prying into their business.”
“Well, I gotta say that someone’s instilled good principles into that kid,” Ryan said. “He’s nothing like his grandfather.”
“I think Frank’s wife, Sheila, is the one to thank for Buzz’s character. She’s like a mom to him, but they’re both bullied by Frank. He’s a strong personality.”
“He sure is,” Ryan said. “He came marching into the station in a fit of temper this morning.”
Kitty groaned, placing Shadow on the ground and leaning against the wall. “Let me guess—it was in response to my newspaper article.”
“You’ve got it.”
“Well, they needn’t worry,” she said. “That’ll be the last one I write for the Comanche Times about my father.”
Ryan was incredibly relieved. Perhaps Frank and Carla would be appeased by this news.
“Listen,” he began, watching a swift swooping over the lake. “You’ve made some enemies in town by investigating a murder that’s already been solved.”
“It’s not been solved,” she said. “Because the wrong man is in prison.”
He concentrated on tracking the swift, its undulating flight mesmerizing and calming. He would have to tread carefully with Kitty, not allowing his frustration to cause friction between them. But there were things she needed to hear.
“Kitty,” he said, in what he hoped was a gentle, nonpatronizing tone. “Your dad had a lawyer who already did this kind of work for him. There was a police investigation and a full jury trial. If your father’s lawyer couldn’t generate reasonable doubt, what makes you so sure that you stand a better chance?”
“The court-appointed lawyer was useless,”
