backseat? The two who came after me never touched that either.”
“What’s so important about those books?” he asked.
“They’re reference manuals that belong to the police department, and I don’t want to leave them in the impound lot. Without those, I can’t complete my training.”
“Let me consult the crime-scene team leader.” Moments later, Nick returned holding a heavy nylon backpack and handed it to her. “Here you go.”
“Thanks.” She slung the straps over her shoulder and once again fell into step beside him.
They soon reached his Jeep and got on the road. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her shudder. “Are you okay?”
“No, I’m not. I’m scared. I still don’t know if I was a target of opportunity or their intended victim. I also don’t know when—or if—they’ll come back and try again,” she said, her voice rising an octave.
“You really don’t have anything to worry about. Your uncle has a lot of clout with our department, and I’m pretty sure that he’ll insist the new chief provide you with protection until we know more about what happened tonight. The fact that you’re Earl Simmons’s niece puts an entirely new spin on things. What happened to you tonight may be linked to him and something he did as a police officer years ago. Revenge can simmer for a long time.”
“But logically, if they wanted to get at my uncle, wouldn’t they have gone after my aunt instead of me?”
“Maybe you were more available. Or it could have all been just a matter of timing.”
Drew considered it, then shook her head. “Your answer doesn’t feel right to me.”
“It doesn’t—what?”
“Call it intuition if you want, but I trust my instincts. They’ve always been reliable.”
He wasn’t a big believer in instincts—a woman’s or a man’s—but sometimes what people attributed to instinct was nothing more than the product of subconscious observations. “So what do those vibes tell you now?”
“That my troubles are just beginning,” she whispered.
“Evil is never easy to face down, but you’re doing just fine. Those men are nursing some bad bruises by now. Not bad for a librarian,” he said, with an easy smile.
Chapter Three
While Drew looked through the mug shots, Nick reported to Chief Franklin’s office. Captain Wright, Nick’s immediate supervisor, was already there.
“I got an earful from Earl Simmons,” Chief Franklin said, muttering an oath. “He still monitors police calls and knew what went down minutes after it happened. He doesn’t seem to get the fact that he’s not police chief anymore. If that bullet hadn’t put him on the disabled list, there’s no way that man would have retired.”
“What can you tell us about tonight’s incident, Nick?” Wright asked.
Nick gave them the facts, then added a couple of his own theories regarding possible motives. “Koval’s just getting started with the investigation, but he’s like a pit bull when it comes to cracking a case. He won’t back off until he’s got the answers he needs.”
“All right then, let’s get back to the original reason you were coming in tonight—your hearing,” Chief Franklin said. “The rep from the officer’s association is waiting for us in the conference room, and so’s the civilian lodging the complaint—Ray Owens. He’s threatening to sue the department and you personally.”
“I stand behind my actions. They were entirely within department guidelines. I’ve done nothing wrong,” Nick said.
“All right. Let’s get to it then.” Chief Franklin led the way out of his office and down the hall.
When Captain Wright paused at one of the rooms to speak to another officer on duty, Nick slowed his pace. He didn’t want to go into the conference room until everyone was there.
As he waited, Owens came up, blocking his way.
“Say goodbye to your career, hotshot. By the time I’m through with you, you’ll be lucky to get a job mopping the restrooms,” he said, his voice loud enough for only Nick to hear.
“Get out of my face,” Nick growled.
“And if I don’t, then what? You’ll take a swing? Go ahead. We’ve got a roomful of witnesses,” he said, jabbing Nick in the chest with his fingertip.
Nick grabbed Owens’s index finger and bent it back enough for the man’s eyes to water.
Owens staggered back, bumping into the doorjamb, and looked around quickly for a witness, but it was fruitless. Everyone was pretending to be looking elsewhere—except for a man in an expensive business suit. Nick guessed he was the wife beater’s attorney. His word wouldn’t carry very far in this gathering.
Drew, who’d come down the hall along with her uncle, stood back as former chief Earl Simmons stepped up. Giving Owens a look of pure contempt, he glanced over at Nick. “I caught all that, if you need a witness, Detective Blacksheep.”
Owens glared at Earl.
“Let’s just get this over with, Ray,” Della Owens said, interrupting the face-off by taking her husband’s arm and leading him into the conference room.
Nick glanced back at Drew before going into the room. She smiled and gave him an encouraging thumbs-up, signaling him that she’d also seen enough to know the truth.
DREW TOOK A SEAT IN THE staff office, her uncle Earl on one side, Beth Michaels on the other. Beth had been at the station when she’d heard about the attempted kidnaping, and had decided to stay, knowing Drew would be coming in. Beth had custody of the photo arrays—the mug files—mostly computer images these days.
“Ray Owens is an idiot,” Beth said. “Even if Della refuses to defend herself, as an officer of the law, Nick had to step in.”
“So what happens now?” Drew asked, watching the officer on duty confronting the reporters in the front lobby.
“Chief Franklin will do what’s right for the department, but Owens has a lot of pull in this town, and the best friends money can buy. He and I have had our own run-ins. I still say the reason he beat my firm out of a construction contract with the state was because he had inside information.”
Earl looked directly at his niece. “Right now, you’ve got other, more immediate problems. You have to move back in with Minnie and me until we know it’s safe for you to be on your own.”
“I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but I can’t bring that danger home to you and Aunt Minnie.”
“I can protect you both,” Earl said, his expression hard, his voice flat.
Though he wasn’t the department’s chief anymore, that take-charge attitude still clung to him. Giving orders came as naturally to him as it had to her dad. She thought back to the days when her father
