Page 32 of Peril in Piney Woods

“Already been there,” Ted said. “I don’t like country music.”

Darlene smiled another of those big fake smiles. “We’re more into the rock thing. Meg and I used to pretend we were groupies for whatever the hottest rock band was.”

Funny. Meg had told him that she’d loved country music since she was a kid. It was all her parents ever listened to. It was all he’d ever heard her listen to.

Next to Griff, Raymond made a distressed sound. He, too, was aware something wasn’t right. Maybe he sensed Griff’s tension.

“I should let him out,” Griff said, standing.

Both Ted and Darlene visibly tensed. Ted shifted to face Griff, his frame rigid. Darlene straightened from the relaxed position she’d taken on the sofa.

Griff shrugged. “He’s an old dog. Probably needs to pee.”

Darlene stood abruptly. “I changed my mind about the water. I’d love a glass.”

“Sure.” He headed toward the kitchen, patting his thigh so Raymond would follow. He didn’t have to glance back to know Darlene brought up the rear. She had no intention of allowing him out of her sight.

In the kitchen, Griff opened the back door. “Go on, buddy.”

Raymond stared up at him as if to ask if he were sure.

Griff hitched his head toward the yard. “Go on. Do your business.”

Reluctantly, Raymond moseyed on out. Griff closed the door behind him and turned back to his guest. “Ice or no?”

“Just water,” she said.

He rounded up a clean glass and ran it two-thirds full of tap water. “Here you go.” He passed the glass to her.

“Thanks.” She took a sip and made an appreciative sound. “We don’t have water right out of the tap like this back home.”

Griff wasn’t sure what he was supposed to say to that. “Big cities come with their own issues, I guess.”

“They do,” she agreed.

He said nothing else. She said nothing else. After about a minute, she sat her glass on the counter and looked expectantly at him, so he headed back to the living room. She followed.

“She should be here by now,” Ted said, seemingly to himself.

“I’m sure she’ll be here any minute. She had to stop for bread,” Darlene reminded him as she settled back on the sofa. “Be careful that she doesn’t see you,” she warned her supposed husband. “We don’t want to ruin the surprise.”

Ted had already moved their car to the back of the house. Griff hadn’t bought the surprise thing either. He was no lawman or detective, but he knew an ambush when he saw one.

Frankly, his head was still reeling at the information Ernie had passed along. He wasn’t entirely sure he bought the story. Not that Ernie would lie. For that matter, he’d shown Griff the records or so-called rap sheet he’d printed out. Meg’s prints had matched this Angela “Angel” Hamilton’s. Didn’t matter. He knew Meg and she wouldn’t...

Kill anyone...

But she had. She had killed Zyair Jones during the Gas and Go robbery. She could easily have killed the two that broke into her shop.

Griff swallowed back the bitter taste of dread and regret. He couldn’t have been that wrong about her. He’d always considered himself a fairly decent judge of character. Surely he hadn’t been that far off the mark with Meg.

Ernie had been flabbergasted as well. He kept saying none of it made sense. Although he’d suspected something was off, he hadn’t anticipated it would be something straight out of a spy movie. Griff studied the two people seated in his living room who waited for Meg to arrive. But these two, they gave off exactly the kind of vibe he would expect from a hired assassin. Had these two obvious imposters come here to assassinate Meg?

His gut twisted, and the ability to draw in a breath grew more difficult. He had to do something. He couldn’t just sit here and allow Meg to walk into a trap. He’d done the only thing he could on the phone when the two had urged him to make sure Meg was headed back. Honestly, he hadn’t expected her to come back after what Ernie had told him. And maybe she wouldn’t have if he hadn’t called her and left that odd voicemail. If that was the case, then whatever these two had planned was on him.

His cell vibrated. He reached into his back pocket. Again, the two visitors came to a new level of attention. That wasn’t suspicious at all. Ignoring their reaction, he pulled out his cell.

Meg.

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