Page 35 of Fatal Witness

“Now you’re making fun of me.”

“No! Not at all.”Way to go, Lassiter.“Do you know why the man was shooting at you?”

“I think I surprised him. He was coming out of a building behind the house.”

“Mae’s pottery shop.”

Her eyes widened. “So that’s why she had aPottery Illustratedmagazine.”

Mark frowned. “What?”

“When we talked Friday night, you said Mae had seen my photo in a magazine, andPottery Illustratedis the only one my photo’s been in, and I’ve wondered why she would have that magazine.”

He wondered if she always talked in run-on sentences, then he shook his head to clear it and winced. Wrong move. “Did you get a good look at the intruder?”

“I caught a glimpse of his outline just before he started firing and again before he ran. He was wearing a ski mask, so I didn’t see his face.” She glanced toward Mae’s front door. “Do you have a key to the house?” she asked.

“What?” He was having trouble following her ... maybe he did have a concussion.

“I thought if you had a key, I could maybe find a washcloth and wet it for your head.”

“That’s okay. Knowing Alex, she’s sending an ambulance,” he said. “Did I thank you for helping me?”

“You did.”

“Well, thanks again.” He frowned as the dog leaned against Dani. “Is that really a dog?”

“She is, and a pretty good guard dog too—she probably saved your life.”

Ouch. He hadn’t meant to insult the dog. “You’re right, but I’ve never seen a dog that looks like a ... a—”

“Mop?” Amusement had replaced the annoyance in her voice. “She’s a Puli.”

Gem!He sucked in a quick breath.

“Is something wrong?”

“I have a K-9 dog in my SUV.”

She looked toward the road. “Where?”

“About half a mile down the road.” He calculated how long he’d been gone and relaxed. It couldn’t have been more than thirty minutes, and she had plenty of water and the temperature was okay. His ears picked up the wail of a siren in the distance. Alex must have floored it to get here this fast. “My boss’ll be here soon and can let Gem out. She should be fine until then.”

“This Alex...”

Dani didn’t finish whatever she was going to say as flashing blue lights rounded the curve, and a police SUV pulled into the drive beside the Lincoln Navigator that apparently belonged to Dani. “That should be her now,” he said.

17

Dani hugged her arms to her waist as a woman dressed in jeans and a pullover walked toward them. The logo on the SUV indicated she was the sheriff, or at least driving the sheriff’s vehicle. But she didn’t look any older than Dani, and in her book, that was too young to be a sheriff.

Maybe the blond hair pulled up in a ponytail made her look younger than she was. What had Mark Lassiter said her name was? Alex. The name rang a bell. And something about the way she walked was familiar.

Alex spoke to Mark first. “How’s your head?”

“Clearing up. I hope you didn’t have an ambulance dispatched.”

“I thought I’d wait and see how you were first. Hayes should be here momentarily. He’ll take you by the hospital to get checked out.”

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