Page 38 of Diagnosis Attraction

When they’d returned to his car and she’d put the shirt over her clothing, he said, “Lie down in the back.”

She didn’t have to ask why. She knew he wanted anyone watching to think that a lone man was driving through the neighborhood.

Prone on the backseat, she couldn’t see any details of the passing scenery, but that didn’t matter because she didn’t remember the details, anyway.

“I just drove past your house,” he informed her.

“What’s it look like?”

“It’s two stories. An older home with a front porch and new vinyl siding. The front yard is nicely planted, and a man is sitting in a car across the street, keeping an eye on the place.”

“Great.”

“It’s the thug who killed Polly.”

She sucked in a sharp breath. “Oh, Lord.”

“We expected him or someone like him.”

“Too bad we can’t tell the cops Nurse Kramer’s killer is here.”

“Yeah. But it would just be his word against ours. And I feel he’d lawyer up and get out before we could blink.”

She nodded, then said, “He was alone when he came to Polly’s, but he won’t make that mistake again. I’m sure there’s another guy out back.”

“And we can’t drive up the alley because we could get trapped.”

“Right.”

He turned the corner and parked near the end of the alley. They both got outand walked back. She didn’t even know which house she lived in, and it was strange to have Matt be the one to direct her.

He pointed. “Your place is about halfway down.”

The yards were about thirty feet deep, all with three-foot-high chain-link fences.

She spotted the other man when they were about twenty yards away. He was sitting on her backsteps, partly screened by low bushes.

We have to get close enough and disable him before he can alert his friend out front.

I don’t suppose you remember who lives in the house next door.

Sorry. But in this neighborhood, they’re probably at work.

Let’s hope.

Before they turned in at the house to the right of hers, they planned their attack. As they walked toward the back door, Elizabeth could see the guy on her backsteps flicking them a look, but apparently, he didn’t recognize either one of them.

When they reached the door, Matt pretended to get out his keys. She pressed close to him, giving him energy as he raised his arm toward the intruder on her backsteps.

Is this going to work? I mean, he’s not a rock in a stream.

We’ll find out.

She felt Matt gathering power, then sending a bolt of energy toward the man staking out her backsteps. It made the guy go rigidandthen slump to the side. Matt was already charging down the steps and vaulting the fence into her yard.

Instead of continuing with the superhero route, he socked the guy in the jaw, then took the gun from his shoulder holster, checked that the safety was on, and stuffed the weapon into the waistband of his jeans, under his Orioles tee shirt.

She helped pull the thug into the bushes, where they taped his hands and feet together and slapped a piece of tape over his mouth. They also removed his cell phone and wallet.

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