Page 47 of Puppy Love & Snowflake Kisses
He didn’t have a good connection. There was a lot of static on the line. He walked toward the kitchen because he had better reception there in the past.
He was in the process of pulling in every deputy he had to work this case. They had to be plain clothes. He didn’t want to spook this guy. And then he and Stark worked out a plan to keep Belle safe and to get her dog back.
When he finished the call, he rushed back to tell Belle the plan, but she wasn’t there. Thinking she might have gone upstairs to get something, he called up to her. There was no response.
And that’s when he saw that the jewelry box was gone. He yanked open the front door. Her car wasn’t in the driveway. She had gone without him.
His gut knotted with worry. He stepped into his boots before running out the door. With his phone pressed to his ear, he headed for his pickup.
Her phone rang and rang.
She didn’t answer.
Belle knew it was Parker calling to yell at her for leaving without him. She wished he would understand that she had to do this. She had to do whatever it took to save Odie.
The ringing finally stopped. Silence once more filled the car. Belle expelled a sigh.
Buzz. Buzz.
Belle nearly jumped in her seat. She hadn’t expected him to call back so quickly. She focused on the road and let the call go to voicemail.
She knew Parker would be angry with her. Still, she had to do this her way, erm…the dognapper’s way. She wasn’t going to lose someone else because she lied. It wasn’t going to happen.
She desperately wanted her precious puppy back, safe and sound. At this hour on a snowy December evening, there wasn’t anyone at the park.
She easily found a parking spot along the road. A glance at the clock on the dashboard let her know she was four minutes early. She stayed put as the warm air pumped out of the vents.
Her attention was on the occasional car that drove by. If they would slow down, her pulse raced. But once they passed the falls with its festive color display, they picked up speed, and she would sigh.
There was the occasional car that would slow down almost to a stop. Twice now they’d turned into a driveway across the street from the park. None of them were the dognapper. Where was he?
She squinted and stared into the dark. Was he already in the park? Her palms grew damp, and she rubbed them over her jeans. Was he watching her, and she didn’t know it? Probably. Her breath came in short, fast gasps.
She looked for anyone walking in the park. There wasn’t anyone on that below-freezing evening. She looked at the shadows to see if they moved. They didn’t. But he had to be somewhere, and hopefully, Odie wasn’t far away.
As she stared into the night, she knew she was letting her imagination get the best of her. She had to stay calm. She couldn’t panic. Odie was relying on her to get this right. She drew in a deep breath and then slowly let it out. She repeated the process a few more times.
Buzz.
Her hand had a slight tremble to it as she grabbed up her phone from the passenger seat. Her heart stilled as her chest tightened. Was it the dognapper with more instructions?
When she looked at the caller ID, she found it was Candi. Now wasn’t the time for chit-chat. Belle sent the call to voicemail.
No sooner had she done that than the phone rang again. She lifted it to see if it was Candi calling back. It wasn’t. It was Parker.
Her finger hovered over the answer button. She didn’t want him to come rushing in and mess up the drop. She pressed the phone to her ear. “Parker, I need you to stay away. Nothing you say can stop me from doing this.”
“Belle, just let me be there with you.”
“No.” She didn’t need rescuing. “I’ve got this. Promise me that you’ll stay away.”
There was a tense silence. “Belle…”
“Parker, I’ll be fine. Trust me.” She disconnected the call. In frustration, she tossed the phone onto the passenger seat.
Her gaze moved back to the clock. The numbers glowed in the darkened interior of the car. She had two minutes until her drop off time. The problem was that she didn’t know what happened after she made the drop. The dognapper better bring Odie with him, or there wouldn’t be a deal.
Her gaze constantly moved through the park, looking for the dognapper and Odie. He had to bring Odie. As the clock got closer to her appointed time, the shivering in her stomach turned into a knot.
