Page 23 of Break Away
A chill skittered up her spine, and shefollowed his direction without further argument. She started thecar and drove slowly up the driveway to park next to theSuburban.
“Give me your keys, lock the doors when I getout, and stay put.” He must have sensed her opposition even beforeshe said anything. “I mean it, Zoey. I’m going to check it out.I’ve got my phone, but if you see anything that doesn’t look right,call nine-one-one. And don’t get out of the car.”
He took the keys from her and was out in aflash, shutting the door with barely a sound. She thought he’d gostraight to her cottage, but instead he slipped into his cabin. Shehad only a moment to wonder at his intention before he reappeared,moonlight glinting dully off the gun in his hand.
Lucy’s howling had anxiety twisting in Zoey’sbelly. She turned in the seat to keep Levi in her field of vision,but within seconds he was out of sight.
She’d never been good at waiting patiently,having to sit with nothing todo. She went over the reasonsshe should do as Levi had ordered and stay in the car. He was acop. He was trained to do exactly what he was doing. She, on theother hand, was a wildlife biologist. Want to know about deermigration? She was your girl. Helping a cop? She’d never even takena self-defense class in her life, which now seemed like a grossoversight. She’d be smart and do what the cop said.
She turned in her seat again, peering throughthe back window. The moon shone enough light that the trees castfaint shadows. She strained her eyes but could not detect anymovement. Lucy’s crying stopped. Damnit. She wanted to be out thereto know what was going on with her baby. Her hand was at the doorhandle, but she stopped herself from opening it. She’d told Levishe’d stay put. Crap. Waiting sucked.
She retrieved her phone from her purse,tapped on the screen, and looked up “what to do if someone hasbroken into your house.” First thing on the list, call the police.Done, kind of. Second, take pictures. She hoped there was nothingto take pictures of. That somehow the lights had gone out on theirown, and Lucy had been barking at shadows. Rapping against the carwindow had her jolting and sucking in a wheezy breath. Levi. Theflashlight from his phone shone bright against the darkness as sheopened the door and was greeted by a happy dog.
Relief washed through her. “Oh baby, you’reokay.” She dodged the sloppy tongue and rubbed Lucy’s face. Comfortfor Lucy meant all one hundred plus pounds of her sitting on Zoey’slap. “Oof, off girl.” Zoey shoved, and Levi pulled back on theleash so she could get out of the car. “What happened? What did youfind?”
“I’m not sure. Your things on the porch arescattered everywhere. Maybe you had a bear.” There was a thread ofdoubt in his tone.
“It didn’t get inside?”
“No. Whatever it was upset Lucy, and stuffwas knocked around, but that’s about it.”
They walked up the driveway, and Lucy,pleased with her outing, pranced as much as she ever pranced at theend of the leash. Zoey rubbed her arms against the nighttimetemperature that had to have dropped down into the forties. Levipassed his light over the bear-proof trashcan enclosures. They wereintact, with no evidence of bear tampering.
They reached her porch, where Levi hadalready turned on the light by the door. She looked around withgrowing despair. Everything was a mess—a clay pot shattered, windchimes pulled from their hooks, the fairy lights ripped down, theglass from smashed bulbs littering the floor.
“Here, hold Lucy, I want to get picturesbefore the scene is compromised.” He handed Zoey the leash and tookout his phone.
Zoey looped the leash securely around herhand. Lucy wanted to sniff around and do her own investigation.“Lucy, sit.”
She sat with a huffing sound, obviously notpleased. Zoey took in the overturned chairs, the pitcher ofwildflowers she’d had on a little side table, the flowers crushedon the wood floor. “This doesn’t make sense.”
“What?”
“The flowers being crushed like that. Itlooks like they’ve been stepped on and purposefully mashed. That’snot typical bear behavior.”
“How about the cushions being pulled off thefurniture, the table overturned. Would a bear do that?”
“Maybe. If a bear comes up to a house likethis, he’s thinking of one thing. Food. He’ll go for the trashcansfirst. But if he sees something that looks like food through awindow? He’ll go through the window. But smashing light bulbs, andpulling down wind chimes? Bears like to play, but that seems off tome.”
Levi nodded, then held his phone to his ear.“Brad, it’s me. Zoey’s house has been vandalized.” He paused, thensaid, “Between seven and ten tonight. Zoey says it’s not likely abear. I’ve taken pictures. I’ll send them to you.”
He waited, gaze on Zoey, then replied to hisbrother. “I’ll look into it. By the way, I’m out of town tomorrow,coming back Sunday early enough to make Mom’s thing. I want extrapatrols keeping an eye on Zoey’s place.”
“Now wait a minute, I—”
He raised a hand to cut her off, listening,then responding to Brad. “I’m on it.” He slipped his phone in hispocket. “Let’s get this straightened up.”
“Hold on. What do you mean, ‘you’re on it’?What are you on?” There wasn’t much that put her back up likesomeone trying to manage her.
“The job. I’ll be looking into whether thisis related to the hit-and-run.”
The job. Right, he was a cop, and Brad hadassigned him to her case. The whole thing made her itchy. “Stuffgets thrown around on my porch, how can that be related to ahit-and-run?”
“That’s what I’m going to find out.”
Zoey secured Lucy’s leash to a post, notwilling to risk letting her off leash and having to round her up inthe dark if she took off.
Levi righted a table, then tossed cushionsback onto the loveseat. “What are you doing tomorrow?”
