Page 3 of Stella's Christmas Rescue
I shrug, then tuck it into my pocket. “Let’s get moving. We’re burning moonlight.”
We step out and onto Miller Road. The snow crunches underfoot, and it’s the only thing we can hear. I had hoped to hear her dog’s collar jingling. Max has his leather hunting collar on, so there’s no tags to make a sound. Then, we see something unnatural in the moonlight.
She gasps, then pulls out her cell phone for light, “What is…is that a telescope?...Pointing at my house?”
The hair on the back of my neck stands up, while I look over the equipment, “And a directional mic, some other high-end equipment…” I keep my first thought to myself, “This is too expensive to be federally-issued.” My hand tenses on my shotgun, as I share my second thought out loud, “Any idea why someone would spend upwards of thousands of dollars to spy on you?”
She’s quiet for a beat, then nervously says, “My stalker.”
I don’t mind being lied to by a pretty woman, but this one is clearly in some kind of trouble. I did not move to Floyd for trouble. I huff, “I’d call for Max, but I don’t want your stalker to know we’re?—"
Something moves in the bushes and my shotgun is aimed at the sound, before I think about it. I whisper, “Max?”
The mystery creature shimmies in the bush and jingles, before it comes bounding out. Two dogs emerge together. Max and another dog who jumps on Stella. She gets down with the lab, “Sugar, you silly girl!” Then she rings her neck with her arms in a fierce hug, which the dog wriggles into.
I scratch Max’s head and tell him, “Found yourself a friend, didn’t you?”
“I bet Sugar was the bad influence. Don’t be mad at Max. She’s a bad girl.”
“Always been fond of the bad ones myself.” I smirk. “Listen, if someone’s stalking you, then I know how to annoy them.”
She sighs, “I don’t want to antagonize him.”
“He seems hellbent on knowing what you’re up to, so I’m going to take his equipment.”
“If you do that, then he might try a new tactic. I’m not sure if I want to find out what that is,” her voice wavers.
I can’t figure out her angle. She’s clearly afraid of whoever it is, but he’s not a stalker. I shake my head and say, “If he has the money to blow on the good stuff, then he has the money to replace it. While he’s replacing it, we can get the law involved.”
“First, let’s get back to the truck and out of the cold.”
I nod, and the four of us end up piled into the cab of my truck. Can’t leave the dogs in the back. Max likes to jump out, and I suspect Sugar would follow him. It’s a quiet ride back. I like the quiet when I’m thinking, and I have to figure this out. We pull up to Hanson’s house, and I park. “Give me your house key.”
“What?” She sounds confused.
“I’m going to do a sweep of the house, before you go in.”
“The hell you are?—"
“Stella, whoever set up all that equipment is somewhere away from the equipment which means he could be here, and while I’m sure Sugar is a great guard dog?—"
“She’s not?—"
“I think it’s best if I check it out first, before you come inside. With you and both dogs out here, for protection. In fact,” I pull my pistol out and hand it over it, “take this.”
“I hate guns.”
“If someone attacks you, then you’ll be glad you have it. Take it.”
She sighs and takes the gun, then passes me the house keys. “The alarm code is 886742.”
I head in alone. The alarm makes sense now. I’m sure Royce wouldn’t object to her taking care of her safety, being on her own out here. There’s no one in the house, but I hear a strange humming sound inside. No obvious source. It’s louder upstairs, and even louder near the main bedroom. I open the door and there’s no one inside. But the hum is louder. Then I realize it. Single woman. Alone. Answered the door with flushed red cheeks.
I bet she forgot to turn off her battery-operated boyfriend.
I close the bedroom door and chuckle to myself on the way back to the truck. “All clear.”
2
