Page 66 of Bulletproof Jack: Hunting Lee Child's Jack Reacher

Close enough to Ottawa. Where they’d test the Stiletto 100.

The last couple of miles along the dark and lonely tree-lined road toward Krause’s home sent a shiver down Audrey’s spine. She rarely spent time in any sort of rural setting. Mother Nature gave her hives.

The GPS in the rental was as accurate as she’d expected. She reached Krause’s home precisely on time, given the margin of error. The long gravel drive was surrounded by an exceptionally generous lot. At least an acre, she guessed.

Another loud thunderclap and then the rain began just as she reached the driveway.

She turned left, reduced speed, and continued toward the pleasing stone clad house perched at the end, glistening in the storm.

From this angle, the house seemed smaller than 3,500 square feet. The brief description she’d read in the real estate listing touted an updated open floorplan, heated pool, outdoor kitchen and the like.

The house was certainly too large and beyond elaborate enough for Ira Krause, a single man with no family to support. Given his prickly nature, he wasn’t likely to marry any time soon, either. What woman would want him?

Audrey parked in front of the double garage doors and stepped into the cold wind. Cautiously, she approached the front steps, head down against the rain.

A bright spotlight flooded the surrounding dark cocoon. Audrey gasped. Glossy paint wet with rain reflected the light, leaving her nowhere to hide. A stealthy approach was now impossible.

“Dammit, Audrey. Be more careful,” she hissed under her breath when she slipped on the slick pavers.

She took the front steps quickly, strode silently across the covered porch, and reached the decorative glass entry system. Three sections, one door and two sidelights, spanned fully one-third of the length of the porch.

Most of the door system was clear leaded glass. A wide frame held the glass in place. The frame was stained to match the gray siding. On either side of the door were full-length leaded glass sidelights matching the center door.

The system allowed light to travel inside and outside but distorted the view in both directions. Which meant the only thing Audrey could see inside the house was a weak nightlight.

“On the plus side, maybe Krause won’t mistakenly shoot you in the dark,” she murmured as she reached out and pressed the button.

The doorbell chimed inside.

The noise awakened the cat sleeping on a porch chair. He arched his back and hissed at her.

Audrey slapped her hand over her mouth, stifling another gasp. She hated cats. They were too independent. Always skulking around and attacking people. Nasty creatures.

This one must have felt the same about her. Smart cat.

He arched his back and hissed and spit at her several times before he jumped down and ran off the porch into the trees.

“Thank god.” She didn’t care where he went as long as he didn’t come back.

Audrey pressed the bell again and again, keeping her finger on the button much longer than necessary each time.

“Come on, Krause. It’s friggin’ cold out here. Wake up and let me in, dammit!” she said aloud, as if he could hear.

After ten or twenty presses of the doorbell, she gave up.

She fished around in her pocket for the phone and pressed the redial button to slap Krause with a wakeup call. The tone rang several times before the call flipped to voice mail.

“This is stupid,” she said impatiently, dropping the phone into her pocket again.

She stomped down the stairs and returned through the storm to her rental. In the trunk, she found a can of compressed air and not much else in the way of tools.

“Doesn’t anybody change their own tires anymore?” she complained as she searched for a tire iron. Finding none, she slammed the trunk lid closed. “Guess not.”

On the side of the driveway, which was still fully illuminated by the spotlight, she spied a fist-sized rock. She stomped swiftly to pick it up, carried it up the steps, across the porch, and hurled the rock through the door glass.

As soon as the glass pane broke, a house alarm began blaring loud enough to wake every neighbor within a two-mile range, dead or alive.

“Oh, crap!”

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