Caleb (The K9 Files Book 11) by Dale Mayer (sneezy the snowman read aloud TXT) 📕

lot of shrubs were in the back. She had five acres, and those five acres held a lot of trees, hills, vegetation of all kinds. An abundance of hiding places. He studied the area where the shot had come from. He wanted to get out and track him, but he didn’t dare leave Laysha, was too damn worried that the shooter was still here.

She crawled along the floor to the guest bedroom, staying below the long windows, and confirmed that the dogs were all okay. Yes, all four lying on the floor, ears up, staring toward the back door. They knew something was up, just not what. Then neither did she. Worried, she said, “Stay safe in here, guys, please.” She crouched and returned to Caleb. “Do you think he’s still out there?”

“Yes,” he said. “Just think about it. It’s all too possible. Either he doesn’t know if he took you out and thus bolted or he’s just sitting there, waiting for another opportunity to take you out.”

She stared at him and gulped. “I didn’t do anything. Who did I piss off?”

He looked at her and frowned. “Unfortunately I don’t know.” He said, “You tell me.”

“I don’t know of anybody that I’ve pissed off.”

“What about the lawyers you work for?”

“But they’re not criminal lawyers,” she said. “We do more big corporation stuff, contracts, that kind of a thing.”

“Maybe. Anything that pissed off somebody?”

“I don’t think so,” she said quietly, slumping back onto the floor.

He looked at her. “Are you okay? Did it graze your head?”

She reached up to her hair and checked her scalp and said, “No, I don’t think so. I think it’s just shock.”

“With damn good reason,” he said. “I’m not terribly steady at the moment myself.”

“That was on the scary side,” she whispered. “A little too close for comfort, as they say.”

“Any bullet is always too close for comfort,” he whispered. “But, in this case, it’s the truth.”

“I don’t even know what happened,” she said. “I just stood up to get the lemonade. Then turned and walked toward the back door. And then the shot rang out. Only I didn’t realize it was a gunshot at the time.”

“So,” Caleb said, “he saw us out there, and he either waited while you stood up or wasn’t expecting you to stand up, and he sent off a warning shot.”

“For what though? I didn’t do anything.”

“Maybe it was a warning to me.”

“Related to the body we found,” she said quietly.

“And we have to consider that too,” he said.

“It’s still bullshit though,” she snapped.

“That it is, but it’s the cards we have to deal with.”

“Don’t like these cards much,” she grumbled.

He grinned at her. “Keep that temper up,” he said. “As always, it’s way better to be angry in a situation like this than to be afraid.”

“I do remember some of the lessons you shared about things like that.”

“Hell, I didn’t even know what I was telling you back then,” he said. “I sure as hell do now, after serving all those years in the navy as I did,” he said. “But, until you’re into these situations, it doesn’t matter how much you tell people to behave or to do something, it’s not the same as being under fire and experiencing that event on your own.”

“It wasn’t fun,” she whispered. She shifted backward and said, “Even worse, our sandwiches are out there,” she complained.

He let out a bark of laughter. “Well, I’ll make sure that he doesn’t come after them. How’s that?”

“He damn well better not,” she said. “I’m hungry.”

“Well, just hold that thought,” he said. “I want to see if he does anything.”

“But you can’t go out there,” she warned. “It’s obvious he’s waiting.”

“No, he might have been waiting for a bit,” he said, “but I think he’s gone now.”

“We can’t take the chance,” she said, crying out urgently as he headed for the door. But he pushed the door open, and no shot was fired.

“Dammit, Caleb,” she said. “You can’t go out there. It’s too dangerous.”

“Well, I’ll hardly sit here,” he said, “being a prisoner.”

She thought about it and then shrugged. “I can. I don’t really need to go anywhere. I’ve got lots of work to do on this old farmhouse.”

“I get that,” he said gently, “but you still need food and water, and the dogs still have to go out to the bathroom.”

She frowned at that. “How long do you think somebody would keep an eye on the place?”

“If they’re trying to kill us?” he said. “Until the job’s done.”

She winced. “Nothing like mincing your words, is there?”

“I’ve never been about lying or making things less than they are,” he said. “It’s obvious we’re in a spot.”

“And obvious that we should call the cops,” she said.

“I’ve already sent a message to the detective,” he said.

She stared at him in surprise. “I didn’t even see that.”

“It doesn’t matter if you did or not,” he said with a gentle smile, “because it’s already done.”

“In that case, we might as well just sit inside and wait till they get here.”

He began to chuckle. “Now if only we had the sandwiches.”

She looked at the door. “What if I snuck out there and grabbed them?” she said. “We could at least sit in here and eat them.”

“Hell no,” he said, “if I’m not allowed to go out there, neither are you.”

“Ah,” she said, “but my life is less valuable than yours. So it can be forfeit.” She said it in a joking manner, but, when he grabbed her and turned her around, so she faced him, he didn’t see it as a joking matter at all.

“No way,” he said. “Do you hear me? You’re too important. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

She looked up, smiled, and gently stroked his cheek. “Ditto,” she said. “There’s a reason that we keep coming back together again,” she said.

“Yeah,” he said. “I wondered if you’d figured that out.”

“Oh, I figured it out,” she said, chuckling, “but I didn’t want to be the one to bring it