“She has had a bad deal with her last boyfriend.I had to make sure she was all right.Then she told me she was seeing you, and I wanted to meet you.”
“Well, I had a similar experience as she has had with her ex, so I totally understand how she’s feeling.But the woman I was dating luckily took off, and I didn’t have to deal with her anymore.I have every intention of keeping Lacy safe when I’m around her.”
“That’s what I wanted to hear.I have every intention of making sure of the same thing.”
“Everyone in Yuma Town will.”
“Yeah, I spoke to Dan at the sheriff's office, and he assured me of the same thing.I’m staying at Mrs.Fitzgerald’s home for now.So when you pick up Lacy, I’ll be there.”
“She’s a retired FBI agent also.”
Frank smiled.“Yeah, we worked together on some cases.”
“Oh, that’s great.”
“Well, I’ll leave you to do your work.Just take care of Lacy for me.”
“I sure will.”
Then Frank left the barn, feeling good about Rory.He seemed like a decent guy.Then he returned to Florence’s house and checked her fridge and freezer to see what he could make for them for dinner.He had better call Florence first, though, and make sure it was all right with her.He called the coffee shop, and Lacy answered.
“Hey, Lacy, can I speak to Florence?”
“Uh, sure.”She said to Florence.“Granddad wants to talk to you.”
“Hello?”
“Hey, I’m at the house, and I was planning to make us dinner.What would you like me to make?”
“You cook?”
He laughed.“Yeah.My mate hated cooking, and I was always trying new things.How about shrimp pasta?I’ll run to the grocery store and pick up some shrimp and anything else we need.”
“Yeah, sure.That sounds good.”
“All right.You’ll be home at…?”
“Six, or a few minutes after.”
“Okay.”He was glad he could do something for her when she was letting him stay at her house.He realized that though they had disagreed on how to handle cases they had worked on together, they otherwise seemed really compatible.
After checking whether Florence had any of the ingredients he needed, he headed to the grocery store.He picked up the shrimp, other items he had to have, and pork tenderloin for tomorrow’s dinner.
He went home, unlocked the door, and carried all the grocery sacks into the house.Right away, he saw the Christmas tree was on its side, ornaments broken, lamps turned over, and garland on the mantle thrown onto the floor.
His heartbeat quickening, Frank dropped the sacks of food on the dining room table and retrieved his gun from the car.He realized he smelled Timothy’s fresh scent in the house.The bastard had to have entered through the back way, or he would have smelled him at the front of the house when he first arrived.
He got on his phone to call the sheriff.“Hey, this is Frank Everest.I’m at Florence’s house, and Timothy broke in.”
“We’re on our way.”
Frank ended the call, went back inside, and began looking for Timothy to see if he was still there.He didn’t find him downstairs, so he went up the stairs.No matter what, he wanted to stop this guy before he could hurt Lacy.
He followed Timothy’s scent to Lacy’s room, where her clothes were thrown all around the room.Frank heard the floor creak.Before he could turn, something hard struck him in the head, and he went down in a dead heap on the carpeted floor.
5
As soon as Dan called Florence to tell her that Timothy had been at her house, she left the shop with Lacy, leaving Ava to close it up.
