by Robin Mahle
Charlie picked up her phone and answered the call, placing it on speaker. “Alli’s phone.”
“Who’s this?”
“Hey, Milo, it’s Charlie. Alli’s driving. What’s going on? We just left the station.”
“I know. I just got here. They’re headed to Sadler’s home now. In an hour’s time, the mayor of Tampa will be under arrest.”
“Thank God,” Allison said. “I’m here, Milo. Thanks for the heads-up.”
“You got it. Hey, I also wanted you to know that we’re bringing home Lucy Boyce in a few hours. I thought you might want to see her.”
“Absolutely. I have some things going on now, but I’ll be around later this afternoon. You want me to come by your office?”
“Actually, I’d like you to stop by her house if that’s okay. I want her to be comfortable and try to find some sense of normalcy. Would that be okay? Say around 3 pm?”
“Yep, that’ll work. Thanks, Milo. I’m glad you were looking out for her.”
“And you. I have a feeling that kid’s going to need some looking after for a while now that this is over. Maybe you can help out with that too.”
“Whatever she wants. I’ll be there for her,” Allison replied.
“Good. I’ll let you to it then. See you this afternoon. Thanks, Charlie. Bye.”
“Bye.” Charlie ended the call and looked at Allison. “How do you think she’s going to react to what really happened to her dad?”
“Honestly? Probably with a measure of relief. Just knowing that someone didn’t take his life, that’s going to mean something to her. I know it would mean everything to me.” She made a final turn and arrived at the ballpark. “Here we are. I hope I’m not too late.”
“Nolan will understand.” Charlie opened her door to step out.
“He’ll say he understands, but we’ll both know better.” Allison stepped out. “The email says they’re on this field to the right. I should text Leo and see if he’s here.” She texted the information and waited for a reply. “Ah, I was right. They’re over there. Leo says he’s on the center stand halfway down.”
They headed in that direction and arrived to find Leo, but he wasn’t alone. Allison slid onto the bleachers and sat down next to him. Charlie was next to her.
“Please tell me I haven’t missed everything?” Allison asked him.
“He was in the outfield first. You missed that, but he should be up to bat soon.” Leo leaned over. “Hi, Charlie. Thanks for coming.”
“Wouldn’t miss it.”
“You remember Jenny?” He leaned back and revealed his shiny new girlfriend. “Jenny, of course you know Allison, this is her best friend, Charlie.”
“Pleased to meet you, Charlie.” Jenny offered her hand that stretched across the laps of the formerly married couple.
Allison looked on and noticed how perfect Jenny’s hair had been. Pulled back in a small, neat ponytail. The reddish-brown hue glistening in the sun. Her skin was pale, smooth and young. Allison smiled at her. “Nice to see you, Jenny.”
“You too, Allison.” Jenny returned to her position and watched the field.
“Why are you late? You know how important today is for Nolan,” Leo asked.
“I’m well aware. It’ll be on the news soon, I’m sure, so I guess there’s no harm in telling you that Mayor Sadler is about to be arrested for murder, fraud, corruption and whatever else they can make stick to him.”
“Oh my gosh,” Jenny interjected. “You already know this?”
Allison nodded. “I do.”
“Alli was the one who helped bring him down,” Charlie said.
“We both helped.” She turned back to Leo. “We’ve been at the station most of the morning.”
Leo’s face wore concern. “Sounds like things got very real for you. I hope you weren’t in danger, but I have a feeling if you were, you wouldn’t tell me.” He held her gaze. “I’m glad you’re here. Nolan will be glad too.”
“I hope so.”
“And coming up next to bat, Nolan Hart.” The announcer broadcasted over the loudspeaker.
Allison’s eyes lit up. “This is it.” She pulled upright, her back stiff, her eyes fixed on the batter’s box. “Come on, baby. You can do this.”
Nolan stepped up to the plate. His slim build was adorned in a black jersey and white pants. He tugged on his ballcap and took a couple of practice swings before getting into position.
Leo leaned into Allison. “He looks good out there.”
“Yes, he does. We did good with that one.” She patted his knee. “Wish I could say the same about the other.”
“Oh, come on now. Micah will come around,” Leo replied.
Allison continued to stare at Nolan as he stepped toward the plate. “It’s been 5 years, Leo. She hasn’t forgiven me yet.”
“You weren’t the one who did wrong. She knows that,” he replied.
“Well, she blames me anyway. I can’t think about that right now.” She cupped her hands around her mouth. “Let’s go, Nolan! You can do it!”
The first pitch was a curveball.
“Strike!” said the umpire.
“That’s okay. You got this, buddy,” Leo shouted.
Another pitch, a fastball.
“Strike two!”
“Damn. Okay. Okay. Don’t worry about it.” Leo appeared to be reassuring himself.
“He’ll do it,” Allison replied.
Another pitch.
“Foul ball!”
“Yes!” Allison said.
Nolan pounded his bat against homeplate a couple of times and took another practice swing. His weight shifted on his legs before he fixed his sights on the pitcher. His stance was perfect.
The pitcher threw another fastball.
Nolan took the swing and it connected with a sweet crack of the wood. He dropped the bat and bolted toward first.
“Yeah! Go, Nolan! Run!” Allison was on her feet.
Leo joined her and placed his fingers in his mouth, whistling as loud as he could. “Run, Nolan! You got it. All the way to third!”
Nolan hustled fast and hard around first base, then onto second. The outfielder picked up the ball and threw it to the second baseman. But Nolan blew past him before he caught it. He rounded to third and slid, reaching for the base with his fingertips. The third baseman caught the ball and tagged him.
“Safe!” The outfield umpire yelled.
“And that’s a triple by the young Nolan Hart,” said the announcer.
Allison jumped and shouted, shaking the stands. She threw her arms around Leo and both embraced with delight.
It took a moment, but they settled back down, returning to their seats.
“You raised a good ballplayer, you two,” Charlie said.
The game finished and Nolan had made it onto base for nearly all of his at-bats. He made a few good plays as the short-stop and overall, had a good showing. But whether it was enough to make the Triple A league team was still undetermined.
They left the stands and waited at the locker room for Nolan to emerge. Allison and Leo stood side-by-side, ready to greet their son. Jenny fell back, appearing to understand that this was a moment for the parents, not the new girlfriend.
Charlie picked up on her reluctance and approached. “Hey, Jenny. That was quite a game. Nolan’s a talented kid.”
“He sure is,” Jenny replied. “I’m glad he has such supportive parents.”
“Me too. A kid needs that. I wish my ex was as caring as Leo. Things don’t always work out the way you planned.”
“No, they don’t.” Jenny held her gaze. “Thanks.”
“For what?”
“Talking to me. Allison doesn’t usually give me the time of day.”
“She will eventually. They were married for 20 years. That’s a long time in anyone’s book.” Charlie’s attention was diverted when Nolan emerged, freshly showered and wearing basketball shorts and a t-shirt.
“There’s my boy.” Allison
wrapped her arms around Nolan. “You were great out there, kiddo.”
Nolan pulled away from the embrace. “I didn’t see you when I was first in the outfield. Where were you?”
“Just wrapping up a few things. I’m sorry I was late. But I saw that triple you made. And the rest of it.”
He appeared reluctant to forgive, but it didn’t last long. A wide smile danced on his lips. “Yeah, I didn’t think I was going to make it to third. Sheer luck.”
“Not luck, talent.” Leo patted Nolan on the back. “What’s the good word?”
“I made it through the first cuts.”
Leo pumped his fist. “Yes!”
Charlie walked to Allison and tapped her shoulder. “Hey, Alli, it’s pushing 3 o’clock.”
“What’s going on at 3?” Nolan asked.
“You know what, I actually think you should come along,” Allison replied.
Charlie creased her brow. “You sure about that, Alli?”
“What’s happening at 3?” Leo asked.
“We have to be someplace. A girl I was helping.” Allison turned back to Nolan. “You know her. Lucy Boyce? She goes to your school.”
“Yeah, I might’ve seen her around.”
“I just have to pop in at her place. I’d like for you to come with us. It won’t take long, then maybe we could all go out for some food? A late lunch, early dinner?”
Nolan looked at his father. “Would that be okay with you, Dad?”
“Sure. I don’t see why not. You should go.”
“Will you meet us at the restaurant?” Nolan asked.
“Oh, you want us to eat with you?” Leo eyed Allison.
She nodded her approval.
“You got it, kid,” Leo replied. “Text me where to go and we’ll meet you there.”
“Great.” Nolan smiled. “That’s great.” He turned back to his mom. “I’d like to see Lucy. She just lost her dad, right?”
“She did. I think she’d appreciate having you there. Someone her age.” Allison wrapped her arm around his waist. “We should get a move on though. I don’t want to be late.” She turned back to Leo. “We’ll see you both later?”
“Sounds good,” Leo replied. “I’m proud of you, son.”
“Thanks, Dad.”
Allison pulled to a stop in front of Tommy Boyce’s house. She spotted Milo’s car in front of hers. “They’re here.”
The three of them exited the car and walked toward the porch where Milo opened the door before they had a chance to knock.
“Sorry we’re a little late,” Allison replied.
Milo cast a glance to Nolan.
Allison saw his concern and intervened. “He was at a tryout and I asked him to come along.”
“Okay. Come on in.” Milo stepped aside and closed the door behind them. “She’s in the kitchen.”
“Does she know?” Allison whispered.
Milo nodded. “She’s handling it pretty well.”
Lucy spotted them enter and stood up. “Allison. You’re here.” She approached her and pulled her into an embrace. “It’s so good to see you. I wish I could’ve told you they made me leave. I can’t imagine how worried you must’ve been.”
“It was nothing compared to what you’ve been through, Lucy. Don’t you worry about it.” Allison turned to Nolan. “This is my son, Nolan. You two go TBCC.”
She nodded. “Yeah, you’re the baseball player. I think we know some of the same people.”
“I think so.” He offered his hand. “I’m very sorry to hear about your dad.”
“Thank you.” Lucy turned back to Allison. “If your mom hadn’t been so kind, well, I don’t know if I would’ve made it this far.”
Charlie smiled. “I’m sure you’re glad to be home, Lucy.”
“It’s a mixed blessing,” she replied.
“Of course.”
Allison held Lucy’s gaze for a moment. “You know, without you bringing your dad’s case files to me, I don’t think we would’ve found the truth. I have you to thank for that. Is there any way I can repay you?”
Lucy appeared to think about the question, fidgeting with her hands until she finally spoke. “I was actually thinking maybe we could help each other.”
“Oh? How’s that?”
“Well, my dad had a lot of clients. Good ones. And I kind of know how he did things.”
“Okay,” Allison replied slowly.
“I know you said you were planning on getting your license, you know, to do what my dad did. What if maybe I came to work for you? Maybe I could talk to the people who Dad did work for and tell them they could come to you. That I’d be helping out.”
“Is that what you want?” Allison asked. “You want to do P.I. work?”
“I’ve been around that sort of thing my whole life. My dad was a cop too. It kinda makes sense to me. I could help you get started, maybe?”
Allison turned to Milo.
“I think that would be a fantastic idea,” Milo said. “Allison, I knew you were capable of great things, but you exceeded my expectations. But a leg up, a helping hand, I think that could be the best thing to kick your agency into high gear.”
“Well, it wouldn’t just be my agency.” Allison turned back to Charlie. “What do you think?”
“Hey, I’m all in. You know that, Alli. Where you go, I go. No questions.”
Allison pondered the idea and cast her gaze to Nolan. “And you?”
“I want you to be happy, Mom. And it seems like you’re good at it, so why not?”
“Okay. I still have the formalities to go through to get the license, but it shouldn’t take too long.” She regarded the people around her and turned back to Lucy. “Lucy, I’d be honored to have you on our team.” Allison reached for Nolan’s hand. “We were just about to celebrate Nolan’s great day on the ball field. How would you like to join us? You should get to know the entire circus before deciding to join in.”
Lucy smiled. “I’d love to.”
“Then it’s settled.” She turned back to Charlie. “I guess we’re going to really do this.”
“You know it, sister.”
THE END
About the Author
Bestselling author Robin Mahle, lives in Virginia with her husband and two children. Her Kate Reid mysteries have drawn praise for grabbing hold of the reader and refusing to let go. And the intense, fast-paced style of storytelling led her to create another series, the Lacy Merrick thrillers.
You won’t want to miss the small-town cop with the unique gift in the Riley Thompson series. And now, Robin is thrilled to introduce you to Allison Hart, a sharp-witted P.I. from the Sunshine State!
With powerful leading ladies and action-packed thrill rides, Robin hopes to continue taking readers on roller-coaster adventures that will leave them breathless.
If you enjoyed Ms. Mahle’s work, please share your experience by leaving a review on Amazon.
Also by Robin Mahle
Lethal Passage - An Allison Hart Novel (Book 2 - PRE-ORDER NOW!)
All the Shiny Things - A Kate Reid Novel (Book 1)
Law of Five – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 2)
Gone Unnoticed – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 3)
Blackwaters – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 4)
Endangered -A Kate Reid Novel (Book 5)
The Pretty Ones - A Kate Reid Novel (Book 6)
The Last Word – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 7)
Deadly Reckoning - A Kate Reid Novel (Book 8)
To the Bone - A Kate Reid Novel (Book 9)
The Kill Season - A Kate Reid Novel (Book 10)
Force of Nature - A Riley Thompson Thriller (Book 0)
Behind Her Eyes - A Riley Thompson Thriller (Book 1)
Bad Beat - A Riley Thompson Thriller (Book 2)
State of Denial - A Lacy Merrick Thriller (Book 1)
Shadow Rising – A Lacy Merrick Thriller (Book 2)
First Target – A Lacy Merrick Thriller (Book 3)
Ghost Nation -
A Lacy Merrick Thriller (Book 4)
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