by Lois Richer
Maddy nodded that she understood but her attention was obviously on the other girl’s display of a new karate move. Chloe tucked her sports bag into a locker, pulled her keys out of her jeans pocket and left the building, sprinting across to the van. The night air felt cooler against her skin. Maybe her daughter was right and they’d get snow tonight.
With the moon hidden behind a field of scudding clouds and a nearby lamp burnt out, the parking lot was cloaked in shadows. Chloe flicked the van locks open and slid the side door on its track until she could reach inside.
She’d barely grasped the leather handles of her purse when fingers closed around her neck, choking off her air supply. Another student playing a trick? She held her breath, calmly working through a list of possible moves that would free her, as she’d been taught. A back kick seemed the best choice.
Chloe took a deep breath and shifted sideways while thrusting her leg out behind. It slammed against her attacker’s knee and she had a moment to drag in a breath and whirl around. The man lunged toward her. This was no trick. He was trying to hurt her!
“You should have let him die,” he whispered in her ear, his fingers pinching her arm so tightly a shaft of pain zinged upward.
“Not him. And not me.” Chloe gasped, stunned to see a black spider tattoo wavering in front of her eyes. She jerked out of his hold, slammed her fist against his face. He stumbled back. That gave her a moment of time.
Chloe scrabbled behind her for a weapon, praying desperately as the man began to recover. Help me! She finally found the handles of her purse and using every ounce of her strength swung it as hard as she could, hoping there was something hard inside. He dodged the bag but her elbow caught him in the throat and he struggled to breathe. Seizing her chance, Chloe sprinted across the lot, fully aware of the pounding steps behind her.
At the last moment his fingers caught her sleeve and she yelled as hard as she could. She swung the purse at his head again, hoped it would daze him long enough for her to get inside the building.
Not that it mattered. The owner of the karate school must have heard her because he shoved the door open, yanked her inside and hammered a fist in the attacker’s solar plexus, almost doubling him over. Chloe felt a surge of satisfaction that she’d finally discover who this guy was and reached for his mask.
Suddenly a black car sped toward them, the passenger door swinging open. The man was only half inside when the vehicle took off with a scream of tires, disappearing into the night.
“Are you all right, Mrs. Tanner?”
She nodded, tried to get her voice back. “He choked me, in the parking lot. He must have been waiting behind another car.” She touched the sore spots on her neck, rubbed her arm where those steely fingers had clenched down into the muscles.
“You’ve got bruises starting already.”
“I’m a little sore, but I’m okay.”
“I’m calling the police.” Terrence Bodnar’s face was tight with anger. He took pride in his studio and the self defense methods he taught. Having someone attacked outside his door was obviously not good for business.
Chloe noticed that the owner wore black, too, but he moved with a much more fluid grace than the man in the lot. She thanked him for his assistance.
“I was on the phone or I’d have gotten there sooner,” Terrance assured her. “Did you get a look at him?”
“Not a very good one.” Her legs wobbled and Chloe reached out a hand toward a nearby chair, realized she was shaking.
“You sit down. We’ll let Madison finish her class while you regain your composure and we wait for the police. It’s better if she doesn’t see you upset like this. My assistant can handle my class.” He patted her shoulder as if she were one of his younger students. “I’ll stay with you.”
“I tried that leg kick you showed us last week, Terrence,” she whispered. “It seemed to stop him. For a minute.”
“Sometimes a minute is all you need.” His mouth pursed as if he’d say more. But after a second thought he shook his head, his fingers checking her pulse. “Now he’s gone, so don’t think about it anymore.”
“I can’t imagine what he wanted. Why me? I’m not anybody special and I certainly wasn’t carrying a huge amount of cash.” But she was talking to herself. Terrence was on the phone. Chloe leaned her head against the wall and drew in several deep breaths.
“You should have let him die.”
The words went round and round in her head like an old record with its needle stuck in a groove, repeating the same phrase again and again. Who? By the time the police arrived, Chloe was certain her attacker had to be referring to the mayor and the assault in his room.
“Mrs. Tanner?”
“Yes?” She blinked at the dark brown eyes peering into hers. “I’m sorry, do I know you?”
“Sam Vance. I’m a detective with Colorado Springs Police Department. We met at church a while ago.” He crouched down to her level, his brown wavy hair flopping over one eye. “I led a Sunday school class you attended.”
“Yes, I remember. You have twins.”
He grinned, full of pride. “Yeah, I do, although I’m not going to ask how or why you remember the babies.” He grew serious. “Are you all right, Mrs. Tanner?”
“It’s Chloe. And I’m fine, I think. A little shaken. I wasn’t expecting it and he seemed to know exactly when and where to grab me.”
“Terrence says you got in a few hits of your own. That was pretty brave.” He studied her with an intense scrutiny that missed little.
“Brave had nothing to do with it. I thought he was going to kill me.”
“Can you tell me what happened?”
She nodded and launched into the story while he scribbled notes.
“And you have no idea who this guy is or why he chose you?”
Something in her expression must have given her away because Sam Vance’s eyes narrowed and his pencil paused over his notebook. “What?”
“I didn’t get a good look at his face, not enough to identify him in a lineup or anything. But…I think he was the same man who attacked the mayor at the hospital.” She saw his eyes flare with surprise and hurried to explain. “He had the same tattoo—a spider. I’d gotten very close to it, and I’ve never seen another one like it.” She bit her lip as a wave of nerves rushed over her. “He said I should have let him die,” she whispered.
“Meaning the mayor?”
She nodded. “I think so.”
“Okay. Sit tight. I need to call this in. Do you want a cup of coffee?”
“That would be nice.”
He got one from the staff room Terrence kept stocked in the back. Chloe accepted the cup, sipped and grimaced at the sugary sweetness of it. Sam obviously thought she needed something for the shock.
“When you’re ready, I want you to write out exactly what happened tonight. Okay?”
“Yes.” She took a sip then started writing on the yellow pad Terrence handed her. When she’d finished that task, she returned to her coffee but had only swallowed about a third of the contents when several men arrived. One of them was Brendan Montgomery.
“Chloe? Are you all right?” His white face was tight with tension.
“Yes. Where’s Kyle?”
“Here.” The young boy looked about to protest at having his evening cut short, but then his irises grew huge as they focused on her neck. He gulped. “You’ve got marks around your throat, Mom.”
“I’m okay, Kyle. I’m fine. I even managed to get in a couple of kicks.” She steadied her voice, took another sip of coffee then glanced up at Brendan. “My van.” Suddenly she remembered. “I left the side door opened. Maybe someone could close and lock it—unless I can go now?”
Brendan shook his head. “I’m sorry, Chloe, but you won’t be able to drive the van home tonight. They’re going to dust it for prints, see if we can get a hit on exactly who this attacker of yours is.”
“Oh.”
“Kyle, can you sit here with
your mom for a few minutes while I check with Sam on the status of things? When you’re ready, I’ll take you to the hospital.”
“No.” She shook her head. “I’m not going. There’s nothing wrong with me. I’ve got a few bruises, that’s all. I’m a nurse.” Chloe summoned a smile but refused to back down. “I know these things. I’ll be fine.”
Brendan seemed about to argue but then bit his lip, jerked his head in a nod. “Let me talk to Sam. I’ll take you all home, if he says it’s okay.”
“You don’t have to do that,” she told him, glancing at her son and wondering if he’d hate her even more for ruining his night with his hero. “I never meant for anyone to call you, to ruin your club meeting.”
“It’s not ruined. My brother Quinn is there, he took over for me. He’ll make sure the kids have a good time. Don’t worry. No one else knows why we left.”
“Oh. Well then. Thank you.” She didn’t know what to say.
“I know you’ve already told Sam, but would you mind telling me what happened, Chloe?”
She swallowed hard, went through it once more. “I’ve been thanking God Maddy was inside. She didn’t see or hear anything that will give her nightmares.” She heaved a sigh of relief that something tonight had gone according to plan.
“Thank God indeed.” He stood there, staring at her, waiting.
“I think it was the same man that was at the hospital,” she whispered, wishing she could send Kyle into another room but desperate to keep him near, keep him safe.
“You got a good look at him?”
She shook her head. “No. But he had the same spider tattoo on his wrist.”
Brendan said nothing for several seconds, his gaze never left her face. “Okay, you wait here. I’ll be back in a minute.”
She watched as he walked over to the detective, noted the familiar way they greeted each other.
“Did this man hurt you before, Mom?” Kyle asked, obviously troubled by what he’d heard.
“He was in the hospital and tried to hurt the mayor. I stopped him.”
“Wow!” Kyle’s eyes grew huge. “Will he come after you again?”
She’d been wondering the same thing herself. “I don’t know. I hope not.”
“No, duh!” Kyle leaned back, obviously amazed that his ordinary mother had so much going on in her life.
There were several police officers Brendan spoke to. Detective Sam Vance mustn’t have liked what he heard because he frowned, shook his head, then half turned away to speak on his radio. Brendan pulled out a phone, spoke to someone then pocketed it, his face thoughtful.
“Sam would like some pictures of your injuries. As soon as Maddy’s finished you can go home,” he told her quietly. “Kyle, I’m going to have to ask you not to talk to your sister or anybody else about this. The police want to keep it quiet for a while.”
“Sure.” Kyle’s chest puffed out with importance. “I won’t say anything.”
“Good. For tonight I’m going to go home with you folks, just to make sure this guy doesn’t come back. Tomorrow morning we’ll sort out something else. Okay?”
A rush of relief and a host of trepidation vied for supremacy in Chloe’s brain. On the one hand, she was relieved that she wouldn’t have to endure the night alone, scared for the kids’ safety and for her own. But on the other, Brendan Montgomery made her nervous and too aware of her own vulnerability when it came to the male of the species. None of them were to be trusted.
“Chloe? Is that okay with you?”
“Oh. Yes. Certainly, if you feel it’s necessary.” Her brain groaned at the stupid words.
The guy was a total hunk. Most women would be thrilled to have him protect them. But then most women didn’t have two impressionable children to think about, or an ex-husband who’d left her feeling shattered and worthless. Most women hadn’t struggled to pull themselves from the pit of depression and addiction through sheer willpower. She tried not to flinch at the flash of light while the officer took pictures of her bruises.
“I think it’s prudent, Chloe.”
“It’s very kind of you.” She met his solemn stare. “I think Madison should be finished now. I’ll just go help her change.”
“No problem. We’ll wait here.”
She ordered Kyle to stay put and, like a skittish colt, bolted from the room to the safety of the women’s locker room.
“Hey, Mom. How was your class?”
“I’ll tell you later. Come on, we need to get you changed. Brendan’s giving us a ride home.”
“Why?”
“The van’s—um, it has to stay here tonight.” She held up a sweater so Madison could slide her arms into the sleeves. “Honey, Brendan is going to be staying at our house tonight.”
“Do you have to work again?” Madison’s muffled voice sounded sad.
“No. I’ll explain it later, okay?”
“Mom?”
“Yes?”
“Is Brendan your boyfriend?”
Nothing could have prepared her for that. Chloe froze, felt the stares of several other girls in the room. She sank down beside her daughter while her brain strove to find a response.
“Honey, you know Brendan is your coach. He took Kyle to his club tonight, too. But that’s all. He’s just a friend.” She leaned closer, smoothed Maddy’s curls. “If you want to talk more about this, we can do it at home. Right now I think it’s better if we get our things together.”
Maddy thought a moment then demanded, “Where’s your bag?”
“Still in the locker.” Chloe retrieved it, checked that her daughter had gathered all her things and beckoned. “Let’s go.”
Kyle was sitting by himself when they emerged from the change rooms, his interest obvious as he watched a flurry of police officers come and go. Chloe couldn’t see Brendan anywhere.
“We have to wait a few minutes while Brendan talks to his boss,” Kyle told her. “They’re arguing about something.”
“Where are they?”
“Just outside the door. I heard them. Brendan said he couldn’t stay with us for more than tonight. That it wasn’t right.” Kyle’s confusion was apparent. “I don’t get it. I thought he liked us. Why wouldn’t he want to stay until this guy is caught?”
“Maybe he’s tied up with something else,” Chloe managed. “You know he’s working on a case. I warned you about this, Kyle.”
“I know.” He frowned. “I heard them talking about some guy named Escoban or something—he brought drugs into town a while ago. He died in a plane crash. Brendan thinks somebody else is taking over this dead guy’s territory. That’s why he wanted to know about your work at the hospital.”
The drug-related cases at work—he’d asked about them a couple of times. He must be trying to find a link.
“You shouldn’t listen in on other people’s conversations, Kyle,” she reproved. “It’s not polite.”
“I didn’t do it on purpose!” His face resumed the angry look he usually wore. “It’s not my fault they didn’t find somewhere private.”
“I didn’t mean that—” He wiggled away from her reaching hand, went to stand by the vending machine across the room. Chloe sighed, rubbed the back of her neck. She wanted to go home, brew a pot of tea and curl up in front of the fire. Mostly she wanted to forget the haunting voice—“You should have let him die.”
“Are you okay?” That husky voice drew her out of her introspection.
“I’m fine. When can we leave? Maddy needs to get to bed and—”
“We’ll go now. Come on.” Brendan called Kyle and together they left the building, walked to the SUV that sat parked haphazardly against the curb. He slid a hand under her elbow, leaned forward to whisper. “Sam’s going ahead of us to check out your place. If you’ll give me your keys he can check it out before we get there.”
He was trying to keep it from the kids. Chloe drew her key chain from her pocket and silently handed it to him.
“Buckle up, guys,” he ca
lled, then slammed her door closed. A minute later he was climbing into his own seat. “Here we go. I just need to make one stop. I need some ice cream. Anybody else want some?”
She knew it was a ruse, a way to give the detective time to search her house, but Kyle and Madison were both so enthusiastic Chloe knew they didn’t guess. Brendan debated the merits of several different flavors before they settled on one they all agreed on. The drive-through was a few blocks out of their way. When Brendan reached for his wallet, Chloe glimpsed the holster and gun lying against his side. She gulped, wondered if he’d ever used it.
“Want something different? Maybe a cup of frozen yogurt or sherbet?” he asked her, drawing her attention from the weapon, though it was obvious he’d noticed her look.
“No thanks,” she said, feeling her stomach protest at the thought of ice cream. “I’ll have some tea when we get home.”
“Okay.” He paid for the carton, handed it to Kyle, then drove toward her house at a speed slightly less than the limit. “It’s getting warmer out. If we’re lucky it should be a great day for the game on Saturday.”
Thankfully Madison responded, leaving Chloe to concentrate on peering through the windshield looking for someone or something—she didn’t know what. At last they pulled into the drive. Sam was waiting by his car, his face impassive as he helped Chloe out of the vehicle.
“There’s no evidence of anyone being inside,” he said so quietly the children never noticed. He slid her keys into her hand. “I’ll come by tomorrow in case you think of anything else. Your statement will be typed by then and you can sign it.”
“But I have to work in the morning,” she told him.
Sam glanced at Brendan, who gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head.
“It might be a good idea to call in sick tomorrow until we can figure out what’s going on.” Brendan watched Kyle and Madison hurry up the walk with their frozen treat. “Don’t worry about it for now. We’ll sort something out.”
“My boss isn’t big on time off.” In fact, Sylvester Grange wasn’t big on Chloe at all and she was fairly certain he’d use any excuse to try and cut her hours. But she needed the hours, as many as she could get, to send Kyle on that ski trip.
