4 Big Easy Hunter

by Maddie Cochere

  “Nothing,” said Detective Bentley. “As soon as I had Lugnut on the ground, the hound ran off into your apartment with Mick and Nate on his heels.”

  Mick took over the narration and said, “Nate and I ran into the apartment, but we didn’t get past the living room right away. There was some shredded clothing on the floor and some blood. The sofa and coffee table were moved, and everything was off and on the floor. I saw later that the giraffe from Ron had blood on it.”

  “That’s how I managed to get away from him,” I said. “I was able to get a hand on it and crack him in the head. Then I ran into the library closet.”

  “That’s where we found Joe. He was in the library barking at the bookshelf, and when I opened it and saw you there …” Mick smiled to show he could hold it together, but we waited for him to be sure he had control of his voice. “Susan, I didn’t know if you were alive. You had blood on your neck, your clothes were cut to shreds, and there was blood in your hair. I couldn’t tell if you were breathing or not.”

  I put my hand on his leg. He grasped it and held it to his lips for a kiss.

  “When I tried to go into the closet, Joe went ballistic. He pulled his lips back and growled. There was no doubt in my mind he was going to attack anyone who touched you,” he said.

  “If I would have had my gun on me, that dog would have been dead,” said Detective Bentley. “Susan’s life was in danger.”

  Tears welled up in my eyes. “I could hear you yelling for someone to shoot the dog,” I said. “I was trying so hard to come to my senses to stop you, but it was almost impossible.”

  “Why didn’t you have your gun on you?” Darby asked.

  “As a courtesy, I pack my service revolver in an aluminum case when I fly,” the detective said. “I just flew in from New Orleans today, and since my wife is out of town, Mick picked me up at the airport. I threw my bags and case in Mick’s trunk and didn’t have time to get them out when we got here.”

  Darby, Nate, and I looked at each other with our mouth’s hanging open. “You’re married?” I asked incredulously.

  He laughed and said, “Why, yes, Susan, I don’t frighten everyone. Willa found me attractive and desirable 23 years ago, and we’ve been together ever since.” He was slightly smirking now.

  Nate looked at Mick and asked, “Why didn’t you take the detective home? How did you guys know to come here?”

  Mick smiled, but he shook his head in dismay. “We’d already gone past the apartment building, and we were headed downtown. My phone rang, and I was surprised to see it was Art Tensel from downstairs in 2B. No matter how loud I yelled into the phone, I knew he wouldn’t be able to hear me, but I could hear him say that Susan was screaming for help out of the apartment window. He said he dialed 911, but he couldn’t hear anyone, so he called my phone, too. When we pulled in, he was in the parking lot telling us to hurry.”

  Art Tensel was a wonderful tenant, but he was extremely hard of hearing, and it was difficult to carry on a conversation with him. I usually used hand gestures during our conversations.

  “That’s why you were both in the library with no police officers and no gun,” I said. “Thank goodness for that.” It would have broken my heart if they would have killed Joe. “Where is Joe? Why didn’t you let him come eat with us?” I asked Nate.

  Everyone around the table started looking at each other, but no one said anything. Nate put his head down.

  “What?” I asked fearfully. “What? Where’s Joe? What happened to him?” Tears were coming up fast, and my heart was racing. Joe was singlehandedly responsible for not letting Lugnut get away, and I couldn’t bear the thought that something had happened to him.

  “He’s ok, Susan,” Mick said softly. “Animal Control has him for now.”

  I glared at Detective Bentley accusingly and asked, “Why? Why did they take him? He didn’t do anything. He was the hero in all of this.”

  Detective Bentley sighed and said, “Whenever a dog attacks a human as viciously as Joe attacked Lugnut, it has to be considered if the dog should be put down or not. For now, he’s under observation.”

  “Mick!” I wailed. “Isn’t there something we can do?”

  He looked at me sympathetically and put his arm around my shoulder. “Let’s let them do their investigation. Joe’s behavior at Animal Control will be the biggest factor in their decision. And Chuck said he’d talk to them and put in a recommendation for saving the dog.”

  I looked at Detective Bentley and wanted to say thank you, but I only pressed my lips together tightly and hung my head. Of all the things that had happened to me today, this was affecting me most of all.

  The detective stood up and said, “Well, folks, it’s late. It’s going to be a busy day tomorrow, so I need to get home. Mick? Can you still run me home?”

  “I’ll do it,” Darby said as he stood from the table.

  “I’m coming, too,” said Nate. “I don’t want to be in the apartment alone without Joe right now.”

  Mick gave Darby the keys to the BMW and said, “Take my car. Chuck’s stuff is in the trunk, and there’s no reason to move it to another vehicle. I’ll get the keys from you sometime tomorrow.”

  Darby and Nate gave me hugs and kisses goodnight, and headed for the door with the detective.

  “Oh my gosh!” I yelled.

  Everyone turned to stare at me. I laughed and moved to stand beside Mick. I looked at him and smiled. “We forgot to tell them.”

  “I knew it!” Darby cheered. He clapped Nate on the back and said, “We’re going to be uncles!”

  Mick and I both burst out laughing, and Mick said, “You sure are. And you’re going to be great uncles.”

  It was probably another half hour before the guys left. Mick closed the door and held his hand out to me. “Come on,” he said. “We’ll clean up tomorrow. Let’s go to bed.”

  It just then dawned on me that the apartment was tidy and clean when we came home from the hospital. “Mick, who cleaned in here this evening?” I asked.

  He smiled and said, “I called Shelly and asked her to call the cleaning people we use for the offices. She brought them over and made sure everything was cleaned up before you came home. I didn’t want there to be any signs of what happened here today.”

  “Thank you,” I told him softly.

  We held hands as we walked down the hallway to the bedroom. We didn’t bother with pajamas tonight. We undressed and slipped under the sheets. Mick rubbed my stomach and murmured. “I bet the baby is a little girl. She’ll come out with a pink ribbon in her hair.”

  “She better,” I said as I snuggled up to him and fell asleep before he had a chance to say anything more.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The ball sailed easily into my forehand requiring no movement on my part to return the shot. I easily sent the kill shot into the front wall for the win.

  “Mick!” I snapped as I turned to face him on the court. “Stop doing that! You know full well the doctor said I’m allowed to play racquetball as hard as I want for six more weeks. It’s no fun if you just feed balls to me. Plus, I want the exercise. It’ll be good for the baby in the long run.”

  For a second he looked like a scolded little boy. “Ok. I just don’t want you or the baby to get hurt,” he said.

  “We won’t. I promise,” I said as I threw the ball to him. “You serve first. I want to win because I’m better than you. Let’s go.”

  “Better than me, huh?” he chuckled. “Ok, you’re on.”

  I watched him walk into the service box and had a feeling of perfect contentment come over me. He was incredibly sexy, and I never tired of looking at him whether he worked, played racquetball, or simply sat on the sofa watching television. It wasn’t just his looks which made him so sexy; it was his heart, his personality, his character. Sometimes it seemed a dream he was truly my husband.

  Once again, everything was right in my life. Joe had been allowed to come home last night. Everyone at Animal Cont
rol had fallen in love with him, and he was a perfect gentleman while he was under their watchful eyes. Detective Bentley had championed for his return to Nate with no monitoring. We had a party, complete with a buttercream hero cake, for him when he came home. I talked Mick and Nate into letting Joe sleep at the foot of our bed for one night. Mick and I both woke up laughing when we realized Joe had scooted in between us during the night and was sharing the pillow with Mick.

  I smiled as I watched Mick set up in the service box. He sent a rocket of a shot down the right side of the court and into the corner for an ace. My racquet whizzed by the ball and didn’t even make contact.

  Twenty minutes later, Mick said in a teasing voice, “Someone’s going to see us.”

  I pushed him harder against the wall as I pressed myself against him and kissed him hard. “No one’s going to see us. Besides,” I said as I nibbled lightly at his ear, “we aren’t doing anything. I won, and I’m simply collecting my prize.” I kissed him hard again.

  “Hey, you two,” Samantha called down from the open space above the court. “Ron tapped a keg, and Larry and Husky want to play cards. Are you guys coming?”

  Still locked in a passionate kiss, I waved my hand up at her as if to wave her away. We were going to be a little while yet.

  ###

  Postscript:

  As a teenager, I would sometimes stay with my mother’s best friend, Janice, and clean her house while she and her husband were at work. There were several times when I smelled the roses, and one time the bathtub water came on all by itself. Janice always laughed and said it was only her mother. ~Maddie Cochere

  Sunshine Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #1 – Athletic and attractive, Susan Hunter wants to have a normal life. Working in a weight-loss center by day and a racquetball club by night, she enjoys her life, the sport, and her friends. … When she finds out her new boyfriend of three months is actually married, she bolts with her best friend to Florida for a week. But someone has followed them, and they are now being stalked. To make matters worse, a murder has been committed back home in Carbide City, and Susan is involved. … Humorous, sometimes ominous, Sunshine Hunter is entertaining and perfect for easy, breezy reading!

  Big Apple Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #2 – Working in a weight-loss center by day and a racquetball club by night, Susan Hunter enjoys her life, the sport, and her friends. … But now she has life-changing decisions to make. Should she accept the new position with Slimmers Weight Loss? Should she give in and move the relationship with Mick to the next level? . . . When Darby has business in New York City, Susan jumps at the chance to tag along intending to indulge in a weekend of shopping. It doesn’t take her long to realize she’s being hunted in The Big Apple. And what does the stalker have to do with Darby’s new client? It becomes a matter of life-and-death when the stalker shows up in Carbide City demanding something that Susan lost in New York. … Humorous, sometimes ominous, Big Apple Hunter is entertaining and perfect for easy, breezy reading!

  Sin City Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #3 – Working in a weight-loss center by day and a racquetball club by night, Susan Hunter enjoys her life, the sport, and her friends. … She’s in Las Vegas for ten days of work and play. Her parents come in from Dallas to spend some time with her and have their own fun. But fun turns to terror for Susan when a magic act goes wrong. … When a man is murdered, Susan knows who did it. Unfortunately for her, the killer knows that she knows. Her actions in Sin City ultimately put not only her own life on the line but that of Mick’s as well. … Humorous, sometimes ominous, Sin City Hunter is entertaining and perfect for easy, breezy reading.

  Big Easy Hunter, A Susan Hunter Mystery #4 – Working in a weight-loss center by day and a racquetball club by night, Susan Hunter enjoys her life, the sport, and her friends. … When Susan is accused of being a cat burglar, and a serial rapist is on the loose over by the mall, she takes off for New Orleans to attend a wedding and finds even more trouble in The Big Easy. … Humorous, sometimes ominous, Big Easy Hunter is entertaining and perfect for easy, breezy reading!

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  www.breezybooks.com