LITMIR.BIZ

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they all missed their foster father, the heavy mantle of responsibility he’d accepted had prevented him from moving forward more than the others.

       Yet he knew change was coming. He could feel it, like a stirring in his blood. He glanced down at the medicine pouch fastened onto his belt, then back to the road.

       As Gene slowed to take a corner, a woman suddenly darted out into the street. Gene slammed on the brakes hard, skidding and burning rubber.

       Cursing loudly, he came to a full stop. At least he’d managed to avoid hitting her. His heart was still racing when she ran up to the passenger door and opened it.

       Thinking carjacking, Gene automatically reached for the rifle on the rack behind him. An instant later, he recognized the woman’s face. He’d dealt with the clerk just a few hours ago at the motor vehicle department.

       “Please, my name’s Lori and I need your help. I stopped at Ofelia’s Corner Diner to pick up some dinner, and when I came out I spotted a guy following me. Can you circle the block, then drop me off by my car? It isn’t far.”

       “Jump in. Did you call the cops?”

       “Several times, including earlier today when I noticed him following me to work,” she said, climbing in and placing her big purse on the floor between her feet. “It took forever for an officer to respond this morning because of the current work slowdown—the blue flu. I stayed in my car like I was told, but by the time the officer got there, the guy had taken off. I think he figured I’d called for help and didn’t want to get caught. Once he sees me drive off with you, he’ll probably make himself real scarce again.”

       She shut the door and fastened the shoulder belt automatically. “My car’s just down the block, so it’ll only take a few minutes of your time.”

       “What’s he look like? Can you still see him?” Gene checked the sidewalk up and down the street, using the side mirror.

       She looked out the window. “He must have ducked out of sight. He was wearing a black jacket with a hood, sunglasses and a ball cap, same as this morning. He’s close to six feet, average build, not overweight or skinny.”

       Gene studied her, taking in the soft hazel eyes and shoulder- length honey-brown hair, a subtle shade that would have been hard to get from a bottle. Her forest-green pullover sweater accentuated her beautiful breasts and hourglass figure.

       No man with breath left in his lungs would ever forget meeting her. After dealing with her at the DMV, he’d expected her to haunt his dreams for some time. Now, here she was.

       As the light changed to green, the vehicle behind him honked.

       Moving forward again, Gene smiled. “Where to?” he asked. If things went sour, he still had his rifle and he could defend himself better than anyone he knew, including his brothers in law enforcement.

       She pointed ahead. “It’s not far. Just beyond that cottonwood. Once we’re there, would you mind sticking around long enough for me to get in my car and drive off?”

       “No problem.”

       She shifted in her seat and looked directly at him. “You look very familiar to me.” She smiled slowly. “We met at the DMV earlier today, right?” Woven through her tentative smile was also a spark of interest.

       He noted it, pleased. Gorgeous women like Lori didn’t cross his path often, and after weeks of dealing with paperwork, a little excitement would do him a world of good.

       “Yeah, I was there and you helped me with a title transfer,” he said. He glanced in his rearview mirror but no one suspicious was following. “Do you happen to know the guy stalking you?” He’d been around his brothers in law enforcement long enough to have heard the stories. Old boyfriends and ex-husbands could turn a woman’s life upside down.

       “I can’t be completely sure because I haven’t been able to get a clear look at his face, but I suspect it’s Bud Harrington, a man who keeps coming to my window at work. He wants to go out with me and won’t take no for an answer.”

       “Have you told all that to the police?”

       “Yeah, and to my boss, too.” Lori pointed to an old cream-colored sedan up ahead. “That’s my car. Thanks for helping me out, though I guess I didn’t really give you much of a choice, did I?” She sent him an apologetic smile as he pulled to the curb and parked.

       “You were smart to look for help when you did instead of trying to deal with the guy on your own.” Though he liked fighting his own battles, the same rules didn’t apply in this woman’s case. Stalkers could become violent and she didn’t have the right build to fight a man. She was about five foot two and all rounded corners and softness.

       “Thanks for the ride.” She looked around again as she opened the door, then froze. “He’s there! Can you see him?”

       “The guy in the black hooded windbreaker?”

       “That’s him, but without the ball cap this time. That hoodie covers part of his face, so I still can’t tell for sure if it’s Bud.”

       “Lock the door and wait here. Let me go talk to him.”

       As a former foster kid, he’d seen all the tough guys who liked to throw their weight around, the bullies who only picked on those who couldn’t fight back and the ones who thought the world owed them. Street hoods came in all shapes and sizes, but they had one thing in common. They needed to vent their pent-up rage on someone and weren’t interested in a fair fight.

       Gene’s walk was slow and steady, his gaze never leaving the man standing by the car. Though he still couldn’t make out his face, Gene could see the name of the Hartley’s high school team—the Scorpions—on his windbreaker.

       Gene was within thirty yards of him when the man suddenly pivoted and took off at an all-out run. Gene chased him down the block, but the guy suddenly cut left, racing out into the street just as the light changed. Tires screeched, horns honked, but the runner made it across.

       Gene tried to follow, but as he stepped out, a city bus turned the corner and blared its horn, forcing him to jump back. The bus pulled up to the curb right in front of him.

       By the time Gene ran the length of the bus to the rear end, cars were racing by in both directions and the guy had vanished.

       Gene cursed, but there was nothing more he could do now. This would have to remain a police problem. As he returned to his truck he saw Lori sitting there, looking around, searching for him.

       She climbed out to greet him. “Are you okay?” she asked, handing him the key. “The second I saw him run off and you going after him, I called the police. I told them it was an emergency.”

       “Call them back. There’s no hope of catching the guy now and they’re stretched pretty tight. We may be taking them away from a real life-or-death situation, like a traffic accident.”

       She nodded and dialed quickly. After a second, she looked back at him. “As soon as I told them that there was no emergency, they put me on hold,” she said with a grim smile. “It’s all part of that slowdown. Negotiations between the city and the police department reached an impasse a week ago and neither side is giving an inch. Personally I side with the cops. They aren’t getting paid enough, and if they end up having their benefits cut, too…” She shrugged and held her palms up. “Doesn’t make much sense to stay in a job where you have to risk your life every day but still have to choose between paying the rent or your health insurance.”

       “True, but their situation sure doesn’t help you much right now.”

       Someone finally answered the call, and Lori listened to the woman officer at the other end. “I’m sure this wasn’t an attempt to steal my car,” Lori told her. “I’ve got a sedan that’s older than dirt. No one in their right mind would want it. And a purse snatching doesn’t seem right, either. I do have my laptop inside, but you can’t see it. If you check your records, I reported

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