To Love and Protect (27 page)

"I could, but he'd be out the door and at another police department in no time. It's in his blood, Shelley. Just like it's in mine."

And just like it was in Ted's, Shelley said silently to herself.

"Well, enough of my preaching. I really came by to make sure everything's back to normal here. No more threats in cow crap or peepers, right?"

Shelley smiled. "Right. It's back to the peace and quiet I love."

"Good."

"Any news on Geri?" It was a question Shelley hesitated to ask, but still, she needed to know.

"Court date's in two weeks."

"I hear she still says she's innocent."

"Most crackpots do."

Shelley bristled at Geri being labeled a "crackpot," but perhaps that was the only explanation for such a strange turn of events.

"I best be letting you get to work," Sergeant Rinaldi said as he opened his car door.

"Thanks for coming by."

"Remember, if you need anything, don't hesitate to call Joyce and myself."

"I won't."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Dave said later that morning after learning that Shelley was no longer seeing Matt. "You seemed so happy."

"I was," she said quietly, not quite ready to explain her position on things yet again. Luckily, Dave didn't push her.

"We hired a new receptionist," he announced. "She'll be starting tomorrow."

"Great." Shelley knew that Mark, who worked the reception area part-time in Geri's off-hours, would not be able to fill in full-time for long. As a graduate student in veterinary medicine, the most clinic hours he could comfortably squeeze in during the week were ten.

Shelley felt as though she were buried in a cloud of sorrow as she worked through the day.

Gone was the echo of Geri's cheerful bantering through the clinic halls, and even more painfully, gone from her life was a man she loved. She wasn't a religious person, but she did believe in a higher power, a force in the universe that ultimately made sense of it all, even if it was unclear at the time.

Whatever is meant to be…will be.

She held onto the thought, siphoning as much comfort from it as she could.

It was nearly dark when Shelley pulled into her driveway early that evening, the autumn sun already hiding in then shadows. She walked up the porch, her body frail with a week's worth of undernourishment. Her eyes half-closed, she imagined a dinner of rice and vegetables and bread − anything to fill out her jeans once again. But the smell of manure killed her growing desire for food.

The smell of manure?

She froze in her tracks. The three dogs sat passively on the porch, though Bella finally came forward, with the other two dogs following. Without stopping to check the latest surprise on her porch, she ran into the house with the dogs, locking the door behind her. Immediately she phoned the police.

"I'll send someone right over," the dispatcher said.

Several minutes later, two police cars pulled up in front of the house.

"I could've sworn I was just here this morning," Sergeant Rinaldi said in an attempt to make light of a dark situation. Officer Jenkins stood next to him.

"You were," Shelley said. "And believe me, I wasn't expecting to have to call you back again. Hang on. I'll put the porch light on so you can see better."

"Certainly don't need help being able to smell this any better," he said, wrinkling his nose.

"Ugh!" Officer Jenkins confirmed as she knelt down next to the small pile of manure. "This is disgusting."

Sergeant Rinaldi put on plastic gloves and carefully picked up the note lying on top.

"What does it say?" Shelley asked anxiously.

"I'm still watching you, Sweetie,'" Sergeant Rinaldi read. Somehow his gruff voice just didn't match with the reference to "Sweetie." He looked up from the note. "I think the first thing we need to do is confirm the whereabouts of that Haskell woman."

Shelley nodded. "You think this is still her?"

"If it's not, I'm packing my bags and moving to a deserted island. And I'll make sure there's room on it for you and your animals, too."

"Why are
you
going to move?" Officer Jenkins asked.

"'Cause if there's a third person involved in all this, then this town's gone to Hell in a hand-basket, that's why!"

He turned to Shelley. "I don't think you should be staying here tonight."

Shelley stood quietly, wanting to cry from the sheer madness of it all, but feeling too tired to even do that. "No, Dan. I'm staying here. I don't care if I have to put every light on in the house and sit on the couch with a phone in my hand all night. I'm not leaving again. I just got settled back in here!”

Sergeant Rinaldi sighed. "I just don't think you're safe here, Shelley. It's as simple as that."

"I'll stay with you tonight if you want," Officer Jenkins offered.

Shelley looked at the eager young rookie. "Are you sure? It's a little bit above and beyond the call of duty."

She shrugged. "I live alone in my own apartment, so it's not like I'm leaving anyone behind for the night."

Shelley looked at Sergeant Rinaldi, who quickly added, "Sounds like a good idea to me. At least let Officer Jenkins stay with you tonight, until I can find out more about Miss Haskell. Could be that she just needs to be rounded up and kept in a more secure pen than her mother's home."

Shelley was beginning to think that Sergeant Rinaldi had been a cow in another life. "Okay," she conceded. "A pajama party it is."

"I'll call you first thing in the morning," Sergeant Rinaldi said.

Shelley closed the door behind her and smiled at Officer Jenkins. "Make yourself at home." After all, she thought, it wasn't as though it was really
her
home anymore.

The phone rang at eight o'clock the next morning just as Shelley was finishing her second cup of coffee.

"Ready to move to that island?" Sergeant Rinaldi asked.

"Uh oh."

Officer Jenkins looked up from her own cup of coffee. "What's going on? Is that Sergeant Rinaldi?"

Shelley nodded, then held up her index finger as he continued.

"Turns out Geri has been in Connecticut all along."

"She couldn't have slipped back here to leave that message? It's not that far of a drive."

"That's what I was counting on, too. But she has a rock-solid alibi. She's been looking into schools in Connecticut, and she stayed overnight to visit one of them. She was at an orientation all day, and I spoke to the clerk at the hotel where she stayed. He said she came in at five that night, and stayed in her room until seven the next morning."

"Dan, what is going on?"

"I don't know, Shelley. I just don't know. In all my years of police work, I don't think I've ever had a case that's mystified me like this one has."

"So what now?"

"Back to the drawing board. We're dealing with a situation I've never encountered before. I'm beginning to feel like I'm in the goddamn
Twilight Zone
. I might as well be Rod Sterling. Except that I'm a little too handsome for that."

Shelley smiled at his attempt to diffuse the situation. Still, she was scared. Very scared. And there was only one person who could truly put her at ease right now, except it was someone she had deliberately been keeping at a distance.

"Say," Sergeant Rinaldi began slowly. "Do you think you should let Matt know what's going on?"

"You're reading my mind, aren't you."

"Just thought he might want to know what's happening. And, you know, you could ask him how he's doing, too."

Shelley smiled and shook her head. "Ever think of being a guest speaker on
Oprah?"

"Heck, no. Too touchy-feely for me."

"Of course."

"Is Officer Jenkins still there? I'd like to talk to her if she is."

"Sure. I'm actually on my way out now. But I'm worried about my pets again."

“Don't be. I don't care if I have to have someone sitting in your driveway all day. I'll make sure no one steps a foot on your property until we get this situation straightened out once and for all."

"Thanks, Dan." Shelley handed the phone to Officer Jenkins, then walked out onto the back deck and looked out over the land. The foliage was nearing its peak, and the grassy meadows leading up to the woods rippled in the autumn wind. Normally, such a scene would leave her feeling relaxed in the knowledge that all was right in the world. But not today. And perhaps not for a long time to come.
I miss you, Matt.
She clutched her stomach and took a deep breath, struggling as an intense yearning gnawed away at her soul.

"Dave," she said over her cell phone a short time later as she started up her truck. "I'm going to be a little late this morning."

"Everything okay?"

"Yes," she lied. "I just need to make a stop along the way. I won't be that much longer."

"Take all the time you need. I'll pick up the slack."

"I owe you one."

"See you when you get here."

Shelley ended the call and headed down the road, her destination clear in mind. She knew it might not be the logical thing to do based on recent decisions she had made, but in her heart, it still felt right.

"Shelley…" Matt’s face registered surprise as he opened the door. But the initial joy in his eyes soon faded as he solemnly clenched his jaw.

"How are you?" she asked, noting the still-raw scar on his neck where his bandage had been removed. Standing in front of him now, his warm brown eyes and his solid, inviting body … she dug her heels into the ground to keep herself from lunging into his arms as she so longed to do.

"Getting along."

"Would you rather I leave?"

His sudden coldness wasn't what she had expected, though she knew he had every right to not want to see her. She stepped back, realizing she had made a big mistake.

"No, I don't want you to leave." He opened the door wider. "Come on in."

"It's good to see you," she said quietly as they sat down on the couch together.

"I'm surprised to hear you say that."

"Matt..." She reached over and took his hand, then buried her head in his chest.

"Ouch!"

She popped her head back up. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I forgot how sore your stomach must be."

He managed a smile. "It's not too bad. Just put your head here instead," he said softly, pointing to a spot just beneath his shoulder.

"This is just as nice," she said as she moved in as close as their two bodies allowed. For a moment, she was back on a pile of soft hay, feeling the heat of his body and the knowing of his touch. Her heart overriding her mind, she tried to squelch her emotions by forcing herself to open her eyes and lean back against the couch.

"So how are things down on the ranch?"