Death Comes eCalling Read Online Free PDF Page B

occurred to me that inviting my old school chums for dinner was a good way to squish myself out of the Carlton grapevine and get a feel for who might be my one-way poisonous pen pal. I decided to stock up with manicotti ingredients for a dinner party.
    During the short drive home, it hit me that school started in the morning. My youngest child would be going to kindergarten. Only yesterday he was a chubby, giggling baby. My eyes instantly misted, blurring my vision.
    Something was wrong. I was sure I had turned onto Little John Lane. But that couldn’t be Lauren’s house.
    I slowly realized my mind wasn’t accepting what I was seeing. In Lauren’s driveway were two police cars, lights flashing.

Chapter 4
    Into Each Life…
    The first person I saw as I burst into Lauren’s house was Carolee, our neighbor from across the street. “Everything’s fine,” she told me. “The burglar alarm went off. Someone tried to break in by prying open a window in back.”
    I leaned against the wall momentarily, trying to force my breath and heart rate into some semblance of normal.
    “Where are the children?”
    “With Lauren in the basement. She took them down there to keep them away from all the excitement. Steve’s out back with the officers.”
    I nodded, grateful that Lauren’s parenting instincts matched my own.
    “Maybe you should sit down.” Carolee reached for my wrist, and I could tell by the way she was aiming her thumb she was hoping to check my pulse. Once a nurse, always a nurse.
    I lifted my hands. “I’m fine. Thanks.”
    Her blond hair was neatly curled and she wore her usual perfect makeup. Her new, white tennis shoes had green markings. She must have run across the lawn to get here. I heard a dull scrape as someone opened the sliding glass back door.
    “…probably spotted the computers through my office window,” Steve was saying.
    Steve and Tommy Newton rounded the corner, followed by two uniformed officers.
    “We meet again,” Tommy said, grinning at me. “Can’t remember the last time I’ve taken two calls in the Sherwood Forest subdivision the same day. Must be havin’ you back in town, huh, Moll? Brought us some excitement.”
    Carolee laughed as if Tommy’s greeting were witty. She seemed to be eyeing him with considerable interest. No accounting for taste. Tommy touched the brim of his hat and smiled at her, to acknowledge a mutual interest perhaps. Like me, Carolee was in her mid-thirties. She was very attractive from the waist up, but had the skinniest legs imaginable, now hidden in aqua-colored sweatpants.
    Steve said, “It’s nothing, Molly. Some creep tried to break into my office. He ran before we got a look at him, but there are crowbar marks on the windowsill. I’m sure whoever it was just figured he could sneak in and out of my office window and not get caught. Probably assumed we didn’t have an alarm or wouldn’t have it activated when we were home.”
    Steve’s suggestion made sense. His office was stocked with the latest in expensive equipment, including notebook computers that could be swiped swiftly. Yet my intuition wasn’t buying a word of it. Death threats followed by an attempted break-in at the house where my children were. What the hell was going on?
    Steve wasn’t meeting my eyes. There was something he wasn’t telling.
     
    My sleep was troubled, interrupted by nightmares and fears that every little noise might be a prowler. Even the serenade of crickets and katydids sounded ominous. Morning finally arrived. That meant the first day of school.
    My daughter, Karen, had thus far been blessed with exceptional teachers and wonderful school experiences. Her luck was still holding, for she was in Rachel’s class, and Lauren had assured me their teacher was the best in the entire school. Karen insisted on taking the bus with Rachel. That allowed me to wallow fully in my apprehensions for Nathan.
    He didn’t say a word during breakfast and barely touched his Rice