Kill Shot Read Online Free PDF Page A

voice took on a defensive tone. “Like a baby deer.”
    Vinnie emitted a coarse guffaw. “And that’s some dear babe, I’m tellin’ you.”
    “Enough, Vinnie. Let me see if I can get your cameras released for you, Micki.” Oz took her arm and led her inside, with Vinnie trailing behind.
    Oz left her at the front desk and disappeared through a door marked private.
    Vinnie lolled nearby, biting a fingernail as he leaned against the tall desk. “So, what’s the deal? Are you and the big guy back together or not?” He raised an eyebrow giving his face a cynical expression.
    “We’re friends, Vinnie. That’s all.”
    Vinnie made a scornful sound. “You broke his heart, Mick. You can’t go back to being friends.”
    She took a deep breath, acknowledging that deep inside, she doubted she and Oz could just be friends. “We’re going to try.” She wished Oz would hurry back with her cameras.
    “You better not hurt him again.” Vinnie’s voice held a threatening edge to it. “He don’t deserve it.”
    “Get lost, Vinnie.” Oz spoke close to her ear, causing the fine hairs on her neck to stand at attention. The threat in his voice sounded real.
    Micki read the hardness in Oz’ gaze as Vinnie nodded at her before retreating to the back of the building.
    “That was uncalled for,” Oz said.
    “Maybe not.” She shrugged. “He’s been your best friend since forever. He was just trying to protect you from the fearsome me.” She managed to flash something resembling a grin.
    “Yeah, well I’m immune now, so do your worst.” He handed her a plastic trash bag. “There’s some dust on the cameras so I put them in here to keep your hands clean.”
    “Dust?” Her heart skipped a beat.
    “The lab fingerprinted your car and everything in it.”
    “Oh great,” she said. “Dust and cameras don’t mix. I need to get them professionally cleaned immediately.”
    Oz helped her hail a cab and gave her a warning as he handed her inside. “Don’t take any chances, Micki. We don’t know what this is about, but someone tried to kill you once and it might not have been random.”
    She nodded, wondering how she could protect herself when she had no idea what was going on. She directed the cab driver to a camera repair shop on Twelfth Avenue.
    #
    “The cops sure did a number on this Leica. I’ll have to take it completely apart and clean it. The Minolta too. It’ll be expensive kiddo.” Gus Krum examined the cameras on a soft cloth under a bright light. He wore an enlarging lens on his visor. When he looked up at Micki, his eyes appeared huge and froglike.
    Micki sighed in resignation. “They have to be cleaned. Try to give me a break, Gus. You have my whole business tied up there.”
    He nodded, his frog eyes bobbing up and down. “Give me a week, kid. I can rent you a loaner for ten bucks a day.”
    She groaned, but had no choice in the matter. She left the camera shop with a used Konika in a hard-sided camera case.
    Micki took a cab back to her apartment and planned to use the rest of the afternoon getting familiar with her rental camera. She inserted her key in the lock and nudged the door open with her foot. Stepping inside, she fumbled to put her keys in her bag. When she looked up, she froze in position, unable to breathe. Her apartment was in shambles.
    She stood in the open doorway, rooted in place. She gazed around in despair at the total wreckage that remained of her once tidy nest.
    Fear washed over her like a wave pounding her down into the undertow. Pulling her cell from her purse, she flipped it open. Her first thought was to contact Oz, but she recalled his admonition to call nine-one-one instead.
    What if I’m not alone?
    She surveyed the chaos, torn between the desire to check the damage or go running down the stairs. She held her breath, listening for any sound. An eerie silence led her to believe that those responsible for the destruction had gone.
    A man with a pony tail stepped from behind