Snow Blind-J Collins 4 Read Online Free PDF Page B

all?”
    “Yes, unless you count the jumbo box of extra-large Trojans.”
    I whapped his arm. “Not funny.”
    “The clerk knew them both by name.”
    “That’s really not funny.”
    “I know.” Kevin changed lanes, keeping the Cadillac in sight as we cruised up 8th Street past Dairy Queen and Wilson Park. “It gets better. Luella filled out the check and Vernon just signed it.”
    35

    “Shit.”
    “Yeah. Makes me wonder how many other times she’s done it.”
    “Aren’t you glad we followed them?”
    He didn’t answer. I felt smug anyway.
    I stared out the window at the tourist shops, closed except for Coleman Gold Company and Coyote Claw Sam’s. Someone had to sell Black Hills Gold jewelry and Sturgis Bike Rally T-shirts in the off-season. I glanced at the new Sonic Drive-In. For some reason Martinez had taken a liking to it so we’d eaten there frequently in the last few months.
    We turned left on Cathedral Drive. Medical facilities had popped up like metal warts in this area in recent years. Luella’s Caddy bypassed Wendy’s and Taco Bell to chug up the hill to the Rapid City Medical Center.
    She snagged a handicapped spot up front.
    Kevin backed into a parking space in the very last row. “Glad I took the liquor store.”
    “Huh uh. I’m not doing this alone.”
    “As you so accurately pointed out earlier, I am the expert in stealth matters. My gut is telling me to stay in the car.” He flashed me his dimpled grin.
    “Yeah? I hope your gut is happy when your balls freeze and fall off.” I slammed the car door.
    Once inside the enclosed entryway, I took my time removing my gloves, unwrapping my scarf, and unbuttoning my coat. I kept a close eye on the receptionist’s desk. If I timed this right, I could sneak into 36

    the waiting area without one of the Trained Attack Receptionists, known as TARs, grilling me about appointment time.
    Truthfully, what nut job would hang out in a place full of sick old people if they didn’t have to?
    Four people entered and I scooted in behind them to a split waiting area. I had a 50/50 shot of choosing correctly, so I swung around the wall on the right side.
    Bingo. Luella and Vernon sat in the center section. I forced myself to move slowly, claiming a chair directly behind them.
    I swiped a large-print edition of Reader’s Digest and settled in, studying the layout of the room and the clientele.
    Nearly two dozen people were spread out, sniffling or sneezing or snoring. One codger in the far back corner hadn’t twitched. The top of his white head rested against the wall; his jowls were slack. He looked dead.
    Still, I preferred the look of eternal slumber on those folks’ faces who were long in the tooth to some rotten kid’s ear-piercing shrieks.
    Vernon and Luella didn’t exchange a single word.
    I studied her. Lakota, probably, not a full-blood.
    Sixtyish. Black hair chopped short surrounded a pudgy brownish-red face. Broad nose. Brown eyes beneath trendy, square-framed tortoiseshell glasses.

    Apple-shaped Luella was definitely a sturdy, attractive woman. I still didn’t see her and Vern doing the wild thing though.
    Thirty minutes ticked by.
    37

    I was about to give up when a nurse called out,
    “Vernon Sloane?”
    He followed the nurse to the doctors’ offices.

    Luella stayed put.
    Two minutes passed before I made my move. I gathered my stuff and tossed it on a chair kitty-corner to Luella’s. Immediately I noisily scattered the offerings on the coffee table beside her. She sensed me staring and looked up from People magazine.
    My smile was strained. Meryl Streep had nothing on my acting chops. “Pardon me, when you’re done with that issue, can I have it? I’ve been here long enough to read all the rest of these.”
    “Sure. What are you here for?” she asked suspiciously, as if I carried the West Nile virus.
    “I’m waiting for my aunt. She’s been in there forever.”
    Luella’s expression relaxed. “The wait seems longer every