Chapter
12
Stephanie
Plum's smile falters as a drop of silent tear starts to fall. She wishes no one
gets hurt in the fire. She knows this time her landlord will finally drop to his
knees and beg her to move out. Weirdos. Sickos.
Criminals. Bombs. Fires. Blown-up apartment and blown-up cars. The things her
life is made of. She makes enemies everywhere she goes. Destructions and dangers
prevail. Happiness and success never last. No doubt she is called the bounty
hunter from Hell. Trenton's very own Failure and Joke. She's a
threat to all her neighbors' safety and lives. It's a miracle that both she and
Rex are still alive. And now enough is enough. She tries to wipe away her tears.
She's suddenly hungry and bone tired. It took all the courage she had to leave
her apartment and come to Ranger. And now she has to go back. To face reality
and deal with what she desperately wants to leave behind. Her tears just won't
stop. She hasn't had the chance to look straight into Ranger's eyes and tell him
she loves him.
And
she's afraid she's going to stop being honest and brave this very
minute.
Emily
Hasting hears the distant sound of the sirens and once again laughs. She's sorry
she didn't get to put an end to Stephanie Plum's miserable life. But she's a
lovely and patient woman, and Stephanie Plum is ever so careless. There will
always be chances. And both she and Elizabeth did have a great time when the
bombs went off. Next time, next time she will put a bullet
through that cheating slut's heart and make her feel Joseph's pain. Emily
promises herself. Then Elizabeth can have some fun with that sharp
hunting knife. Elizabeth is very very good with knives. And they will set off the bombs after
that. To erase all the evidences. To leave the message
that has been screaming in their head for years. Thou shalt not cheat. Emily gracefully nods her head as
Elizabeth
solemnly whispers in her ears. Besides, they both like bombs. The flame. The heat. The sound. The
power.
Yum.
Joe
Morelli leans against his car and grits his teeth as
the firemen jump out of their trucks and set to work. He can barely contain his
anger and impatience as he waits for his everlasting on-and-off girlfriend to
call him back. He looks up and frowns at the shattered second-floor windows.
He's a police detective. He's not a trained fireman. He knew it would be safer
and wiser to wait and leave it to the professionals to arrive. But still he got
out of his car and ran into the building to find Stephanie. He had no choice,
really. People would be asking a lot of unpleasant questions if he did not. And
he couldn't say he was not worried about Stephanie. Her car was burning in the
parking lot right in front of his eyes. Where is Stephanie? He wonders. She's
not here. She's not at her parents'. She's not at her sister's. She's not at
Mary Lou's. She's not with Connie or Lula. And Ranger is out of
town.
So
where can she be?
Joe
Morelli narrows his eyes as the Porsche 911 Turbo
turns into the parking lot and stops. He takes a deep breath to calm himself as
Ranger helps Stephanie get out. His face darkens as Ranger wraps an arm around
Stephanie. His lips contorts as Stephanie reaches out
and grabs hold of Ranger's hand. He looks at them. He doesn't blink. He can't
feel a thing. And he doesn't know what to think. Are they friends? Are they
co-workers? Are they lovers? Is that lust? Is that trust? Or is that
love?
Love?
Joe Morelli almost laughs an unsure laugh. What a
word. Love. Silently he repeats the word in his head.
And somehow it tastes bitter on the tip of his tongue. Yes, he can see what is
coming. And he doesn't like it. At
all.
No comments:
Post a Comment