Ellie’s feet went out from under her as Johnny used his body as a shield, pushing her down. She winced and braced for a jarring impact, but Johnny’s hand under the back of her head softened the fall. She tried unsuccessfully to fill her lungs under his weight. Terror made her scalp prickle.
Were those shots? Had they just been shot at?
Her head spun. She couldn’t think straight. This was surreal. Through a foggy, panic-induced tunnel, she could hear a dog barking frantically. The stillness of the moment sent icy fear coursing through her.
The calm after the storm.
“Johnny? Johnny, are you all right?” Ellie’s words came out in a breathless rush. She reached up and touched his wet sleeve, red with blood. She swallowed around a knot in her throat.
Johnny shifted his weight off her and while still on the floor, glanced over his shoulder toward the street. He grimaced. From her vantage point, all she could see was the streetlight illuminating the three empty parking spots in front of her store. There was no visible street traffic save for the distant rumble of the departing motorcycle.
In one quick motion Johnny got to his feet in a hunched position, grabbed her arm and brought her to her feet. “Stay low.” A subdued Duke followed them, as if the animal sensed the gravity of the situation. Johnny guided them toward the storage room and slammed the door shut and locked it.
He checked the exterior door leading to the alley before directing Ellie to the lone wooden chair in the corner of the room. She was about to protest, to tell him it was an expensive antique, but under the circumstances that seemed silly. Duke sat next to her and put his snout on her thigh, as if they were long-lost friends who had just shared a harrowing experience.
Johnny patted Duke’s head. “Good boy. Everything’s going to be all right.” He was talking to the golden retriever, but his warm brown eyes were locked on Ellie’s. He plucked his cell phone out of his belt.
She reached up and touched his arm. “You’re bleeding.”
“It’s from the glass.” Seemingly disinterested in his injury, Johnny called 9-1-1, and then tucked his phone away. “An officer should be here soon.”
She shrank back at the sight of a blossoming bloodstain on his gray zip-up hoodie. “How do you know you weren’t shot?”
Johnny shook his head. “Did you hear the shot? It wasn’t that loud. I’ll bet we’ll discover it was a BB gun and nothing more. It was the glass that cut me, not a small BB.”
“Oh.” She blinked away his comment, trying to process what had just happened.
He refocused his eyes on her and ran his fingers gently across her hair. “Are you okay?” He plucked a shard of glass out of her hair and held it up for inspection before tossing it aside.
Her leg started shaking and she could feel the chill work its way up her spine. “I think I’m okay.” She glanced down at her hands, figuring if she could steady her hands, she’d be all right.
Her hands kept shaking and half her mouth tipped into a smile. “I guess I’m as okay as anyone who just had the glass shot out of her front door would be.”
The intensity of Johnny’s gaze as he studied her made her feel both protected and afraid. He traced the lines of her cheekbones, inspecting her face. She closed her eyes briefly and tried to tamp down her growing feelings.
He’s just protecting you. Nothing more. It’s his job.
“I don’t think you have any cuts. Does anything hurt?”
She shook her head.
Only then did he turn his attention to his arm. He yanked off his hoodie, undid his shoulder harness and set it and the gun on the counter next to the sink. He pulled his shirt over his head and stood there in a white T-shirt, its sleeve tinged with deep red.
She suddenly felt woozy, so she looked away. She couldn’t exactly pass out from the sight of blood when he was the one who had been hurt.
He grabbed a wad of paper towel from the roll next to the sink and, if she had been brave enough to look, she might have seen him pull a piece of glass from his arm. She shuddered at the thought. When she did look up, he was pressing a paper towel to his wound and adhering it with silver duct tape.
“Um, you might regret that.”
“The tape?” He shook his head. “I know what I’m doing.”
Ellie stood. “Here, sit.”
Johnny waved her off and she sat back down. “Did you get a good look at the guy?” He had slipped back into FBI mode.
“Motorcycle. Helmet.” She shrugged, rewinding the memory in her mind. “Wheels screeching. I wouldn’t be able to tell you more than that. It was dark. I’m not even sure of the color of the bike or helmet.”
Johnny rubbed his jaw and nodded.
Ellie pulled her arms close to her and threaded her fingers together in her lap, primarily to keep them from shaking. She finally got the nerve to ask the question she feared the most. “Am I going to have to close the shop to be safe?”
“It might be the smartest thing to do.”
He looked down at her and they locked gazes. She felt a connection and just as quickly it was gone. Ellie stood and touched his good arm. Duke circled them, whimpered forlornly and settled at Johnny’s feet.
“This store is everything to me.”
A loud banging on the interior door leading to the shop made Ellie jump. “Agent Rock? You in there?”
Bang. Bang. Bang. The door rattled in its frame.
Duke jumped to his feet and barked at the intruder. Johnny patted the dog’s head. “Easy, boy.”
Johnny grabbed his gun off the counter. He held up his finger to silence her as he moved toward the door. He unlocked it and eased forward, his gun at the ready.
“Whoa, it’s Officer Bailey. Easy there, Agent.” Ellie heard the slightly annoyed, booming voice of the police officer, but he hadn’t yet come into view. Johnny opened the door all the way.
Officer Bailey stepped inside and looked from Ellie to Johnny and back.
“Seems to be a lot of excitement for a little shop.” He hooked his thumb through his belt and rolled up on the balls of his feet. “Maybe it’s time you told us everything you know, Miss Winters.”
* * *
Ellie’s face grew white at Officer Bailey’s insinuation. She lifted a shaky hand and pointed a finger at him. “I’ll tell you what I know.” Her voice was deceptively hard-edged. “I know someone shot out my front door with a BB gun. Someone attacked me in my storage room. And someone threw a brick at my back door. Tell me what you know, Officer Bailey.”
Ignoring her last comment, Bailey turned to Johnny. “You think it was a BB gun?”
“Based on the sound, yeah.” Johnny glanced at Ellie whose chest was heaving. From the dark look in her eyes, he’d bet it was more from anger at being dismissed than from fear over what had just happened.
“Let’s take a look.” Johnny thought it best to get Officer Bailey away from Ellie. It was apparent there was tension between the two. Perhaps because Officer Bailey resented her brother for being arrested and inadvertently dismantling the high school baseball team he’d been a part of on their way to the state championship.
Some things a man couldn’t forgive. If a guy cut in on his girl or if someone stole their high school state championship, denying them a lifetime of bragging rights.
Johnny looped Duke’s leash around the chair and patted his head. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.” He didn’t want the dog to get any glass in his paws. Duke lay down and rested his head on his paws. Poor animal was exhausted from all the excitement.
Their shoes crunched on the broken glass as they made their way to the front of the store. Ellie hung back, wrapping her arms around her middle, cupping her elbows. He wished he could offer her more comfort right now, but he knew his efforts would be rebuked, especially in front of Officer Bailey.
A small breeze picked up and knocked over a picture frame. It landed with a thwack on the glass shelf. Johnny righted it. “Who do you guys use for emergency closures?”
Mickey Bailey rubbed his chin. “Give Curtis at the hardware store a call.” The officer dug into his wallet and pulled out a bent business card. “Here, call his cell. He’ll come down here last-minute, at a price mind you, and close this place up.” He cut a glance to the door. “Supposed to rain later.”
Johnny held up a finger and made the call. When he was done, he said to Ellie, “Once Curtis gets here, I’ll take you home.”
Ellie nodded but didn’t say anything. She had gotten a little more color in her cheeks since he had thrown her to the ground in an effort to protect her. If he had been the praying type, he would have thanked God for keeping her safe.
A younger officer, probably a new recruit, stood off to the side and took lots of notes, stopping only to push his hat back on his head. His pure eagerness made Johnny imagine the young officer probably had never responded to a drive-by shooting.
Johnny pointed to a small BB lodged in the wall.
Officer Bailey cut Johnny a sideways glance. “What do you make of this? Were they gunning for you or Ellie?”
Johnny rubbed his jaw and winced, then glanced down at the wadded-up paper towel and duct tape he had stuffed under the sleeve of his T-shirt to soak up the blood. “It has to tie in to the other harassment of late.”
Bailey glanced over at Ellie, who seemed distracted. He leaned in. “Does she know why you’re in town?”
Johnny nodded.
“You think this one’s hands are clean? You know her brother claimed the same thing.”
Anger roiled in Johnny’s gut. But the officer was right to be suspicious. Things weren’t always as they seemed. “I believe she’s caught in the middle here. I’m going to stay close to make sure she’s safe.”
“Staying close serves more than one purpose.” Bailey quirked an eyebrow. “In case your gut is wrong.”
Johnny bit back a comment. Now was not the time to let his personal feelings get in the way.
Mickey Bailey gestured to Johnny’s arm wound with his chin. “You gonna get that checked out?”
“It’s fine.”
“Might get infected.”
“You worry about finding this guy.” Johnny pointed at the blown-out door. “I’ll worry about me.”
Bailey seemed to be contemplating something for a minute. “You wouldn’t be the first guy to be distracted by a pretty face.”
Johnny shook his head. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that.”
“Say what?” The two men turned around and found Ellie standing a foot away from them, a look of worry pinching her features. Ellie Winters was certainly a pretty face.
“Agent Rock is giving me his theory on what happened here.”
Ellie crossed her arms. “Oh?”
“Nothing more than you already know,” Johnny said.
Officer Bailey shifted his stance, as if he had suddenly remembered something. “Hey, didn’t you have some kids from the church helping around here? What were their names?”
Ellie dropped her arms to her side. “Yes, Collin Parker and Kerry Pitz.” She dragged her fingers through her hair. “Why do you ask?”
Mickey Bailey frowned. “I’m sorry to tell you this, but an ambulance just rushed Kerry to the hospital.”
Ellie leaned heavily on the counter, looking as though her knees were about to give out on her. “Was that the ambulance I heard?”
“Must have been.” Bailey stuffed his hand into his pants’ pocket and jiggled his change. “His mom found him unresponsive in his bedroom.”
Johnny wrapped an arm around Ellie’s waist; a part of him expected her to push him away. “What happened?”
“Drugs. One of my officers, who lives in the neighborhood, was first to arrive. He saw a discarded syringe on the scene.”
Ellie leaned into Johnny, her thin frame tucking neatly into his side. “Oh, no.” Her voice sounded small.
“I realize this might not be the time to mention it, but any chance any of the young men you hired to work here might have used your address to ship drugs?” Johnny asked.
Officer Bailey did that obnoxious thing with his change again. Ching-ching-ching.
“They’re good boys. I’ve known them for years. I volunteered as a mother’s helper in their preschool class at Sunday school when I was a young girl. And I volunteered in their summer vacation Bible school when I was in high school. I still serve as a chaperone at outings.”
“Seems Kerry, at least, has gone off the rails,” the officer said.
“Is he going to be okay?” Johnny asked, watching the officer for any clues that he might be soft selling on account of Ellie.
“The officer said they’re working on him.” Bailey exhaled loudly. “Where there’s life, there’s hope.”
Ellie stood straighter and stepped away from Johnny. He immediately missed her warmth, their connection. She closed her eyes briefly and then opened them. “This is a nightmare.” Her trusting gaze lingered on his. “You have to find whoever’s doing this before any more kids die.”
“I will.” And that was a promise Johnny intended to keep.
* * *
Johnny climbed out of the back of the police cruiser with Ellie when they reached her house. She spun around and said, “I’m fine,” in response to the look of concern on Johnny’s face.
Johnny subtly shook his head as Duke sniffed the ground by his feet. “I want to see you in. Make sure you’re safe.”
Johnny patted the hood of the police car and leaned in toward the open window. “Can you swing back in thirty minutes and pick me up?” he asked the officer.
“Sure thing.”
Ellie watched the patrol car drive off until the red taillights disappeared at the turn.
She turned toward her garage apartment. “I had hoped for an exciting opening week at the shop, but this is a little ridiculous.” She had envisioned smiling customers, lines at the register and ordering new merchandise. Attacks in the storeroom, shots through the window and Curtis from the hardware store nailing plywood to the door had not entered her brain. Even in her wildest imagination.
Johnny scratched his forehead. “Curtis has the shop sealed up for now. Get a good night’s sleep then decide what you want to do in the morning.”
Ellie’s dull headache had blossomed into a thud-thud-thud that would surely keep her up. She groaned.
“You okay?”
She laughed; a mirthless sound. “If the incidents at the shop weren’t bad enough, now Kerry...” She shook her head. Please, Lord, let Kerry be okay. “His poor parents. He has a little brother, too. I can’t imagine what they’re going through.”
“I don’t know him. But...” He let the words dangle out there, as if he wanted to say more but something was stopping him. “Let’s get inside. You don’t mind Duke?”
“Of course not.” Ellie leaned over and patted the dog’s head. As they climbed the stairs to her apartment, she glanced over toward her mother’s house. The flickering of the TV screen was visible through the family room window. Her mother was probably dozing on the couch.
Ellie unlocked the door and stepped into the small space. She felt for the light switch on the wall and flipped it, casting the room in a warm glow. The place wasn’t much, but it was hers. All hers. She had lived alone in Buffalo, but her boyfriend had been a constant critic of her choices in furniture, paint colors and TV shows. She couldn’t do anything without his comments. All negative.
It was a wonder she’d stayed with him so long, but it’s amazing—and sad—what someone will do when they think they have no choice. She had mistakenly thought her boyfriend was her ticket out of this Podunk-like town and to independence, but he had trapped her in an even crueler prison. It was only after she realized he was cheating on her that his pleas of “don’t leave me” and “you’ll never find anyone else” fell on deaf ears. If her choice in life was him or no one else, she’d gladly settle for the latter.
“Nice place,” Johnny said, shifting his stance in the doorway.
“It’ll do. For now.” Ellie turned to face Johnny and a warm rush surrounded her heart. Johnny was someone. Inwardly she smiled. Her range of emotions was all over the place. She was in no position to be thinking romantic thoughts toward anyone, especially Johnny Rock, the law-enforcement agent responsible for her brother’s wrongful arrest.
The man investigating a shipment of drugs to her store.
Ellie rolled her shoulders, trying to ease the knots. “Stay for tea?” She hoped her tone didn’t sound desperate.
“Sounds good.” He closed the door behind them and Ellie thought about her mother next door. What would she say about her entertaining a man in her apartment? She quickly shook away the thought. They were only having tea.
Besides, they had Duke for a chaperone. She smiled inwardly at the silly thought.
Ellie opened the cabinet on the far wall, a space that had been converted into a small kitchen. She pulled out two mugs and two tea bags. She glanced over her shoulder and noticed Johnny wince as he tugged off his hoodie.
“You should probably get that cut checked out,” Ellie said, coming around to his side of the island.
His mouth twisted as he shook his head. “Nah.”
Ellie held up a finger and crossed to the bathroom. She didn’t exactly have a medical kit, she wasn’t even sure she had a Band-Aid, but she did find cotton balls, alcohol and a princess Band-Aid left over from when her niece had visited.
She gathered up the supplies and marched back into the kitchen.
“I’m no Florence Nightingale, but we need to clean your arm.” She lifted her eyes to meet his.
Something unspoken stretched between them. Johnny searched her eyes. It appeared he wanted to say something when he suddenly glanced down at the princess bandage on the counter and broke the spell. “Is that all you have?” He gave her the cutest lopsided smile. “I think princesses might cut into my toughness factor.”
“There’s no danger there.” She laughed nervously at the boldness of her comment. Face firing hot, she focused all her attention on his arm. His muscled arm.
No, no, no.
She blinked a few times. His injury. Focus on that.
She picked at the edge of the duct tape stuck to his flesh. Ellie got hold of a corner between her index finger and thumb. “This might sting a bit.”
His eyebrow arched as if to say, “You think?”
“I remember someone telling me he knew what he was doing.” She mimicked his expression.
“Just do it already.”
“One, two, three—” She yanked at the duct tape and Johnny let out a laugh-groan.
“Oh, man, a princess Band-Aid is looking better by the minute.”
Ellie laughed. “Sorry.” She peeled back the paper towel sticking to his wound. It was her turn to wince. “This might need stitches.”
Johnny inspected the wound. “It’s fine.” She had a feeling he was going to say fine no matter how it looked.
“Well,” Ellie said hesitantly, “let me wash it out.”
“Hurry up and just do it, then.” Johnny flexed his muscle and glanced away as if bracing himself.
Holding the alcohol and cotton swab, she pulled her head back and studied him. “You’re afraid of a little rubbing alcohol?”
He cut her an annoyed sideways glance. “Do it already.”
Ellie rubbed the cotton swab as gently as she could over the wound. Johnny flinched.
“Almost done,” she said reassuringly, just as she would do if she were cleaning a skinned knee on her niece.
Ellie tore the wrapper off the Band-Aid and picked off the tabs from the adhesive. She lined up the princess bandage with his wound and pressed it to his skin. “There, there,” she said with humor in her voice as she smoothed her hand over the Band-Aid.
Johnny traced the creased edge of the bandage and a smile tilted the corners of his mouth. “Thanks.”
Ellie spun around, needing to create some distance. “No problem. Still want that tea?”
“What? No lollipop?”
“Ha, ha.” She filled the kettle, set it on the stove and turned the dial to high. Deep inside her purse, she could hear her phone ringing. She plucked it out and saw her brother’s name on the caller ID.
“Hey,” she said when she answered.
“You okay? Roger called to say there had been some sort of shooting at your store. He said he was closing up his sub shop and saw the commotion. I wasn’t sure if he was pulling my leg.” Greg’s voice held a hint of humor, as if he feared he had been the subject of a prank and didn’t want to fall for it.
“I’m fine. And, yes, it’s true. Some kid with a BB gun.”
“Johnny was with you?”
“Yeah.”
Her brother made a sound she couldn’t quite distinguish. If Johnny hadn’t been standing right across the island from her, she would have told her brother to mind his own business, that, yes, she remembered what Johnny’s false accusations had done to their family, but she had her own reason for hanging out with him.
Something in her heart shifted at the sight of Johnny’s muscled bicep with the sweet little princess Band-Aid.
He was her protector. Yes, her protector. Nothing more.
She turned her back to Johnny and leaned on the counter, crossing her one free arm over her middle. “I have to go.”
“You probably should run over and tell Mom before she hears it from one of her friends. She’ll be worried.”
“Yes, Greg...” She dragged out the words. He was right, but she hated to be told what to do.
“One more thing. Sorry it’s late notice, but it looks like it’s going to be a nice day tomorrow. Beth and I thought we’d have a few friends and family over for a last cookout of the season. Might be snowing soon, never know around here. Why don’t you come over?”
“What time?”
“How about after you close the shop? You close around five on Saturday, right?”
“Yes.” She wasn’t sure if or how long she’d be open tomorrow considering what had happened tonight, but she didn’t feel like getting into that. She forced a cheery tone. “Sounds good. I’ll bring a dessert.” She’d grab something from the grocery store. At a different time she might have stopped at the bakery next door, but she feared what Mr. Vino might do to something he knew she’d eat.
“I’ll tell Beth.” He cleared his throat. “Ellie...” A long pause stretched over the line. Her stomach dropped. He’d used the same tone he had when he’d called to say their father had died. Cutting the lawn one minute. Dead inside an ambulance the next.
She shoved the thought away.
“Yeah.”
“If there was something going on, you’d tell me, right?”
“Um, yeah.” She glanced over her shoulder at Johnny. “There’s been some crazy stuff at the shop—”
Ellie heard her niece calling for her father in the background.
“Nothing that can’t keep. We’ll talk more tomorrow. I’ll let you go. Give Grace a hug for me.”
Ellie ended the call. She set her cell phone aside and filled the two mugs with hot water.
“You and Greg are close.”
Ellie nodded. “More so now as adults. I guess I’m not the annoying little sister anymore.” She dunked her tea bag a few times. “But ever since I moved back home, he thinks he’s my protector.” She shrugged. “Maybe since Dad’s gone now.”
“You’re lucky.”
Ellie fingered the charm on her bracelet.
“Family’s important. Other than my grandfather, I don’t have any family.” Johnny tossed his tea bag into the garbage. “My mother died of a drug overdose when I was twelve.”