A limb snapped, breaking the quiet of the morning. Wendy jumped and turned, glancing toward the trees behind her.
Braxton lunged and tackled Wendy to the ground. A gunshot rang out into the morning, sending an ominous chill down his back.
Wendy cried out, struggling under him. Braxton shifted his weight to keep from snapping her fragile bones, but kept a steady grip on her hands. He looked over his shoulder. “Kate, are you okay?”
It seemed like forever until he heard her sweet voice.
“Yeah. But I think my rocker has bitten the dust.” She stepped to the side. The bullet had struck her white rocker, shooting off a leg. The chair slumped to one side.
Braxton let out a breath and forced his heart to slow down. For a brief second, he thought the bullet had hit Kate.
“Get off me!” Wendy hissed, her bloodshot eyes shooting daggers at him. “Get your hands off me!”
“You’ve certainly changed your tune. First you’re offering to blow me, now you don’t want me to touch you.”
Wendy screamed and tried to bite him. Braxton held her down.
“What the hell is going on?” Myrtis stuck her head out the door. “Sounds like the damn O.K. Corral out here. And this is not conducive to a hangover.”
“Holy shit. I knew I should have waited and come back with you!” Felicity pushed past Myrtis and stared at the scene on the front porch.
“Then we both would have been shot. Braxton saved my life.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The cops were called and arrived within minutes. Barrett, Jayden, Damon, and Ava pulled in right after. Braxton filled in the cops, as well as his friends, on what happened, including Wendy’s confession of killing both men.
After being questioned by the police, Kate walked inside to check on her guests. She glanced at the clock on the microwave. She was an hour late getting breakfast ready.
She pulled out a skillet from a bottom cabinet and put it on the stove. She’d just have to do something easy and quick this morning. Eggs and bacon would have to do.
“What are you doing?” Myrtis stopped in her tracks as she came into the kitchen.
“Breakfast.” Kate pulled out a carton of eggs from the refrigerator, but Myrtis snatched it out of her hand. “What?”
“Don’t worry about breakfast. We already ate.”
Kate frowned.
“Barbara whipped up some pancakes. It’s one of her specialties.” Myrtis placed the eggs back in the refrigerator.
“Oh, well, I can adjust your bill…”
Myrtis cut her off. “You’ve got bigger problems to worry about than making a bunch of crazy women breakfast. Don’t go adjusting the price. You’ve had your hands full with us over the past few days. In fact we might owe you money for all the trouble we caused.”
Kate chuckled.
“So, is everything going to be okay?” Myrtis nodded out the window at the police car where Wendy sat.
Kate nodded. “Yeah, I think so. Braxton’s been cleared of his father’s murder. Wendy will have to face murders in both Arkansas and Louisana.” Kate shook her head. “My problems of keeping the Bella Luna look very small in comparison.”
“I don’t think you’ll have any problems keeping your home now. After this weekend, all the girls have agreed to come back in the spring and fall for a writing retreat. We know a lot of other writers that would be interested in coming here. You’ve got everything—beautiful home, charming town, and you’re a wonderful and attentive host.”
“Thanks, Myrtis.”
Myrtis winked and then motioned out the window. “I think your boyfriend is looking for you.”
Braxton’s gaze searched the yard until he saw her standing at the kitchen window. He smiled and crooked his finger, motioning for her to come to him.
Her stomach dipped deliciously.
“I’ll go see what he wants.” Kate pushed away from the sink and grabbed her jacket. When she stepped onto the porch, the winter wind took her breath away. She sucked in another breath and searched for Braxton. The lawn was littered with cop cars and Harleys. Since the cops arrived, people from town had shown up to find out what was going on. The cops had since parked a cop car sideways at the end of her driveway to prevent any more nosy neighbors from driving up.
She met Braxton’s gaze across the lawn. Pulled by an imaginary gravitation, Kate walked toward him.
She stood a foot away from him and stared, trying to memorize every detail. He would be leaving and she would only have her memories.
“I saw Barrett talking to the cops.”
Braxton nodded. “The cops said I need to head back to Shreveport so I can make a statement and be cleared of any charges. Barrett said he would make sure I got there.” Braxton laughed. “Apparently Barrett has some kind of in with the cops in Arkansas. He knew each one of them by name.”
“Are they werewolves?” Kate leaned close and kept her voice down.
“No. Barrett’s just very well connected.” Braxton grew serious. “Maybe he can help with your home.”
“I already have,” Barrett said.