Page 2 of Cowboy Peril

“A man came into the women’s bathroom and stood outside the stall I was using. It freaked me out. I don’t want to stay here.”

Tanya studied her face for a minute, then nodded. “I’ll take you home.”

“No, you stay. Have fun. I’ll have the doorman call me a cab.” She gave her friend a quick hug. “I’m sorry. It’s just I’m not ready yet.”

“I understand, but are you sure?”

“Yes.” Parker flashed a grin, then rushed for the entrance.

Less than fifteen minutes later, she sat in the back of a sedan heading to her apartment. When they arrived, she quickly paid the driver, darted inside the apartment building and up the stairs, then slammed her door and leaned against it. Maybe she was being a party-pooping ninny, but the whole evening had left her nerves on edge.

She washed off her makeup, donned some baggy shorts and an oversized tee-shirt, then sat on the sofa and turned on the television. Nothing could hold her attention for long. Wow, the guy had spooked her.

Sighing, she stood and padded to the front window overlooking the parking lot. A man stood under a streetlight; his features shadowed. An eerily familiar man. The guy from the porch, who’d watched her at the club. She was sure of it.

Giving a salute in her direction, he strolled down the sidewalk and out of sight. Parker’s heartbeat sped up double time. As she stepped back from the window, she noticed Tanya’s car parked out front. What? Her breath came in gasps, and she wiped moist palms on her shorts. Why would her friend be sitting in her car outside her apartment?

Plucking her keys from the table near the front door, Parker put them between her fingers as a makeshift weapon and crept down the stairs a lot slower than she had before. She glanced out the door, making sure no one was around before opening it, then ran to the car.

“Tanya?” She knocked on the window. Her friend sat slumped over the steering wheel. Had she had too much to drink and come to Parker’s with the intention of staying the night? Parker did live closer to the club.

When her friend didn’t respond, she opened the driver side door and gave her a shake. Tanya’s head lolled back revealing a slit across her throat. Pinned to her blouse was a bloodstainedsheet of paper. Through the blood, Parker read, “Your parents ruined me. They’ve paid for their sin. Now, it’s your turn.”

Parker stumbled backward, clapping a hand over her mouth. Her best friend was dead, and it was somehow her fault. Tanya was murdered. How could this happen? The note said he was coming after her. She couldn’t stay. But where could she go? She whipped around and clamored back upstairs to her apartment. She had to call the police, pack, get her hands on some money. Parker needed a plan. The note. She needed the note. It was the proof that her parents hadn’t just died in an accident.

Oh, Tanya. She sat on the bed and covered her face with her hands. Why her? She couldn’t have anything to do with whatever this man thought Parker’s parents had done. Was she simply a message?

With shaking hands, Parker picked up her cell phone and dialed 911. The operator told her to stay in her apartment and lock her door, not opening it for anyone but the police. Staying on the phone, she moved back to the front window to wait for their arrival.

Rain fell from the sky. Flashing blue and red lights broke through the rain as two squad cars pulled into the parking lot. Four officers, guns drawn, approached Tanya’s car. Since Parker had fled and left the driver’s door open, it didn’t take them long to assess the situation. In unison, all four officers turned and stared up at her apartment window. One peeled away and entered the building.

Parker hung up the phone and waited for his knock.

Chapter Two

Parker stepped backand let the officer in. Her legs shook hard enough to make her wobble.

“Have a seat, Miss.” The officer took her by the arm and helped her to the sofa. “Take a deep breath, then tell me what happened.”

She started with the bar and the man coming into the bathroom, then seeing the man standing on the curb, and ended with finding Tanya’s body. “Why would someone angry with me kill my friend?”

He frowned and tilted his head. “Why would someone be angry with you?”

She told him of her suspicions regarding her parents’ death. “Now, he’s after me. You read the note, right?”

“Note?” He frowned.

“The one pinned to Tanya’s blouse.”

“We saw no note, ma’am.”

“But…” It had been there. She’d seen it with her own eyes. “The killer came back and got it. That must be what happened.” Her mouth dried. “The note said, ‘Your parents ruined me. They’ve paid for their sin. Now, it’s your turn.’”

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t know, but it confirms that my parents were killed. The precinct should have the file on their accident.”

“I recognize the name. No foul play was detected in their deaths.”

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