Page 52 of Deadly Lineage
Mrs. Hart beamed. “Your father is such a handsome man.” A dark blush lit her cheeks. “Mr. Hart was so jealous the first time he saw Nikodemus.”
Boone’s responding grin was soft. “Somehow, I don’t think Mr. Hart had anything to worry about.”
“No, that’s true. He was a good man.” Mrs. Hart’s voice thickened and trailed off before she rallied and asked, “Is there anything Miss Patty and I can do for you?”
Boone shook his head. “You’ve already done enough, and I’m happy you’re all right.”
“Oh, we’re fine.” She waved Boone’s concern off. “Those fellas were up to no good and I’m glad Miss Patty ran them off.”
Neither Boone nor I contradicted Mrs. Hart. If she wanted to think her diminutive dog saved the day, then so be it.
“You take care and let me know if there’s anything I can do. It’s good to see you again, Detective O’Hare. You take care of this one. Erasmus is one of the good ones too.” Mrs. Hart reached over the fence and squeezed my hand. Surprisingly, Miss Pattycakes didn’t make a sound.
Boone and I stood side by side, watching as Mrs. Hart shuffled across her flower-laden yard. Honestly, the property was stunning.
“I really need to talk with Pops. I think we got lucky this time.”
I understood his train of thought. “Miss Pattycakes is likely to get herself into more trouble if she keeps barking and drawing attention to herself.”
“My thoughts exactly. Still, she’s a good warning system. That little dog knows every car that’s supposed to be on this road. Chances are she knew before Pops’s wards that something was wrong.”
The edges of my lips quirked up. “I would love to be present when you tell Nikodemus Holland that a dog outdid his wards.”
Boone chuckled. “Yeah, not happening. Pops might like me better than most, but evenI’mnot stupid enough to tell him that.”
“Warlock Holland more thanlikesyou, Boone. He loves you.” That much was abundantly clear.
Boone’s head sagged and his voice was muffled when he answered, “I know. I’m one lucky necromancer.”
We could debate that point, but instead I chose to ask, “Have you called your father?”
Boone blew out a heavy breath. “I called him when I was sitting in the back of the ambulance.” We’d both been triaged on the spot. Boone had some reddened areas that would soon turn into multicolored bruises. I suspected we had Aurelia to thank for him not being bloodied anywhere. The gash on my forehead was the worst of my injuries, and for that I was eternally thankful.
“Is he on a plane?”
“No. I managed to keep him in Cali. It’s not that I don’t want to see him, I just want to try and solve this mess without having to call in my Pops. Do you understand?”
“All too well,” I answered easily.
“Momma called while I was on the phone with Pops. She was worried at first. Then I caught an earful for not calling her sooner. Call me crazy, but I don’t think she would have wanted me to call while we were racing through the countryside and being shot at. I think that would have upset her a lot more than waiting to contact her.”
I couldn’t dispute Boone’s thoughts.
“She’ll be by later, once the police leave. Momma wants to see for herself that I’m fine. I’m sure she’ll fuss over me, but that’s what mommas do.”
Again, I couldn’t argue. My mother would have done the same if she were still alive. Unfortunately, she’d passed before I’d left Illinois. Nana outlived her daughter, but still had four grandchildren to corral. Honestly, I’m not sure what would have become of Nana if she hadn’t had us to care for. It had been difficult leaving her. But deep down, Nana understood why I needed to go, and despite the distance, she still managed to make her presence known.
The silent evening was interspersed with closing car doors, reminding me why I’d walked to Boone’s side. “The crime scene techs are finishing up. They’ll be done soon. Unfortunately, there’s not much for them to do beyond documenting the scene.”
“Which doesn’t amount to much more than photographing my property,” Boone rightly assumed.
“True enough. Warlock Holland’s charms worked a little too well.”
“Maybe…” Boone’s gaze drifted while he chewed on his bottom lip.
“Maybe?” I prompted, easily seeing there was something on Boone’s mind.
“I’m not certain, but I think Pops might be able to recognize the people that tried to cross his wards.”
