Page 30 of Under the Lights
“I’m one of those early-to-bed types,” Sam said, and then looked at the old-fashioned clock that had hung on the wall for as long as they could remember. “Though maybe not this early.”
“You know, I have a great idea,” Alex said, his voice low so he couldn’t be overheard, and Chase leaned in closer. He was in just the right mood for a great idea.
—
Kelly’s cell phone rang mere seconds after she’d finished tying the drawstring waist of her favorite pair of sweats, and she knew without looking at the screen it would be the night dispatcher. “Hello?”
“I know you’re not on duty and it’s late, but we have a situation and I thought you might want to handle it yourself.”
Scenarios began running through her mind. Her parents were first, but dispatch would have opened with that. Hunter Cass, maybe. A break-in at Gretchen’s farm. The possibilities were endless. “What’s the situation?”
“Earlier tonight, Chase Sanders, Alex Murphy and Sam Leavitt were at the pizza place and they were drinking with a couple of the other guys.”
Kelly frowned. Had they gotten in a fight? If any of the guys from town had caused trouble for their guests, she’d ticket the offenders if they so much as jaywalked for the rest of their lives.
“We just got a call,” the dispatcher continued, “and it seems like the three of them might be trying to break into the high school.”
She dropped her forehead to the palm of her hand with a thud. “You’re kidding. Those idiots.”
“Yeah. That’s why I called you instead of putting out the radio call.”
“I appreciate that. I’ll take care of it.”
She didn’t bother putting on her uniform and shoved her bare feet into her sneakers before grabbing a flashlight. It’s not as if she’d be shooting anybody, although she wouldn’t mind giving Chase a quick jolt of the stun gun in the ass. What the hell were they thinking?
It was less than a mile to the school and a route she ran regularly, so she jogged to the high school and walked around the perimeter. Since she didn’t see the guys, she assumed they’d made it inside. If she didn’t find an access point, she’d break down and text Chase, but for now she swept the exterior of the old brick building with her flashlight.
It didn’t take her long to find it. In a recessed area where the Dumpsters were parked and the kids were discouraged from going, there were two windows at ground level that went into the mechanical room. They hadn’t been updated yet, and the guys had actually managed to pull the ancient window out of its casing.
Shaking her head, she went to the closest door and used her master key to let herself in. After orienting herself and plotting the quickest route to the gym, she jogged through the halls.
She heard them before she saw them, laughing and talking in a low enough rumble so she couldn’t make out the words. Switching off the flashlight, she gave her eyes a few seconds to adjust to the moon shining through the scattered and high windows, and then stepped up behind them.
“Police,” she said in a stern voice. “Turn around.”
They all pivoted at once and she had to bite back a laugh when Chase and Alex bounced off each other in the process. They’d definitely had a couple of drinks too many with their supper.
“Officer McDonnell,” Chase said in that low, sexy voice she heard in her dreams. “You’re out of uniform.”
She pointed to the Stewart Mills PD emblem on the chest of her zip-up hoodie. “Close enough.”
Alex Murphy folded his arms over his chest and scowled. “We walked instead of driving, so we didn’t do anything wrong.”
She raised her eyebrow, forcing herself not to smile. “Really?”
“Yeah. The car’s still parked in front of the House of Pizza, so you can just go away.”
Sam, who looked sober, elbowed him in the ribs. “You should stop talking now.”
“She’s giving me the cop look.”
Chase snorted and she turned that look on him. “I was about two minutes from curling up on my couch with a bowl of ice cream and the TV remote when I got the call three drunken morons were breaking into the school. Don’t push me.”
“I don’t drink,” Sam said. “Only two drunken morons were breaking into the school.”
“So your excuse is...?”
He shrugged. “Didn’t seem like a good idea to let them come alone.”
