Free Riss by Kathi S. Barton Page B

should go back and talk to your mom. She might let you stay until you can find yourself something.”
    “ Nah, she’s set on me not staying there anymore. She’s been telling me for months that I need to find somewhere else to live, but I have stuff I need to do at home. She was never on my side like you were. And as for you getting out of our arrangement, I’m sure you do. But in the event you didn’t notice, I have a gun, and I’m much bigger than you.” Dan laughed again. “We’ll have fun, you and I. Once the unemployment runs out, you can find a job if you don’t have one already, and I’ll take care of the house. But we’ll need to get cable again. I won’t miss my shows.”
    “ I’ve called the police.” His laughter had her standing up. “I have. They’re on their way to come and arrest you.” He looked at her phone still on the floor. She hoped that the dispatcher was still there, but she wasn’t sure. When her phone went black like that, she was never sure what was going on with it.
    Dan stomped over and smashed her phone with his boot before he hit her across the mouth. “Why the hell would you do that? You and I are going to be living together. This is no way to start a relationship.” Kala backed up when he stood up and pointed the gun at her. “You shouldn’t have done that, Kala. Now you’ve made me mad. I’m not so nice when I’m mad.”
    “ Neither am I. And I told you we’re nothing to each other. You’re a pain in the ass, and I want you out of my house.” He took a step toward her again just as someone knocked on the door. When she started for it, something exploded in her head, and she fell back. It wasn’t until she saw Dan moving out of the room that she realized that he’d hit her again, and this time hard enough that she could see stars.
    A few seconds later , she heard shouting and then gun fire. The police had arrived, apparently. Before she knew it, she was being helped up, and someone handed her a Baggie of ice. They said she’d been out for several minutes and should go to the hospital.
    “ You invited him in?” If she had to answer this question once more, she was going to have to hurt someone. It had been twenty minutes since the police had arrived, and they were treating her like she was the bad guy here. “Did you know that he was unstable?”
    “ No, do I strike you as the type of woman who would invite a mad man into her house? We were going to have dinner together. As friends. He and I had just lost our jobs and I had thought that we’d have a laugh over it.” Kala glared at the officer. “How many times do you suppose I have to answer this same stupid question before you get your head out of your ass and go look for him?”
    The officer opened his mouth and snapped it close d before looking at the man near him. Kala looked, too. He was much bigger than the first officer, and he had on a suit rather than a uniform. Enough was enough. She stood up to show them out and try to figure out what the hell she was supposed to do now.
    “ Miss Marrow, I’m Detective Benson Anderson. Everyone calls me Benny. I understand that you’re upset, but my men are only doing their job.” She started to snort but just caught herself. “Where do you suppose Mr. Carey went after leaving here? And could you tell me if he had a car or not?”
    “ How the hell should I know where he went? As far as a car, he said he borrowed his mother’s and that he had to return it before she got madder at him. Dan said his mother kicked him out. That’s why he was here. He said she had told him that without her free cable he couldn’t live there any longer.” She noticed that he looked at another man before looking back at her. “He killed her, didn’t he?”
    “ Mrs. Carey was found dead in her house about an hour before you called. The neighbors called it in. They were suspicious when her son, Daniel Carey, was driving around in her car. Apparently, he wasn’t allowed to