Free Soldiers of Fortune by Jana DeLeon

gun and rolled my head around, trying to loosen up my cramped neck. “I don’t even remember falling asleep.”
    “It was a big day yesterday. I don’t even remember coming upstairs.” She looked down at my hand, still clenching the pistol. “Any particular reason you were sleeping in my room armed?”
    Crap. I needed a plausible story, and I needed to come up with it on limited sleep and absolutely no coffee. “You don’t remember coming upstairs because I sorta carried you after you assaulted a table in the living room and broke a lamp. It must have been the champagne combined with too much stress and not enough sleep.”
    Ally’s eyes widened. “Seriously? Oh my God, I’m sorry. I’ll replace the lamp.”
    I waved a hand in dismissal. “I don’t care about the lamp. It was ugly anyway. But I was worried because you were so out of it, so I kept checking on you. Then I heard a noise outside shortly after I went to bed and took my pistol to check it out.”
    “Fortune! You’re supposed to call the police. You know things never go well when you start checking them out yourself.”
    “I didn’t shoot anything this time.” Only because I fell into my kitchen. Otherwise, the refrigerator probably would have bought it. “Anyway, I was on edge when I came back upstairs so I sat in the chair for a minute, and I guess I fell asleep.”
    She shook her head. “I bet your neck is stiff all day. Anyway, I woke you up to tell you I’m leaving to meet the contractor at my house.”
    “Great. One of these days, I need to go by and see how the work’s going.”
    Her eyes lit up. “It looks awesome. The kitchen of my dreams. After I meet with the contractor, I’m going to meet with a decorator in New Orleans to pick out fabric for the barstools and cornices. Do you want to come?”
    My face must have conveyed my horror, because she laughed.
    “If you could see your expression,” Ally said. “You really don’t have a domestic bone in your body, do you?”
    “If I do, I haven’t found it yet. I promised Ida Belle and Gertie I’d help them with some Sinful Ladies stuff today anyway.”
    “Well, have fun and stay out of trouble—if that’s possible.” She headed out of the room and paused as she entered the hallway and looked back at me. “Oh, and someone parked an airboat in the bayou behind your house. See you later!”
    I waited until she was out of sight before rushing over to the window to peer outside. My pulse spiked when I saw the shiny new airboat parked in my backyard. Bass boats had been getting the job done, but that was totally friggin’ awesome. Big and Little weren’t playing around. I hurried downstairs and out to the backyard, anxious to check out the boat. I’d never ridden in one, but I’d seen them on television and it looked like a blast, and didn’t appear to be nearly as bumpy as regular boats. Plus, these things were fast!
      I jumped inside, admiring the bench across the middle and two captains’ seats perched high on the back. Everything was pristine, and the aluminum hull shone like new money. Even the giant fan on the back was pretty. I checked the ignition for a key, but it didn’t contain one. Frowning, I glanced back at my house, wondering for a second if it was on my kitchen table. I wouldn’t put it past Mannie to make a point. Again.
    I scanned the boat and realized the bench probably had storage beneath it. I lifted the seat and on top of a stack of life jackets, I saw an envelope with my name on it. I opened the envelope and pulled out the key and a couple of folded papers. The first was a handwritten note.

    Ms. Morrow,
    It was a pleasure chatting with you at the café last week. Attached you will find your summer lease for the airboat, as we talked about. Enjoy it and be safe!
    Bob Hebert
    Swamp City Airboats  

    Hebert, huh? Probably a relative. I couldn’t help but grin. Not only had Big and Little delivered the goods, they’d given me a way to easily explain