Free Tested by Her Web Master (Web Master #2) by Normandie Alleman

of her story, but I felt bad that she’d had to go through that. BA’s mention of trauma rang in my mind. I expected that was true, and I hoped Shelby wouldn’t suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress.
    She already sounded rather cavalier about what had happened. I wasn’t sure if that was a good or a bad thing. Or did it depend on the person? Everyone’s coping style was different.
    Unable to quiet my curious brain, I spent the rest of the night Googling how to support people who’ve experienced traumatic events.
    The next morning I got a text from Shelby asking me to meet her for brunch. I happily accepted and we met at a chain restaurant in the middle of Fort Worth. When I arrived she was already there. I greeted her with a big hug before sitting down across from her.
    “ How did you sleep last night?” I asked.
    “ Fine, why?” She narrowed her eyes.
    “ I’m just worried about you. That’s all.”
    Shelby rolled her eyes. “Thanks, Sophie, but I’m fine. I’m not some fragile doll. You know me—tough as nails.”
    I nodded.
    “ The thing that keeps running through my mind is…I should have recognized that guy was crazy before he pulled out the gun. In hindsight, he looked out of place from the minute he walked into the salon. Disheveled. Wild-eyed. And he had one of those big trench coats on. The cops said it was just like those kids who shot up Columbine. I mean, how did I miss that?”
    “ Well, what were you supposed to do? The minute you see someone who looks a little off—call the cops? You can’t do that.”
    “ I guess,” she hedged.
    “ Shelby, if you called 9-1-1 on everyone you thought was ‘off’—you’d be on the phone with them every day.”
    “ That is true.”
    “ You didn’t do anything wrong.”
    “ Maybe, but it feels like I should have done something else. I mean, I did have an odd feeling when I saw that guy, and I didn’t do anything about it.”
    “ What were you doing when he came in anyway? Tell me the whole story.”
    “ All right. I’m going to need a drink for this.” She ordered us a round of Bloody Marys and continued. “I was having my nails done. Thank goodness I’d already had my hair done. Can you imagine what would have happened if I’d had color on my hair during all that? It might have been ruined!”
    I didn’t know what to say to this so I just nodded like some hair breaking off could have been the worst thing that could have happened to her.
    “ Then this sketchy-looking guy comes in. He walked around the salon for a few minutes. He looked out of place, but he seemed to be looking for someone so I guess we all just thought he knew someone who worked there. But then, he pulled out this big, long gun and started shooting at a big display of products. Shampoo and conditioner flew into the air. It was a mess! When he stopped shooting, the manager ran toward him and tried to calm him down.”
    “ She ran toward the guy who was shooting the gun?”
    “ Oh yeah. She’s my freaking hero! Apparently, the guy had worked there briefly. They’d caught him on the store camera stealing products and maybe some money from the cash register, too, I’m not sure. Anyway, they fired him, and I guess the manager knew him and knew what he was upset about.”
    “ Right, but he could have just shot her…especially if he was mad at management for firing him.”
    “ I know. That woman is a rock star. I think she thought she was the only person who could get anywhere with him. She risked her life to try to calm him down.”
    “ That’s insane. What were you doing?”
    “ Well, the girl stopped painting my nails. Look.” She showed me a hand with only four fingers painted on it. “How sad is that?”
    “ Sad,” I answered, the dutiful friend. It seemed bizarre that she was worrying about her manicure in the context of a life-and-death situation, but considering what she’d been through, if her priorities were a little screwed up, I could forgive that. “What