Free Black Widow by Laurie Breton Page A

While her heart thundered in her chest, he reached into the glove compartment, pulled out a clean tissue, and tucked it into the palm of her hand. “You okay?” he said, dabbing at the blood.
    “I don’t think … I’ll know … for a while.”
    “You’re okay. You haven’t lost your sense of humor.” He reached for the radio mic. “This is DiSalvo,” he said into it. “Radio Bucky Stimpson and tell him to drop whatever he’s doing and come over to Kathryn McAllister’s place as fast as he can get here. I don’t have my weapon with me, and somebody left a gift on Ms. McAllister’s front porch tonight.”
    The scratchy voice at the other end said dubiously, “A gift?”
    “That’s what I said. Tell Bucky we have ourselves a full-sized rattler here, and Kathryn and I are not leaving this vehicle again until somebody comes over and blows his damn ugly head off.”
     
    The atmosphere was almost carnival-like. It was the biggest event Elba had seen since Alvin Deverell had gotten liquored up at Dewey’s last May and shot out all the lights on Main Street. While Kathryn hovered inside Nick’s Blazer, half the male population of the town stood on her front lawn, admiring the dead snake and testifying as to how he was the biggest rattler they’d seen since the one that bit the Crosley kid back in ‘83. Kid damn near died. Would have, too, what with the hospital being forty-five minutes away, if his Pa hadn’t remembered that Dewey Webb kept a snakebite kit on the shelf in his supply room.
    Kathryn closed her eyes and tuned out their voices. When the Blazer’s door squawked open, she jumped. DiSalvo stood there in the dim glow of the dome light. “You okay?” he said gruffly.
    “I’ve lost ten years off my life, but I’m okay.”
    “Yeah. You and me both. Listen, maybe you shouldn’t stay alone here tonight.”
    “This is my home. I won’t let them drive me from it.”
    “Whoever put that snake here wasn’t fooling around, Kathryn. This isn’t like emptying out your cupboards and tipping over your plants. If that damn thing had bitten you — ”
    “It didn’t. And I’m not going anywhere.”
    “Then at least call Raelynn or somebody to stay with you.”
    Ignoring him, she said, “How much longer are they going to be here?”
    “I’ll chase ‘em away. Why don’t you go on in the house? You look beat.”
    Because she didn’t know what else to do, she went inside and put on the teakettle. She stood in the kitchen, gripping the edge of the countertop and trying to shake off the panic that still hovered just beneath the surface. It wasn’t a stranger who’d left that creature on her porch tonight. Whoever put it there had known about her irrational fear of snakes.
    She squeezed her eyes shut and stood there trembling. Behind her, DiSalvo said softly, “Kathryn?”
    She hadn’t even heard him come in. She bit her lip. “Are they gone?”
    “They’re gone.”
    “And the snake?”
    “Bucky carted it off, all excited, like it was the greatest archeological find since T. Rex.” He came up behind her, rested both hands on hers and hooked his thumbs around her wrists. “You’re cold,” he said.
    “Nick … ”
    Still holding her wrists, he folded his arms around her from behind and pulled her into him. He was warm, so warm, and for a moment, she allowed herself to relax against him, allowed herself to savor the wild mix of emotions that swirled up inside her. “Nick,” she said again.
    His breath was hot on the back of her neck, and if she turned in his arms, she would be lost. “What?” he said.
    “Before you go … would you … check the house for me?”
    Her words had the intended effect. He released her, stepped away, and the coldness rushed back in to blanket her. Beside them, the teakettle whistled. She cleared her throat. “Coffee?” she said, still not looking at him.
    Stiffly, he said, “Sorry. I don’t have time.”
    Hurt by his tone of voice, she turned to look at