Free Desperate Rescue by Barbara Phinney Page B

nearby started to bark. The insistent yelping sounded like it came from the back of her house.
    “That’s Lois’s dog, Pepe. He’s always sneaking into my yard. I think the previous tenant used to feed him.”
    The dog’s barking turned frenzied. With a shake of her head, she pushed open her door. “I better call Lois. She’s the only one who can settle him down, but I think she’s a bit hard of hearing, so she doesn’t always know what he’s doing.”
    Twisting around, she caught the light from the street. She looked much like a teenager, a scared, wide-eyed one who’d seen too much for her young age, one of those haunting girls who might grace the cover of a missionary magazine. So cautious, so wanting to trust, he felt the image burn into his brain. He cleared his throat, unsure of what to do with the emotions churning inside of him. “I’ll say good-night now and see you Sunday, then.”
    She hesitated. “I don’t know. I’ve been so tired lately and a chance to sleep in…”
    “No,” he said, stepping a few inches closer, “don’t shut out this opportunity. Don’t let Noah win here. You should see and prove to yourself that this church can help you. And that Noah was wrong. About everything.”
    “You don’t know anything about that church. How can you say that?”
    Gut feeling? God-given? Instead of those answers, he gave her one of logic. “Lois cares for you and she goes to that church. I’ve heard what some people in town say about the congregation. Don’t judge them prematurely. It’s not fair to Lois or the people who can help you.”
    She dropped her head slightly and sighed. “I don’t want to prejudge them.”
    “Good. I’ll see you there.” Then, smiling, he added, “Good night.”
    She didn’t return it. Eli watched her close and lock her door. He walked back to his car, all the while listening to the dog’s frenetic barks growing wilder. A few minutes later, a door opened at the next house and he could hear Lois call her pet.
    As he climbed to his car, the dog stopped barking. He tapped the steering wheel, torn between going back to Kaylee’s house to tell her his suspicions and letting her have one good night’s sleep.
    Leave her alone. She needed some time to digest all that had happened. It had been a brutal day for both of them. He hadn’t expected the explosives anymore than she had. Only working with the police taught him to be wary and to recognize danger.
    Dropping his head down on the steering wheel, he shut his eyes. The prayer he tried to form came out jumbled, chaotic, but he knew that wasn’t important. He just didn’t seem to have the strength to sort out the right words.
    Grimly, he backed out of the driveway, drove down the street and parked in front of a small convenience store that had closed for the evening. From there, he could see Kaylee’s house and the street that intersected her cul-de-sac.
    He waited, too drained to do anything but shut his eyes.
    A sharp rapping jolted him. Turning, he winced at the blinding light in his face. When the flashlight dropped, he blinked into focus the time on his car stereo. Seven something.
    He’d fallen asleep. He’d been watching her house and drifted off. Automatically, his attention shot to Kaylee’s house, beyond the police car that was parked broadside to him. It looked no different than last night, except that her lights were off.
    “Want to get out of the car, sir?”
    He peered at the nametag of the police officer staring in at him. Auxiliary Police Officer Jim Reading, it said. From the looks of the burly man, he was older, maybe retired from the military or regular police force. Eli climbed out.
    “Did you spend the night in your car, sir?”
    “Yes, I did.”
    The officer asked for registration and driver’s license, which Eli provided. That done, the man asked, “Why did you spend the night here?”
    “I wanted to keep an eye on Kaylee Campbell’s house.”
    “For what reason?”
    “My