Free Kaleidoscope Summer (Samantha's Story) by Rita Garcia

back to pee k out the corner of the window . I coul dn’t see anything wrong . I threw my robe off and grabbed my jeans and a shirt. Goldie let me know someone was at the door. My heart pounded , I opened it, praying I’d find Logan on the other side.

Chapter Nine
     
    Sam’s 911 text had me speeding down Shoreview Drive , blaring my siren. People rush ed outside their cottages . I slow ed to t ake the curve onto Main St reet. Tiffani ran out of Rubi’s D iner and Gina hurried out the door of Serenity Blooms. Their faces reflected con cern , a s though a tragedy had occurred . I hope d they we re wrong. Please, let her be okay.
    Alec and I arrived from opposite directions. A pungent ta ste lodged in my throat as I u nlocked the front door of the bookshop . We entered the supply room from the main part of the shop and I took the stairs three at time.
    Sam opened th e apartment door and rushed into my arms. S he shivered as the wetness of her tears fell onto my shoulder . She stepped back and folded her arms across her chest. Not wanting to sever the connection , I kept my hand on her shoulder . “What happened?”
    “Goldie dropped flat at my feet, her way of signaling danger. She ’s never wrong. ” Her eyes darted around , her body trembling. I touched her chin so she would focus on me.
    “ I’ll take you to Maggie’ s shop. ” On th e way I stopped and had Julia go with us . I wasn’t taki ng any chances. What if someone still lurked in th e shadows?
    After making sure Maggie locked the door, I rushed back to the bookshop. The intense fear in Sam’s eyes tugged on my heart . Who was doing this to her? I thought of Lilyan, and quickly dismissed it as a crazy idea . Lilyan had never been destructive or dangerous.
    Alec met me at the front . “We searched upstairs and down. N othing .”
    “Leaves one place. ” We headed for the alleyway behind the shop . Goldi e’s instincts had been dead on . T he painter had resorted to using her SUV as a canvas , and what looked like key scratches gouged into the vehicle ’ s finish . “ Fingerprint it and c all a tow truck . ” I inspected it again . “ Tell Hank to get on it now.” After a complete search of the area failed to turn up anything else, I called Maggie and gave her t he all - clear for Julia to return to her shop.
    We combed the area a second time . Drips of paint were t he only evidence. “You think Nicole ’s ready to take a shift?”
    “Are you kidding, boss? Sh e’s biting o n her badge. Why?”
    “U n til we solve this case , I’m off patrol . ”
    “I’ll have Hank make a new schedule. Okay to give Nicole the night shift?”
    “Y our call . Might have Ted ride along wit h her the first co uple of nights. ” The four of us— Alec , Ted, Nicole and myself—w ere the entire Serenity C ove Police Department . When he wasn’t attending classes, Hank manned the ph one .
    “ I’m going to M aggie’s. M ake sure Ted gets out here right away—a fingerprint or two would be good .” I slapped Alec on the shoulder and hotfooted it back to the antique s shop.
    The ship bell pealed my arrival. “My tw o favorite women .”
    Maggie stood. “ I need to check a couple of things.”
    “What did you find? ” Sam twisted the ends of her hair.
    I sat in the chair Maggie had vacated. “ Someone vandalized your SUV .”
    “Details? ” She raised her eyebrows .
    “Several key scratches down both sides and defaced with paint.”
    Her chin dropped . “This horrible nightmare needs to end . ”
    I reached over and lightly rubbed her hand . “Have you broken off a relationship recently or i s there anyone who might be a threat to you? ”
    “None of the above. I have an occasional dinner with one of th e instructors at the center— we’re not in a re lationship. And n o disagreeme nt s with anyone. ”
    “You exchanged emails with Anne . Did she ever mention anyone giving her problems?”
    “ H er emails were never personal. She wrote about