Free Trunk Show Murder (A Seagrove Cozy Mystery Book 2) by Leona Fox Page B

wondered who it was.
     
    She and Mr. B. crept toward the last door in the hall. It was open while the other doors between the conference room and it were closed. She was having trouble hearing again. Her blood rushing through her veins was so loud. Breathe, Sadie, she told herself. Breathe. Later, when Zack asked her if she even considered going back, she could honestly say it never occurred to her. She needed to do what must be done if justice was going to be served.
     
    She flattened herself against the wall outside the open door. She motioned to Mr. Bradshaw to stay, kneeled on all fours and stuck her head around the doorjamb. It was a file storage room, lined with file cabinets. And it was as she thought, Lois was in the room rifling through files. She seemed to be looking for something specific because every so often she’d come across a file that made her grin and she would toss it in the air scattering the papers across the floor.
     
    Sadie ducked back into the hall. She pulled out her cell phone and loaded the camera. All she needed to do was to snap a quick picture for evidence and she could get out of there. She was summoning up her nerve to put her head in the doorway again and take the picture when Lois stepped into the doorway and pointed a gun at Sadie.
     
    “You know, Sadie,” she said. “You’d make a terrible spy. Get up.”
     
    Sadie got up but didn’t pick up Mr. Bradshaw’s leash. She stood between Lois and Mr. B., her blood rushing in her ears again. Damn cardiovascular system kept interfering with her stone cold criminal catcher persona.
     
    Lois jabbed at her with the gun. “Did you hear me? I said pick up his leash.”
     
    Sadie knelt down and unclipped the leash from his collar keeping the clip in her hand. “Go find the Chief. Run!” she said to him and then she stood between him and the gun wielding crazy again.
     
    “You expect me to believe that mutt is going to find Chief Woodstone?” Lois asked. “That’s laughable. Let him run, I’m sure he’ll end up at the nearest butcher’s shop. Get in here.” Lois motioned her into the file room.
     
    Sadie backed in keeping Lois firmly in her sights. She didn’t think Lois would shoot her, but she wasn’t taking any chances on getting shot in the back. She kept the hand with the leash close to her side. Surprise was her only real advantage at the moment.
     
    That was when she saw Mr. Bradshaw in the hall behind Lois and her heart sank. Lois saw her look and glanced over her shoulder unconsciously lowering the gun several inches. That was all the lead time Sadie needed. She lunged for Lois knocking the gun from her hand.
     
    “Mr. Bradshaw, Run!” Sadie wrestled with Lois pushing her backward into the hall away from the gun.
     
    Lois was shrieking and swearing, but Sadie ignored the words to concentrate on keeping Lois’s nails from raking her face. She heard Mr. Bradshaw growling but couldn’t risk a look to see where he was, but then Lois started kicking backward and she thought he must have a hold of Lois’s pant leg.
     
    “Go Mr. Bradshaw! Run!” Sadie yelled again, wanting him to get to safety. He didn’t let go of Lois’s pants.
     
    Then two things happened at once, Mr. Bradshaw jerked Lois’s leg backward and Sadie pulled Lois’s hand forward and down catching Lois off balance. She fell forward onto her face and Sadie dropped onto her knees in the middle of Lois’s back. The air whooshed out of Lois and Sadie got first one hand and then the other hand up behind Lois’s back.
     
    Fifteen minutes later, when Chief Woodstone came skidding around the corner, weapon drawn, Lois was still in the middle of the hall, lying flat out on her face. Her hands were tied with a dog leash and Sadie was straddling her back and Mr. Bradshaw was in her lap. The look on Chief Woodstone’s face made Sadie laugh out loud.
     
    Five days later the hubbub and outrage had diminished and Sadie agreed to go out on another date