Free Tonight You're Mine by Carlene Thompson Page B

a dream , Nicole, just a dream.”
    But it didn’t feel like a dream. It felt like a memory.

Four
    1
    The next morning Nicole awakened early, and before even letting Jesse into the backyard, she went out by herself for an inspection. The gate was still padlocked shut. She walked the perimeter of the yard. There were no scuff marks on the tan painted fence, and they hadn’t had rain in weeks so the ground was bone-dry, leaving no hope of finding a footprint.
    The intruder had left behind one trace of his night visit, however. For some reason, Jesse had chosen two spots for hiding places. One was beneath a live oak at the back of the yard. The other was against the foundation of the house directly beneath Shelley’s window. Here, where the intruder had looked in Shelley’s window, Nicole found the back half of a running-shoe print. It was much larger than hers.
    Looking at it, she wondered if she should call the police. But what could they do? Tell her she’d had a prowler? She already knew that. No, the police could do nothing with the little bit of evidence the prowler had left behind. He hadn’t even done any damage except to scare a little girl. If she called, they’d simply tell her it was probably a teenage prankster. Worse, they could label her a woman unused to living alone and given to hysterics. In that case, if anything more serious happened, they might even believe she was literally crying “wolf” and not give the matter the attention it deserved.
    When she came back inside, Shelley was up. “Did the werewolf leave clues to show the police?”
    â€œNo clues, I’m afraid, and it’s awfully hard to convince the police of a werewolf sighting. Besides, I think it was just someone wearing a mask.”
    â€œWell, of course,” Shelley replied, all calm sophistication in the light of day. “But you can’t be too careful.”
    â€œYes, Mom,” Nicole droned in a beleaguered, teenage voice. Shelley giggled. “You get cleaned up, kiddo. We have church this morning.”
    Nicole and Shelley were just returning from mass when Roger’s Ford Explorer pulled in behind them. Nicole glanced at her watch. Ten forty-five. He wasn’t supposed to arrive until noon.
    Annoyed but trying not to show it, she forced a smile as she emerged from her car. “A little early, aren’t you?”
    Roger, wearing beige khakis, a denim shirt with long sleeves rolled up to the elbows, new Gucci loafers and designer sunglasses she’d never seen before, grinned cheerfully. “Couldn’t wait to see my sweetheart.”
    â€œRoger, you’ll make me blush.”
    His smile vanished. “I meant my daughter.”
    â€œI know that, Roger. What’s happened to your sense of humor?”
    â€œI thought you were being sarcastic.”
    â€œNo, just teasing. I’m not in the mood for a fight.” Roger seemed to relax. “Well, as you can see, Shelley is dressed up. She needs to change clothes. And she hasn’t eaten.”
    â€œShe can change clothes in a flash, and I’ll take her out for a nice lunch.”
    Nicole looked at the child hovering near the car. “Shel?”
    â€œI’ll change real fast,” she said obligingly. “And Daddy, can we have lunch at Planet Hollywood?”
    Roger detested the raucous atmosphere of Planet Hollywood on the River Walk, which Shelley knew quite well. Nicole pretended to cough to keep from laughing when Roger forced a broad, artificial smile and said heartily, “Of course, honey! Sounds terrific!”
    They walked to the front door together and Nicole withdrew her keys from her purse. “My key doesn’t work anymore,” Roger said.
    â€œThere’s a reason for that.”
    He raised an eyebrow, understanding that she’d changed the locks. “Was that really necessary or just an act of anger?”
    She opened the door and Shelley ran ahead of