Sandra Brown - Lethal

New York Boston

M ommy?

Hmm?

Mommy?

Hmm?

Theres a man in the yard.

Whats that?

The four-year-old came to stand at the corner of the kitchen table and gazed yearningly at the frosting her mother was applying to the top of the cupcake. Can I have some, Mommy?

May I have some. When Im done, you can lick the bowl.

You made chocolate.

Because chocolate is your favorite, and youre my favorite girl, she said, giving the child a wink. And, she added, drawing out the word, Ive got sprinkles to add as soon as Im finished with the icing.

Emily beamed, then her face puckered with concern. Hes sick.

Whos sick?

The man.

What man?

In the yard.

Emilys statements finally penetrated that innate mom-screen that filtered out unimportant chatter. Theres really a man outside? Honor placed the iced cupcake on the platter, returned the spatula to the bowl of frosting, and absently wiped her hands on a dishtowel as she stepped around the child.

Hes lying down because hes sick.

Emily trailed her mother as she made her way from kitchen to living room. Honor looked through the front window, turning her head from one side to the other, but all she saw was the lawn of St. Augustine grass sloping gradually down to the dock.

Beyond the docks weathered wood planks the waters of the bayou moved indolently, a dragonfly skimming the surface and causing an occasional ripple. The stray cat, who refused to take Honor seriously when she told him that this was not his home, was stalking unseen prey in her bed of brightly colored zinnias.

Em, theres not

By the bush with the white flowers, Emily said stubbornly. I saw him through the window in my room.

Honor went to the door, unlocked it, slid the bolt, stepped out onto the porch, and looked in the direction of the rose of Sharon shrub.

And there he was, lying facedown, partially on his left side, his face turned away from her, his left arm outstretched above his head. He lay motionless. Honor didnt even detect movement of his rib cage to indicate that he was breathing.

Quickly she turned and gently pushed Emily back through the door. Sweetie, go into Mommys bedroom. My phone is on the nightstand. Bring it to me, please. Not wanting to frighten her daughter, she kept her voice as calm as possible, but hurriedly took the steps down off the porch and ran across the dewy grass toward the prone figure.

When she got closer, she saw that his clothing was filthy, torn in places, and bloodstained. There were smears of blood on the exposed skin of his outstretched arm and hand. A clot of it had matted a whorl of dark hair on the crown of his head.

Honor knelt down and touched his shoulder. When he moaned, she exhaled with relief. Sir? Can you hear me? Youre hurt. Ill call for help.

He sprang up so quickly she didnt even have time to recoil, much less to defend herself. He struck with lightning speed and precision. His left hand shot out and closed around the back of her neck, while with his right hand he jammed the short, blunt barrel of a handgun into the slight depression where her ribs met. He aimed it upward and to the left, directly in line with her heart, which had ballooned with fright.

Who else is here?

Her vocal cords were frozen with fear; she couldnt speak.

He squeezed the back of her neck and repeated with sinister emphasis, Who else is here?

It took several tries before she was able to stammer, My my dau

Anybody besides the kid?

She shook her head. Or tried. He had a death grip on the back of her neck. She could feel the pressure of each individual finger.

His blue eyes cut like lasers. If youre lying to me

He didnt even have to complete the threat to coax a whimper from her. Im not lying. I swear. Were alone. Dont hurt us. My daughter shes only four years old. Dont hurt her. Ill do whatever you say, just dont

Mommy?

Honors heart clenched, and she made a feeble squeaking sound, like that of a helplessly trapped animal. Because she still couldnt turn her head, she shifted only her eyes toward Emily. She was several yards away, standing in her endearingly duck-kneed stance, blonde curls wreathing her sweet face, chubby toes peeking out from beneath the pink silk flower petals that decorated her sandals. She was clutching the cell phone, her expression apprehensive.

Honor was engulfed with love. She wondered if this would be the last time she would see Emily healthy and whole and untouched. The thought was so horrible, it brought tears to her eyes, which, for her childs sake, she rapidly blinked away.

She didnt realize her teeth were chattering until she tried to speak. She managed to say, Its okay, sweetheart. Her eyes shifted back to the face of the man who was only a trigger pull away from blowing her heart to smithereens. Emily would be left alone, and terrified, and at his mercy.

Please. Honors eyes silently implored him. Then she whispered, I beg you.

Those hard, cold eyes magnetized hers as he gradually eased the pistol away from her. He lowered it to the ground, placing it behind his thigh where Emily couldnt see it. But the implicit threat remained.

He removed his hand from around Honors neck and turned his head toward Emily. Hi.

He didnt smile when he said it. Faint lines formed parentheses on either side of his mouth, but Honor didnt think they had been grooved there by smiling.

Emily regarded him shyly and dug the toe of her sandal into the thick grass. Hello.

He extended his hand. Give me the phone.

She didnt move, and when he snapped the fingers of his outstretched hand, she mumbled, You didnt say please.

Please appeared to be a foreign concept to him. But after a moment, he said, Please.

Emily took a step toward him, then drew up short and looked at Honor, seeking permission. Although Honors lips were trembling almost uncontrollably, she managed to form a semblance of a smile. Its okay, sweetie. Give him the phone.

Emily bashfully closed the distance between them. When she was within touching distance, she leaned far forward and dropped the phone into his palm.

His blood-smeared hand closed around it. Thanks.

Youre welcome. Are you gonna call Grandpa?

His eyes shifted to Honor. Grandpa?

Hes coming for supper tonight, Emily announced happily.

Holding Honors stare, the man drawled, Is that right?

Do you like pizza?

Pizza? He looked back at Emily. Yeah. Sure.

Mommy said I can have pizza for supper because its a party.

Huh. He slid Honors cell phone into the front pocket of his dirty jeans, then encircled her biceps with his free hand and pulled her up as he stood. Looks like I got here just in time, then. Lets go inside. You can tell me all about tonights party. Keeping a grip on Honors arm, he propelled her toward the house. Her legs were so shaky they barely supported her as she took those first few stumbling steps. Emily got distracted by the cat. She chased after him, calling, Here, kitty, as he slunk into a hedge on the far side of the yard.

As soon as Emily was out of earshot, Honor said, Ive got some money. Not much, a couple hundred dollars maybe. A few pieces of jewelry. You can take anything I own. Just please dont hurt my daughter.

And all the time she was babbling, she was scanning the yard in frantic search of something she could use as a weapon. The water hose wound up on its spool at the edge of the deck? The pot of geraniums on the bottom step? One of the bricks embedded in the ground, lining the flower bed?