To Love and Protect (13 page)

Turning back to Elaine, Geri grinned, her golden cat eyes twinkling in a manner that indicated she was willing to play along with Elaine's inquiry. "Ah, what the heck. Who needs men anyway."

Elaine gasped even louder this time. "Who needs men! Darling, what's life without a man?"

"To torture," Shelley quickly interjected, wanting Geri to know the full extent of Elaine's actual philosophy on the subject.

"What's life without a man?" Janet, the young vet technician repeated as she breezed by. "A lot less work − that's what!"

"See?" Geri said, pointing in Janet's direction.

Elaine rolled her kohl-rimmed eyes. “Oh, you young girls have it all wrong today. You take this equal partners with men thing all too seriously."

"Yeah," Shelley quipped to Geri. "What's the matter with you? What ever happened to the idea of being a kept woman?"

"A kept
happy
woman, Darling," Elaine corrected.

"Now, Geri, what you need to concentrate on is the excitement leading up to your entrapment of a man."

"Oh, boy," Shelley murmured. "This is getting good."

"Entrapment?" Geri laughed. "I see. So what kind of excitement are we talking about?"
"Being wined and dined and flattered and fawned upon." Elaine leaned in closer, Fifi cradled passively in her arms. "When was you last date?" she asked, a conspiratorial tone in her voice.

Geri's pert mouth popped open, but Shelley was quick to intervene on Elaine's behalf. "Don't take it personally, Geri. Elaine asks me the same question every time I see her."

"Shush," Elaine reprimanded. "Anyway, back to you, Geri. Your last date?"

Geri shrugged. "I'm not sure exactly. Four months ago, maybe?"

Elaine shook her head. "Don't you see? And now you're four months closer to wrinkles and gray hair."

"Gee, thanks."

Elaine brushed her hand through the air. "Don't worry. If you get a good cosmetic surgeon − or surgeons − like me, it won't matter. But the point is you have to live for the moment. Life is nothing without romance. Now where was this man from that you dated?"

"Fairfax."

Elaine looked as though she had sucked on an entire lemon. "Ugh. Now I see the problem. You're never going to find a man of means in this hick town."

"Oh really," Shelley said. "I'll make sure to tell Matt that so he can pull you over for a ticket just for the heck of it."

"He probably would anyway, since I doubt he's ever had the pleasure of seeing a pink jaguar like mine roll through this town."

"This is true," Shelley admitted with a laugh. "Well, I'll leave you with Geri to get those pet therapist recommendations while I take care of my next patient."

She knew Elaine wouldn't follow through with the pet therapist, but that wasn't her actual goal – especially since there was nothing wrong with Fifi's
mind. Instead, she hoped that the mere suggestion of a pet therapist would force Elaine to analyze her own actions for once. But Elaine was still on a roll. As Joan came into the clinic to start her shift, Elaine nearly barred her from going behind the reception desk as she sashayed in front of her.

‘"I know you, don't I," Elaine insisted.

Joan looked simultaneously amused and annoyed. "I don't think so."

"Yes, I'm sure of it. Where was it now..." She stopped and twirled some of Fifi's curls over her finger. "Of course! You worked at the Eternal Youth Spa in Glenburgh. One of those, what would I call you − a clay woman!"

"A clay woman?" Joan repeated, her short, squat body bouncing back in offense.

"You know what I mean," Elaine continued, exasperated. "You were one of the women who slathers that beautiful, slimy clay on clients."

"Yuck!" Geri observed. "Clay?!"

Elaine turned in Geri's direction. "Darling, one day you'll thank me for mentioning the skin benefits of that stuff. It's even better than a caviar face mask."

Now it was Shelley's turn to be repulsed. But she was already feeling queasy from the moment Glenburgh had been mentioned. It was the small city, forty-five minutes west of Fairfax, which had been home to the two armed robbers who had ended Ted's life.

Joan shrugged. "I've never even been to Glenburgh. And if I had, I certainly wouldn't be rubbing clay on people. I must just have a twin there or something," she added with a smile as she headed for the back room.

"Who
also
looks like a Russian peasant," Elaine sniffed once Joan was out of earshot.

Shelley laughed in an attempt to lighten her mood, but it wasn't a very convincing chuckle. It wasn't until her lunch break that she finally got in touch with Diana. One busy doctor and one equally busy veterinarian made for a lot of phone tag.

"Hi, Diana. How are the cats?"

"And here I thought you were calling because you wanted to say hi to your favorite sister."

Shelley laughed. "You're my
only
sister."

"True, but I'm still your favorite. Anyway, the cats are fine, though I think they miss you. Why don't you come by tonight to see them?

"What time will you be home?"

"Around six."

"I guess I'll swing by around then, since I have a lot to do tonight."

"Oh? And does any of it involve Matt?"

Shelley smiled at the mere mention of his name, but it also provoked a knot in her stomach. She also couldn't help but wonder how things would be progressing with Matt if she didn't have some crazed person in her life to worry about. It was hard to say whether her current crisis was bringing her closer to Matt, or taking away from her inner freedom to pursue a relationship with him at full throttle.

"Well?" Diana asked. "Does it?"

"Huh?"

Diana laughed. "Earth to Shelley …”

Shelley shook her head, hoping to dislodge some of the doubt that was also sapping her concentration. “Sorry about that – I’m back.”

"By the way, I talked to mom yesterday and it was pretty clear to me that she doesn't know anything about the problems you've been having in the past couple of weeks. I didn't say anything to her because I know you'd be upset, but aren't you going to tell her yourself about the threats?"

Shelley sighed. "I don't want to worry her."

"But mothers like to worry. Especially ours."

"I know – that's the problem. I will tell her, though."

"When?"

"When the person is caught and it's all over and done with."

"Shelley...”

"Now
you
sound like mom when you drag my name out like that."

"I'm just concerned, that's all. Who can you turn to if you can't turn to family?"

"Matt. And he's cuter, besides."

"Real nice. Okay, brat. I'll see you tonight."

"So," Geri said as Shelley returned to the break room to finish her lunch. "Did you make arrangements to stay with Diana?"

"I'm going over to see the cats after work so I'll probably, you know, talk to her then about staying over."

"So you're definitely staying there, then?"

Shelley shoved a forkful of lukewarm ziti into her mouth. "Mmm hmm."

"Good," Geri commented as she threw away her empty lunch bag. "Because as I'm sure you know, everyone here would be very upset to know you're alone at that house when more things keep happening."

Shelley forced a smile. "I know. And it's nice to know people care."

"We're just afraid of being understaffed if something happens to you," Geri deadpanned.

"I kind of figured it was something like that," Shelley teasingly grumbled back. Still, it was nice to know that others were truly looking out for her … especially since the only thing that seemed certain about her life these days was the
un
certainty of it all.

“Shelley, I’m going to ask Matt if I can borrow his handcuffs so I can force you to stay here until this person is caught,” Diana said later that day as Shelley described the earlier threat.  “Where is your overnight bag?”

“I didn’t pack anything yet,” Shelley admitted.  “Everything is happening so fast and I didn’t have a chance to grab anything before heading into work today.”

“Well, I know you just got here, but I want you to go home and get some stuff together and then head straight back here.  Unless, of course, you want to borrow my clothes.”

“Please, I have a style reputation to uphold,” she teased.

“Then go.  NOW.”

Shelley knew her sister was displaying her own version of tough love, and in fact she couldn’t blame her for being concerned.  A short while later she was back at her eerily silent house.  Glancing out the front picture window, she spotted a police car driving by slowly, no doubt on Sergeant Rinaldi’s orders. Her safety at least temporarily reassured by the police patrol, she decided to change out of her work clothes and take a hot shower before heading back to Diana’s house.

If only her worries could truly disperse in the water, she thought as she turned on the shower and waited for the water to heat up. She opened the bathroom window several inches to allow the cool, sweet-smelling night air to filter in. Crickets braving the approaching chill of autumn chirped away, their rhythmic melody like a soothing tonic. They comfortingly brought back memories of childhood and long, full summer days followed by restful nights, falling asleep to the hum of crickets outside an open bedroom window.

Shelley closed her eyes and breathed in the fresh air, memories of long ago wafting in the breeze.  What had happened to that little girl? Just as Diana had always been known as the serious, straight-laced sibling, everyone in the neighborhood had sized up Shelley as the free-spirited tomboy who still had the delicate, feminine looks that attracted all the boys – even if she
could
out-climb them on trees. And as she turned into a beautiful young woman with a love of outdoors and animals, she had developed an even greater league of admirers. But once she would start dating someone, it seemed that her independence that had initially attracted a potential partner became the quality that the same men tried to squelch. Until Ted, that was. He truly loved her for herself, and she had never felt more alive. They were an active couple, always biking or hiking or climbing this mountain or exploring that cave. But somehow, thought Shelley, that adventurous side of her seemed to have died with Ted.

What happened
to
me?
she again wondered almost numbly as she slowly took off her sweater and jeans. She finally had someone special in her life again, and what kind of impression had she made on him so far? Most likely that of a nearly humorless woman whose life was about tragedy. A woman who had lost her husband, spent weekends either working or alone, and whose greatest adventure these days was deciding whether to have her standby peanut butter and jelly sandwich on white or wheat. And yet, she thought, Matt still saw something in her. Perhaps he saw the woman she once was, the woman she could be again, especially with his positive influence. Still in thought, Shelley unhooked the front clip of her lacy black bra. Though her work wardrobe predominately consisted of casual separates, jeans and formfitting but simply designed shirts, beneath it all, she preferred to keep it sexy and feminine. Reaching down to slide off her French-cut black lace underpants, Shelley suddenly froze at the sound of a slight rustling outside the window. At first she did little more than turn into the direction of the noise, more out of curiosity than anything else. After all, the window looked out onto her back yard, which happened to be acres of woods and meadows, and all the critters that made this land their home. But then reality hit her for a moment. In the midst of all her deep thinking and the soothing sound of crickets, Shelley had almost forgotten that there was still a lunatic on the loose who had made her the target of a scare campaign. Relax, she insisted insincerely to herself as she peered out the window. It's just a raccoon or a possum
... with human eyes and a hat?!