“You have to talk to Gobbles about it.”
“Is he staying with you?”
“No. He won’t tell me where he’s staying. He said if I don’t know anything then I don’t have to lie about anything. I was hoping we could set up another meeting.”
“Sure, but I need to bring someone with me. I’m not walking into a meeting with Gobbles alone.”
“I’ll tell him.”
I also wasn’t inviting Julie Ruley into my apartment. I watched her walk to the elevator, and then I let myself in and locked the door. I’d had a creepy, disturbing night, and I wasn’t feeling brave or especially trusting.
I went to my kitchen, tapped on Rex’s cage to say hello, and I burst into tears. I checked the calendar on the wall to see if that time of the month was coming up. Not nearly. Damn. I was a mess and I couldn’t even blame it on hormones. I made myself a peanut butter and banana sandwich and washed it down with a bottle of beer.
“Okay, this is better,” I said to Rex. “Maybe I was just hungry. And, anyway, a man was killed and someone should cry over that, right?”
I got my Smith & Wesson out of the cookie jar and set it out on the counter so I’d remember to buy bullets. I checked the door one more time to make sure it was locked. I went through my apartment and made sure there were no killers in the closets or under the bed. I had a second beer and I got into my jammies and crawled into bed with the lights still on. I woke up at three o’clock, and shut the lights off.
EIGHTEEN
I WAS DRESSED and in the kitchen when Ranger called.
“Are you up?” he asked.
“I’m up and making coffee.”
The lock tumbled and Ranger walked in. He didn’t have a key. Didn’t need one. He could pick a lock faster than it took me to insert a key. I was just happy he’d called before breaking in so he didn’t scare the crap out of me.
He was wearing the standard Rangeman uniform of black fatigues. If you didn’t look closely at the logo on the shirt and ball cap you might think he was part of a SWAT unit.
“I heard you had an interesting night,” Ranger said.
“There’s something bad going on at Kiltman. Mintner was on a rant to shut down the Zeta house, and he was shot and left for dead in their overgrown azalea bushes.”
“What’s the gun doing on the counter? It’s usually in the cookie jar.”
“I put it there so I’d remember to buy bullets.”
“Babe,” Ranger said.
I think he was amused.
I poured my coffee into a to-go mug, grabbed a frozen waffle, and rammed my feet into my big rubber boots. “I’m ready.”
“What about the gun?”
“Um, no bullets.”
“Take it.”
I dropped the gun into my messenger bag and followed Ranger to the parking lot. He was driving a black Ford Explorer that I knew was a Rangeman fleet car. He took Hamilton to Broad and stopped at the hardware store.
My first thought was that he was getting boots like mine, but it turned out the hardware store sold ammo. Who would have thought? He waited while I loaded my gun. He gave his head a slight shake when I dropped one of the rounds onto the floor, but didn’t say anything. He marched me out of the store and back into the car.
Conversation was minimal for the rest of the ride. Ranger was in the zone. He drove into Blatzo’s neighborhood and parked one house down. We got out and Ranger strapped on a gun belt and shrugged into a Kevlar vest. He gave me a vest and a similar gun belt.
I looked down at the big black Glock that was secured to my thigh with Velcro straps. “I feel like Annie Oakley.”
“The Glock is just for looks. Don’t try to use it. You have a place on the belt for your S&W. Use the gun you’re most comfortable with.”
I shoved the S&W into the gun belt and grimaced. I wasn’t comfortable with any gun.
Ranger stood hands on hips and looked at me. “I’m completely enamored with you, and I have no idea why.”
“I’m cute?”
“Babe, there has to be more, but honestly I don’t know what it is.”
“One of life’s great mysteries,” I said.
He pulled me hard against him and kissed me. Our tongues touched and I got a first-class rush.
“I hope that’s your gun I feel pressing into my stomach,” I said.
“My gun is on the side of my leg.”
“Oh boy.”
“You’re feeling my flashlight.”
“Sure,” I said. “I knew that. That was my second guess.”
He stepped away. “Watch for the snakes when we go to the door.”
“I’m prepared.”
He looked down at my boots. “Are those your snake boots?”