Strange Medicine (Dr. Maxwell Thornton Murder Mysteries #1)(39)

“No way. We have a strict twenty-one and over–only policy.”

“Good. Send me the info you have ASAP.”

“I’ll email it to you right now.” He hung up.

I leaned against the side of my car and called the local cable company to make sure the space had internet. They informed me there was internet at that address and the account was under the same John Smith alias. The account holder had paid them in advance with a prepaid credit card. I had them keep the service going, hoping if I watched the spot enough I’d eventually catch this Bandito57 in the act. Odds were he had no idea I was onto him yet.

I was beat and decided it was time to go home and spend some quality time with Grumpy. Sometimes I felt guilty about owning a dog since I worked such long hours. But I loved having his company, and he’d really warmed up to me. I had a local girl, Tomasina, check on him daily halfway through the day so he wasn’t alone all the time. She’d take him for walks and play with him. She wouldn’t even let me pay her because she liked doing it so much. But occasionally I’d buy her gift cards and things like that to show her how I appreciated her help.

When I opened the door, Grumpy came trotting to me, wagging his tail so fast he could have flown around the room if he wasn’t so chubby.

“Hey, fella.” I sat on the floor, just inside the entrance, as he jumped up and licked my face. “Awww, did you miss me, little guy?” He continued to leap up frantically, whining and giving me kisses.

After a few minutes of cuddles, I got up and went into the kitchen to fix us both dinner. I gave Grumpy a scoop of puppy chow. Feeling tired, I settled on just opening a can of soup for myself. It made me think of Maxwell as I popped open the can and poured it into a pot. I wondered what he was up to this evening. A part of me wanted to call him and see how he was doing, but I didn’t feel comfortable enough with him yet to just do the whole call up out of the blue thing. It was odd how I could have sex with him but be too shy to just call and talk.

I sat at the kitchen table with my bowl of soup, and I ate slowly as I watched Grumpy play with an old boot I’d given him to chew on. I jumped when my cell buzzed on the table.

“Hello?” I spoke into the phone.

“Sheriff, sorry to bother you when I know you probably just got home.” Carl’s voice came over the line. “I have a bit of a problem. We got a call, but I can’t leave the station unattended. Sam’s at his daughter’s school play tonight, and Dusty is out on another call with a stranded motorist.”

“It’s okay. What’s up?” I took the last spoonful of my soup as I finished speaking.

“There’s been another disturbance over at Dr. Thornton’s house.”

I stood up quickly, scraping my chair back and startling Grumpy. Once I’d finished swallowing, I asked, “Is he okay?”

“You mean the doc? Yeah, he’s the one who called it in.”

“What happened?”

“He said someone trashed his kitchen.”

I grabbed my keys off the hook near the door. “I’ll head over there now.” I glanced down at Grumpy, who stared up at me curiously. I decided to just take him with me since I couldn’t bear the guilt of leaving him so soon after getting home. I scooped him into my arms and locked the door behind me. Then I climbed in my car and drove off like a maniac toward Maxwell’s house.





Chapter Eleven


Maxwell

I was beginning to think the Rainy Dale Police Department might start ducking my calls. Had anyone ever called them three times in a month before? I sat on the porch because I felt too rattled to stay inside.

When Royce came tearing up the road, a sense of calm descended. He always made me feel a little better just by being around. He strode up the path, his expression grim. The fact that he was carrying his puppy made everything seem a little surreal.

“Hey, Sheriff.”

“What happened? I don’t have any details.”

I stood and glanced toward the inside of the house. I’d left the front door open when I’d hurried out. “I went into town after my last patient to have a meal and pick up a few groceries. When I got back—” I grimaced. “Maybe it’s better if I just show you.” I headed into the house, and he followed. I went straight into the kitchen and pointed to the giant cavern in the wall farthest from the back door. The drywall and plaster were gone, and the wooden beams were exposed.

“What the hell?” Royce moved closer and peered at the three-foot chunk of wall missing. “What happened?”

I pointed to a sledgehammer that lay on the floor near the door. “I walked in and caught some masked guy going at the wall like a maniac.” I swallowed hard. “I couldn’t believe my eyes.”

“Jesus.”

“Yeah. It was disconcerting to say the least.”

“I’ll bet.” He surprised me when he moved to squeeze my shoulder. “You’re lucky he didn’t come at you with the sledgehammer.”

“He tried.” The feel of his firm fingers on my shoulder made my stomach warm. “He swung the hammer at me and missed, then he booked it out the back, dropping the tool. Maybe it was too heavy to run with.” I raked a hand through my hair. “Good thing I have quick reflexes, or I’d have a crushed skull.”