Seven Up - By Janet Evanovich Page 0,45

they think he might be involved in a murder."

"And he thinks I've got something that's his."

"Yeah." I watched Mooner as I drove, wondering if something was shaking loose in his head, wondering if a piece of important information would float to the surface.

"So what do you think?" Mooner said. "Do you think Samantha can do all that magic stuff if she doesn't twitch her nose?"

"No," I said. "I think she has to twitch her nose."

Mooner gave this serious consideration. "That's what I think, too."

IT WAS MONDAY morning, and I felt like I'd been run over by a truck. A scab had formed on my knee and my nose ached. I dragged myself out of bed and limped into the bathroom. Eck! I had two black eyes. One was considerably blacker than the other. I got into the shower and stood there for what might have been a couple hours. When I staggered out my nose felt better, but my eyes looked worse.

Mental note. Two hours in a hot shower not good in early stages of black eye.

I blasted my hair with the dryer and pulled it back into a ponytail. I dressed in my usual uniform of jeans and stretchy T-shirt and went out to the kitchen in search of breakfast. Ever since Valerie showed up, my mother had been too distracted to send me home with the traditional food bag, so there was no pineapple upside-down cake in my refrigerator. I poured a glass of orange juice and dropped a slice of bread in the toaster. It was quiet in my apartment. Peaceful. Nice. Too nice. Too peaceful. I stepped out of the kitchen and looked around. Everything seemed to be in order. Except for the rumpled quilt and pillow on the couch.

Oh shit! There was no Mooner. Damn, damn, damn.

I ran to the door. It was closed and locked. The security chain was hanging loose, not securing the door. I opened the door and looked out. No one in the hall. I looked out the living room window, down at the parking lot. No Mooner. No suspicious characters or cars. I called Mooner's house. No answer. I scribbled a note to Mooner that I'd be back and he should wait for me. He could wait in the hall or he could break into my apartment. Hell, everybody breaks into my apartment. I taped the note to my front door and took off.

First stop was Mooner's house. Two roommates. No Mooner. Second stop, Dougie's house. No luck there. I cruised by the social club, Eddie's house, and Ziggy's house. I went back to my apartment. No sign of Mooner.

I called Morelli. "He's gone," I said. "He was gone when I got up this morning."

"Is that bad?"

"Yes, it's bad."

"I'll keep my eyes open."

"There haven't been any, uh . . ."

"Bodies washed up on the shore? Bodies found in Dumpsters? Dismembered limbs stuffed into the overnight drop at the video store? No. It's been slow. None of those."

I hung up and called Ranger. "Help," I said.

"Heard you got trashed by some old lady last night," Ranger said. "We've got to get you some self-defense lessons, babe. Not good for the image to get trashed by an old lady."

"I have bigger problems than that. I was baby-sitting Mooner and he disappeared."

"Maybe he just split."

"Maybe he didn't."

"He driving a car?"

"His car's still in my lot."

Ranger let the silence lie there for a beat. "I'll ask around and get back to you."

I called my mother. "You haven't seen Mooner, have you?" I asked.

"What?" she yelled. "What did you say?"

I could hear Angie and Mary Alice running around in the background. They were screaming at each other and it sounded like they were banging on pots.

"What's going on?" I shouted into the phone.

"Your sister's gone off on a job interview, and the girls are having a parade."

"It sounds more like they're having World War Three. Has Mooner been around this morning?"

"No. I haven't seen him since last night. He's a little strange, isn't he? Are you sure he's not on drugs?"

I LEFT THE note to Mooner taped to my front door, and I drove down to the office. Connie and Lula were sitting at Connie's desk, watching the door to Vinnie's private lair.

Connie made a gesture for me to be quiet. "Joyce is in there with Vinnie," she whispered. "They've been at it for ten minutes now."

"You should have been here in the beginning when Vinnie was making sounds like a cow. Think Joyce must