his stride until he was almost running as he moved toward his car. “This is Sheriff Lawson, Hanover County, North Carolina. North Carolina ID NC7548—”
The rest was cut off as he slammed the door of the cruiser and spun the car around in the narrow parking lot. He sped down the driveway, leaving a plume of dust and gravel in his wake, and all Maude could do was watch.
~*~
SEVENTEEN
Eight minutes before the shooting
Jeremiah Allen Berman once again admired the wonder of this fine new century into which he had been released: the ease with which people moved to and fro, the determination that allowed them to focus only on themselves and not on what was going on around them. He’d been born for this time. He had.
It had taken him less than an hour to get to the park. No one had stopped him. Why should they? At first he’d worried about how he would transport an assault rifle across an open parking lot and into a pavilion crowded with people, but it turned out to be amazingly simple. This was a dog show. People were carrying all kinds of crazy things—pop-up tents, oversized coolers, foldaway dog houses with air-conditioned fans, roll-up mats, and collapsible canvas chairs. He walked to a vendor’s booth, spent twenty dollars on what looked like a yoga mat printed with dog paws, went back to his car, and concealed his weapon inside. The yoga mat had a shoulder strap. No one looked at him twice as he climbed to the very top of the bleachers and settled the mat between his feet, waiting for a certain woman with a brown ponytail in a golden retriever sweatshirt to arrive.
Last night it’d been dark. The mistake was easy to make. But he had over a dozen pictures of her now, scrolling over and over on the wallpaper of his phone. He knew his target. And by now he was just mad enough to enjoy a little collateral damage.
He was calm; he was ready. He didn’t break a sweat as he saw her cross into the shadow of the pavilion with the yellow dog. A man was walking toward her. Not a problem. Collateral damage. He began to unwrap his weapon from the paw print mat. No one even glanced his way. His hand where the dog had bitten him hurt like a son of a bitch, and his trigger finger was swollen to twice its normal size. That only made him madder. He hoped he’d be able to pick off a few black and white dogs while he was at it.
He slipped down behind the bleacher seat in sniper position. He lifted the rifle, sited his target, and waited for his shot.
* * *
I reached automatically into my pocket for my phone and remembered too late it was tucked inside my day bag, which was secured inside Cisco’s crate, because that was what I always did with my valuables at a trial. The big-shouldered man kept coming toward me, mouth grim, eyes cold. My hand tightened on the leash and I glanced around a little frantically, but where could I go and what would I do when I got there? There were people everywhere, setting up the course, watching from the stands, gathering in groups outside the ring. Surely I was safer here in front of all these witnesses than anywhere else, and besides, what could he possibly do to me? Then I remembered Neil’s knee and one swing of a lead pipe from those powerful arms, and I took an involuntary step backward.
He was upon me.
“Raine Stockton?” he said.
He reached inside his jacket and I drew a breath to scream, but suddenly Cisco gave a happy bark and lunged forward to the end of the leash, sending me stumbling after him. At first I thought my brave dog was protecting me, but then I saw Sarah and Brinkley cross the pavilion toward the practice jump, and Cisco’s gaze was rapt upon them. I burst out, “Damn it, Cisco!” and then I realized the man hadn’t pulled out a gun, but an ID wallet.
He said, “I’m Special Agent Seth Ledbetter, with the State Bureau of Investigation. I wonder if I could talk to you for a minute.”
I stared at him. More importantly, I stared at the badge and the photograph ID inside the wallet. I’d seen enough law enforcement badges to know this one was authentic. Nonetheless, I said, “No, you’re not. You were with Marcie yesterday