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But it was the object lying in the center of the broken glass that held her horrified gaze.What on earth was it?
Taking care to block Mandy’s view, Jolie reached into her bag and withdrew her cell phone. “Take this. Go out to the sidewalk and call the deputy sheriff.Now.”
“But—”
“Now! Andstayout there.”
Mandy spun away and raced out the front door, leaving it wide open.
Jolie held her breath and listened intently, every cell of her body on alert. There was no sound of anyone in the clinic. Silence, save for the chatter of birds outside.
There wasn’t anyone here, but she wasn’t foolish enough to bet her life.
She quietly fished her keys out of her pocket, fingering them until she had one key protruding between her clenched fingers.
And then she backed through the waiting room and out the front door.
CHAPTER TWELVE
RAFE ARRIVED WITHOUTlights and sirens, thank goodness.
Passersby had slowed at seeing Jolie and Mandy on the sidewalk staring at the clinic, and a crowd was beginning to spill into the street.
When Irene arrived at nine o’clock, she might as well have issued invitations. Everyone, it seemed, knew Irene.
“Don’t say anything,” Jolie hissed, giving her a nudge.
Irene nodded, her gray curls bouncing emphatically. But her dramatic air was enough. Her hands clasped at her throat, her eyes wide—anyone might have thought there’d been a triple murder, at least.
And the rumors started to fly.
“What was it? Gunshots?”
“I heard it was a thief—came right in that back door and scared ’em both!”
“Nah—must have been drug addicts trying to find needles.”
“Drugs?Here?”
Jolie tried her best to calm everyone. “Look, folks, we only have a broken window. Vandals, nothing more. Mandy and I are just waiting out here so we don’t tamper with anything the deputy sheriff needs to check. There’s nothing to see here.”
Several of the storekeepers—Wayne from the hardware store, and Agnes from the drugstore—exchanged looks. And stayed right where they were as Rafe sauntered up the sidewalk.
“The doc is right,” he drawled, his casual stride conveying boredom. “Might’ve just been a bird that hit the glass.”
He stopped next to Jolie and lowered his voice. “I’ll make sure the building is secure, then you come on in. But make sure you don’t touch anything. Best if we have a little less excitement around here.”
He disappeared through the front door.
A hush fell over the gathering as the minutes ticked by. Three...four...five...
Two of the men in the crowd walked around the clinic and reported thattwowindows had been broken. That information more than doubled Jolie’s concern.
One broken window could be young kids playing a prank or maybe challenging one another to a dare. Two indicated a stronger intent. But by whom? She considered the possibilities.
There were strong feeling against her family in the community, certainly.
Many people had been angry at finding a Maxwell had taken over the medical practice. Someone had started rumors against her. There were the ongoing hang-up calls.
