“Tonight.”
“I’m going to have to beg out of working at the club.”
“Migraines always worked for me.”
“You were undercover?”
“I was once young, like you.”
“Not sure thirty-three counts as young.”
“It is when you’re fifty-four.”
A car pulled in and two children and a man exited the vehicle. The little girls’ laughter snagged Providence’s attention and her heart clenched. The kids bolted past, big smiles filling their small faces. “Slow down, you two,” the man called after them.
Time for Providence to move on. She tossed Patricia a nod. “I’ll be in touch.”
“Good luck.”
Providence returned to her car and locked the name tag in her glove box. As she drove out of the park, she wondered how she was going to beg out of work while she sleuthed around at the realtor event.
Though she was ready to go home and crash, she’d been invited to her parents’ house for breakfast. Her mom had mentioned she was excited for Providence and her sister to see “the big surprise”.
As she jumped on the beltway, her phone rang. Providence glanced at the nav screen before hitting the speaker button. “Hey. Need a ride?”
“How’d you know?” asked her sister, Megan.
“I’m a genius.”
Megan laughed. “Where are you?”
“On the way. Be there in twenty.”
“Thanks.” The line went dead.
Megan Sharpe was younger by eighteen months. She was a structural engineer, a whiz with numbers, and a volunteer puppy raiser for a national organization that trained guide dogs for the blind.
As Providence drove toward her sister’s, her thoughts drifted back to Dakota. A cold-blooded killer? That seemed extreme, but not inconceivable. In her line of work, anything was possible. And Patricia Stearns had a rock-solid reputation. She wouldn’t have asked for undercover if she didn’t need eyes on her suspect.
She pulled into her sister’s driveway and hopped out. As she made her way up the walkway, the front door opened and Megan exited the house, her four-legged companion by her side. Beacon was wearing his guide dog body suit.
“Where’s Leigh?” Providence asked.
“She had to work today,” Megan replied. “The pharmacy was short-staffed, so she went in.”
After situating the dog in the back seat, Megan jumped in as Providence got behind the wheel.
“So, what do you think the surprise is?” Providence asked.
“I assumed it was a puppy, so I asked, since I bring Beacon wherever I go.”
“And?” Providence headed out of the neighborhood.
“No animals, but that’s all Mom would say. Did you ask?”
“No,” Providence replied. “I’m guessing they might be putting the house on the market and downsizing.”
“There’s no way that house is anywhere near ready for showing,” Megan said. “The garage is stuffed with everything Dad won’t get rid of. If I ever owned a home with a garage, I would park my car in it.”
