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"Someone..., someone was just in my... in my house."
His heart kicked up into his throat. "I'll be right there." He slapped the phone closed. "It's your lucky day," he growled to the kid, already sprinting toward his police cruiser. "You can go."
He'd never heard Willow sound so scared before. She was one of those cool, collected women who didn't easily fly off the handle and freak out over minor problems. So hearing the tremor in her voice had his own insides locking down with fear. By the time he roared into her driveway, lights and sirens blaring, he was shaking like a leaf.
She opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch as he sprang from his cruiser.
"You're working," she said needlessly, blinking at his uniform before glancing at his police car. He wanted to snap. Yes, he was on duty, not that it mattered. He'd have come to her no matter what. She'd sounded too scared to just ignore.
"What happened?" he demanded already looking around the place and slipping into cop mode. Nothing seemed out of order. Willow shivered and crossed her arms over her chest. "I came home, and someone was in my kitchen."
He scowled. "Who?"
"I don't know who," she muttered. "That's why I called you. There was a complete stranger lurking in the dark inside my freaking kitchen. I came home and started back to see what I had in the fridge to eat and I saw some shadow of a guy."
"You didn't see his face?"
She shook her head. "He was in the dark. At first, I thought it was some family member. But when I called out, he turned and ran out the back door."
Raith's jaw knotted. "If you didn't see his face, how do you know it wasn't a family member?"
"Because," she growled irritably. "He was shorter than any male member of my family. He didn't have the right shape. And besides, why would someone I know lurk in the dark and then run off when he saw me?"
~ * ~
Willow felt like strangling the good deputy. He eyed her as if she was the suspect here. She felt like stomping her foot and yelling, "I'm not lying, damn it." But that would probably make her look like a total liar.
She didn't want to be defensive. She was too scared to think about defending herself. Besides, she hadn't called Butthead Malloy over so he could simply glare at her. She'd been in trouble, and he was the first person she'd sought for help. She wanted him to pull her into a reassuring hug and ask if she was okay. But if she held her breath waiting for his comfort, she would probably suffocate to death.
His jaw hardened as he glanced around the living room. "Where's your cop statue?"
She lifted her face. "What?"
He motioned toward the empty spot on her end table where the figurine had first appeared. "The little statue that appeared out of nowhere. Remember? You didn't know where it came from. Where'd it go?"
"I don't..." Shaking her head, she studied the bare surface of the
table and frowned. "Well, hmm. I don't know where it went."
"You didn't get rid of it?"
"No."
Raith muttered a curse. "Come on," he growled, taking her elbow and escorting her back toward the kitchen. "Tell me if anything back here's been moved or is missing."
"He didn't take anything," she started. "He was just here... in my house."
"You mean he didn't take anything except the statue," Raith corrected.
"I'm still convinced you bought me the stupid statue in the first place." She tugged her arm out of his grasp because it was distracting her too much. "So, you're probably the one who took it away."
"I didn't give you the damn statue," he muttered and stopped in the center of the kitchen once they reached it.
Willow halted, trying not to look at all the places she'd made love to him in this room. But, God, the only place left to stare was at the ceiling.
"How'd he get in?" Raith asked, prowling the floor and opening cabinets as if her intruder would jump out of one.
Willow sucked in a quick breath like a child who knew she was about to get a lecture. "How do you think he got in?"
