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"It is?"
"You didn't see it?"
"No, I was on the bus too, Henry. On the opposite side from the car." He knew what kind of car Savannah drove, but he refused to rob Henry of the pleasure of telling him.
"BMW, brand spanking new, too."
Ben's head whipped about to look at Henry. "A BMW, you say?"
"That's right. Who is she, the Queen of Sheba?" Henry chuckled.
"Said her name was Savannah Kingsley. Suppose to be Lucy's niece. Ever heard of her?"
"Nope, but she must have lots of money." Henry said rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "That Lucy ain't hurtin' for none. Lives in that big ole house all alone, ever since her husband died. I reckon she'll be tickled pink to have some company, way out there in the boondocks."
Ben felt a cold sliver run down his back. What if she stole it? After all, her story was a little shaky.
"Where is she?" Henry glanced around as though she might be hiding in some corner.
"Who?"
"The little gal that claims to be Lucy's niece?" Henry seemed impatient at learning this bit of news.
"She's at my place." Ben answered with reluctance. He waited for Henry to react to that news, but Henry acted as though it were common place.
"Oh, she's a friend, then?" Henry couldn't keep his curiosity to himself and Ben knew it would be all over town before sundown that he had a woman out at his place.
"Yeah, she's a friend," he said as he decided to play into Henry's hand.
"Well, bring her by when you get the chance, Ben." Henry seemed satisfied very quickly which was unusual for him. But Ben let it slide. Henry was harmless and there really wasn't anything to tell, Savannah Kingsley would be gone as soon as he verified her information.
He secretly pondered whether to check the plates and run a check on the car. It seemed downright underhanded, but he was the Sheriff and if anything was amiss he should know it. After a lot of deliberating, he decided he should run the check. It would be a while before he heard back, but he put it in his computer and would check at home later.
Pulling his keys from the drawer, he locked the small jailhouse and headed home, since his two deputies were over in Sweetwater taking tests.
Mrs. Johnson was busy hanging the wash out back, and Little Bit greeted him the moment he got out of the Jeep. Ben bent down and played with his dog for several minutes, then threw his ball and watched as Little Bit ran to catch it. He was nearly on the porch when the dog brought it dangling from his mouth. "Good boy," he smiled and scratched him behind the ears.
Savannah was nowhere to be found.
That is until he heard a loud shrieking sound. Always on the alert, Ben wasted no time in following the sound. He rounded the house just in time to see Savannah flailing her arms in the air wildly.
"Oh no...Oh my God!" she shrieked even louder, hopping about as though the devil himself were after her. The expensive camera equipment fell to the dust and she groaned. Ben couldn't begin to imagine what was going on at first, until he heard the sound of bees.
Without hesitating, he hauled her up and into his arms and into the house. She was light as a feather, but not at all happy to be manhandled.
"What are you doing?" she protested hotly as he set her down in the kitchen.
"Getting you out of another scrape, it would seem," Ben replied holding her arm and examining it closely. "You've been stung."
"I know that, why do you think I was hollering, Sheriff," she nearly yelled at him and jerked her arm free. "I'll be alright in a few minutes."
Ben shook his head, and began looking at her from head to toe. "Are you allergic to insect bites, too?"
Savannah shrugged. "I don't know, I've never been stung before."
He nodded as though he knew another catastrophe had befallen her. "Well, I hate to be the one to tell you, but you're breaking out in welts all over your face and arms. We'd better call Dr. Peters."
Savannah examined herself in the hall mirror and moaned aloud, "Oh no, not this ..."
