Dead Hunt by Linda Lovely

Author:Linda Lovely
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Upstate South Carolina, romantic suspense, strong women, university terrorism, FBI
Publisher: Windtree Press
Published: 2016-05-06T00:00:00+00:00

Forty-One

It was still dark when Riley let herself into her mother’s condo. Inside she paused, weighing what would be more likely to trigger a heart attack—a yoo-hoo that roused her mom from sleep or the aroma of perking coffee. Either would tell the seventy-two-year-old she wasn’t home alone.

Craving caffeine, she gave the edge to Maxwell House and tiptoed to the kitchen. Lucy proved less considerate, meowing a cranky protest at being jailed again.

Before liberating the feline, Riley closed the kitchen door to keep Lucy semi-confined. The last thing her mom needed was a twenty-pound cat pouncing on her fragile chest. As she released Lucy, Riley stroked her broad ebony back in apology. After she set down dishes of water and kibble, she drew back lace curtains covering the jalousied windows above the spotless sink. Dawn sent tender shoots of yellow into the eggplant sky.

She started the coffeemaker and settled at the kitchen table. Riley glanced at the oven clock: 6:05. Unbelievable. Her emotional roller coaster made it seem as if the world had spun on its axis a dozen times since she made love with Wolf.

She braced her elbows on the polished oak table and dropped her weary head into her hands. Her optimistic dad raised her to look for positives. Were there any? A couple. The officers had shooed the media ghouls away, though only after they captured embarrassing footage. Phil also relented about arresting Wolf for illegally discharging a firearm. But his comment—“Riley, if you vouch for him, I’ll let it slide.”—didn’t exactly improve Wolf’s mood.

Once the deputies left, Wolf grew quiet, unresponsive. It was clear he believed racist bias colored the deputies’ actions? She had a different take. While the effigy outraged her, Wolf had shown bad judgment, firing a gun in the suburbs. What if his bullet had ricocheted and injured a neighbor peeking out a second-story window?

She tried to persuade Wolf the deputies would put real effort into running down the vandals. They promised to treat the mock hanging as a hate crime, and Phil put out a BOLO.

Problem was neither Wolf nor Riley could give the officers a worthwhile description. No license plate. No year or make of vehicle. Not even car color. The men wore hoods—orange rather than Klan white. While Riley felt certain they belonged to Onward—orange appeared to be a gang color—she had no proof. She couldn’t even swear the thugs were Caucasian.

She kept asking why. Why target Wolf? Because he spotted Smitty? If so, they’d exacted retribution very quickly. The timetable and organization seemed improbable.

Phil asked Wolf to guess why he’d been targeted. His answer: “You mean like me being both Injun and Spic—two of your redneck’s favorite targets?”

The atmosphere descended further into the crapper when Phil asked if someone might have a problem with Wolf’s and Riley’s relationship—“given how some folks feel about race mixing.” For a moment, Riley wondered if her lover might deck the peace officer.

But, dammit, the question had merit. Could whoever trashed her bedroom have

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