offer to join us, I wouldnât be here almost alone with a belligerent boor. Oh please . Devilish Janet drowned out the whisper. Who saved whom last August, eh, girlie? That thought, too, was short-lived, because what mattered was not who did what, but that neither Tom nor I had been seriously hurt. But that was months earlier.
That line of thought led my mind to an article Iâd read not long before on how to survive a back-country encounter with a large predator. They meant, of course, a mountain lion or bear, but some of the moves would probably work on human bullies. The memory was interrupted when Charles took a loud couple of steps across the plank floor behind me. Jayâs hip was pressed into my back and his muscles were vibrating. I whispered âDownâ and he oozed to the floor, his body still touching mine.
âYouâll be sorry you ever got involved with that woman.â The manâs voice was pitched low, almost a snarl, and I fought the urge to stand and face him. In the silence, I recalled what I had read. Face the animal. Expand, the article advised. Grow large. Raise your arms. If you have a jacket, raise it over your head like batâs wings. Yell.
âYouâre trespassing and I intend to press charges. Police will be here soon. I have friends â¦â
Keep your wits about you. Donât run, whatever you do. Donât run.
Even if I had wanted to run, I didnât have time.
five
âSir, are you the homeowner?â The voice was one I knew. Jay knew it, too, and I felt him start to wriggle, although he stayed down as Iâd told him to.
âWho the hell are you now?â Charles asked, then, âWhatever youâre selling, get out!â
I turned in time to catch the look that flickered over Homer âHutchâ Hutchinsonâs face, and I smiled. Charles may have called the police, but luck seemed to be on my side. I had met Hutchinson before, when he and his then-partner, Jo Stevens, investigated some murders that were far too close for comfort. Weâd gotten off to a less-than inspiring start, but Jay had brought the man around and Iâd come to almost like him.
The studioâs lighting showed a flush spreading across Hutchinsonâs fair skin, but other than a quick flicker of jaw muscles, he kept his feelings to himself. He lifted his badge holder toward Charles and said, âHutchinson. We had a report of intruders. Woman at the house directed us back here.â Two uniformed officers with flash lights were in the yard, one of them checking the shrubbery near the house, the other apparently watching the studio from a few yards back.
âAbout time you got here,â said Charles.
Hutchinson pulled out a notebook and pen. âYour name, sir?â
âRasmussen. Charles Rasmussen.â He stepped to the side and turned toward me and the animals. âThere, you see? I want you to arrest them.â
Hutchinsonâs eyes went wide when he saw me kneeling by the chair. âJanet?â He looked at Jay, who lay watching Hutchinson with his nubby tail wriggling like a whirligig. âJay?â Hutchinson paused as if he expected one of us to explain, but we both just grinned at him. âWhatâs going on here?â
âLook for yourself,â I said, gesturing to the chair.
Hutchinson stepped up, and the question written in the lines of his face morphed into a full-out grin. âHow old are they?â
âBrand new,â I said. âAlberta went to get a carrier so we can move them.â
âOh, wow!â Hutchinson bent for a closer look, then straightened as Charles started to yell again.
âFor heavenâs sake! Do something about this. Theyâre trespassing and that, that,â he hesitated as if searching for the right word, then continued, âthat woman brought her vicious dog onto my property. I want them arrested.â
Janet demon made me smile, whispering That the