Drawing her gun she started to take the standard two-handed aim, then thought better of it and used one hand to grab the dog’s collar so he wouldn’t bolt when she fired so close to him.
The first shot hit the reptile under the chin and threw it backward. Trembling, Sophie leaned over the table’s edge to make sure she’d killed it—and came face-to-face with its bigger brothers. More shots finished those. By this time, she sincerely hoped her neighbors had heard enough to call the police because she didn’t want to take her eyes off the snakes for a second.
Up until then, Phoenix had held his position pretty well, considering. Now, however, he rose slowly, hackles bristling, and stared past the side yard to the street beyond. Sophie recognized the dog’s attitude immediately. He was no longer concerned with chasing dangerous snakes. There was something else in his sights. Something he’d sensed was evil without even seeing it.
She swiveled, kneeling, looked in the same direction and brought the muzzle of her gun up, ready for self-defense.
A sudden thought stripped away her bravado. How many shots had she fired at the snakes? How many bullets were left? Did she have any? In the heat of the moment she’d failed to count and if she dropped the clip out now to look, she might not be able to replace it fast enough.
Only one thing was certain. There was at least one shell left in the chamber or the slide would have stayed back.
Was one shot going to be enough?
“You’d better get over here, Chief,” rookie officer Shane Weston said, once Ryder answered the phone. “And don’t bring Titus. I think we’ve killed all the snakes but we could have missed one or two.”
“That was what all the ruckus was about? There was enough radio traffic to have handled a small war. I could hardly make out a thing the way you were interrupting each other’s transmissions.”
“Sorry, sir. It was pretty hectic for a while. I’m surprised she managed to keep that dog safe.”
Ryder scowled. “Dog? What are you talking about? Was the call at the training center?”
“No,” Weston said. “I thought you knew. Sophie Williams had a backyard full of rattlers.”
“What? The dispatch was for the corner of Desert Valley and Second, so I didn’t realize they meant her house down the block.” His pulse jumped when he imagined the scene. “I might expect a bunch of snakes gathering like that in the spring but not now. How many were there?”
“Hard to say. We’re still counting. That’s why I called you.”
“Go on.” Ryder was losing patience. With Lily at home and no one to watch her, any action on his part was going to be delayed until he could drop his daughter back with his babysitter, Opal Mullins.
“There’s more. Sophie insists somebody else was here, sneaking up on her. I’m not convinced. The snakes had her cornered in the yard and she was pretty paranoid about it.”
Ryder clutched his phone so tightly his hand throbbed. “Is there a chance they may have been dumped there?”
“I suppose it’s possible,” Shane said. “Some lowlife sure has it in for our head trainer. Since the bullets missed her this morning, I did wonder if they tried to kill her with a batch of rattlers.”
“Kind of hard to plan ahead for an attack like that,” Ryder said. “Although I suppose they might have gathered them to release at the training center and changed their minds.”
“Terrific.” He snorted wryly. “Look, the worst of the danger is over and nobody was bitten. I just thought it would be good to get your input on this. You know how Harmon and Marlton can be when they’re trying to avoid paperwork.”
“Yeah. The sooner they retire the better,” Ryder replied. “I can’t believe Louise didn’t call me right away. Isn’t she covering the desk?”
“Not this late. So, should we hang around? Are you coming out?”
“Yes,” Ryder said. “I’ll have to drop Lily at the babysitter’s. Give me fifteen minutes, tops.”
“Copy,” the rookie officer said as he prepared to end the call. “Wear your boots.”
Ryder looked over at his drowsy, little blonde five-year-old and had to smile. He’d been reading her a bedtime story and she’d laid her head on the cushiony arm of the sofa when he’d stopped to answer the phone.
The sight of such a loving, beautiful child made his heart beat faster, yet constricted his gut as if he’d just taken a body blow. He’d failed to protect her mother. He was not going to fail Lily. The mere concept was abhorrent. This child was his life, his legacy, his and Melanie’s, and nobody was going to harm her. He’d die before he’d let that happen.
He gently rubbed Lily’s bare feet. “Wake up, honey. I have to go out. I’m taking you back to Miss Opal’s.”
“Uh-uh. It’s story time. You can’t go away again.”
Ryder felt guilty and compensated as best he could. “How about we go out for ice cream after I get back?”
That seemed to brighten the child’s mood although she was still making a face. “With sprinkles?”
“If that’s what you want,” Ryder promised. “Now put your shoes on while I get my boots. I need to hurry.”
Lily’s innocent blue eyes focused on him. “What happened, Daddy?”
“A lady found rattlesnakes in her yard.”
“Are you gonna shoot them?”
Ryder couldn’t tell whether the child was asking because she needed reassurance or because she felt sorry for the snakes. “I’m not sure about all of them. I imagine my officers had to shoot some.”
Sadly, she said, “Oh.”
“They had to protect the lady and her dog.”
“Dog? She had a dog?”
“Yes.”
“Like Titus?”
“Uh-huh. Kind of.”
Lily began to smile. “That’s different.” Sitting up, she rested her bare feet on the big yellow Labrador retriever lying against the front edge of the couch and wiggled her toes into his fur. His tail thumped but he didn’t rise. “I love Titus.”
“Me, too,” her father replied with a sigh. There was only one thing worse than having to retire a faithful canine partner and that was losing one in the line of duty. He knew it was time to give the old dog a rest, but he also knew that Titus would brood about being left behind. That was a given.
He reached down and patted the dog’s broad head. “No other dog will ever work as well as you do,” he said soothingly. “I don’t care who says otherwise.”
“Can Titus go with us?”
“Not this time, honey. You know Miss Opal’s cats don’t like to play with him.”
The scowl returned. Nevertheless, the child had her sandals on when Ryder returned wearing his boots.
He held out his hand. “Ready?”
“No.” Lily tossed her blond curls, dropped to her knees and hugged Titus’s furry neck, placed a kiss on the top of his nose, then jumped to her feet. “Okay. Now I am.”
The poignancy of the scene almost choked him up. So did the trusting way she grasped his fingers. Losing Melanie had nearly broken him—would