Chapter 10
“Darn it!” Ann hissed, rushing out the door. She was in a foul mood, irritated by a lack of sleep and not getting to the grocery store today. She’d spent too much time trying to get some sleep, while dreaming about Tazim, and hadn’t gotten anything done today!
“Ms. Fuller!” a female voice called out.
Ann hitched the strap of her purse higher onto her shoulder and watched the professionally beautiful woman walk up her driveway in heels that seemed out of place in this blue collar, suburban neighborhood.
“Yes?” Ann replied, trying to be polite in case this was a new neighbor. Although…she looked vaguely familiar. Unfortunately, Ann was too frazzled to place her face.
“I’m Cindy Liptiz, reporting for Channel Four news,” the woman explained. “I was hoping to ask you a few questions. Do you mind?”
A reporter? This was a new twist on an obnoxiously unproductive day.
Ann had no idea why this reporter was here. She glanced at her watch, trying to gauge if she had enough time to run to the grocery store before she needed to pick up Archer . Her cell phone warned her that she didn’t have much time to spare.
Glancing at the glamorous woman in designer clothes and three thousand dollar shoes, Ann felt painfully self-conscious in her faded jeans and raggedy tee-shirt. Still, she didn’t want to be rude. Ann dug deep to find her professional smile. The one she used when club members became belligerent. “What kinds of questions?”
Ann watched the woman transition from eager to confident in mere seconds. Who was this woman? And why was she here?
Oh, right! She was on the news! Duh! The woman had just said that she was a reporter. Now Ann recognized her. Cindy Lipitz! She was also the sister of Kentucky’s governor, and was running against him.
The woman’s eyes sharpened and she stepped closer. “A confidential source told me that you spoke to the woman who alerted the law enforcement authorities to what was happening in Todras. Is that true?”
Ann was startled by the question. Sure, she’d seen the headlines in the news about the mess happening down in that small town one state over in Kentucky. But how had Cindy discovered that she, Tara, and Kaia had spoken to the desperate woman coming out of the barn? The poor woman had been beaten and bloodied by the bastard, Ethan Howell. Because of how badly beaten that woman had been, Ann hadn’t been able to stomach reading the news articles about the investigation. Information was slowly coming out that some putrid excuse for a human being had built up a cult in some rural area of Kentucky. But that town was over six hundred miles from here.
Ann was too startled to reply at first. But she pulled herself together quickly. “I’m sorry, Ms. Liptiz, but the police asked me not to speak to anyone until they’d finished their investigations.”
The woman’s features fell for a fraction of a second, but she rallied quickly. “Surely you can tell our viewers what you saw. That’s not against the law.”
Ann saw the calculating glint in this woman’s eye and was instantly on her guard. She recognized that kind of avarice. Ann saw that look in the club members’ eyes every time they ordered her to get them another drink.
Plus, Ann didn’t agree with this woman’s politics. Ann wasn’t a fan of the woman’s brother either. The current governor seemed pretty fake, and this woman felt…sketchy.
“Sorry, but I can’t speak to anyone until the police–”
She was in the midst of turning away, with the intention of getting into her car and driving away. However, her momentum was abruptly halted by a loud snap. Following the initial noise, Ann felt a sharp sting on her chest. The situation remained incomprehensible until she heard a second noise. No, that wasn't accurate. It wasn't until she observed Cindy jerk slightly and noticed the red line marking her silk blouse that Ann grasped what was happening.
That’s when the truth hit her—someone was shooting at them! The concept seemed surreal, something reserved for movies. Despite her brain processing the danger, it still took Ann precious seconds to react. She instinctively dove behind her car while the reporter screamed as if she'd been shot, and the red line on her shoulder confirmed the reality of the situation. A bullet had indeed grazed her shoulder. Ann wasn't exactly sure how she knew the bullet hadn't penetrated the reporter's body, but she suspected that the thin line of blood indicated the bullet had merely skimmed her arm instead of embedding itself into the reporter’s flesh.
Taking cover behind her car, Ann hastily dropped her purse to the ground and reached out to pull the terrified, still-screaming reporter to safety, then covered the other woman’s body with her own. Surveying the surroundings, Ann strained to identify the source of the gunfire.
Silence.
That’s when she realized that she needed help! Ann grabbed her purse and pulled out her cell phone. With shaking fingers, she dialed nine-one-one. “What is your emergency?” the bored voice demanded.
Ann was stumped for a moment, still looking around. “Someone is shooting at us!” she hissed, not wanting to raise her voice.
Immediately, the person’s voice shifted from bored to alert. “Where are you located?”
Ann gave her address, starting to feel dizzy but trying to remain focused. It took her several moments of blinking to clear her vision. “And someone’s been shot,” she said, trying to tune out the screeching of the reporter who was literally clinging to Ann’s other arm. “She’s been shot in the arm, but I don’t...” Ann shook her head, feeling weak. “I don’t think the…!”
“Ma’am? Is someone still shooting?”
Ann blinked again, but it didn’t clear her vision. “No,” she whispered. “I don’t hear any more shots. But…she’s…hurt!”
And then nothing. Ann didn’t hear the woman beside her screaming. She didn’t hear the sirens as the police approached. She didn’t hear the paramedics as they loaded her onto the ambulance or the doctors who rushed her into surgery to remove the bullet from the right side of her chest.
Her only thought before she lost consciousness was that she was going to be late picking up Archer.