Chapter 47
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
Watching the three men roll around on the ground, Dana felt oddly cheered. So much of the last two days had been so boring that she welcomed this turn of events. This was much more interesting and dramatic than anything that had transpired up until now! It was almost like they were fighting over her.
Nolan, being somewhat taller and more nimble than his cousins, was holding his own quite well, but the mood was killed when one of the little hoodlums punched Nolan in the cheek and his head snapped back against the hard ground. Now his eyes were closed and he lay limp underneath his cousins. “Get off of him,” she commanded, and immediately they obeyed, scrambling to their feet.
“We weren’t trying to hurt him,” one of them said.
“Yeah,” his brother agreed. “Nolan just can’t let anything go.” He reached down and took the laptop out of Nolan’s hands.
Dana gave them both a withering glare, then crouched down next to Nolan and touched his cheek. “Nolan, wake up.” He stirred slightly, his eyelids fluttering. “Squeeze my hand if you can hear me.” She slipped her fingers into his palm, and he gently grasped them. “See if you can sit up.”
She heard a woman’s voice calling out through the trees, “Police! Freeze!” Looking up, Dana saw two uniformed officers, a woman and a man. The woman had her gun drawn, which seemed a bit of overkill to Dana, but whatever. “What’s going on here?” the woman said.
Dana stood up and brushed the front of her skirt. “I’m Dana Broderick, and you’re trespassing on my property. Maybe you should tell me what’s going on?” She’d always found that the best explanation was no explanation at all. Courtney had taught her that if you flipped the script, you heightened the tension. Worked every time.
“Why don’t you let me ask the questions,” the lady officer said. Clearly, she was locked into procedure and wasn’t going to budge. People were usually more accommodating when Dana spoke, but she could be adaptable under the right circumstances, and encountering a woman with a gun seemed like it fit the definition. The officer said, “We’ll start with names, and then you can tell me what you’re all doing here.”
What a humorless woman.
One of the twins chose to take off at that point, running down the service drive in a zigzag pattern, with the male officer taking off after him. His brother looked like he was going to join them, until he noticed the gun suddenly aimed right at him. “Don’t take another step,” the officer said. Behind her, Ian, Kristy, Brayden, and Courtney emerged from the woods. Courtney rushed over to give Dana a hug. “Oh, thank God you’re okay. I was so worried.”
“I thought I told you to wait.” The lady cop sounded peevish.
Brayden said, “We did wait.” Obviously not for long. “What’s with this guy?” He aimed a toe at Nolan, still on the ground, but now sitting up with a hand pressed against the back of his head.
Dana said, “A friend. Help him up, would you?” And then to Courtney, “Of course I’m okay. Why wouldn’t I be?” She stepped back from the embrace and noticed the cloth bag in Courtney’s hand. “What’s this?” She peered inside. “Oh good, you brought the money.” She reached in and handed one of the banded rolls of bills to Olive. “A little extra for your exceptional driving skills. You may go now.”
“No one is going anywhere until we figure out what’s going on here.” Again, the lady cop insisted on playing this her way. Oh, she was bossy and tiresome. Now her partner was returning with Nolan’s cousin in tow.
“It’s okay,” Olive whispered to Dana. “I wanted to stay and see what happens next.” She tucked the money into her bag.
Ian stepped forward. “It doesn’t look like any crime has been committed, Officer Johnson. Could we just call it a night?”
Officer Johnson sighed. “There will be no calling it a night. We’re all going in the house to figure this thing out.”
Charlie stepped out from the shadows. “Is it okay if I come too?”