Fearless Fourteen - Janet Evanovich [33]
“Yes, but it was a lot of pills on that occasion.”
Lula stood hands on hips. “You don’t need no pills,” she said. “You’re a professional. Get a grip on yourself.”
“You don’t know what it’s like,” Brenda said. “I had a chili dog for dinner. Suppose I fart?”
“You’re in Trenton. No one would notice a fart,” Lula said.
_______
AFTER THE CONCERT, we immediately hustled Brenda off the stage, through the maze of corridors, out the door to the secure lot.
“I was hot,” Brenda said. “I remembered all the words to the songs. And I didn’t knock any of the dancers down.”
“You were great,” Nancy said. “The concert was fabulous.”
We wedged Brenda into the SUV’s backseat between Ranger and me. Nancy and Lula were behind us. We rolled out of the lot with a police escort. We didn’t need the police, but the concert promoter wanted the flashing lights.
“So what about it?” Brenda asked Ranger.
“No,” Ranger said.
“I swear, you aren’t any fun at all. What’s the deal with you? I know you aren’t gay. You aren’t nice enough to be gay.”
The caravan pulled up to the front entrance of the hotel and photographers rushed out to take pictures. Local television was inside, plus a handful of journalists. And scattered in the mix were random fans and special-interest protestors hoping to get a spot on the evening news. Ranger got out first, then Brenda, and then the rest of us. Brenda posed for photos and made her way through the big glass doors into the lobby. The local anchor was waiting for an interview. Brenda stepped up to the anchor, and the circle of fans and photographers closed in.
“We need space,” the anchor said.
“I’m on it,” Lula told her. “You people better back up, or I’m gonna sit on you. Oops, did I step on your foot with my high heels? ’Scuse me. Sorry I got you with my elbow. Coming back. Beep, beep, beep. I got a gun . . . you better listen to me.”
“Do you really have a gun?” the anchor asked.
“Sure I got a gun. What kind of half-assed security would I be without a gun? ’Course, I’m just moonlighting here for a friend. Stephanie and me are mostly bounty hunters. And I sing with a band. You might want to have me on your show sometime. I got moves.” Lula snapped her fingers and stuck out a hip. “Woo!” she said.
Ranger had me by the back of my jacket. “Get her out of here before she tells them she works for me. I’ll get Hal to help me with Brenda.”
I PARKED IN front of Morelli’s house, and Morelli pulled in behind me.
“That was great,” Zook said. “Everyone at school’s gonna be way jealous. And Joe used the Kojak light to get us through traffic.”
Morelli opened the front door, and Bob bounced out at us. He ran to a patch of wilted grass, tinkled, and ran back inside the house.
I followed Bob through the house to the kitchen. I gave Bob a dog biscuit, and I looked in the freezer for ice cream. Hooray! A new tub of chocolate.
Morelli and I sat at the little kitchen table and ate our ice cream. Zook took his into the living room and went online.
“Do you think he should be online at this hour?” I asked Morelli. “It’s a school night.”
“When I was his age, I was stealing cars at this time of the night, and you were sneaking out your parents’ bathroom window.”
“Yeah, but we’re on the other side now. We’re supposed to be smarter than Zook.”
“I just spent half a day with him, and I’m not sure I’m smarter. And I’m not sure I feel comfortable being on the other side. It’s like I fast-forwarded my life by fifteen years.”
“He’s not here,” Zook said from the living room.
“Who?” I asked.
“The griefer. Moondog. He’s always here, but now he’s not.”
“Maybe you and Grandma scared him off.”
The doorbell rang, and Morelli and I did raised eyebrows. It was late for someone to be visiting.
Morelli went to the door, and I trailed behind. With the way things were going, it could be Dom or Loretta or a cop with bad news.
Morelli opened the door, and we both gaped at the guy on the porch. He was my age and just under six feet tall, with shoulder-length, light brown