Page 56 of K-9 Prime Target

Moments later came a text from Raz. Pizza guy just left.

Nina texted Anders. Is anybody else at my front door?

All clear, he typed back. They’d have to be pretty far away to avoid your porch light. It’s a bright one.

Nina removed the security chain and eased open the door. She grabbed the pizza box, then slammed the door shut and locked it again.

Liam appeared in the hallway. “Was that the front door?”

She held up the pizza box. “Someone sent us a pizza.”

“Who?”

“I don’t know. But there’s a note.” She carried the pizza into the bathroom and set it on the counter, then peeled off the note and opened it. The message was scrawled in blue ink on the back of a pizza order form. Darling, I’m much smarter than you think. But don’t worry. We’ll be together soon.

Chapter Fifteen

“All I want to know is what happened to the pizza?” Chase asked when they gathered at ski patrol headquarters the next morning. Nina and Liam had waited an hour after the pizza delivery, then sent everyone home, though Anders had insisted on staying the night in his van. Nicholson had never shown.

Tuesday morning Liam and Nina had driven into town to meet with the team. She didn’t care what Doug said about it.

“While we were contacting all of y’all, the dogs grabbed the box and ate it,” Liam said.

“Pizza is Sky’s favorite,” Nina said. “Though she almost never gets it.”

“And then what happened?” Raz asked.

“After we sent everyone home, we called the sheriff,” Nina said. “A deputy took the note and said someone would talk to the pizza restaurant.”

“They’re still treating this like a harmless prank,” Liam said.

Nina put a hand to her side, feeling the stitches beneath her shirt. Definitely not harmless.

“I don’t understand how this guy knew we were there,” Renee said. “We were really careful.”

“He must have seen one of us,” Brian said. “It’s not like we’re trained in stealth. Maybe he saw our footprints in the snow, or heard us moving around.”

“The cops should check all the houses with views of your house,” Anders said. “He could be renting one of those.”

“We could pretend to be taking a survey and knock on doors,” Raz said.

“You’ve done enough for now,” Nina said. “Really. I appreciate it so much.”

“We’re still keeping an eye out for this guy,” Connor said. “And we’re here if you need help.”

“That means a lot,” she said.

“You know we always look out for each other,” Lily said. “You would do the same for us.”

“I would.” She blinked back tears and pulled herself together. “We’ll go now and let you get to work.”

“You’ll be back with us soon, I hope,” Renee said.

“I hope so, too,” she said.

Liam put his arm around her once they were outside, and she leaned into him. “Talking to your neighbors isn’t a bad idea,” he said. “Maybe one of them has seen something.”

“Maybe,” she said. “But I don’t want to involve my friends again. It was only after they left last night that I realized how easily one of them could have been hurt. I’d never forgive myself if that happened.”