Killer Deadline - Lauren Carr Page 0,3

it is slightly pathetic that your dog is more sociable than you are.”

“Elmo’s a party-animal. No one is more sociable than he is.”

As the words exited Nikki’s mouth, a loud high-pitched screech erupted from the game room.

Two hairless creatures, one red and the other gray, scurried up the stairs, down the hallway, and into the parlor. Both wore rhinestone collars to indicate that they were house pets.

The curious boxer dog was in pursuit. Unable to gain traction on the shiny hardwood floors, his giant paws slipped and slid under him. Nikki chased after him.

The cats jumped onto a loveseat and arched their backs. If they had hair, it would have been on end. They hissed at the dog. Nikki grabbed Elmo by the collar and lifted him so that his front paws were off the hardwood floor. “Elmo! Stop! They’re not armadillos! They’re cats!”

Kathleen gasped. “What would make him think they were armadillos?”

“Well…” Nikki flicked her eyes in the direction of the two hairless Sphinx cats. “Have you taken a good look at them?”

The two felines growled at Elmo, who peered at them with intense curiosity. He so wanted to take a closer look at these animals that resembled some he had seen in the desert.

“I never,” Nikki’s mother groused. She left the scene before it got too embarrassing.

“Elmo, these are the evil stepsisters I’d told you about,” Nikki said. “Meet Lucy and Ethel. The red one is Lucy. The gray one is her sidekick.”

His eyes wide, Elmo regarded the two creatures. He licked his stubby snout and looked back at her.

“I know they don’t look like it, but they’re cats.”

Elmo got his nose as close as he dared to take a sniff at Lucy, who swiped at him with her needle-like claws. With a snort and a shake of his head, he backed up.

“Didn’t I warn you? Don’t turn your back on them.”

Elmo decided to sit back on his haunches and study the curious creatures.

Trusting Elmo to not eat the feline family members, Nikki went back to the foyer to collect her overnight bag. Her stepfather had already discovered the bag and had it slung over his shoulder.

“Elmo told me that you were home.” Harrison Spaulding wasted no time taking Nikki into a hug. “How was your drive?”

“Long.”

A home building contractor, Harrison’s hands were rough. The long days of working outside had weathered his face to make him look much of his sixty-plus years, which contrasted with his hard muscular body. Kathleen had dressed him in a summer suit with an off-white shirt to go with her long ivory dress.

During their twenty years of marriage, Harrison had learned how to clean himself up for social events with his wife. Nikki had to admit that he cleaned up well. She had no doubt that his son had inherited his good looks from his father.

“Does Ryan know you’re here?” Harrison asked. “He’ll help you unload your SUV later.” He trotted up the staircase to her old room. “Go get a drink and relax.”

Stepping into the hallway from the dining room, Kathleen paused to watch her husband make his way up the stairs. A warm smile crossed her lips. Nikki could see that her mother’s love for Harrison had not diminished in the twenty years since they’d married.

Kathleen’s long off-white dress made Nikki aware of her casual ensemble of worn blue jeans, baggy shirt, and loafers. Some things never change.

Kathleen Bryant had the tall, slender figure of a fashion model. On the wrong side of fifty, she was an ageless beauty.

Nikki prayed that she had inherited her mother genes of beauty. Like her mother, Nikki had no problem keeping her weight on the slender side. She’d even inherited her mother’s blond hair and blue eyes.

What she had not inherited was her mother’s passion for fashion and shopping. Nikki’s older sister Julie loved nothing better than cruising the department stores with their mother to pick up bargains.

Nikki preferred to curl up in her comfy pants with the latest mystery novel. As an investigative journalist, she was often in front of the camera which made knowing the latest in fashion a necessary evil. She tackled clothes and cosmetics with the same enthusiasm that doctors addressed insurance companies.

As a child growing up in a century-and-a-half old bed-and-breakfast, Nikki had learned early the meaning of don’t touch! A regular stop on home and garden tours, the Bryant home had graced the pages of more than one local designer home magazine. Every piece of furniture and decoration