Page 3

CHAPTER 3

THE TWO ARMED MEN huddled near us.

“What were you thinking?” the small one asked the tall one. “Are you a goddamn idiot?”

“I wasn’t thinking anything. I can’t concentrate with all this noise.”

“What are we supposed to do now? They’ve seen everything. They’ve seen our faces!”

“They’d already seen our faces, man. I think they’ve been out there for hours. Probably saw me leave for cigarettes. Saw you bringing up the birdseed.”

I forced a long, slow breath, tried not to think about the guns and the surprise and desperation that these two men were clearly feeling, or about how guns and surprise and desperation made terrible bedfellows. It was time to argue. I told myself this room was no different than the hundreds of courtrooms I had commanded in my life.

“Hey,” I called and pointed to L’Shondra. “We’re here about that one dog. Just give her back and we’ll clear out. There’s no need to make things worse than they already are, okay? You’ve already committed California Penal Code two forty-five A and two oh seven PC here tonight, guys. Assault with a deadly weapon and kidnapping. That’s twenty years. Don’t do anything that’s going to make it life for the sake of a few thousand bucks.”

The gunmen stared at me. I felt like I was getting through to the big guy, at least. He looked calm, ready to listen, his gun almost forgotten by his side. A tiny wave of relief rose in me. It crashed when the smaller man raised his weapon and shot his partner in the head.