Her Kind Of Hero. Carol Steward

left the room, seemingly aware that Luke needed time alone. The man knew him too well.

      Luke rubbed his rough jaw. This anonymous caller case was getting to him. Of that, there was no doubt. After several minutes, he decided there wasn’t much he could do besides turn it over to a higher power, one with more insight than his.

      Tom passed by the desk for the fourth time in ten minutes.

      “Would you stop pacing. My ankle hurts just watching you. What is it?”

      “You okay?”

      The bite of anger subsided. “I’ll be fine. Just checking in with the Boss.” Luke pointed up.

      Tom nodded. “We’re going to need it. Captain was just telling me Tiger came to the jail to visit Marlow yesterday. The guard says it looked like there was plenty of tension between them. Money must be getting tight.”

      Luke understood Tom’s silent implication. It was time for the Eastsiders “to put in some work.” They were bound to be getting edgy. Luke twirled his pencil, “walking” it from one finger to the next, then back again. “You said it yourself—there’s nothing we can do besides wait for her to call.”

      Tom sat down and leaned back, folding his hands behind his head. “She’s digging herself in deep, Luke. If we’re looking for her, you can bet they’re even closer to finding her.”

      Friday night Jon and Nate finished supper and went to Nate’s bedroom. Nate’s little brother ran into the room, screeching about not getting to watch his favorite show. The eight-year-old wouldn’t be quiet.

      “Mom! Tell James to leave us alone.”

      “I sent him to his room. He won’t leave your sister alone, and I can’t take any more of their fighting.”

      “And what’re we supposed to do?” Nate argued with his mother as if she had the power to mend all of their problems. Jon felt sorry for her, but he couldn’t tell Nate that. As far as his friend was concerned, he was the only one hurting. Nate felt like no one understood. Jon was trying.

      “We’re going to Jon’s.”

      Jon didn’t argue, though he knew he should have. His dad had gone ahead to the hockey game with Tom and they wouldn’t be home for hours. He knew his dad didn’t like him having friends over when he wasn’t home. It wasn’t that his dad didn’t trust him, but he knew other kids sometimes didn’t think before doing stupid things. For a dad, his was okay.

      “C’mon, Jon. Let’s get outta here.”

      Nate led the way down the stairs and out the front door of the building.

      “Where are you going?”

      “Out. I’m sick of this place.”

      “Let’s just go to my apartment like you told your mom, Nate. What if she comes looking for you?”

      “She never checks up on me—she’s too tired to think of it. You coming or not?” Nate’s language turned foul more often these days, and nothing anyone did was worthy of his attention. Jon didn’t know what to do to help. But he had to try.

      They headed down the street, meeting a couple of kids Jon recognized from school. From the way Nate greeted them, Jon realized this wasn’t the first time his friend had escaped to the streets.

      He looked around uncomfortably.

      “Daddy on duty tonight, Northrup?”

      He shook his head. That didn’t matter. Everyone in the precinct knew him.

      “Come on, Nate, let’s split.”

      “In a minute.”

      Nate continued to talk with the group, which had doubled in size since they arrived. The gang headed down an alley. Jon lagged behind, unsure what was going on, but he knew he didn’t want to be here.

      They walked to a park, meeting up with a couple of older guys. After a few minutes, Jon got up the courage to tell Nate he was going home.

      “You can’t Your dad’ll ask questions, and if you go to my house, my mom’ll get all uptight”

      He pulled Nate away from the gang. “This is stupid, Nate. Let’s go to my apartment. We can play video games, order a pizza, whatever.”

      “Time for business.” The guy they called “Tiger” looked at them. “You in or out?”

      Jon watched as everyone looked at him, expecting him to chicken out Daring him. He’d heard what happened when they suspected a snitch. If he ditched out now, he’d be in deep trouble. And if his dad found out, it would be even worse.

       Chapter Five

      Calli picked up her paycheck and rushed past the checkout lanes. She tucked the paper and two videos into her backpack, waving to her boss on the way out.

      Ten minutes behind schedule already, she parked the rental car and ran into the recreation center. Hanna met her in the lobby and they rushed to the women’s locker room where Calli changed into her sweats and a T-shirt.

      “It’s a class of women.” Calli said, watching Hanna brush her hair then freshen her makeup. “We’re practicing self-defense, Hanna,” she said with a laugh. “There’s no need to primp.”

      Her fair-haired cousin was an easy target for muggers. Precise schedule, expensive car, drop-dead attractive. Over the years, Calli had tried telling Hanna to vary her routine, as well as other safety precautions. It wasn’t until a woman had been attacked a block from Hanna’s office that she’d been persuaded to pay attention to Calli’s advice.

      “I don’t know, Bart’s kinda cute.”

      “And kinda married.” Calli laughed. “Not your type.”

      Hanna tossed the brush down. “I didn’t see a wedding ring.” Then as if there’d been no interest at all, she changed the subject. “Do we have to do anything ‘real’ tonight? Like flips or anything?”

      “Probably a few moves. You’ll do fine. Let’s go.”

      Hanna pulled her hair into a ponytail at the top of her head and they rushed out the door. “Easy for you to say. You’ve been tossing men over your shoulder since you were a kid.”

      “I was merely defending myself. If you had brothers you’d know how to take care of yourself, too.” Calli had carefully locked those memories away, and yet with that innocent reminder, they returned. Calli would never forget the first time she successfully flipped her older brother. Her dad took her for an ice-cream cone right before dinner, ignoring her mother’s protests. To this day, Calli never figured out why her mom had been protesting; had it been the nature of the celebration, or the fact that the ice cream would ruin her dinner?

      “Did you know that your dad tried to convince my mother to let him teach me self-defense once?” Hanna acted as if this was entertainment.

      Calli stared ahead, afraid to open the door to the past any further than a tiny crack. Few people could overlook her father’s tough militaristic exterior, and even fewer saw the loving emotional side that he reserved for his family. She slipped back through that door and slammed it closed. “Dad was a good instructor, but so is Bart. He knows what he’s doing.”

      Hanna told her about her latest date, and the two started laughing. Calli didn’t enjoy the dating game like her cousin did. For Hanna, meeting new people was fun, but Calli rarely went out, and only with men she knew well. Calli and Hanna joined the rest of the class on the mats and they began stretching.

      Suddenly, hushed voices buzzed around her. She turned just as Luke Northrup introduced himself as their new instructor. Calli’s smile disappeared.

      “Bart broke his leg