14th Deadly Sin

CHAPTER 99

I HAD A terrific red dress hanging in my closet. I’d bought it before I got pregnant, without an event in mind. It still had tags on it.

Joe was still out with Martha and Julie when I got home, so I showered and put on my makeup, including eyeliner and mascara.

The red crepe dress had an asymmetrical neckline and hem and a fitted waist. I slipped it on, stepped into a pair of low heels, and looked at myself in the mirror.

I didn’t look like the same woman who wore chinos and a blue blazer every day.

Wow. This was me, too.

The Women’s Murder Club was meeting at a bar and restaurant called Local Edition. It was officially a Women’s Murder Club “Welcome Home Cindy” event, and we were also celebrating Fish’s Girl getting a mention in the LA Times. These were fine reasons for the four of us to spend some quality time together.

I left Joe a note and headed out toward the restaurant. One block later, while I was negotiating traffic, my phone rang. I glanced down and saw UNKNOWN CALLER on the faceplate. I was stuck between a Porsche and a panel van, so I took the call.

The voice was muffled, but the message was clear.

“You break the blue line, you get what you deserve. You and your family aren’t safe, Boxer. They’ll never be safe.”

My blood stopped flowing through my veins and dropped to my feet. “Who is this?” I said.

The line was open. I could hear static, but there was no answer.

I stared at the rear end of the Porsche, but I wasn’t seeing it. I was picturing the face of a cop. One cop in particular.

“And you’re not safe from me, Vasquez.”

There was a click as the call was disconnected, and at just about the same instant, the driver of the panel van behind me blew his horn.

I put my foot on the gas, wondering if I’d been right when I said “Vasquez.”

But whether my caller was Vasquez or some other vicious hater, I wasn’t going to let this call ruin my evening. That was what I told myself, but I felt a tremor, an internal earthquake, a shifting of my sense of security in my own home. It was almost intolerable.

So what was I going to do about it?