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form to the right side of the bed, but she recognized it. Hitting the
light switch, she temporarily blinded them both. When her eyes
adjusted, she almost fell over from the sight before her. Nic was
standing over a man who must have been dead. Blood covered his
face and chest. His right hand still gripped a small gun.
Then Carly realized Nic was bleeding. Nic! she rushed over
to her.
Seeing Carly, Nic smiled. She was grateful that Carly was not
hurt. Carly, I m okay.
You re not okay, you re bleeding. She immediately started
examining Nic s arm. The gauze was soaked and no longer white.
Where did the other guy go? Nic asked as she placed herself
between Carly and the door.
He took off down the stairs, that is, after he nearly knocked
me out.
Listen, I want you to call 911. Tell them what happened; tell
60 D. L. Pawlowski
them it s a code two, and stay on the line till they give you the
okay.
Carly walked over to the nightstand and picked up the phone.
She looked at Nic, who was slipping into a pair of jeans. Where are
you going?
I ll be right back. I m just gonna make sure the other guy is
gone.
You re not leaving me in here with that? Carly pointed at the
corpse lying on the floor.
Nic realized that she was being insensitive. Okay. Go back to
your room, and make the call. Lock the door when you get inside.
Once downstairs, Nic turned on lights all over the house as she
combed through every room. The front door was wide open. Nic
wasn t sure if they came in that way or if the other perp left that
way. Stepping out onto the porch, she got her answer. The urn she
kept on the front porch was now laying on the walkway, broken.
The dumb ass must have fallen right over it in his haste to escape.
The street was quiet. So much for gunshots waking up the neighbors,
Nic thought, as she went back inside.
Back upstairs, she rapped on Carly s door. Carly, it s Nic, let
me in.
The door swung open, and Carly, unable to suppress the urge
any longer, wrapped her arms around Nic s midsection. Nic, star-
tled at first, returned the embrace. She knew this incident must
have rattled Carly. She was impressed with how well she was han-
dling it.
Well, is he gone?
Yes, he s gone. And he broke my urn on the way out, Nic
smirked.
Nic, I think we should take care of your arm. You re still
bleeding.
Nic agreed and sat down on the bed. What did the 911 opera-
tor say?
Gathering supplies in the bathroom, Carly responded, They
dispatched a car. Should be here soon. She knelt down in front of
Nic and laid the needed items out on the bed. Nic watched her in
silence. Carly carefully removed the blood-soaked gauze, revealing
the nasty gash Nic had received earlier that evening. Nic, this
looks bad. Why didn t you go to the hospital?
Are you kidding? And spend my evening sitting in the ER
waiting for someone to stitch it up. No thanks.
The flow of blood had slowed down enough for her to clean
the wound with a damp washcloth. Carly doused a cotton ball with
some hydrogen peroxide. This may hurt a bit, she said, dabbing
the wound gently. The peroxide fizzed where it made contact with
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the infection. Nic didn t even flinch. After placing four butterfly
bandages over the cut, she finished by wrapping fresh gauze
around the arm.
Thanks, Nic said. Placing her hand on Carly s chin, she tilted
her face up. Are you sure that you are okay? He didn t hurt you,
did he?
Carly sat down next to her heroic friend. No, he didn t hurt
me. He just knocked the wind out of me. She waited a second
before asking her next question. Nic, what were they doing here?
They were trying to kill me, she answered absently.
Carly s face paled. Why?
That I don t know, yet. But I ll bet good money that they are
connected to Jimmy s shooting, too.
Anger surged through Carly. She wanted to go in the other
room and kick that guy, even if he was dead. And the thought that
they tried to hurt Nic, too, infuriated her more. She looked at Nic,
who now seemed to be lost in thought. Are you in there? she
asked, waving her hand in front of the woman s face.
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