Karin snagged her purse off the back of the chair and slid her feet into the plastic shoes. “I can do that. Need anything else?”

“Not a thing. Thanks. Now scoot.”

She left him wreathed in a cloud of steam and paused only a moment to listen to the utterly domestic sounds coming from the kitchen. They were good sounds, echoes of hearth and home and refuge-sounds that she had missed and hadn’t even realized until that moment.

“I don’t hear the door closing,” he shouted, and it made her smile.

“Yes, sir. Right away, sir. At once, sir.” Karin stepped out into the bright late-summer evening and made sure the door banged shut behind her. Smiling, she walked past her car and continued down the drive to the sidewalk. It was too pleasant a night to drive the quarter mile to the wine-and-spirit shop.

One of the benefits, if there were any, of living in a “covenant-controlled planned community,” aka ‘acre-o-condos,’ was that there was always a strip mall within walking distance.

Not that many of the community-dwellers seemed to take advantage of it, as was evident by the number of cars that filled the parking lot. Their loss, she thought, and waved the right-of-way to a harried-looking woman in an SUV that could have housed a family of six, plus pets. Given the choice, Karin preferred feeling the ground beneath her feet.

He called her cell just as she’d finished signing the credit card receipt.

“You walked, didn’t you?”

“Can’t put anything over on you.” Mouthing her thanks to the salesclerk, Karin picked up the bagged wine and began weaving her way through the crowd to the door. “I won’t be five minutes… start dishing out the salad.”

Russ humphed through the phone. “Okay, but the wine’s supposed to breathe before it’s served, you know.”

“I’ll jog and we can give it CPR when I get there.”

Karin snapped the cell phone shut and dropped it back into her purse. She had no intention of jogging, even though the sky had grown considerably darker while she’d been perusing the wine aisles. Night didn’t bother her. And even if the city planners had attempted to keep the original “country feel” of the area by leaving the sidewalks tree lined and avoiding the overuse of streetlights, it was still upper-middle-class suburbia, for God’s sake.

Once she left the strip mall, with its ring of sodium security lights, Karin had only the full moon to guide her way, and that was fine. What could happen to her?

She’d only gone two blocks when she heard a soft scuff on the sidewalk behind her. It could have been a dog or a cat or a deer or a-

When a second, then third, then fourth scuff condensed into steps, Karin felt the hairs stand up on the back of her neck. Someone was following her, and that someone was getting closer.

Tightening her grip on the wine, Karin forced herself to look straight ahead and continue with the same easy, unhurried stride, as if she hadn’t heard a thing. Every college self-defense lecture she’d ever heard came thundering back to her, along with each possible reaction’s chance of actually working:

Run-50 percent, if you were faster than your assailant.

Turn and confront-30-65 percent, depending on who was behind you.

Scream “rape” or “murder” -0 percent.

Scream “fire” -75 percent, but only if you were near a building.

Fall down and play dead-minus 5.3 billion percent.

Fight-100 percent, but a bad idea for a number of reasons.

The breeze shifted and carried with it the scent of lilacs and musk… and a low, trembling growl that slowly, very slowly formed into words.

“He’s… mine.”

Before Karin could react, something cold and hard and sharp raked down her back, shredding her shirt and the skin beneath.

Karin spun to the left, only partially aware of the squeal of brakes and blaring car horn as she darted out of the tree shadows and into the street.

Russ was setting the table when she walked in.

“A couple of minutes? I was about to send out the… Jesus, what happened to you?”

Setting the bottle down on the table, she glanced over her shoulder at the tattered remains of her T-shirt and gave him a sheepish grin. “You won’t laugh?”

There was only concern in his eyes. “Of course not.”

“I… slipped and fell into some bushes. Never said I was overly coordinated.”

“God, apparently not.” Turning her, Russ gently examined her back. “You’re lucky you only got scratched. They don’t look very deep, skin’s hardly broken, but you’d better let me put some antiseptic on them just in case.”

“After dinner?”

“Now.”

While Russ went to fetch the disinfectant and cotton swab, Karin opened the wine and poured herself a glass.

She didn’t give it so much as a moment to catch its breath.

Lily was in the book, too. She answered after the third ring.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Lily. You’re right, we need to talk.”

“Who is this?”

“You know very well who this-”

“Oh, Karin, of course.” The laughter was condescending. “Yes, I suppose we should talk if you want to. Frankly, I thought you’d have already gotten my message. But if you insist…”

“I do.”

“All right, then.” She yawned. “Where and when?”

“Now’s good for me. Open your front door.”

She wasn’t dressed for company-cutoffs and a shapeless purple tank top, no makeup, hair in a tangle-but the look on Lily’s pale face, although she was trying hard to suppress the shock when she opened the door, made Karin wish she’d brought a camera. It was one of those precious moments she’d want to remember.

“There’s a law against stalking, you know.”

Karin closed her cell phone. “Funny you should mention that.”

Pushing past the startled woman, Karin walked into the living room and sat on the edge of an overstuffed white sofa. The room was all cream and beige and lace and soft pillows; silk lilies in china vases and scrollwork furniture; knickknacks and framed pastels. There were no hard edges in the room, nothing sharp or prickly or that in any way reflected the true nature of its owner.

Karin found that interesting and wondered if Russ ever noticed.

“Oh,” she said when her hostess finally arrived, “and before you say anything, I know there’s also a law against breaking and entering… and even if I didn’t have an uncle on the police force, I could always say you invited me in. But don’t worry… I haven’t said anything to my uncle or to Russ. This is between you and me.”

Lily stood like a queen-head held high, movements sure, her eyes as hard as slate and just as brittle. Karin couldn’t help but admiring that.

“But where are my manners?” Lily asked, hand dramatically placed at her chest… undoubtedly to reinforce the fact that she wasn’t wearing a bra. Karin fought the urge to look down at her own size 34Bs, knowing the comparison wouldn’t be in her favor. “Please forgive me. May I offer you something to drink?”

“No. Thanks.”

“Well, since you’ve already made yourself at home…”

Silence-profound and heavy-filled the moments until Lily had settled herself in the chair directly opposite Karin.

“So you wanted to talk.” Lily crossed one leg over the other. “Go on, then. What did you want to talk about?”

Karin sat a little straighter. “Let’s cut the bullshit, shall we? I want you to stop bothering Russ.”

Lily smiled. “I’ve never bothered Russell. We’re friends.”

“No.” Karin smiled back. “You’re ex-lovers-emphasis on ex-and that’s all you are. Now, I know sometimes people can remain friends after a relationship, but, lady, I am positively certain you’re not one of those people.”

Lily’s pantomime smile faded, and before Lily could control herself, Karin saw the hardness beneath her skin. It was impressive.

“You don’t know how right you are. However, you should be very careful about saying things like that. It could be dangerous.”