“What was that shot?”

  “Carl,” I muttered. “He’s shooting at me.”

  “Get out of there,” Walter shouted. “Land it.” And so I did, bringing it in a lot bumpier than Kitty had, but chalked the rough landing up to nerves from the gun fire.

  “We have to try this over at Pearl’s,” I said, excited now, adrenaline flying as high as I’d been in the sky. “See if we can find the spot where the drone went up to spy on me and make a pass over the meth dump.”

  “You found a meth dump?” Walter asked.

  “Never mind,” Kitty said. “The less you know the better. It’s for your own good. Why don’t you leave the drone with us for a few hours, and I’ll bring it back to you later.”

  “That’s not going to happen,” Walter insisted. “Let’s go to Pearl’s.”

  “You don’t need me,” Cora Mae said, starting to walk away. “I’m going to mosey down the street and say hey to Carl,”

  “Watch your back,” Kitty advised her.

  “Wh…what?” Cora Mae had come to an abrupt halt.

  I trotted over and said in a low voice so Walter wouldn’t hear, “You’ll be fine. Carl isn’t even at the top of our suspect list. But we need to follow every lead, and he wasn’t honest about his whereabouts Monday morning. All you need to do is be neighborly and get him talking. He might slip up.”

  “That doesn’t sound hard.”

  “You have the Pink Lady?”

  Cora Mae nodded and gulped.

  “You could come with us and search for drug dealers instead?”

  That put some pep in her prance. Cora Mae hurried away.

  I loaded up the dogs and swung in at the end of the caravan with Kitty’s Lincoln in the lead and Walter sandwiched between us. Most drivers leading other vehicles would be considerate by keeping to a reduced speed. Instead, Kitty punched it. Good thing we knew the route, because she left us in her exhaust fumes.

  She was walking up to the front porch where Pearl was sweeping with a broom when Walter and I arrived. Pearl stopped sweeping and leaned on the broom. “I’m not missing any more shoes,” she announced, scowling at the dogs.

  “That’s good,” Kitty said.

  “We want to fly Walter’s new toy airplane,” I told Pearl while she eyed up Walter and the drone with its metal arms and legs. The last thing we needed was Pearl getting on the phone and spreading around drone talk. “It’s new technology.”

  “Aren’t you a little old for toys, Walter?” she said.

  He smiled. “You start thinking that way and you’ll get old before your own eyes.”

  She humphed like he was talking nonsense and said to me, “When’s Ida coming home?”

  I wanted to say I hoped never, but this was Grandma’s best friend so instead I said, “Another day or two. I’ll have her call you as soon as she shows up.”

  “She’s going to hate that you have another dog. Ida will make you get rid of it.”

  “It’s my house, Pearl, not hers. I don’t have to ask her permission. And she doesn’t have to like it either. I certainly don’t like everything she hatches up.”

  Pearl turned back to Walter. “That’s the ugliest airplane I’ve ever seen. Where you going to fly this thing anyway? This is a woods, in case you haven’t notice.”

  “We’re practicing flying through trees,” I punted.

  “I’m going inside where it’s safe from people with goofy ideas,” Pearl crabbed.

  Which was a big relief.

  We set up at the dead end behind a stand of cedars, partially hidden from Pearl’s windows and her snooping. Fred and Pebble sniffed around and before long they were bored with us and wandered off into the forest. Fred has a great sense of direction and keen hearing, so he’d stay close enough in case I called him. Pebbles, on the other hand, was in what I assumed was familiar territory and might make a run for it. Then again, she was in excellent company and the food was pretty good too. If she was smart, she’d hang tight.

  “I’m flying it,” Walter announced.

  “No, you aren’t,” I announced back. “You don’t know what we’re looking for.”

  “Neither do we,” Kitty said, taking the man’s side, of course. “Walter, you go ahead.”

  “I need to fly it,” I insisted, facing off with Kitty. “He doesn’t know what the meth dump even looks like. And he’s not the one who was thrown under a bus.”

  “You were thrown under a bus?” Walter said. “You look pretty good for being run over by a bus.”

  “My loving touches,” Kitty said. “I fixed her.”

  “What I’m trying to get through to you is, my life is at stake.” Okay, that was a bit dramatic, but I wanted to fly it. I needed to fly it. I loved this thing more than Walter possibly could.

  “You crash it, you buy it,” Walter shot back. “In fact, you buy me a better one.”

  “Fine. But I’m not going to crash it.”

  A few minutes later, I took off, straight up vertically, then zoomed off in the direction of the meth dump. Wouldn’t it be great to catch the dealers red-handed with the drone camera while they were in the act of dumping more stuff?

  Fred and Pebbles glanced up as I flew over them. In a flash, I was over the pile of disposed containers and other assorted drug paraphernalia. There wasn’t anybody down there.

  Now what? I assumed that the dopers running this operation were smart enough to keep the lab well away from the dump, but I could be wrong. Besides, if they did their cooking on government land, they’d be harder to catch. Nothing shouts out ‘busted’ like committing a criminal act in your own backyard. Maybe the lab was close by.

  “How far out can this thing go?” I asked Walter, keeping my eyes peeled inside the goggles.

  “The trees are pretty thick out here,” he said. “They might interfere with our signal if you take it too far. You don’t want it to go rogue and disappear.”

  “Now you tell me.”

  “I haven’t flown it in a forest before.”

  “Okay, I’m turning it around.” I brought the drone in a wide arc, careful to stay above the trees. If it slammed into an oak tree, I’d own Walter a new one. Scanning the ground, I caught a flash of yellow down below. I circled again. “Somethings down there,” I shouted, sending it into a nosedive. “It looks like an old abandoned school bus. I’m going in for a better look.”

  I hadn’t been born yesterday and I watched enough television to figure out that an old abandoned school bus out in a government forest would make the perfect meth lab.

  “You’ll crash it,” Walter hollered.

  “Listen to Walter,” Kitty shouted. “Bring it back.”

  “Shush, I can’t concentrate with all the yelling.”

  Then my mouth dropped open, because something came into view on the drone’s left. “Another drone just showed up, a black one” I said, wondering if I should abort the mission. Deciding not to quite yet, I reversed course, taking Walter’s drone higher, planning to follow the black devil back to its leader.

  Instead, I lost sight of it. Where had it gone? Had I been imagining it? No, it had been there. I flipped around so the camera would give me a wider field of vision.

  “What’s happening?” Walter asked.

  “I’m not sure. The other drone disappeared. I think it might be hiding down by the school bus.”

  “Stay clear,” Kitty was still hollering even though I was right next to her. “You don’t want to be thrown under another bus!”

  I hovered above for a few minutes. If I went down and the thing was armed, I might really get blown to smithereens. Besides, I had a pretty good idea where the bus was located, although a bird’s eye view isn’t the same as being on the ground. Another problem presented itself. If I hung around long enough without facing destruction, the operator might tail me back and find out who we were. Maintaining anonymity was the healthier choice.

  Full of regret, I flew back. Somehow in the excitement I lost control of the landing.

  “Steady,” Walter called out then, “It’s going to crash into us.”

  I ripped off the goggles just in time to dive to the ground. Kitty and Walter scattered.

  The drone sliced through the cedars and hit Pearl’s window.

  Glass shattered.

  Chapter 16

  “I don’t know why everyone was so worked up,” I said, sitting on Cora Mae’s porch with Fred and Pebbles napping at my feet, curled like one big pretzel. “Pearl didn’t even need stitches and I took care of calling to have her window replaced. Ray said someone would be out this afternoon to fix it.”

  “And you crashed Walter’s drone,” Kitty pointed out unnecessarily.

  “He said he could repair it,” I argued, not sure how I’d lost control after performing such amazing stunts.

  “He also said he knew you were going to mess it up, because you always do.”

  Geez, Kitty was going to be a royal pain now that she had a not-so-secret lover.

  “Name one time,” I said with an indignant tone of voice.

  “Walter’s trailer was shot up not that long ago.”

  “True, but that wasn’t my fault. Things happen during an investigation.” I glanced at Cora Mae. “Any luck with Carl?”

  “I had to come right out and say that there were some discrepancies in his statement about being around town during the attack.”

  “Did you have to?” I said.

  “Yes. He’s not a dummy, you know. If I’d brought it up any other way, he’d have figured out what I was up to. Anyway, you’re right. He doesn’t look so good. I began our talk with concern over his health. Men love that.”

  “And?” Kitty said, sounding impatient.

  “He didn’t change his story, still insists he was around town, and whoever said otherwise is mistaken.”

  “Ruthie isn’t mistaken,” I said. “He’s hiding something.” Please don’t let Carl be one of the guys we’re looking for, I prayed to the heavens.

  Cora Mae agreed then asked, “How did it go with T-Bone and searching Joe’s car?”

  “We didn’t have time,” Kitty said. “Jason Bourne here was too busy wreaking havoc.”

  “Jason Bourne is an assassin,” I told her.

  “I rest my case. You might not target people for death, but you certainly are a master destroyer of vehicles and property.”

  “What’s Blaze up to?” Cora Mae said to me, intentionally changing the subject, a move I appreciated.

  “No idea. We haven’t crossed paths.”

  “Carl said he saw him in Stonely, arguing with Squeaky over the home insurance claim. Then Carl complained about drones for a while and how he’d fired on one earlier. Of course, I didn’t tell him that was you, Gertie. You don’t really think he was involved with Joe Oja’s death, do you?”

  “I’d hate to think so, but if he’s got himself hooked up with drug dealers, they are some pretty scary characters. Maybe he got in over his head and can’t find a way out.”

  “Well,” Cora Mae said. “He was with me when you were tangling with that other drone. That works in his favor.”

  I sighed. “There probably are multiple players. One person can’t do all the cooking and selling alone. We’re searching for an entire ring of them.” Which was a scary thought, if I stopped to analyze it. But there were three of us. And we were the Trouble Busters. “This is the biggest case we’ve ever had.”

  “And it pays about the same as the others we’ve had,” Kitty griped. “As in squat.”

  “There was the time we were paid in manicures,” Cora Mae said, brightly.

  Kitty heaved herself up. “I’m going to search Joe’s car. I need a wingman.”

  Cora Mae laughed. “A wingman is the person who helps you score a date. I can do that with you.”

  “A wingman,” Kitty said, “is a pilot who flies just outside of a formation in case there is trouble.

  “Oh,” Cora Mae said. “Then that would be Gertie.”

  I stood up. “I’ll drive.”

  “I’m driving,” Kitty insisted. Why she wants to is beyond me. The woman is a menace. She has to realize that, right? It’s obvious to the rest of us. Although I wasn’t about to call her attention to that, considering what went down a little while ago with my own driving in the sky. I still don’t know how that happened.

  “I’ll walk the dogs to your house,” Cora Mae offered, looking up at the dark clouds that had formed. “Once the rain lets up. Or rather than walk, do you want me to drive your truck home? I could use the practice. I can walk back.”

  That surprised me since Cora Mae hates to drive. Even though my house is less than a quarter mile away, could I trust her? “Sure.” I handed over the keys.

  Kitty’s Lincoln took off. Surprisingly, I took off right along with it, taking my life in my hands, which is what I do every time I get in her car. We peeled onto the main road and roared off to the south with a half-baked plan. If Paula was home, I’d keep her busy inside while Kitty went through the car.

  “Should I leave the keys inside when I’m finished?” she asked.

  “No. You never know when another vehicle will come in handy.”

  “I’m thinking about getting a motorcycle,” Kitty told me, while I hit an imaginary brake. “Seeing Hanson’s makes me want one more than ever.”

  “You don’t know how to drive a motorcycle.” She might survive a car crash, but if she went flying off a bike, she’ll be funeral home material, with no viewing.

  “Walter has been teaching me how.”

  “So it’s official. The two of you really are an item?”

  “I’m just in it for the sex,” Kitty said. “Walter’s good at it.”

  “I didn’t need to know that,” I told her, as we pulled into Paula’s driveway. The clouds let loose and rain fell in buckets. “This rain is good. It’ll give you cover.”

  Kitty glanced at Joe’s car, then at Paula’s Jeep. “It sure is raining hard. I think you should search his car.”

  “Because it’s raining?”

  “Because you’re better at that sort of thing. I’ll distract Paula.”

  I gave her a hard look. “She’s a butcher, you know. She could slice you up in two minutes flat.”

  “You’re trying to scare me. I don’t scare easily.”

  I thought about the exchange Kitty proposed. “Okay. What are you going to say to her?”

  “I’ll wing it.”

  So we made runs for it—Kitty for Paula’s house and me for Joe’s tan Ford. I unlocked the driver door and slithered in before Paula opened the front door. Staying low, I started rummaging around through the same sort of disorganized mess as I’d found in his bedroom. Junk everywhere. But this time, I scored. Right on top of a heap on the passenger seat, I found a sprawled note on a dirty crumpled piece of paper. Be ready at 8 to pick up the truck. And a letter of the alphabet as the signature, only I couldn’t make it out. Cramming it into my pocket, I peeked outside. Kitty was still on the porch. We hadn’t anticipated Paula not letting Kitty inside. We hadn’t discussed the possibility.

  Kitty kept shifting her eye in my direction. Then Paula said something and Kitty turned and ran back to her car. She got in. I caught her eye. She shrugged as she started the Lincoln.

  Then she drove off.

  Buckets of rain blasted at the Ford and after waiting a while I determined that Kitty wasn’t coming back to pick me up. And a bit more consideration convinced me that we weren’t doing so well with this investigation. It was one goof up after another.

  I had no choice but to drive away in Joe’s car.

  Kitty had gone home. I dashed to the house through the downpour and found her in the bathroom, bald, and washing the wig. “It’s ruined by the rain,” she wailed.

  “No it’s not. And even if it were, Cora Mae has a bunch of wigs.”

  “I’m attached to this one.”

  “You left me behind, in case you don’t remember doing that.”

  “I figured you’d find a way out. Did you take Joe’s car?”

  “Did I have a choice?”

  “I didn’t want to risk Paula catching me coming back.”

  “And you thought she wouldn’t notice the car missing?”

  Kitty grabbed a hairdryer.

  “That will ruin it for sure,” I told her. “Air-dry it.”

  Kitty hung the wig on a towel hook and glared at me like it was my fault she’d been wearing the wig in the rain without anything to cover it up. “It was your idea to switch,” I reminded her.

  “I can’t believe she wouldn’t let me in. She thought I was trying to sell her something.” She poked around through a bag of cosmetics and handed me her makeup. “Keep it for now in case you need to apply another coat.”

  The mirror told me the makeup was holding. It really was water-resistant.

  I followed Kitty into the kitchen, pulled the note out of my pocket, and placed it on the table. “Can you make out that initial?”

  Kitty brought it up so close to her face I thought her eyes would cross. “C?” she hesitated. “Or an H, or maybe a P. Or—

  “That’s okay. I can’t tell either.” I leaned back after returning the note to my pocket. “I hid the car behind your house. We’ll have to return it at some point, but there’s a lot of junk inside. We might find more clues.”

  “I’ll go through it once the rain stops.”

  “In the meantime I need a ride home to pick up my truck.”

  “Where are you heading from there?”

  “To find that school bus.”

  “In the rain?”

  “It’ll stop eventually.”

  “Do you need backup?”

  I thought about that. Kitty isn’t exactly backup material. This was on-the-ground surveillance and no way would she blend in. “I’ll be okay.”

  But I didn’t get there, because right after Kitty dropped me at home, I had a visitor.

  Chapter 17