Read Online The Hollow by Nora Roberts - Free Book Online Page A

your sister.”
    â€œOkay. I’ll go in today.”
    â€œGood. Second, I had some pottery to take into Lorrie’s. You must’ve seen what happened to her shop.”
    â€œNot specifically.” He thought of the smashed windows, the corpses of crows on Main Street. “How bad’s the damage?”
    â€œIt’s bad.” Jo lifted a hand to the trio of crystals that hung from a chain around her neck. “Fox, she’s talking about closing. Moving away. It breaks my heart. And it scares me. I’m scared for you.”
    He rose, put his arms around her, rubbed his cheek against hers. “It’s going to be okay. We’re working on it.”
    â€œI want to do something. Your dad and I, all of us, we want to do something.”
    â€œYou’ve done something every day of my entire life.” He gave her a squeeze. “You’ve been my mom.”
    She eased back to take his face in her hands. “You get that charm from your father. Look right at me and reassure me it’s going to be okay.”
    Without hesitation or guile, his eyes met hers. “It’s going to be okay. Trust me.”
    â€œI do.” She kissed his forehead, his cheek, then the other, then gave him a light peck on the lips. “But you’re still my baby. I expect you to take good care of my baby. Now go have lunch at your sister’s. Her eggplant salad’s on special today.”
    â€œYummy.”
    Tolerant, she gave him a light poke in the belly. “You ought to close the office for an hour and take that pretty girl to lunch with you.”
    â€œThe pretty girl works for me.”
    â€œHow did I manage to raise such a rule follower? It’s disheartening.” She gave him another poke before starting for the door. “I love you, Fox.”
    â€œI love you, Mom. And I’ll walk out with you,” he added quickly, realizing his mother would have no compunction about stopping by Layla’s desk and pumping the pretty girl for information.
    â€œI’ll have another chance to get her alone and grill her,” Jo said casually.
    â€œYeah. But not today.”
    THE SALAD WASN’T BAD, AND SINCE HE’D EATEN at the counter he’d had a little time to hang with his baby sister. Since she never failed to put him in a good mood, he walked back to his office appreciating the sunny, blustery day. He’d have appreciated it more if he hadn’t run into Derrick Napper, his childhood nemesis, as the now Deputy Napper came out of the barbershop.
    â€œWell, hell, it’s O’Dell.” Napper slipped on his dark glasses, looked up, then down the street. “Funny, I don’t see any ambulances to chase.”
    â€œDid you get that buzz cut on the town nickel? Somebody overpaid.”
    Napper’s smile spread thin on his tough, square face. “I heard you were at the scene yesterday when there was trouble at the Square. Didn’t stand by and give a statement, or come in to file a witness report. Being the town shyster, you ought to know better.”
    â€œYou’d be wrong on that, nothing new there. I stopped by and spoke to the chief this morning. I guess he doesn’t tell his bootlickers everything.”
    â€œYou ought to remember how many times my boot kicked your ass in the past, O’Dell.”
    â€œI remember a lot of things.” Fox walked by. Once a bully, he thought, always an asshole. Before the Seven was over, he imagined he and Napper would tangle again. But for now, he put it out of his mind.
    He had work to do, and as he opened the door of his office, admitted he had a road to smooth out. Might as well get it done.
    As he came in, Layla walked toward reception holding a vase of the flowers Alice Hawbaker liked having in the offices. Layla stopped dead.
    â€œI was just giving these fresh water. There weren’t any calls while you were gone, but I finished the trust and printed it out. It’s