FIRST ONE DOWN: A Paul Sutton Novel by R.J. Belle Page B

race enthusiasts; she is going to go down in the books as the most skilled trainer in history! This is Kali Hanson, channel seven news, signing off." Kali pretended to set down her imaginary microphone and kissed Meg on the cheek.
    "You are so silly, K," Meg said, pretending to be bashful, but both girls knew it was just an act.
    "Awww, Meg, I am so happy for you. Let's get a round of drinks."
    "Yes, please," Meg said and winked at Kali.
    The girls sat at the table talking about the race and catching up with each other. Kali was in the middle of telling Meg about Andrew and the contract that the facility had landed when Meg's cell phone began chirping repeatedly. Meg pulled her phone out of her purse and looked at the screen. She abruptly excused herself from the table, and Kali turned her attention to the others at the table.
    When Meg returned twenty minutes later, she still had an amazing glow about her, and Kali was relieved. When Meg excused herself to take a call, it was rarely a good thing. Kali wasn't envious of the amount of pressure Meg had. Big success doesn't happen without big stress. Thinking about that made Kali thankful for the simplicity of her own life. Except for Nate, she had never had any big stressors. And as quickly as Nate popped back into her mind, she pushed him right back out and resumed telling Meg about Andrew and the contract.
    "So, what does this mean for you, K?"
    "Well, it means that the facility's workload just doubled, I have been given permission to hire more staff for my department and in the short term, I get to see the handsome Colonel Andrew almost every day."
    "You are glowing, K! I haven't seen you this happy in a long time. I love it!" Meg squeezed her hand "and, when do I get to meet this sexy Colonel?"
    "Never!" Kali teased, "I want to get to know him before I introduce him to the most gorgeous friend that I have. I may not be the smartest girl in the world, but I'm not an idiot."
    "Like I could ever out-woo you when it comes to a man, K. Come on, you look like you just stepped off the cover of Maxim."
    "You are great for my ego, Meg, thanks," Kali said, with a smirk made just for Meg.
    "I have to run, K. I have something I have to take care of. Let's get together next week, okay? I love you," Meg kissed her on the cheek and exited the box without any further explanation.
    Kali had another drink and stood on the box balcony, overlooking the racetrack. Her mind drifted off to Nate and how she was going to handle breaking the news to him. She wondered if just ending all communication would be best. She knew he would be furious and hurt, and she wasn't sure she wanted to deal with the wrath that he might bring down on her. Sipping her drink, she went over possible scenarios, none of them ending well. Cutting off communication was best, she thought, and that was exactly how she was going to handle it. No defense, no offense -- just game over.
     

CHAPTER 20
    Sutton woke up to the blaring sound of static set at full blast on his alarm clock radio. It took something loud and obnoxious to raise him from a deep sleep. Most mornings that wasn't a concern because he rarely slept through the night. But he had to be on top of it today. Nate Warner was scheduled to meet him at the station this morning, and he needed to do everything to assure that he was functioning at a hundred percent. When you have zero physical evidence, and no eyewitness, when a case has no teeth; a detective’s best and most important tools are his interrogation techniques. A good night’s sleep was necessary for Sutton to be ready to face off with the man who could very well be the monster he was hunting.
    The info that came back on Olivia Foster was disappointing. The residence address was yet another dead-end. It was a rental unit and the tenants in the unit said they had moved in February of 2010. But, because Olivia was licensed in the state of California as a physical therapist, her work address was also available