The Chase

Libby

Libby watched Barth walk out the door and get into a truck. Frustrated, she waited for a beat, then ran to her car to try and follow him. Keeping an eye on traffic, she allowed two vehicles to come between her car and his truck, just as Frank had taught her.

Frank. She'd like to have him here right now. With all his years of experience, he'd have a better idea of what to do.

God, she hoped she hadn't blown this! It would be bad enough blowing her very first case. It would be worse if she blew a case Richie had given her. More than anything else, Libby wanted to impress him with what she could find. Things weren't looking too good for that at the moment.

Traffic was light at this hour and following the truck wasn't very difficult. Whoever this Barth was, he was no fool and no pushover. In addition to finding what she needed to find for Richie, Libby was just plain curious about the man now.

He had an air of being dangerous. A bit on the scruffy side, but good-looking she had to admit. Not for the first time, she wondered what the case involving him was about. Drugs? Money-laundering?

Keeping a close eye on the truck, Libby let her thoughts turn to Richie. God, he'd looked good when she'd seen him! Apparently things were going well between he and Nonnie. She was so envious thinking of the two of them.

The truth was that she hadn't been in Nonnie's shop so far because she had no idea what to say to the woman. Things hadn't gone too well between them when she and Frank had gone to dinner at Richie's house.

She missed Richie so much, Libby thought to herself. And it wasn't just the sex, although Richie was certainly the best when it came to that! She missed that easy way of talking that had developed between them.

Her wandering mind came back when Barth's truck passed through an intersection. Before she knew what was happening, a huge car-hauler had come through behind it and was blocking the intersection. Libby slammed on her brakes, skidding to a stop just in time to avoid hitting the larger vehicle.

"Get out of the way, you idiot!" she yelled at the driver. Throwing her car into reverse, she spun around and managed to swerve past it through the intersection. Her eyes scanned the street rapidly. Barth's truck was nowhere to be seen.

Quickly, she drove two blocks straight, then made left and right turns within another two-block radius. Nothing. Pulling over to the curb, Libby parked and slammed her hand on the steering wheel in frustration. "Dammit!"

She'd go home for now, but she wasn't about to give up on this. She'd find something on this Barth, no matter what she had to do.