Exculpatory

Chapter two

"Lanie!" Kate hissed in horror at her best friend holding up the sexiest thong she'd found.

Kate immediately, as quick as she possibly could, snatched the panties from her friend to put them back where she'd found them.

"Oh come on Kate! You need to get some!" her friend whined.

"Can you just shush! My daughter is right over there," Kate hissed, looking over to Elisabeth who stood not far from them.

Letting go of a relieved breath she saw her daughter hadn't even turned at the antics the medical examiner, who she called her best friend, had caused.

"Relax girl, she ain't listening," Lanie said and Kate caught a glimpse of her rolling her eyes. "And I'm dead serious, you need these, if you don't buy them, I will for you," she threatened.

Kate groaned before she gave her best friend an irritated look and left her to go to her daughter.

"Find anything you like peanut?" she asked as she approached her.

"Nope," Elisabeth answered as she let go of the black star dress she'd been eyeing for the past twenty minutes or so.

"You sure?" Kate asked, not quite believing her.

Elisabeth looked up at her with a small fake smile, hummed that she was indeed sure, and looked back at Lanie coming towards them. When Kate followed her eyes she saw Lanie had, despite her irritated look, a plastic bag in her hand and a smirk on her lips.

"What's up Lane?" Elisabeth asked and tried to peek in the shopping bag but before she was able to Lanie pulled it away.

"Nothing interesting, just a couple socks," she answered and when Elisabeth looked away she winked at Kate, who immediately rolled her eyes.

"Come on, let's go check out some books!" Elisabeth said excitedly, pointing to the bookstore across the street.

Her daughter's statement had Kate's lips pulled up in a big smile, she absolutely loved that her infatuation in books had turned up in her offspring's DNA. She excitedly nodded exclaiming a 'yes!' before the two brunettes were off towards the store, Lanie trailing after them yelling how they were such bookworms. As soon as they were in the store the two had big eyes looking around. Sure they'd been there a thousand times, but it still amazed them that there were such a place that held so many books, some of those books of which they would never be able to read. Kate didn't even take notice to her daughter's sudden gasp, just figuring it was a book she'd seen, but her cop senses came to life when her daughter's hand started tugging on hers in a rapid matter.

"Mom, look! That's the guy who bought the lightsaber lamp to me last weekend!" she exclaimed with shock embedded in her voice.

"What, where?!" Kate immediately scanned the area with her eyes and saw, indeed, the stranger stand by one of the bookshelves sorting some books.

It didn't take long for Kate to narrow her eyes and start speculating, fearing the man was stalking them. She searched for a name tag on the man's jacket, in case it could be a coincidence and he was simply working there, but since there were none she had made a decision. Meeting the same guy twice in a week, in as a big city as New York... well, let's just agree the chance of that happening isn't big.

"Lanie, can you take Elisabeth to the kids' books and stay there?" Kate requested, eyes never leaving the man and she heard Lanie agreeing with a sigh.

As soon as she'd gotten her answer Kate was off towards the man, who had not even glanced at them, yet. Maybe he somehow knew Kate had spotted him? Kate tried quickly look around him to see if there were any mirrors in which he could've seen her eyes on him but to her surprise she couldn't see one. She prepared her body for fight, just in case, as she placed herself behind the him.