Absolutely, Positively

of her father's kitchen appliances or Kelsey's gadgets, could prepare tea properly. “And I reacted just like a kid. Scared the beejeebies out of me.”

    “Someone got the effect he wanted.” Harry surveyed the remains of the mechanical horror that he had spread out on the stainless-steel kitchen table.

    Molly had watched as he dissected the creature with the finesse of a jeweler removing precious stones from a necklace. One by one Harry had taken apart the pieces of the device that had rolled out from under her bed.

    Displayed in the bright kitchen light, the cheap black fabric, Halloween mask, and assorted mechanical components did not look very frightening. Molly was a little chagrined.

    “I guess I overreacted,” she said. “The pistol prank didn't bother me very much, but this one really got to me.”

    “It was meant to get to you.” Harry held a gear up to the light to study it. “This thing was more of a threat than the pistol. It was right inside your house. Inside your bedroom. I think whoever is behind these incidents is deliberately trying to rev up the fear factor.”

    Molly shuddered. She searched Harry's grim face, trying to determine just how serious he was.

    The answer was clear. He was very serious. She could feel the waves of focused energy emanating from him.

    “I still can't believe that these incidents are meant to be anything more than nasty pranks, though,” Molly said. She poked at the awkwardly constructed steel claw. It was composed of five metal rods thrust through holes cut in the fingers of a tattered black glove. “I wonder how he got into the house to set it up?”

    “Did you check for open windows or unlocked doors?”

    Molly huddled deeper into her robe. “I went through every room before you got here. There's no sign of forced entry. All the doors and windows were locked. The security system was on.”

    “The device was probably installed under your bed earlier today. Which leaves us with a couple of possibilities.” Harry picked up the Halloween mask. “Whoever is doing this either knows you well enough to know your security code—”

    “Impossible,” Molly said quickly. “Kelsey and I have always been extremely careful. She wouldn't give out the code to anyone, not even a friend. And neither would I.”

    Harry got to his feet. “Then we're looking for someone who's good enough to bypass your household security system.”

    Molly looked up at him. “Good enough?”

    “I guess I should say bad enough. Whoever he is, he's caused enough trouble tonight. Go upstairs and pack a bag. I'm taking you home with me.”

    “Home.” She shot up out of her chair so quickly that it started to topple over backward.

    “Right.” Harry deftly caught the chair before it clattered to the floor. He righted it without even glancing at it. “Home to my place. You can spend the night there. In the morning we'll talk about what to do next.”

    Molly was torn. A part of her dreaded the prospect of spending the rest of the night by herself. But another part was reluctant to admit that things had become so serious that she had to leave her home.

    “I appreciate the offer, but I don't want to put you to any trouble,” she said. “I doubt if it's necessary. This was probably just another stupid prank. I can't believe that whoever set this thing would actually come back here tonight.”

    “Trust me.” Harry urged her gently but determinedly toward the hall stairs. “It's necessary.”

    “Why?”

    “For my peace of mind,” Harry said.

    “Oh.” She couldn't think of an adequate rebuttal to that.

    “I want to think on this for a while tonight. In the morning we'll file a report with the cops.”

    “Fat lot of good that's going to do. Investigating stupid practical jokes must rank right at the bottom of their list of priorities,” Molly muttered.

    “I know. But I want this incident on record.”

    He did not elaborate, but Molly knew what he was thinking. Harry wanted the prank reported because he believed that there would be more of them and that they might become increasingly dangerous.

    An hour and a half later Harry stood alone in his darkened living room. He listened carefully, but there was no sound from the guest bedroom. Molly had finally gone to sleep.

    He gazed out through the wall of windows that separated him from the night and considered the small gear assembly he held in his hand. It seemed to smolder with a heat only he could