by Laura Scott
The sooner, the better.
____________
Merry stretched out on her bed, her eyelids feeling incredibly heavy. How she could feel so tired, she had no idea. She hadn’t done anything even remotely physical. She hated to admit how much the concussion she’d sustained had affected her.
Ace settled down on the floor beside her bed, his tail thumping reassuringly against the floor. “Good boy,” she murmured. Having Ace around helped her feel grounded and safe. Slowly, she relaxed, and eventually felt herself drift off to sleep.
Ace’s barking broke through her nightmare, moments before Blake was going to kill her. She awoke with a start, her heart pounding in her chest. What was wrong? Based on the blue lights of Julie’s alarm clock, almost two hours had passed.
She rolled out of bed, wincing as she moved her arm without the sling to help remind her to keep it still. She hurried out to the main living area, where Ace’s barks had turned into a low, menacing growl.
“Ace? What’s wrong? Did you see a squirrel?” Ace was known to take all threats, even small furry ones, seriously. He’d scared her more than once with his ferocious barking, only to discover a rabbit had ventured too close to the patio.
As she approached the kitchen area, she caught a glimpse of a face pressed against the small window above the sink.
For a moment she could only stare in horror but then she let out an ear-shattering scream.
Chapter Seven
Zack pulled in front of the townhouse and was walking up to the front door when he heard Merry scream. His heart lodged in his throat and he leaped up on the front porch and yanked at the door, belatedly remembering he’d locked it on his way out.
“Merry!” He shouted, as he fumbled for his keys. “It’s Zack! I’m here!”
Ace’s barking joined the melee, and Zack finally found the key and twisted it in the lock. He dashed inside, following the sounds to the kitchen area.
She stood, still wearing her badly wrinkled scrubs, shaking as she pointed to the window. “It was—right—there!” she stuttered.
He couldn’t stop himself from wrapping his arms around her, to try and settle her down. “What was there? Did you see something?”
“A face. In the kitchen window.”
Caruthers had been here? Zack thought fast, going through the options. Had Caruthers escaped down to the lake or around to the front where he may have left a car? “Stay here with Ace and lock the doors. I’ll be right back.”
Leaving Merry wasn’t easy, but there wasn’t a moment to lose. He hadn’t found the blue van at the campsite, though there were plenty of tents without vehicles that could have belonged to Caruthers. He’d hated to come back without the evidence he needed. But now he had a chance.
Zack dashed through the patio door, down to the lake. He figured that since he hadn’t seen any sign of the blue van when he’d returned home, Caruthers must have used the fishing boat again. But he didn’t see any sign of it. How much time had passed since Merry saw the face in the window? Five minutes? Less?
He scanned the area, looking for anything remotely suspicious. But there was nothing. No fishing boat. No redhead in a baseball cap.
Could he have missed him out front? He wasn’t sure how, but decided to double check. He ran around the side of the house back to the street. In the distance, he could hear the sound of an engine.
He didn’t hesitate, but jumped into his truck. He didn’t see anything to the east, so he grabbed his sunglasses to cut the glare and drove west, directly into the setting sun, down the road toward the highway that lead away from town.
Was that Caruthers up ahead? Zack could just barely make out a dark colored vehicle way off in the distance, but he couldn’t be sure that it was a van verses any other SUV type of vehicle. Thankfully, his truck had a big engine, and he floored the accelerator in an attempt to gain some ground.
But after he came over the crest of a hill, there was nothing in front of him on the highway.
He slammed his fist on the steering wheel, venting his frustration. He was a better cop than this. How could he have lost him? Had Caruthers gotten off on one of the side streets? And if so, which one?
Slowing down at each intersection, and there really weren’t that many, he tried to get a glimpse of the dark colored vehicle. There were a few other cars, but none resembling a blue van.
Every instinct he possessed told him to keep searching, but the memory of how Merry had looked, so shattered and alone, convinced him to turn around and go back.
Was it possible she imagined the whole thing? No, he heard the car engine and Ace had been barking. Caruthers had some nerve, showing up at the townhouse in broad daylight.
And then it hit him. His truck hadn’t been parked outside. Had Caruthers noticed that small detail and decided to make an attempt at getting to Merry? Or had Caruthers followed him? Had Merry’s former boyfriend caught a glimpse of Zack leaving alone and decided to make his move?
At this point, anything was possible. Caruthers could have seen him in town, for all he knew. And while Zack had been checking out the campground, Caruthers had gone back to the townhouse.
Zack pulled up in front of his sister’s place, grimly realizing he couldn’t afford to make the mistake of leaving Merry home alone, again.
He’d have to stick to her like glue, no matter how difficult that was for him. Her safety was more important than his reluctant attraction.
He’d just have to find a way to deal with it.
____________
Merry bowed her head and prayed for strength and guidance, for herself and for Zack. Feeling calmer after she’d locked all the doors, she sat on the edge of the sofa, holding Ace close to her side. She tried to remember any details from the brief glimpse of the face at the window, but already her memory was a bit fuzzy.
Zack returned about twenty minutes later, once again using his key to come in the front door. By the dejected set of his shoulders, she guessed he hadn’t caught up with Blake. If the face at the window even belonged to him. Was it possible she had two stalkers in one lifetime? She sincerely hoped not.
“I’m sorry, Merry,” Zack said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Somehow I lost him.”
She forced a smile. “It’s okay, I’m just glad Ace was here with me. His barking woke me up from a sound sleep.” She decided not to mention the nightmare. After all, there was nothing Zack could do about it.
He dropped into a chair at the kitchen table. “You woke up when you heard Ace barking? And then what, you came out into the kitchen?”
She nodded. “Sometimes Ace barks at chipmunks, squirrels, or other dogs, so I didn’t really think too much about it. But when I came into the kitchen he was growling, and that’s when I looked up and saw the face. His hands were cupped around his forehead and cheeks, as if to cut out the glare from the sunlight so he could see inside better.”
“And that’s when you screamed?” Zack asked.
She felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment. “It all happened so fast, I think he may have disappeared already by that time, but I can’t say for sure. I normally don’t lose control like that.”
“You don’t have to apologize. You have every right to scream when you find someone peeking into your window.” Zack sighed and shook his head. “I’m the one who’s failed you. He was so close. I should have been able to catch up with him.”
She hated the way he was beating himself up over this, and wished he’d share his burdens with God.
“Zack, if you were on duty you would have had backup for assistance. You can’t be everywhere at one time. Did you find out who rented the fishing boat?”
He grimaced. “Another dead end. But I still need to follow up with Cole to see what he found out. And I picked up hamburgers and brats for dinner. Hope that’s okay.”
“It’s perfect. I’ll go outside and pick some veggies out of the garden.”
Zack shot to his feet. “Wait. I need to look around, just in case
he left another footprint or some other clue. Stay here with Ace for just a little while longer, okay?”
She nodded and didn’t protest when he went back outside through the patio door. After another ten minutes, he returned and held the door open as an invitation to come outside. “I didn’t find anything, but that’s probably not surprising. You had the shades pulled in the bedroom, so I’m guessing he didn’t bother to try to look through those windows. And of course, I didn’t find anything out here on the concrete patio.”
Was it possible Zack didn’t really believe her? No, after all, he’d taken off looking for Blake, going as far as to try and follow him in the truck. Surely Zack believed in her.
Just as a precaution, she kept Ace next to her as she worked in the garden. While picking vegetables, she pulled a few weeds and made a mental note to water later tonight once the sun went down. Julie had encouraged her to eat the vegetables in the garden so they wouldn’t go bad in the time she and Derek were gone.
Merry gathered cucumbers, lettuce, peppers, onions and tomatoes using the hem of her scrub top to hold everything together. Her shoulder was still sore, but she didn’t want to put the sling on just yet.
“Looks good,” Zack commented, as he held the patio door open for her. As soon as she disappeared inside, he went back to cleaning up the grill.
The domesticated scene seemed a bit surreal. If she didn’t know better, she’d think Zack planned on settling down again someday.
But she didn’t dare get her hopes up. Even if he did ask her out, which she could scarcely imagine, he wasn’t a Christian. So there was no point in even considering getting involved with him.
Merry shook off the depressing thought and concentrated on washing the veggies and cutting them up for salads. She could hear Zack whistling as he grilled the brats and burgers, and she wondered if he realized how lighthearted he sounded. Despite everything with Blake, he seemed to be more relaxed and content than ever.
She went into the bedroom, anxious to change out of her scrubs that were now stained with sweat and soil from being out in the garden. Washing up at the bathroom sink wasn’t too difficult, but when it came to pulling on a T-shirt to wear with her Capri jeans, a sharp pain zinged down her arm.
Struggling with the fabric and her limited range of motion wasn’t easy, but eventually she managed, whimpering only a little when she finally got her injured arm through the opening.
She took several deep breaths, willing the pain to subside. Reluctantly, she pulled the sling back on. By the time she returned to the kitchen she was surprised to find that Zack had dinner ready. He’d taken the salads outside and had set out plates and silverware on the patio table. In the center was a large platter full of meat, buns and condiments, including several choices of salad dressing.
“Wow,” she managed as she pulled out a chair to sit down. “I’m impressed.”
Zack took the seat to her right, the umbrella helping to shade them from the worst of the setting sun. He glanced at her, and waited.
It took her a minute to realize he was giving her time to pray. Pleased, she bowed her head and spoke out loud, hoping to find the words that may get through to him.
“Dear Lord, we thank You for this bountiful meal we’re about to eat. We also ask that You give us strength and wisdom to get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding us. And lastly, we ask for You to ease the ache in our hearts for the loved ones we’ve lost, Amen.”
She glanced over at Zack to find him staring down at his empty plate, his hands folded loosely in his lap. Was it possible he’d been praying, too? She reminded herself not to get her hopes up.
“Did you really lose someone close to you? Or was that last part just for me?” Zack asked in a low voice.
Her heart ached for him. “I did. My parents passed away when I was in college. My father died of a heart attack. My mother died shortly afterwards and no one could figure out why. I always figured she died of a broken heart.”
“If you could die of a broken heart, I’d be dead by now,” Zack muttered. “Cancer is a horrible disease.”
She wanted badly to reach out and hug him, but feared he’d reject the slightest bit of comfort. “I know it is, and I know that you’ve suffered greatly. But try to remember that as hard as it is for you, I truly believe your wife and daughter are in a much better place with God.”
“I wish I could know that for sure,” Zack said.
“You’ll just have to find a way to believe God’s word,” she said. “I’ve worked in the ER for several years now, and I’ve had two different patients tell me that they saw a bright light as we were resuscitating them. I guess that’s the closest thing to proof that I can give you.”
“A patient really told you that?”
She nodded. “Yes, as recently as a few months ago. One of our church members was in a terrible car crash last year, and the paramedics brought him in doing CPR the entire time. Afterward, he told me that he wasn’t afraid to die because he saw the light and knew that heaven would be there for him when it was his time.”
Zack stared at her for a long minute before he gave a brief nod. “I always thought those were just stories.”
“Many stories have a kernel of truth to them, and I promise you, this one is absolutely true. If you tried to tell Mr. Graybar that he was imagining things, he’d be sure to set you straight.” She picked up her fork and dug into her salad.
Zack picked up the platter and held it out for her, before choosing both a hamburger and a brat for himself. As they ate, the conversation veered toward less intense subjects than everlasting life.
“I went through the campground off Hwy ZZ, to see if I could find Caruthers blue van,” Zack said between bites. “Little did I know that he’d end up back here, peeping into the kitchen window.”
She was thrilled that he believed her. “I’m thankful Ace was there to sound the alarm.”
At the sound of his name, the dog jumped up and padded over. “No begging,” she said in a stern voice. Ace whirled around and plopped back down on the ground near her feet.
“He’s very well trained,” Zack said, glancing down at the dog. “I know you’re just watching him for Julie and Derek, but I can tell you already love him. You should consider getting a dog of your own.”
“I can’t have pets in my apartment complex,” she reminded him. “But I wouldn’t mind a dog like Ace. He’s been great company.”
“I was thinking I might look for a dog, too.”
“Really?” She was surprised to hear that. “You must live somewhere that allows pets.”
He shrugged and nodded. “Yeah, I live in the upper level of a duplex. There’s a nice couple living below me. I do all the heavy work, like snow-blowing, mowing, minor repairs, and they give me a nice cut on my rent. I don’t think they’d mind if I owned a dog.”
Merry thought that Julie would be thrilled to know Zack wouldn’t be living all alone. “Would you have time to train him?”
“I guess I’d have to make the time, but I don’t think it would be that difficult.”
“I wouldn’t have a clue where to start. I’d have to find someone to train my dog for me.” Merry finished her salad and started on her burger, discovering that eating a sandwich with one hand wasn’t as easy as it sounded. “This is delicious, Zack. Thanks so much.”
“It’s the least I can do.” He seemed to avoid her gaze and she figured he was trying to keep things casual so she wouldn’t misinterpret this as some sort of date.
A fact she’d be wise to remember.
____________
Zack couldn’t seem to pry Merry’s story out of his mind. Of course after Suzanne and Amelia had died, the pastor of the church had tried to tell him that they were up in heaven, but he hadn’t been able to believe it. Hadn’t been able to believe in a God who would take two innocent lives away from him.
But now, for some reason he wanted to believe Amelia and Suz were really were up there. In a place that was bright a
nd warm. Where they would forever be safe from harm. Close to God.
Merry started cleaning up the dishes, carrying things into the house a little at a time. He stood to help her, but then his phone rang. He eagerly picked up the call. “Hey Cole, do you have more information?”
“Yeah, I’ve been running the Calvin Reynolds name and guess what? There is a guy by that name living in the Twin Cities and he’s done some jail time too, at the same facility as that Caruthers dude.”
“I knew it!” Zack jumped to his feet, too excited to sit still. “This has to be the same guy. He’s using his friend’s identity to cover his tracks.”
“It’s a strong theory, that’s for sure,” Cole agreed. “And a bit concerning. What in the world is he planning?”
Good question. “I don’t know but he’s not going to get to her. Now that I’m onto him, I’ll find a way to bring him down.”
“Hey, I believe you. How’s pretty Merry holding up?”
Zack ground his molars together for a brief moment, fighting the surge of temper. “She’s fine. A little on edge, which is completely understandable, but otherwise fine.”
“So, still not willing to introduce us, huh?”
Zack ignored the taunt, knowing that Cole was only trying to get under his skin. “No point. She’s too good for the likes of you.”
“Hey, that means she’s too good for you, too.”
Zack rolled his eyes. “Back to Reynolds, any chance you can send someone to pick him up? Maybe ask him a few questions?”
“On what grounds?”
“Identity theft. Tell him that you discovered someone’s been charging up his credit card and that you’re worried about his credit rating.”
“I doubt Reynolds cares one bit about his credit rating, but I might be able to use the identity theft angle.” Cole sighed. “You’re going to owe me big time for all these favors, you know. Although, considering you haven’t asked for anything in over two years, I’m still reeling from shock.”