by CeeCee James
A brown and white blur appeared by her side. Cecil. His horse was neck and neck with her own. The stable hand didn’t bother with the reins, but instead reached across and looped his arm around her waist. With a swift yank, he pulled her free from the saddle. She swung her leg over his horse and grabbed tightly around him. Tears of relief burned her eyes.
Cecil slowed his pinto as the two of them watched Lucky continue to race away. More hoof noises sounded behind them. Whipping past, Emily flew by on her roan after the run-away horse. The two horses disappeared around the corner.
“You okay?” Cecil’s voice was shaky. He turned to look at her, his eyes wide with panic.
“Just let me down. I need to get down now.” Shaking, Elise started to swing her leg around. Cecil held out his arm to brace her. Her legs nearly collapsed as her feet touched the ground.
The horse took a few steps as Cecil turned the pinto around. “I have no idea what just happened. She’s never acted that way before.”
Elise rubbed her face and breathed deeply. You’re okay. No need to cry now. “Well, just my luck,” she said. Clouds of dust hung in the air from the mad-dash she’d just been on.
She began to walk back to the stable.
Cecil rode next to her. “You want up again?”
“Not really.” Like never again. Romanticizing horse riding officially cured.
“I know that had to scare you, but I’d sure like to see you get back on the horse again. I’ll even lead. This one won’t run. I promise.”
“Since I have no idea what I did to make the other horse so crazy, I think I’ll pass,” Elise said, matter-of-factly. She unbuckled her helmet. The wind picked up and blew her hair across her face. She shivered and crossed her arms as it cooled her perspiring skin.
Half-way down the path, she met Brad. His face was grim, his lips set in two determined lines. When she saw him, the teary-feeling bubbled up again and she ran to his arms.
He grabbed her, whispering words she couldn’t really hear. She snuggled into his strength, never wanting him to let go.
Finally, he pushed her away and took a hard look at her. He brushed the hair from her face and a half-smile crooked his mouth. “You never did like to do anything half-way. Always having to blow the expectations away.”
“I’m never getting on a horse again,” she declared adamantly.
“Sure you are. Just not today. I don’t think I could take it if you raced away from me again.” He held his hand over his heart dramatically. “I think that cut like ten years off of my life. I’m officially traumatized and Diablo didn’t even do it. My girlfriend did.” He wrapped his arm around her waist as they continued back to the stable.
The clips of hooves made them glance back. Emily was leading Lucky. The chestnut still looked a little skittish but the stable hand had a firm grip on the reins. She led the horse passed them. “Come on, Cecil. Let’s get our girl in her stall. I’ll meet you two there,” she threw over her shoulder at Brad and Elise.
Ten minutes later, Brad and Elise made it back to the stable. Not seeing anyone but the construction workers, they peeked into the barn.
The fresh smell of hay and animals greeted them. Lucky was in her stall appearing considerably calmer. Another stable hand was filling her water bucket while Cecil and Emily stood together looking at something in the square of sunlight that spilled through the door.
“Hi, guys,” Brad said as they walked over.
Emily held something in her fingers as Cecil flashed a guilty look.
Brad picked up on it immediately. “What’s going on? What’d you find?”
Emily glanced at Cecil before answering. “We took off Lucky’s gear and found this woven in one of the stirrups.” The stable hand held it out—something thin and shiny.
Elise covered her mouth as she realized what it was.
A hat pin.
“Honest, we have no idea how that got in there,” Cecil blathered quickly. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Let me see it.” Brad held out his hand. Emily deposited the pin.
It was nearly identical to the last one in length, but the head on this one was a pearl.
Brad turned it over. “Did you see anything else on the saddle? Any words scratched in the leather?”
The two stable hands shook their heads as Brad reached for his phone. His hazel eyes swept over Elise sympathetically. “I have to call this in.”
Elise nodded.
“Sorry about your birthday.” He kissed her. “We’ll make up for it tomorrow.”
“If this is how my birthday started, I’m a little worried about the rest of the year.”
He smiled. “I still have my gift to give you.” The smile dropped off as the person on the other line answered. “Hello? Detective Steele? There’s been an attempt on Elise’s life.”
Chapter 19
“An attempt on my life?” Elise sat in her window seat with her head against the window sill. “I can’t even believe it.” Her eyes were closed as she listened to Adele blaring through the stereo. A thump on the cushion made her open them again as Max butted her leg. “You like this song, buddy? This is my jam.”
The orange cat closed his eyes and swished his tail hard.
“Oh, a snobby one, eh? Don’t judge me.” She scratched his head.
A flutter outside the glass caught her eye. A bird was building its nest in the cherry tree just outside her window. It landed on a twig and turned its head toward her, one dark eye sparkling. A bit of grass dangled from its beak. It tucked the grass into its nest then, like a flash, it was off.
She looked over at the neighbors’, and couldn’t help the way her mouth twisted to the side in distaste. Oh crap. There he is by his car. Just then, Seth noticed her and waved. As if to emphasize he saw her, he winked and made a shooting motion with his index finger pointed in her direction.
What the heck does that mean?
She scooted from the window and turned down the stereo. So far, she’d been able to wiggle her way out of their invitations for a game night. But how much longer? It seemed like they constantly watched for an opportunity to corner her. Yesterday, Seth had trapped her at the mailbox. Luckily, she’d been able to use her birthday as an excuse out of a long conversation.
Just what she needed right now, weird, possibly psycho neighbors watching her every move. They weren’t really psycho, were they? Why do I keep attracting these types of people?
At least Lucy was doing well at school. Her mom was still in rehab and seemed to be really fighting for recovery for the first time. Lucy had been through it before and still hung on to her skepticism. Elise hoped, for the teen’s sake, that the mom would make good on her promises this time. Summer would be here soon, and the state would reassess the foster care situation then.
What would Elise say to Lucy’s mom when they finally met? Half of her wanted to punch the woman right in the face for allowing a situation where her boyfriend pawed over her teenage daughter, leaving poor Lucy with the only choice but to run away and try to make it on the streets.
The other half wanted to try and rescue the mom, too.
I’ll worry about that later. If I’m not in jail myself. Elise’s eyelids fluttered closed. Dear Lord. I just want a normal life.
She replayed the race on the horse and the two hat pins. What did the pins mean? What about the note? How did this all correlate with Alice in Wonderland?
This is connected. I know it is. Elise reached for her phone and opened the browser. She typed in Alice in Wonderland, shivering with anticipation at what would come up.
At the first picture, she covered her mouth. Of course. How could she be so stupid? The cartoon figure leered at her, looking silly and at the same time menacing. As a little girl, she’d laughed at him.
And his silly tea parties.
The Mad Hatter. Now the sight of him sent a chill straight to her bones. The hat pins were a warning more menacing than a cartoon figure could bring. And, the r
ecent murder in the escape room had only emphasized just how mad.
She thought about the poem she’d received, framed by the weird drawing.
Tic-Toc the clock’s about to stop.
What if Alice never returned from the rabbit hole?
Would she, could she have married?
The hare may be calling her back.
So, what happens when the Mad Hatter thinks he’s in love with someone? What does he do if that person doesn’t return his affections?
She clicked on a link titled ‘The March Hare’ and scrolled through the next pictures. Her eyes widened. There were the same vines that the stalker had drawn on the laughing flowers of her note.
But in this cartoon, the vines had twisted up around Alice until she hung from the air by her neck.
“You just searched this up?” Brad asked. He glanced at her, his face creased with concern.
“I did. And there’s something more. A few days ago someone wrote in the dust in my car—Elise in Wonderland.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner?” His eyes narrowed with frustration. “You can’t keep stuff away from me like that.”
“Honestly, I completely forgot. So much happened that day, and really every day since. I’m telling you now.” She gave him a winning smile.
“I spent all day with you yesterday,” he said dryly.
“As if nothing happened to distract me,” she said back just as dry. She smiled again. “But I remember today and put it together. So there’s that. And I took a picture.” She fumbled with her phone to show him.
“This isn’t a joke,” he said, glancing at it. “You’ve actually had a threat against your life.”
“Well, I don’t know about my life. I mean, how did the guy know I was going to ride that horse? It could have just as easily been you.”
Brad pressed his lips together. “I’ve already thought about that.”
Elise raised her eyebrows. “You have? And what did you come up with?”
“That someone might have been trying to get rid of me to have you all to themselves.”
Elise felt sick to her stomach at the thought.
“So do you have any idea at all who could be doing this?” Brad asked.
“I wish you would stop that.”
“Stop what?”
“Stop asking me as if I haven’t been thinking about it. Don’t you realize I’ve been wracking my brain trying to figure out who it is?”
“Look, it’s not your fault this is happening. But sometimes the stalker is someone the person is very familiar with. I’m just trying to get you to look at each relationship and see if you notice any red flags.”
“Well,” Elise hesitated. “I was thinking it might be the new neighbor.”
“Why do you think it’s him?”
“Besides the creepy things I’ve already told you? I just don’t trust him. He’s always watching me.” Elise frowned at the memory of just that morning, her eyes automatically looking out the window. “It’s probably silly.”
“So what if it's silly?” Brad crossed his arms, the blue flannel shirt creasing at the elbows. “But here’s something I know about you, Elise. You have very good instincts. Don’t doubt yourself.”
Elise tried to put into words what her intuition was telling her. “It's like when I first met them. Seth didn’t act like I was a stranger. He looked at me like he knew me from somewhere.”
“Knew you enough to write you a letter?” Brad’s face was grim. “He’s someone who can see you coming and going. And it would have been easy for him to snap a picture or leave a letter in your mailbox.”
Elise wrinkled her nose. “Except….”
“Except what?” Brad pressed.
“Lucy had said it was someone in a brown truck that had left the letter. And it doesn’t explain the hat pins.”
“Not every question is going to be answered when I get that guy.” Brad’s hands squeezed into fists. “And what if it’s Dave, huh? Have you thought about that?”
“Yes.” Elise nodded. “But my gut tells me he’s a good guy. A little lonely, but sincere.”
“Yeah, well, whoever he's is, I’m bringing him down. He’s messed with the wrong woman.”
Chapter 20
Elise awoke from a dream—or was it a nightmare?—where teacups chased one another as sugar cubes were hurled from a giant metal ladle. Her bedroom door creaked—for the second time, Elise realized—and slowly opened. Every muscle in her body tensed to spring into action.
“Elise?” The whispered words were urgent and laced with fear. “Elise are you awake?”
Lucy. Elise fell back in relief. Reaching over, she checked that her golf club was still standing by the side of the bed, her small nod to protecting herself since Brad had to work the midnight shift tonight.
She tried to sit up, but her legs were trapped in twisted blankets. Too late, she realized Max had also been pinning them down. He stared with disdain from the spot where he’d been rudely transferred to at the end of the bed before licking his paw. Then, without a look back, he jumped to the floor and flounced from the room.
The door was a dark crack with the shadowy figure of the teen clinging to the frame.
“Lucy? Come in! Are you okay?”
“N-no,” came the wavering reply.
“What’s wrong?” When only a sniffle was returned, Elise reached out her arms. “Lucy, come here.”
The teen didn’t need to be asked again. The pale figure dashed across the room, her bare foot visible for a moment in the rectangle of moonlight on the floor. She jumped on the bed, half landing on Elise, who let out a “Whump!”
Lucy didn’t quit wiggling until she’d buried herself under the comforter and curled her cold body against Elise’s. As Elise drew her arm around the teen, Lucy pressed her face against her shoulder. Tears dampened Elise’s t-shirt as the teen’s body shivered. “What’s going on, sweetie? Did you have a nightmare?”
Lucy didn’t answer, but Elise felt the nod against her neck. She held the girl and waited for her to collect herself enough to speak. Finally, soft, faltering words came out.
“I’m afraid of the neighbor.”
“Seth?” Elise felt a wave of anger. What has he done? “I’ll kill him. What did he do to you?”
“No. Linda.” Lucy shivered again. “I’ve seen her outside my school twice now. And sometimes, she just stands at the end of the driveway and stares.
Elise’s mouth dropped open. “What? She does not.”
At this, Lucy pushed away. Her hair was sweaty and her eyes swollen. “She does! I swear it!”
“No. No, Lucy. I believe you. I was just expressing shock. What does she do after she stands there?”
“The last time, she took a picture and typed something on her phone and then walked back to her house.” Lucy sat up and wiped her shirt sleeve down her cheek. “I don’t know what’s going on with them but they creep me out.” She sniffed hard. “And then there’s that white truck. It’s always over there.”
“What do you mean? You’ve seen it at their house, again?”
“Yes. Every night, it’s parked there while you’re making dinner. And it leaves about an hour later.”
“Right before Brad gets here.” Elise closed her eyes as slow fury began to build inside of her at the thought of Linda. Harass my girl? Oh, you’ve had it now.
“And her husband.” Lucy sniffed again.
Elise rolled her eyes. Good grief. Was the whole world going crazy? “Come here,” she said to Lucy, scooting the girl closer and hugging her tighter. “I am so sorry. I thought we solved you having to face any weirdness by having you go home with your friend after school. Do you want to come to the bookstore instead?”
“No. I’m okay. I just wanted to let you know. I couldn’t quit thinking about it tonight.”
“You just need a break. We need to get you out of here. There’s way too much going on, with the pictures, letters, and now crazy neighbors. You w
ant to hang out with Lavina? I bet she can make all of this better.”
Elise could see Lucy smiled a tiny bit by the moonlight. “Lavina?”
“Yes! She’d love to have you. Oh, my gosh. I’m not sure if she won’t give you a makeover or two, but it’ll be a good time.”
Lucy twisted her hair around her finger as a wistful look came on her face. “A makeover?”
The look gripped Elise’s heart. With everything that had been going on, had she neglected Lucy? The poor girl probably needed to do more girl things, things Elise never had been good at. Like walking in high heels, makeup, and knowing what purse went with which outfit. “Yes, a make-over. She’s always threatening to do one on me. Maybe she can teach you some stuff and you can help me later. Would you like that?”
Lucy nodded shyly.
“Okay, then. It’s settled. I’ll call Lavina.”
“All right, Elise.” Lucy snuggled into her pillow and gave a happy sigh. “This is the best thing ever.”
“What’s the best thing? A makeover?”
Lucy giggled. “That’ll be fun. But, seriously, I can’t even tell you. It’s the best thing ever to be taken care of. To know I’m safe. I can’t even express how awesome that is. It’s a first time for me.”
Elise swallowed hard at the lump in her throat. Every girl should know what it feels like to feel safe. It should be such a staple that you only notice when it’s missing, not when it’s given. “Well, good. I’m impressed with how you’ve always known how to keep yourself safe, and now you know there are others who will stand with you, too. You aren’t alone anymore.”
A contented little hum came from Lucy who tugged the covers up to her chin. Elise studied her for a moment. Okay then, I guess she’s sleeping here tonight.
Within moments, heavy, slow breathing indicated Lucy was out. Elise marveled at how quickly the teen fell asleep. Max rejoined them with a leap on the bed. He yawned, his canines glittering in the moonlight, before curling up into an orange ball. His tail covered his nose as he shut his eyes.