"My God, Kat. I never imagined anything that freaking outrageous, that crazy man and all those objects flying around. If I didn't know you better, I'd think you were hallucinating. But I can see you're not doing well. You're pale and jittery. Why aren't you in a hospital getting checked out?"
"I don't need to."
Maggie rose from the couch. "Come on, get your jacket. I'm taking you to emergency."
"No, Maggie, sit down. I'm doing fine. Just a few flashbacks, but I'm sure those will go away."
"Fine, my ass." Maggie sat again and with probing eyes looked at Kat. "You're probably suffering from PTSD. If you won't go to the hospital, I'd advise you to call Dr. Rosen Monday morning. Why don't you come with me, so I can take care of you? I'll see to it that you get in to see him. My God."
"Will you calm down? I'm going to be okay. All I need is rest."
"Like hell."
"Maggie, please."
"All right, all right. So, what happened after the doctor's death? Did you call the authorities? I can't believe they let you leave Rosswood without getting checked out."
"I insisted on coming home."
"That sounds like you, always taking care of yourself."
"I could have had help."
Kat told Maggie about Chance's suspicions and his calling the sheriff, about Chance following her home and wanting to look after her. She tried to sound detached when talking about Chance, but she couldn't help her voice from shaking a little when speaking his name.
"What a freaking nightmare. I can't believe what you've been through." Maggie leaned back with her wineglass. "And that lunatic made all those freaking calls to you."
"As a matter of fact, it was the postman who did that. A strange little man. He adored Brianna, and I guess he transferred those feelings to me."
"What a town." Maggie wagged her head. "So, who's this 'Chance'? I don't believe you mentioned him to me, unless he was one of those reasons you wanted to come home."
Even over the fire's warmth, Kat felt her skin flush. "He's just a man I met there and became friends with," she tossed lightly at Maggie, trying not to arouse too much curiosity.
"That's rather vague. Can you be more specific? How much of a friend was he? How friendly did you get?"
"Friendly, friendly." Kat's face flushed again.
"You mean you had sex."
"Just once and it was a mistake. It was after I'd been getting those weird calls and after there was a break-in at Brianna's house. I wasn't home at the time, but Chance was kind enough to let me stay in his house."
"And you had sex."
"Yes, now can we move beyond that topic?"
"Not on your life. I know you, Kat, and you don't party around, and you don't hook up with anyone unless you have feelings for them, am I right?"
"But every relationship I've ever had I've screwed up."
"You mean you walk away just when things get complicated. You never give them a chance."
"Bingo."
"Why do you think that is?"
"I don't know. Maybe I'm destined to be alone."
"Maybe it's because you left home at such a young age and never had a fulfilling relationship with your father."
Kat tipped her head back and laughed. "Okay, Mrs. Freud."
"You laugh, but it just might be true. So, why don't you call this guy and make nice?"
"I didn't exactly tell him to his face I was leaving town. He's probably mad as hell."
"Oh, boy, that's so like you. But if he cares about you, he'll get over it." Maggie checked her watch. "I have to go. I have phone calls to make. I have a client that needed help yesterday." She put on her jacket and hat. "Why don't you pack some things and come home with me, dear? I don't feel right about leaving you alone."
"I'd really rather sleep in my own bed. I've been looking forward to it." She set her glass next to Maggie's.
"What if Brianna keeps haunting you?"
"I don't think she will. I feel she's at peace now."
"She should be. She got her own brand of justice. I still can't believe that." Maggie walked to the foyer. "Promise me you'll call anytime, and I don't care if it's two in the morning. I'll check on you tomorrow."
"Thanks for being my ear, but we never discussed work or when I should return. Maybe in a couple of days."
"Work can wait. You're still on vacation as far as I'm concerned. I want you to promise to call Rosen Monday morning."
"I will."
"After that we'll see about sending you to a week-long spa for a real vacation. In fact, I already have one in mind," Maggie said, causing Kat to chuckle. "What's so funny?"
"Somehow I knew you would suggest that."
"Great minds think alike, hey kid?" She drew Kat into a warm hug. "And don't give up on men. You could use a little TLC. Think about calling that fellow. Anyone that caring has potential. Great name, by the way. Could be prophetic, as in Kat takes a Chance. Hah!"
"Goodbye, Maggie."
"Bye, my dear." She tweaked Kat's cheek and fled into the nippy evening.
Kat let the fire burn out on its own while she put away the food that neither of them had touched. She checked the locks on both doors, twice, and turned off the lights in the house.
She took the nightlight from the bathroom and plugged it into a bedroom socket. She dressed for bed and retired early. To keep the doctor's face from surfacing, she focused her mind on Chance, his bellowing burros, his beautiful yet modest home, and Zeke, the boisterous pup. Her thoughts circled back to Chance. It was as if he were murmuring in her ear, "Stay strong, Kat. Stay strong."
* * *
With morning light blanketing her room, Kat was pleasantly surprised. She hadn't woken from cold sweats, ghoulish dreams, or unsettling visions.
Sweeping the bedroom curtains back revealed a rather gloomy, overcast day, but the ground was dry. It hadn't rained overnight—a good day for a refreshing walk.
She dressed in a clean pair of jeans and a turtleneck, and laced up her walking shoes. She slicked her hair into a ponytail and splashed water over her face. Chance had remarked positively on her natural look, but she wondered how he'd feel if he saw her today, her face exhibiting the revealing signs of battle fatigue. But sadly he wouldn't be seeing her.
For breakfast she sipped orange juice and ate a bite of banana and handful of almonds, considered it a better meal than corn chips and wine.
On passing the fireplace and glimpsing the metal poker, she froze, and the image of the doctor's dead body sent a flurry of shudders up her spine. She grabbed her jacket from the coatrack and went outside to clear away the impressions.
Autumn was in full force in the yellows, oranges, and browns of the surrounding maples. Her neighbor, Mr. Singleton, was busy raking leaves, a chore she also had to do. She waved to him. As usual he acknowledged her with a nod and went back to work. He respected her privacy and rarely pried into her affairs, but if she needed help, he was always available.
The neighborhood was a mix of homes for singles, families, and retirees, with an occasional student rental thrown in. A large Catholic cathedral as old as the city took up half a block. Soon its parishioners would be filing in for Sunday services.
Kat ventured as far as the empty playfield several blocks from her home. A man passed through with his Labrador retriever bounding ahead. The scene reminded her of Chance.
She turned around to go back. All along the way were hints of Halloween to come--a scary pumpkin face sitting on a porch, a cutout of a ghost hanging in a window. A cinnamon scent drifted out from an open door. At the idea of handing out sweets to the neighborhood goblins and witches, her spirits rose. When her slate blue house came into view, she was ready to make a pot of hot apple cider.
Sitting on her steps was a young woman, wrapped in a black car coat over blue jeans with a red wool scarf around her neck. Kat didn't recognize the blond punk hairdo, but the face seemed familiar. What gave her identity away were her penetrating aqua eyes. On seeing
Kat, she bounced to her feet and smiled. "Are you Kat Summers? I'm Stella."
"Chance's daughter."
She extended her hand for Kat to shake. "I'm here on behalf of my dad."
"Why don't we go inside where we can talk?" Kat unlocked the door for them and allowed Stella to enter first.
Stella walked into the living room, taking everything in. "Nice house. I like the greens and reds. It reminds me of Christmas. I love old houses like this and all the natural wood."
Kat hung her jacket on the coatrack. "I've been updating it as much as I can. May I take your coat? Would you like something to drink? Tea? Water?"
"No, thanks. I can't stay long."
"Please have a seat then." Kat indicated the chair by the fireplace since Stella was closest to it, and she took the couch. "Chance mentioned you were a student at the university."
"I'm a sophomore this year."
"What are you majoring in?"
"Art history and political science."
"That's quite a combination."
"My mom was an art major, and my dad encouraged me to take political science classes because he said it would prepare me better for getting into law school."
"Is that what you want to do?"
"For now it is. I might change my mind later."
"It's always a good idea to keep your options open."
"Dad said you were a hotshot real estate mogul."
Kat chuckled at the notion. "I'd hardly use the words mogul or hotshot to describe what I do, but he got the real estate part right. Why did your dad send you over here?"
"He didn't. It was my idea."
"Your idea?"
"Yeah. When I talked to him yesterday," Stella said, "he was like super depressed about you leaving Rosswood. He told me all about you, and I'd never heard him this excited about anyone in a long time. Ever since he moved to the ranch, he's kept pretty much to himself, and he was sort of like a womanizer before."
She continued, her eyes animated. "The reason I know that is because he let me read his novel. I know it's really about his former life, before Rosswood. We had this long father/daughter discussion about it because he wanted me to know before the book got published."
She was now on the edge of her seat, taking in a deep breath. "So, anyway, he said he let you read it, and you left Rosswood because of it."
"Is that what he thinks?"
"He thinks you don't like him because of what he used to do," she said. "I had a hard time with it myself at first, because now my dad isn't anything like the man in the book. You should have seen him take care of my mom when she was sick, and they weren't even married then. He took care of me after she died. And even though he traveled a lot before, he always called me and sent me presents and visited when he could. Oh, I almost forgot. He set up a charitable foundation in my mom's honor to help people with cancer, and he is involved in other charities. He really is a good man."
"So, you came all the way over here to plead his case."
"I offered," Stella said. "My dorm is only about ten blocks from here, and I told Dad I was going to come over to see you today. He's really a nice man despite what he wrote in that book. I wish you would give him another chance to explain like he did with me. I read the book, and I still love him." She drew in a long, needed breath.
Kat had to grin at this resourceful young lady for sticking up for her father. "Stella, I can assure you that his book had no bearing on my decision to leave Rosswood. I left for personal reasons."
Stella's expectant expression paled into sadness. "Do you already have a boyfriend?"
"No, it's nothing like that."
"You don't like my dad?"
"You'd make a great lawyer."
"I'm sorry. I'm butting in where I don't belong."
"No, no, it's all right," Kat said. "The reason is I haven't had a relationship in a long time and . . ." How could she state this? "I just got scared. I didn't mean to hurt your father."
Stella's face brightened. "Then you do like him. Would you call him and explain that to him? He'd really like to hear from you. He's so sad. I can just picture him moping around the house. I hate to see him that way."
The girl's empathy-filled eyes touched Kat. What else could she do? "Okay, I promise I'll call him. That's the least I can do for all your efforts on his behalf. It was pretty brave of you to come."
Grinning, Stella popped out of her chair and gave Kat a quick hug. "Oh, thank you, thank you, Ms. Summers. He'll be so happy. I'm so happy."
"You can call me Kat."
"I'd better go now. Do you want his phone number? I can give it to you."
"Not to worry. I have his number."
"Thanks again, Kat. I hope I see you again. It would be so cool."
"Wait here a second." Kat found one of her business cards in a desk drawer and wrote her home phone number on the back. She transferred it to Stella. "That's my home number. No matter what happens between me and your dad, you're welcome to stop by anytime you're in the neighborhood, or you can call me. Maybe we could go out to lunch."
"That would be awesome. I'd like that." She was halfway down the sidewalk when she turned around. "Dad said something bad happened to you in Rosswood, but he didn't tell me what it was. I hope you're okay."
"I'm fine, Stella. Not to worry."
"I'm glad." Stella waved to Kat and disappeared down the street.
With the help of Maggie and Stella, fate was having its way and pushing Kat to contact Chance. First, she had to think through what she would say to him, if indeed she intended to go through with the call.
CHAPTER 35
Zeke scrambled to his feet, and Chance nearly tripped over him, getting to the phone. "Stella, I've been waiting half the day for your call."
"I know, Dad."
"What took you so long? I thought you were going to call me right after you saw Kat. You did see her, didn't you?" His grip tightened around the receiver.
"Dad, I had an errand to run on my way back to the dorm. Do you want to know what she said, or do you want to argue over the time it took me to call you?"
Stella could always match his moods, and he took a breath to release the tension. Zeke's wagging tail swatted his leg, and he motioned for the dog to lie down.
"You saw her then. What did she say? Was she all right?"
"Yeah, I saw her, and she was really nice. She has the neatest house."
"Did you give her my number and tell her to call me?"
"She already had your number, and she said she left because she got scared. It wasn't because of the book."
"She wasn't put off by my background?"
"I guess not. I think she still likes you. At least she didn't say she didn't like you."
"But is she going to call?"
"She said she would."
"All right, honey. I'd better get off the phone just in case."
"Oh, Dad, wait. She gave me her home phone number and said I could call her anytime. Do you want it?"
Thinking the angels were smiling down on him, he wrote the number on the back of Kat's business card underneath her address. "I love you, sweetie. Thanks for helping your old dad."
"I love you, too, Dad. You know this is weird, don't you?"
"I suppose it is."
"I hope it works out for you because I really liked her."
"How did she look, Stella? Does she seem okay?"
"She's really pretty. She seemed okay to me, just a little tired looking."
"Okay, honey, I'll take it from here. I'll call you again soon."
"Bye, Dad."
When Chance turned around, Zeke rose with expectant eyes. He gave Zeke a pat. "Kat said she'd call me, boy. What do you think of that?" Zeke barked twice.
Chance fixed a sandwich for himself and tossed a piece of cheese to Zeke, who caught it in midair. While eating, Chance stared at the phone as if it were a bomb ready to detonate. He hadn't had this itchy feeling since he'd courted Meredith.
Waiting was
never his strong suit. He liked taking action, and that was exactly what he intended to do. He slipped Kat's business card into his shirt pocket and jogged into the bedroom to pack an overnight bag.
As he was situating the bag in the passenger's seat of his truck, Zeke ran off to greet Rusty, who was striding up from the barn. "You heading out somewhere, boss?"
"I'm going to Seattle, and I'm not sure when I'll be back. Maybe in a day or two. Would you look after Zeke?"
"Hey, ain't that where that Summers woman lives?"
"I'll call if I get delayed." Chance smoothed back Zeke's coat. "You be good for Rusty." He rounded the bumper and slid into the driver's seat.
"That woman beats out any of them others you've had around here, specially that French lady. If I was you, I sure wouldn't let that Summers woman get away."
For once Chance planned to heed Rusty's advice. When he was well over the pass on the western side of the mountains, he pulled off the freeway and punched in Kat's home number. The line was busy. That meant she was home.
* * *
Kat waited out five rings before she hung up. It had taken her all afternoon to work up the courage to call Chance, and he wasn't even answering. She could try his cell phone. But maybe it was better this way. She wouldn't have to explain something as confusing as her life was at the moment.
As the day progressed, the clouds darkened, and the rain changed from sprinkles to showers. The weather didn't matter to her. She was comfy inside. If she could stop thinking about Friday night at the cabin, she might enjoy another blaze in the fireplace. The trouble was that the horrible images wouldn't go away.
She poured a cup of hot apple cider and opened her briefcase on the table. Work would occupy her time now. It always had.
But her thoughts wandered to Chance and why she hadn't been able to contact him. It seemed fate was teasing her, testing her to see how committed she was to connecting with him.
Why did she want to anyway? Because he was a loving, caring, powerful man, and easy on the eyes, no doubt about that. But he was also impatient, stubborn, maddening at times, an overbearing brute. So why bother?
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