Shadow in the Pines

by PJ Nunn

  “Okay,” he said, standing beside and a little behind her. “Hold still.”

  It all happened so fast, she wasn’t sure how he did it, but she saw the broom come over her head and knock the comforter to a heap in the floor. That was all she needed to see. She was out of the room and down the stairs in a flash. She stood shivering in the middle of the living room, listening to Noah cursing and banging around, and keeping a cautious eye on the floor around her feet. He emerged victorious minutes later, descending the stairs with a dead snake draped over the broom handle.

  “Could you get the door for me?”

  Mechanically, she moved to the door and opened it wide, shrinking back as he passed. When he came back inside, she was sitting on the couch with her feet tucked safely up under her.

  “You okay?” he asked, sitting down beside her.

  “Uh huh,” she said numbly. She really wasn’t, but he knew that. “Thanks.”

  “I’ll get your shoes,” he said, getting up. Bandit came out of the kitchen and joined her on the couch, nuzzling her arm with a wet nose.

  “Hey! What were you saying about Bandit before?” she called.

  “I don’t know,” he came back down the steps with her shoes in hand. “Oh, I asked if he got away this morning. He was outside on the porch when I got here.”

  “You’re kidding,” she said, taking her shoes from him and putting them on. “He was inside when I locked up like he always is. I thought you used the spare key to let him out.”

  Noah’s eyes narrowed. “Come on,” he said with a stern look on his face. He extended his hand to help her up, then bent over and scooped Bandit up with one arm.

  “What?”

  “Get your purse and pick me up at my house,” he said, opening the front door. “I’m gonna take Bandit over there while we’re gone.”

  Dani felt the color leave her face. “You don’t think there’s another one in here somewhere do you?”

  “I don’t want to take any chances,” he said grimly.

  She grabbed her purse and hurried out the door after him, locking it with trembling hands. He was waiting for her on his porch when she drove up. Putting the car in park, she got out.

  “You drive,” she said walking around to get in on the passenger side.

  Laying her head back against the seat, she shut her eyes and tried to make some sense out of what just happened. Noah must have been doing the same because he didn’t utter a word until they pulled into the parking lot of El Chico’s.

  “Still hungry?” he asked seriously.

  She nodded, getting out of the car. “It was just a brown house snake, right?” she asked, walking through the door he held open for her.

  “Yep.”

  Dani smiled, starting to relax a little. She was getting used to his moods, too. When he felt tense or unhappy about things, his vocabulary dwindled to sharp, one syllable words.

  In spite of the Friday night crowd, they were seated right away in a red vinyl booth near the kitchen. With a cold beer and a bowl of fresh chips and salsa, he seemed more at ease.

  Dani picked up a chip and munched on it, watching him expectantly. Already, the incident in her bedroom seemed far away – like it happened in another life. Not that she didn’t know it would seem all too real again, once she was back there. Still, the time they’d spent apart made her all the more glad to be with Noah again, regardless of the circumstances.

  “Well, I wish I knew what the hell that was,” he said finally, his usually light brown eyes dark as thunderclouds.

  “It was scary, that’s what it was,” she answered. “I don’t know what I’d have done if you weren’t there.”

  “I can fix that,” he smiled, but the act didn’t yet reach his eyes.

  Dani’s heart warmed as she watched the brooding frown deepen and the muscle working rhythmically in his jaw. It was a new feeling to have a man care about her the way Noah did. Even in the midst of terror, she’d been sure if she could just get him in there, everything would be all right. She couldn’t help but be aware that ten years of marriage with Mark had never provoked the same feeling and shook her head to prevent that line of thought from continuing.

  “I guess I better check the foundation and make sure everything’s sealed up good,” she mused, shifting in her seat so the waitress could set down her plate.

  “That snake didn’t crawl in through your foundation,” he snorted.

  “You don’t know that,” she argued. She really, really didn’t want to think about the alternative, although, on second thought, neither one was good.

  “Dani,” his voice dripped sarcasm, “I suppose you’ll tell me Bandit crawled out through the same hole.”

  She had a sudden image of a cartoon Bandit trying to squeeze out a hole in her foundation. Resting her elbows on the table, she dropped her face into her hands, then peeked at him between two fingers. “Do we have to do this?”

  His mouth twitched with the beginnings of a real smile.

  “Oh, all right. Talk to me,” she moaned.

  “I think somebody is not happy with you.”

  “Oh shit! I forgot I never told you!” she said, washing down a bite of quesadilla with a drink of beer. “Somebody called me last night!” She watched his face go from stern to granite as she filled in the details of the call.

  “Damn, woman! Why didn’t you call me right then?”

  “Because I didn’t know where you were,” she snapped back at him.

  “You’re right,” he conceded, raising his hands in mock surrender. “I’m sorry. I just can’t figure out what they think you know…”

  “I know,” she agreed. “Or what they’re afraid I’ll find? And who the hell are they, anyway? I love my house, but I swear, it’s like that place is cursed,” she said, taking another bite of enchilada.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Like, today, when I was talking to Joe,” she remembered too late that she wasn’t going to mention that unless Noah brought it up. It was done now, might as well forge ahead. “His wife worked at Ophidian when they first came here,” she said. “Then she died, three months later.”

  “How’d she die?” he looked up suddenly.

  “Oh, it wasn’t related. She got hit by a car,” she said. “But still, it’s like… I don’t know…you know, I never have trouble getting along with the people I work with, but these guys all treat me like I have the plague or something.”

  “What was her name?” he asked, pulling a small spiral out of his back pocket.

  “Paula Abraham,” she said.

  “And she died not long before those kids disappeared?”

  “Yeah,” she said, remembering the look on Joe’s face when he told her about it. “It’s sad.”

  “I don’t like any of this,” he said, pushing his plate aside.

  “I know,” she shook her head. “It just doesn’t seem real - except when it’s happening, I mean. Are you sure this isn’t a bunch of strange coincidences?”

  He looked straight at her with a cocked eyebrow and a crooked smile. “Right. Let’s see… you’ve been here for three months. In that time, you’ve seen a man standing in the woods staring at your house…you’ve been locked in your cellar…you’ve had a phone call warning you to get out…and you found a huge snake under your bed,” he said. “Oh, and you left your dog locked in the house, but when you came home, the snake was in and your dog was out, but the door was still locked. Yeah, I’m sure it’s just a string of coincidences,” he smirked.

  “Well, if you put it that way,” she joked with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

  “And it’s also a coincidence that you bought the house after it sat empty for years because six years ago, when it was owned by a doctor from Ophidian, two students…no, three students vanished without a trace,” he continued. “Circumstantial, maybe, but coincidence? No fucking way.” He dropped his napkin on his plate and pulled his cigarettes out of his pocket. “Want one?” he offered.
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br />   Dani shook her head. “No, but don’t tempt me.”

  “Let me ask you something,” she said slowly. “Do you think it’s me? Or is it the house?”

  “You know,” he pointed at her, “that’s a good question. I’ve asked a hell of a lot more questions about the case in the last couple of weeks than you have. Nobody’s coming after me.”

  “Well,” she laughed. “Look at you. Nobody in their right mind would come after you. You’re armed and dangerous.”

  “Yeah, well, maybe I better make sure they know that. And make sure they know if they touch you they’ll have me to deal with,” he said sharply.

  “I just wish I knew who ‘they’ were,” she said, picking up her purse as he laid out money for the check on the table.

  “It’s only a matter of time, my dear,” he smiled, getting up from the table.

  “It looks a lot better from the outside,” she smiled, walking into Noah’s living room for the first time.

  Bandit was right at home, curled into a fuzzy ball on the worn out olive green sofa. A tattered afghan covered some of the holes, but threads hung down from the arms that looked like they’d done double duty as scratching posts for an energetic cat. A blue ceramic lamp with a crooked shade provided the only light in the room, and a card table with folding chairs sat off to the side by the kitchen.

  Noah grinned sheepishly. “I’m hardly ever here…”

  “Now I know why,” she laughed. “You do have a bed, don’t you?”

  After dinner, they’d gone to the movies and on the way home he insisted that she and Bandit sleep over. Tomorrow, he’d go through her house with a fine-toothed comb and make sure it was safe for them to be there. After meeting that snake under her bed and having subsequent visions of what might have happened if she hadn’t lost her shoe, she didn’t argue with him. Never mind that the snake wasn’t poisonous, she’d have died of fright if she’d wakened in the night with it slithering across the bed.

  “Come on, I’ll give you the tour,” he said, reaching for her hand. “You don’t want to look in there,” he nodded at a closed door in the hall. “That’s where everything I don’t know what to do with goes, you know, like boxes and laundry I don’t have time to wash.”

  She smiled, looking up at his face and wondering how she got so lucky.

  “Here’s the guest bath,” he opened the next door.

  “Have a lot of guests, do you?” she asked.

  “No, I don’t have a lot of guests,” he mimicked her teasing tone. “But if I did, I thought I should have a clean bathroom.” He led her to the door at the end of the hall. “Ta da!” he threw the door open. In the center of the room was a king sized bed, unmade, but bigger than hers. Dani couldn’t resist peeking under it, just to be sure. An end table resided on one side with a green banker’s lamp, a phone, and a clock radio.

  “The bathroom’s in here,” he opened a door with a sweeping gesture. “And, the closet’s in here.”

  “So, where will you sleep?” she teased, screaming when he crossed the room and scooped her up, depositing her in the middle of the bed.

  “I’m not letting you out of my sight,” he growled, leaning forward to kiss the hollow at the base of her neck.

  “Ooohhh, if only that were true,” she sighed, reaching behind her and pulling a pillow up under her head.

  When she looked back at him, the expression on his face caused her to catch her breath, and she reached up, stroking his face with her hand. What she felt for him at that moment was so intense, there were no words she knew to express it. He pulled her to him and hugged her so hard it hurt. She’d never felt so loved and protected in all her life, and she held tightly to his back, reveling in the feel of the muscles that rippled beneath his shirt.

  “Hold that thought,” he rasped, breaking away and jumping up. He dashed out into the hall, then returned, already removing his shirt. “All locked up,” he said, flipping the light off and shutting the door. “Just try and get away now,” he teased, dropping his jeans where he stood.

  “Not on your life,” she murmured, smiling, as he fell in to the bed and kissed her with a hunger she returned without shame.

  Chapter Ten

  When she woke, Dani was disconcerted momentarily. Struggling up on one elbow, she kicked a heap of covers off her feet and squinted at the sunlight streaming in the window as she looked around the room. Noah’s house, she remembered. Yawning, she gingerly put one foot on the floor, smiling as she realized it was carpeted. Bandit had taken to dragging her throw rugs around the room and invariably, the first thing her bare foot touched in the morning was cold, hard wood.

  Gathering her clothes from a heap in the floor, she headed for the bathroom. Noah had a shower, something she didn’t think she’d miss until she didn’t have one. As much as she loved long soaks in her tub, there was nothing like starting the day with a brisk shower to help her wake up. No matter what time it was, waking up was not one of her best things. When she emerged from the shower, she heard him banging around in the kitchen and called out to him.

  “Can I borrow a shirt?”

  “Help yourself,” he answered. “In the closet.”

  It was surprisingly neat in there, and she was amazed to find a nice assortment of dress clothes. All she’d ever seen him in was jeans and casual shirts. It would be interesting to see how he decked out for the Rose Dance next weekend. Selecting a plaid flannel shirt that looked less enormous than the others, she buttoned it up and padded to the kitchen, still rolling up the sleeves that dangled to mid thigh.

  “Morning,” she smiled, grazing his cheek on tiptoe. “Whatcha making?”

  He was fully dressed and had plates already laid out on the card table.

  “Omelets,” he said. “We actually eat breakfast at my house,” he grinned.

  “Long as you cook it, I’ll eat,” she smiled, searching for a coffee cup.

  “Beside the sink,” he read her mind. “Coffee’s over there,” he pointed to a pot in the corner.

  “Can I help with anything?” she asked as she filled her cup.

  “Nope,” he said. “All done. Sit down.”

  She did as he asked, watching him with fascination. He was an odd mixture of rough and gentle, but she wondered how many people ever really got to see the gentle part. He never talked about friends or family, and she’d never seen him with anyone else. As witty and handsome as he was, that seemed strange. She was aware of the way the waitresses stole looks at him when he wasn’t watching, and the men always treated him with respect. She’d never seen him really angry, either, but she’d seen enough to know she didn’t want to be on the receiving end of that.

  “There you go,” he said, sliding an omelet onto her plate. A moment later he returned with a basket of hot biscuits and sat down beside her. “How’s that for service?”

  “Perfect,” she smiled, taking a bite of one of the best omelets she’d ever had. “Hey, this is good,” she said.

  “But of course,” he winked at her. “If I do something, I do it right.”

  She couldn’t argue with that. “You know, it’s Thanksgiving in a week and a half,” she said, thinking out loud.

  “So it is,” he said. “You going out of town?”

  “No.”

  Even when she was married to Mark, they rarely celebrated. Doctors took off on holidays and left their patients to the residents. “I love holidays, though,” she said wistfully. “Even when we didn’t have any money, my mom always made it special.”

  A small sigh escaped her lips as she remembered. When she and Mark were first married, she’d tried so hard to duplicate what her mom did for her growing up, but Mark thought she was being childish. He wanted cocktail parties and banquets instead of turkey dinners with homemade pies and tree trimming parties with caroling later.

  “What about you?” she asked, shaking herself. “What do you do for the holidays?”

  He shrugged, looking intently at his plate. “I don’t know. If I�
��m not working, I just do…whatever.”

  “You don’t have any family?” she asked, hoping it wasn’t too rude.

  “Well,” he said, “I haven’t seen my dad since I was six, and Mom died when I was twenty-two.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to pry.”

  “No,” he took her hand. “You’re not. It’s just the way it is.”

  They ate in silence for a while. Dani didn’t know for sure whether he wanted to talk about it or not.

  “You know how to cook a turkey?” he asked, finally.

  “I do,” she smiled broadly. “Want to come over for Thanksgiving?”

  “You think you can top this?” he held up a fork with his last bite of omelet.

  “Damn straight,” she said with a smile. “I’ve been practicing.”

  “Deal, then,” he said, getting up and carrying his dishes into the kitchen. “Now,” he said, looking at her from the sink, “Why don’t you clean this up and I’ll go on over to your house and check it out. You can come on when you’re done.”

  “Okay,” she said. It wouldn’t take long to clear these dishes but she was in no rush to go back in her house until she knew there were no more snakes lurking in there.

  When she’d finished the kitchen, Dani took the shortcut through the trees and got to the driveway just in time to see a truck pull back out onto the road.

  “Noah,” she called, climbing the porch stairs.

  “In here,” he answered, coming out of the kitchen wiping his hands on a dishtowel.

  “Who was here?” she asked, glancing around the floor quickly as she entered. The house that seemed so comfortable yesterday morning seemed cold and unfriendly today.

  “That was your sociable neighborhood locksmith,” he smiled. “I had him change all the locks and check the windows.”

  “Oh.” He sure didn’t waste any time. “You really think someone came in here and planted that snake, don’t you?”

  He came closer and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Yes’m, I do. I have something else for you, too.” Giving her shoulders a quick squeeze, he went back into the kitchen and emerged carrying a pistol. “Ever shot one of these?”