Plain Obsession (Hunters Ridge Book 1)

by Alison Stone

  "Boy, we really did come from two different worlds." Theo squeezed her hand.

  Violet raised an eyebrow, then picked up her fork and pushed the last fish stick on her plate around. "I never knew what I was missing."

  "I'm sure." He dragged his thumb across the back of her hand, sending tingles of awareness across her skin. She wondered if he realized the effect that simple action had on her. "Was there something that brought you here?"

  The hopefulness in his eyes made her decide a work discussion could wait. "We can talk tomorrow. Want to drop Liam off at ten at the base of the trail near the lake? I need to work up to the hill around the house. I’m a little rusty. I'll pick him up snowshoes."

  "You don't have to."

  "I want to,” she said with a decisiveness that she hoped would put an end to the back and forth.

  Theo smiled. "Sounds like a plan." Theo squeezed her hand again, then stood to clear the dishes.

  As she looked around the cozy house, Violet realized that this was what she wanted.

  Not a big, important job.

  Not money.

  Not world travel.

  This.

  Peace. Happiness. A family of her own.

  But maybe Theo didn't want her. She came with too much baggage. Either way, she couldn't dare suggest a relationship until she was sure. She couldn't do that to Liam.

  She couldn't do it to herself.

  Chapter 20

  The next morning, Violet pulled into the empty parking lot near the hiking trail and drew in a deep breath. As the snow fell, she felt a certain tranquility she hadn't felt in a long time. She doubted she would have ever dug out her old snowshoes if Liam hadn't asked.

  Dressed in a snow jacket and snow pants, she opened the door of the SUV and climbed out. The bright sun warmed her cheeks, making the cold air bearable. Her pants made a whooshing noise as she moved around to the trunk. She had found her snowshoes in the basement of the big house and Isaac had dug up a pair of kids' snowshoes. She had given them the once-over and hoped the bindings would work with Liam's boots. She'd take him shopping for his own pair if he decided he liked the sport.

  She tossed her snowshoes on the ground. She better get strapped up and give it a whirl before Liam got here so she didn't look so out of practice.

  A crack sounded in the nearby tree line and a knot twisted in her stomach as she stared in that direction. It’s nothing. She went back to getting ready. Over the past few weeks, she had to continually remind herself that she didn't have to be free from panic symptoms in order to live her life. That was all part of moving past her panic. Feel the symptoms and act in spite of them.

  The knot eased a bit as she slid her boot into the bindings. She adjusted the straps, then attached the other boot. She lifted her foot with the snowshoe attached and smiled. She had been so busy working over the years, she had forgotten to do a lot of things, including taking time for herself.

  She grabbed the ski poles and took large steps over to the deeper snow on a slight incline leading down to the lake. If Liam was up for it, they could take a hike along the path winding up the hill, or they could stay close to the parking lot and keep their hike on a level surface.

  She dug a ski pole into the snow and kept moving forward, the sluice-sluice-sluice of her ski pants as her snowshoes bit into the snow giving her a sense of accomplishment.

  The sweat pooled under her heavy coat even though the temperatures couldn't be more than twenty degrees, and she laughed at herself. She better get back into shape. She stopped and turned around. She'd have to wait for Liam before going any farther. The back hatch yawned open and she tried to ignore the edge of impatience intruding on the peaceful morning.

  She returned to the SUV and took a sip of water. Another snap, like a tree branch cracking, drew her attention toward the shadowed path winding through the trees. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on edge. A reminder of the anxiety that always hovered just below the surface? Or her body's fight or flight response to a very real threat?

  That was the frustration of having anxiety—the body couldn't always distinguish between the two.

  Violet drew in a deep breath and let it out. You’re fine. Elmer’s in jail. No one’s going to hurt you.

  And Theo and Liam would be here any minute. She tugged back the sleeve of her jacket and saw that it was ten to ten. She suddenly wished she didn't have a propensity for being early.

  That's when a shadow exploded from between the trees.

  Terror seized her heart and a scream lodged in her throat.

  Dressed in an oversized winter coat and a ski mask, the man yanked the ski pole from Violet's hand. Her snowshoes made it impossible to move quickly. He swung the pole hard and it connected with her knee. She let out a yelp and went down. The pain was excruciating as her knee bent at an awkward angle. Her boots snapped out of their bindings, leaving her sitting in the snow looking up at a masked man.

  "Please, leave me alone," she whispered. "Please don't hurt me."

  He lifted the pole and swung it hard. It landed across her right arm with a thwack. Her bulky winter jacket buffered some of the sting.

  Tears blurred her vision as she lifted her hands. "Please, don't."

  Something made the man freeze and they locked gazes. Something familiar around his eyes made her blood run cold. Did she dare let on that she recognized him? Would that make things better or worse?

  How much worse could things get if he was going to pummel her with her own ski pole?

  "You couldn't leave things alone." The man lifted the front of the ski mask.

  Chad Cooper stared at her with an angry expression unlike any she had ever seen. A dark bruise colored his cheek.

  "Stop, please. Don’t hurt me."

  "I'm not going to prison." Chad reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a gun.

  Violet tried to stand up by pushing her gloved hands into the snow, but her knee was out of whack. She thought she'd have a better chance of reasoning with him if they were on the same level. Instead, she had to sit in the snow and look up at him and plead for her life.

  What’s going on?

  "Why are you doing this, Chad?" Her voice sounded hollow in her ears.

  Dear Lord, please help me.

  A slow smile crept up his face. Violet hardly knew Chad—he seemed to make himself scarce around Cooper and Sons Lumber—but she had never imagined this. Why was he attacking her? "Whatever trouble you're in, you don't have to do this."

  "You know darn well why I have to do this. You just won't stop…"

  A band tightened around her chest. Of course. The financial records she couldn’t reconcile.

  He ran a shaky hand across his hair and puffed out a heavy breath on a cloud of vapors. "I never meant to," he said, rather cryptically.

  "Whatever you did, we can fix it."

  Chad looked off in the distance, a look of desperation on his face. "They're after me. I'm in too deep. I need some time to fix it and I can't do that with you in the way."

  "And hurting me is going to help?" Her voice cracked on the word hurting, sensing deep in her bones that Chad Cooper's intentions were far more sinister than to simply hurt her. He was out of his mind.

  Chad seemed to snap out of it a bit and shook his head. He dragged a hand across his face, shoving the ski mask farther back on his head. He retrained the gun on her. "There's no way I can pay the money back. And I deserved that money. My father deserved that money. My father and Theo's father took over the business from Grandpa Cooper. But all the money is flowing to Uncle Mick. All our hard work is going to pay for his condo by the ocean. I can't…"

  Violet’s heart raced in her chest. She wished she could get to her feet. Get away. But her throbbing knee was the least of her concerns.

  "I still owe too many people. They paid a visit to me last night. They're going to kill me if I don't come up with the money."

  Violet held her breath, allowing him to continue.

  "I s
hould have never stepped foot in the casino…" Chad's voice shook this time. His words seemed to be spilling out in a trancelike state.

  "Hurting me won't solve anything. It'll cause more problems for you." A chill skittered up her spine and it had nothing to do with the cold snow she was sitting in. "I can give you the money," she added, hope threading her voice. “My mother’s rich.”

  Chad stopped and stared at her, as if considering it. "No, it's too late for that. You'll tell Theo."

  "No, I won’t," Violet said forcefully. “No one has to know.”

  "I've waited. I've tried to dissuade you. You couldn't put the books together with 'just good enough.' But I can't have you poking around in Cooper and Sons' finances anymore."

  Keep him talking.

  Realization rained over her. "You set the fire in the trailer. You almost killed your nephew." She tried to appeal to his humanity.

  "I didn't see him…" Chad's voice trailed off and he grew more twitchy. "I did everything to try to stop you without hurting anyone. I flattened your tire, stalked your house, watched as you left the trailer…" He laughed, but his eyes looked dead. “You should have been easier to scare away considering your history.”

  He knew about her panic attacks.

  “What about the accident in the warehouse?” She struggled to keep her voice even.

  “Hired a kid to keep track of you. Idiot took it upon himself to hop on the forklift and tip over some boxes.” Chad ran the heel of his hand across his scrunched-up nose. “Total screw-up. If he had been caught, he would have ruined everything.” He locked gazes with her and there was a hint of glee in his dark eyes. “I had you convinced you had a stalker.”

  “I don’t understand. How did you know?” Her lower lip trembled as she searched past him, her eyes on the road. Please hurry, Theo. Come on. If Chad knew she was going to be here, didn’t he know Theo was on the way?

  "I overheard you telling Theo about your stalker back when we were all in high school." He tapped the side of his head with the gun. "I'm good at remembering that stuff. I underestimated you, though. I figured you’d run away if you thought he was back. Give me time to win big, pay back everything I owe.” He let out a huff through his nose. “You don't scare so easy. But Elmer…” He laughed. “That Amish dude has some pent-up rage. Made it so easy to pin this on him. I hid the bomb supplies in his car and just waited for him to do something stupid. Didn’t take long. He was bound to confront you. You were bound to call the sheriff. Figured they’d find the stuff in his trunk eventually. Him chasing you and crashing into a tree was just icing on the cake. What kind of sane person does that? Made it easier for people to think he had been harassing you all along.”

  "No one has been seriously hurt. You can turn this around now." Violet tried to push to her feet again and collapsed under her weak knee.

  “Stop wearing yourself out. You won’t get away.” The certainty of his words made it difficult to breathe.

  “I won’t tell anyone.”

  Chad's dark gaze snapped back to hers. "Give me a break. You won't keep this secret. You’ll go running to Theo."

  Violet straightened, trying to act more self-assured. "I don't owe Theo anything. He humiliated me at prom by telling Jenny I was a pity date and she locked me in a bathroom stall. I made a fool of myself."

  Chad's brow furrowed, as if he weren't following. "That was a long time ago. Who cares?"

  "I care. Do you think people forget these things in a small town?"

  An evil smile worked on the corners of his mouth. "I heard about how freaked you were that night." He jerked his chin toward her. "Why aren't you scared now?"

  Violet swallowed hard, fighting the urge to run away screaming, if she hadn’t had a bum knee. "Because I know you won't hurt me. We can work something out together. I'll give you the money."

  The sound of her phone ringing drew Chad's attention. "Where's your phone?"

  "My purse. In the trunk." Her words dragged across her dry throat. Tiny dots danced in her line of vision.

  Chad held up the gun menacingly, and she knew even if she did try to run, she'd never get away with a hurt knee. Staring at her, he backed over to the trunk and reached in blindly for her purse, pulled out the phone and glanced at the display.

  "Theo," he scoffed. "Must be trying to reach you to tell you he's going to be late. A big client asked for some new play set sketches to present to the executive board this afternoon. I called him myself. I told Theo it was a huge account."

  Chad had planned everything, even delaying Theo and Liam.

  "The sketches can't wait a single minute," Chad mocked. He tossed the phone back into the trunk. "Too bad you missed his call."

  "Chad, please, I'm sure we can work something out."

  He shook his head. "I tried to get you to leave it alone, and you wouldn't." He ran a hand across his nose and sniffed. “Shame whoever killed Abby didn’t kill you instead. I hear it was a case of wrong place, wrong time.”

  “What are people going to think about me?” Her pulse roared in her ears. “Who will they pin my death on?” She swallowed hard.

  “You coming back to Hunters Ridge has ruined my life, but I’m not going to let you screw with me anymore.”

  “You won’t get away with this.” Adrenaline surged through her veins.

  "You think I don’t have a plan? I’m not an idiot.” His lips curled into a mirthless grin. “Elmer Graber was released this morning.” Chad’s affect was completely flat. “The Amish pooled their resources and posted his bail. Imagine that. I already had one of his friends call him. He hitched up his horse and wagon thirty minutes ago. He won't have an alibi. People will think he went crazy and beat you to death with a pole for killing his sister."

  Dizziness overwhelmed Violet and she could no longer think straight.

  "Get up. Walk toward the lake," Chad commanded, poking her with the pole.

  Her gaze shifted toward the water. "I can’t. My knee."

  “Suit yourself." The angry look on Chad's face was the last thing she saw before his fist slammed into her face.

  Theo counted four rings before the call went to voicemail as his truck climbed the hill to the small lot next to the hiking path. He glanced over at Liam in the back seat. "She's not answering."

  "Maybe she already went snowshoeing." His little voice carried so much disappointment. His default mode. Theo hated that.

  "I'm sure she didn't hear the call. The path isn't far. I bet you we'll find her waiting there."

  Theo glanced into the rear-view mirror and found Liam stretching against his seatbelt, searching out the window. He had decided the play set sketches for the new client could wait. His son couldn’t.

  Theo sighed with relief when he saw Violet’s SUV parked in a spot by the lake. "Look, there's her car."

  In his excitement, Liam unbuckled his seatbelt before Theo pulled in behind the SUV. "Remember what I told you about that."

  Ignoring him, Liam scooted out of his seat and out the door. "Miss Violet? Miss Violet?"

  Theo met his son around the front of the truck.

  "Where is she, Dad?"

  Instinctively, Theo scanned the area. The snow leading to the path through the trees had a single set of footsteps. He walked around to the front of the SUV and noticed tracks and drag marks leading to the lake. A single snowshoe had been discarded near the back tire. The other one was under the SUV. Something that resembled a broken ski pole lay in the snow about ten feet from the vehicle.

  Theo's heart leapt in his throat. "Stay here, Liam. Get back in my truck and lock the doors."

  "Why, Dad?"

  "Just do what I say. Call your Aunt Olivia. Tell her there's a problem down by the lake. To come to the parking lot on the hill near the trail. To hurry." Without asking any more questions, Liam hopped back into the truck and Theo waited until he heard the locks click.

  Maybe he was overreacting, but his intuition was screaming that something was off. Theo followed the pat
h in the snow down to the lake. When he reached the clearing, he saw two dark forms struggling.

  He broke into a full-out sprint and dove into the man dragging Violet.

  Chad?

  A rage like he'd never felt drove his fist into his cousin's jaw. “Get off her.” He tossed his cousin aside and he landed with an oomph. Theo patted Chad’s pockets and pulled out the gun and slid it in his own pocket.

  Violet scrambled back, wincing apparently in pain. "He…he…was embezzling money from the company. He tried to cover it up."

  Chad sputtered and pulled his legs under him to stand. Theo planted a boot on his shoulder and pushed him down. "Stay put." When Theo was convinced Chad wasn’t going anywhere, he stretched out a hand to help Violet up. She stood and leaned heavily on him, favoring one leg. “You’re hurt.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  Chad sat with his elbows resting on his knees and his hands hanging down between them, his shoulders heaving.

  "You were gambling again, weren't you?" Theo asked, holding Violet close to him.

  "I got in way over my head. People want their money back, and you had to go and hire her." He shook his head. "If she just went away, I wouldn't be here now."

  Sirens sounded in the distance. Chad must have heard them too because his head snapped up. "You called the sheriff?" Fear flashed in his eyes.

  "Did you think I was going to look the other way?" Disbelief and disappointment tangled in Theo's gut. His cousin had tried to kill Violet. "You set Elmer up, didn't you?" His cousin had been behind all the attacks. Had nearly killed his own nephew. Theo gritted his teeth, trying to contain his rage.

  Chad sighed heavily, but didn't answer.

  "If only you could have used all that energy for something good," Theo bit out.

  Chad looked up at him with hatred in his eyes. "Everyone's not like you."

  With the adrenaline ebbing out of Violet’s system, the chill had settled in. Her head was throbbing and her knee hurt. But above all that, she was relieved as she watched Deputy Olivia Cooper lug Chad up the snowy hill in handcuffs. Theo practically carried Violet up, despite her protests that she was fine.