Stalked in the Night

by Carla Cassidy

  Riley continued to read off names. When he read the name Carl Robinson, Jake frowned. “Do you know Carl?” he asked her.

  “No, I don’t know him. Why?”

  “He works as a ranch hand for us.”

  “Since I don’t even know him, I think it’s safe to say he isn’t our man,” she said.

  Riley continued, and another name he read off surprised her. “I know him.” She straightened in the uncomfortable wooden chair. “Robert Stephenson is Bobby’s dad, and Bobby is Andy’s best friend.”

  “You ever have any issues with him?” Jake asked.

  “No, on the contrary—he’s always been very pleasant to me. He’s mentioned several times that he’d like the boys and him and me to go out for pizza or ice cream.”

  “And are you interested in doing that?” Jake’s eyes bored into hers.

  Her face flushed with warmth. “No, I’ve told you I’m not interested in forming any kind of a romantic relationship with anyone.”

  Riley laughed and clapped his knee in glee. “I would have sworn you two were lovers. Hell, there’s enough tension between you to light a fire.”

  Eva’s cheeks warmed even more. “We’re just old friends,” she replied.

  Riley laughed again and winked at Jake. “She might say that now, but nobody knows what the future might bring.”

  Jake looked at Eva, and his lips slid into his damned sexy, knowing grin. She frowned back at him. She was determined that she would never have a romantic relationship with him again.

  If she had a life to live, it was one that couldn’t have Jake Albright in it.

  Chapter Six

  “We should be able to go to the last convenience store before heading out to get you home for Andy,” Jake said. He glanced over to Eva, who had fallen quiet as the frustrating day had worn on.

  “If this one is like the last two we visited, it won’t be any help,” she replied dispiritedly.

  Riley had given them the locations of the three stores that sold his knives. Unfortunately the stores hadn’t kept the names of the people who had bought knives. The only way they might get any information was if somebody used a credit card for the purchase, but in that case Jake and Eva would have to have a warrant.

  “Don’t get discouraged,” Jake said. “At least we have two more names than we did.”

  “I can’t believe that Robert Stephenson would do all this to retaliate against me because I wouldn’t go out for pizza with him and the boys,” she replied dryly.

  “You can never be sure what goes on in somebody else’s mind. I mean, somebody killed Walter, for crying out loud. There can be all kinds of craziness, mental illness and just plain evil that people can hide from everyone.”

  “Jeez, that’s encouraging,” she said.

  “We’ll get him, Eva. We’ll figure out who is doing this to you and we’ll put his butt in jail.” He could tell his words did little to assuage the depression that was slowly taking hold of her.

  “Maybe I should have just sold out and left town when I received that first threatening note,” she said softly.

  He shot her a look of surprise. “This can’t be Tom Taylor’s daughter speaking right now. Tom, who loved his land and envisioned it being passed down from generation to generation.”

  She released a tremulous sigh. “You’re right. I need to stay strong, if not for myself, then for Andy. The ranch is his legacy. It’s all I have to give him. I’m just discouraged and more than a little bit tired right now.”

  He reached out and captured her hand with his. “Then I’ll be your strength when you’re tired.” He released her hand. He wished they weren’t in his truck but rather standing in her living room so he could pull her into his arms and hold her tight.

  The third convenience store was like the other two. They could get no information from them and were told to come back with a warrant.

  “At least we’ve done the preliminary footwork for Wayne,” Jake said as they headed home. “Let’s just hope Wayne solves the murder case quickly and can focus his full attention back on this.”

  “We’ll see if the two we know of who bought knives still have them in their possession,” she said. “And I’d definitely like to be there when he talks to Griff again. That little creep has already lied to Wayne about me. I want to be there to call him out if he tries to lie again.”

  He shot her a quick grin. “Now that’s the strong and amazing Eva I know.”

  She fell silent once again and stared out the window as if lost in thought. There had been a time when he could easily guess what she was thinking and feeling. But at the moment he had no clue what thoughts were whirling through her brain.

  She looked so beautiful, clad in a pair of tight jeans and a sleeveless red blouse that showcased her full breasts and slender waist.

  He clenched his hands tighter on the steering wheel. He wanted to get lost in the scent of her hair, to feel the silkiness of her skin against his own. There was no question he wanted her physically, but he wanted more.

  He wanted every thought in her head and every dream she might entertain. He wanted her laughter and her tears, her hopes and her fears. He’d missed the last ten years of her life, but he wanted her from this time on and forever. And he wanted the person who was terrorizing her caught and thrown into a jail cell to rot.

  She remained quiet until he parked back in front of her house. “I’ll call Wayne and tell him what we found out,” he said when they were out of the truck.

  “Thanks. I’ll hope to hear from him in the next couple of days, and I’ll talk to you then.” It was obviously a dismissal.

  He looked at his watch. “It’s just about time for Andy’s bus to come. Mind if I hang out and say hi to him?”

  He saw the hesitation in her eyes, but after a moment’s pause, she said that would be fine.

  They fell into step together as they walked down the lane to where the bus would stop. When they reached her mailbox at the end of the long driveway, she opened it and reached inside and grabbed a couple of envelopes.

  “Any nefarious notes?” he asked once she’d flipped through all of them.

  “No, just a handful of bills,” she replied and frowned.

  “Eva, how are you doing financially?”

  Her shoulders visibly stiffened. “I really don’t think that’s any of your business.”

  “I just thought if you needed a bit of a loan or anything, I could always help out.”

  “I don’t need or want any of your money, Jake,” she protested. “I’ve never wanted anything to do with your money.”

  “I know that. I just want you to know if you ever get in a bad place, I’m always here for you,” he replied. He took a step closer to her. The sun sparkled in her hair, and his head filled with the memories of making sweet, hot love with her.

  She gazed up at him, and in her eyes he saw those memories were there, burning bright within her. “Eva,” he murmured softly. But her eyes suddenly cooled.

  “I know the Albrights have always been wealthy enough to pretty much buy whatever they wanted, but Jake, you can’t buy your way back into my life,” she said.

  “Eva, that certainly wasn’t my intention...” His protest was lost to the sound of the school bus arriving. It stopped by the drive, and the doors opened for Andy to get off. Any further talk between them was lost.

  “Mr. Jake.” Andy greeted him with a wide smile. “Are we going fishing again today?”

  “Not today.” Jake grinned and ruffled the boy’s dark hair. “But we’ll plan to go again real soon.”

  “You want to come in and have a snack with me? Mom usually makes me a snack before I start doing my homework. Maybe if you stay, Mom will give us cookies instead of dumb old carrot and celery sticks.”

  Eva laughed. “Carrot and celery sticks are good for you.”
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br />   “Yeah, but cookies are just good,” Andy quipped back.

  Eva and Jake both laughed. “How was school?” Jake asked as they headed back toward the house. He was concerned about how Eva had taken his offer to help her. He’d certainly not intended for her to think he was trying to somehow buy her, but this was a subject for them to discuss at another time.

  “It was good.” As Andy talked about his day, a warmth rushed through Jake. This was what life was all about...walking children home from school...listening to them share their days and smiling over their heads at the woman you loved.

  He wanted this, not just for now, but for forever. He could easily love Andy, who had no father and was a part of Eva. He wanted to make more babies with her and build a life with her.

  However, first he had to make her want that same thing with him. The only thing she was offering him at the moment was cookies and milk.

  Patience, he told himself. He had to be patient even though he wanted all of her now. His chest tightened as he thought of everything that had happened.

  The most important thing right now was making sure they got the perpetrator who was tormenting her behind bars. That needed to happen before the creep got a chance to hurt or kill Eva.

  Leaving the heart on her front porch was definitely an escalation. What concerned Jake the most was if the person escalated even more, there was no way to guess what he might do next.

  * * *

  THE NEXT MORNING Eva waved goodbye to Andy as the school bus whisked him away. The heat had abated somewhat overnight, but a stiff wind blew, screaming around the sides of the buildings and driving Eva just a little bit crazy.

  She walked back to the house, but before she got inside, Wayne’s official car turned into her drive, followed by Jake’s pickup.

  Jake. He’d been on her mind all night. He’d even occupied a prominent role in her dreams...dreams that were filled with passion and desire and the memories of what once had been between them.

  Watching him interact with Andy made her want things she couldn’t have. She wanted Jake, but she could never, would never have any kind of a future with him.

  All she wanted right now was answers, and hopefully Wayne had brought some with him. She was surprised to see him, since he and his men had a murder case to solve. She watched as the two vehicles parked and the men got out.

  “Morning, Eva,” Wayne said in greeting. “I hope you have the coffee on.”

  “As a matter of fact, I do.” She nodded to Jake and then opened the front door to allow them in. “Wayne, I didn’t expect to see you so soon. What about Walter’s murder case? I thought you were all tied up with that.” She poured them all a cup of coffee and then joined them at the table.

  “The murder has been solved. Sadie confessed to it late last night,” Wayne replied.

  Eva gasped in stunned surprise. “What? Sadie killed her husband? My God, is this some kind of a joke?” She couldn’t imagine the sweet old lady hurting a fly.

  Wayne nodded. “No joke. She said she was sick of him bossing her around, and she was disgusted by his snoring every night and her not being able to enjoy the master bedroom. She hated the way his dentures clicked and how his ears were so hairy and he refused to let the barber clean them up.” Wayne shrugged. “She said she just snapped. She got up in the middle of the night, grabbed a knife and stabbed him.”

  “I would never have guessed that Sadie was capable of such a violent thing,” Eva replied.

  “Oh, we were pretty sure it was Sadie right from the get-go,” Wayne said. “Mainly because there were no signs of forced entry and the knife she used was right from the kitchen countertop. It was just a matter of time before she finally confessed that she’d done it.”

  He took a long swig from his coffee cup, and then continued, “Anyway, Jake has caught me up on what you two found out yesterday from Riley Kincaid, and he mentioned that you’d like to come along when I question Griff once again.”

  “Definitely,” Eva said forcefully. “Just thinking about the lies that kid has already told about me makes my blood boil.”

  “If I take you along for the interview, you’ll have to keep your temper in check,” Wayne warned her with a frown.

  “Oh, don’t worry, I promise I’ll behave,” she replied. “So when are you going to go talk to him again?”

  “As soon as I have another cup of your coffee,” Wayne replied.

  She frowned. “Isn’t he in school right now? Don’t you have to wait and question him with his parents in attendance?”

  “Actually, since last time he interviewed the kid, Wayne learned a very interesting fact,” Jake said. “Griff is eighteen years old. He’s legally an adult.”

  “And so that means I can question him all I like until he asks for a lawyer. Now...about that second cup of coffee?”

  Eva poured him another cup. “What about the convenience stores that sell the knives?”

  “I’ll be writing up warrants tonight and taking them to Judge Himes first thing in the morning. At least we should be able to take a look at credit card transactions and get the names of all the people who bought those knives on credit. Unfortunately there’s no way we can know the names of anyone who paid cash in the stores.”

  “And what about Robert Stephenson? I’m sure you’re intending to talk to him as well,” Jake said.

  “Sure, but Robert is an upstanding man in the community. Besides owning a successful insurance agency, he’s also on the town council,” Wayne said. “I just can’t imagine him having any part in this.”

  “And Sadie was just a sweet old woman,” Jake said dryly.

  “Point taken.” Wayne drained his coffee and then stood. “So, are we ready to take a trip to the high school?”

  “Just let me grab my purse,” Eva said.

  “If you want, Eva, you can ride with me,” Jake offered. “As I remember, parking was always difficult at the high school. Of course, the last time I parked there was ten years ago.”

  “Nothing much has changed in the last ten years,” Wayne replied. “It’s still hard to find open parking spaces because so many of the students drive to school.”

  Minutes later Eva was in Jake’s truck, and they followed Wayne’s patrol car into town, where the junior high and high school buildings were located just off Main Street. Andy’s grade school was on the opposite end of Main.

  Like Jake, Eva hadn’t been back to the high school for the past ten years. Walking inside to the smell of cafeteria food and the faint odor of the locker rooms, she was struck with a wave of nostalgia so strong it nearly weakened her knees.

  It had been within these walls that she had fallen head over heels in love with Jake. He’d walk her to her classes, and they’d talk until the bell rang and he’d have to hurry off before he was tardy for his own class.

  After he graduated, when she was still a senior, they’d planned it so he could sneak in a back door for stolen kisses and sweet-talk with her during the days. It had been the happiest time in her entire life.

  As they stood in the office waiting for Griff to be brought in, she hazarded a glance at Jake. She was shocked to see him staring at her with the heat of yesteryear burning bright in his eyes.

  Would they have made it together if his father hadn’t interfered? Would they have really gotten married and lived happily ever after? There was no way to know now. She forced her gaze away from him.

  At that moment Griff swaggered into the office and pulled himself up short at the sight of the three of them waiting for him.

  “Hey, what’s going on here?” he asked indignantly. “What’s she doing here?” He narrowed his brown eyes as he gazed at Eva.

  “Mrs. Pritchard, would it be possible for us to use the privacy of your office for a little while?” Wayne asked.

  “Of course.” The school principal led them to a nice-siz
e room with a large desk and six chairs against the wall.

  Wayne quickly rearranged the chairs so Griff sat facing the three adults. Griff was a big, good-looking guy with short blond hair and a confident air that Eva was sure made him very popular with the girls and a leader among the boys.

  “What’s going on?” he asked the moment Wayne closed the door and then turned to face him. “Why do you want to talk to me again?”

  “We just have a few more questions for you, Griff,” Wayne said.

  “You already asked me questions, and I can tell you I got no more answers for you.”

  He smirked, and Eva wanted to pinch his impertinent head off his sturdy neck. It was obvious Griff had little respect for Wayne or the other two adults in the room.

  “We understand you bought a knife from Riley Kincaid about six months ago,” Wayne said.

  The smirk on Griff’s face quickly disappeared. “Yeah, so what? That’s not against the law.”

  “They are fine-looking knives,” Jake said.

  “And who are you?” Griff asked.

  “My name is Jake Albright.”

  Griff’s eyes darkened. “Albright...why are you here? What do you have to do with anything?”

  “I’m here because Eva is a close friend of mine and I understand you like to party in her barn uninvited,” Jake replied. There was a steely strength in his tone.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Griff replied and looked down at his feet.

  “We both know that isn’t true,” Eva said evenly.

  “What kind of animal was on your Kincaid knife?” Wayne asked.

  Griff frowned. “I don’t know... I think it was a wolf or a leopard.”

  “Which was it?” Jake asked. “A wolf or a leopard?”

  “I said I don’t remember.” Griff’s tone held obvious irritation.

  “Where’s your knife now, Griff?” Wayne asked.

  Griff looked at Wayne in surprise. “My knife? Uh... I don’t know where it is. I lost it somewhere.”

  Wayne frowned. “When, exactly, did you lose it?”