Stalked in the Night

by Carla Cassidy

  “I’d rather have the man in my custody and Wayne on the way to arrest him.” He clenched his hands as he remembered how badly he’d wanted to shoot the man.

  “Speaking of Wayne, do we really need to call him out about this?”

  “It’s your call,” he replied. “The man is obviously long gone, and I don’t have any real details that would help identify him.”

  “Neither do I. I think we can wait until tomorrow and just let Wayne know this occurred,” she replied.

  “I definitely think we need to change some things around here,” he said.

  “Like what?” She looked at him curiously.

  “From now on, we need to keep all windows down and locked, and the shades need to be pulled down tight. I don’t want anyone to be able to look in and see where we are or what we’re doing in this house.”

  Color crept into her cheeks. “I can’t believe that creep saw me naked.”

  “Yeah, I don’t like that, either,” he replied with a touch of anger. He hated that anyone except him had seen Eva’s beautiful body.

  He released a weary sigh. “I need a shower. I worked up a sweat running through the pasture, but first let’s get all the windows closed and locked and the shades pulled down.”

  Together they went around the house and drew curtains and pulled down blinds. “When you get finished with your shower, I’ll take one, and then I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for bed.”

  He’d love to ask her if she wanted to shower together, but he sensed she needed a bit of distance. Besides, they were both still processing more than a little fear.

  “Why don’t you go shower first,” he suggested. “I know how long it takes for your hair to dry.”

  She nodded and headed for the bathroom. With the sound of the water running, he once again walked around the house, rechecking windows and doors to make sure everything was locked down tight.

  He had no idea why the man had window peeped. What had he hoped to gain by watching Eva’s bedroom? After dead, mutilated cattle and a bloody heart left hanging from the porch rail, a window peeper seemed rather benign. So, what did it mean?

  The shower stopped running, and minutes later Eva left the bathroom clad in a short, sleeveless nightgown that perfectly matched her violet eyes. She carried with her a hairbrush and a dryer.

  “I can dry my hair in here,” she said. She plugged her dryer into a nearby socket and then sank down on the sofa.

  “I’ll just be a few minutes. Needless to say, don’t open the door to anyone.”

  “Ha, like that would happen.” She turned on the hair dryer, and he went into the bathroom for his shower.

  As he stood beneath the warm spray of water, his mind still worked to make sense of what had happened. But there was no way he could reason through it. And that worried him. This all worried him a lot.

  The investigation had come to a grinding halt as no new clues had come to the surface. It was difficult to figure out who was behind a crime when nobody knew why it was happening.

  Who was after Eva and why? That was the question that needed to be answered. If they could figure out the why, then maybe they’d be able to figure out the who. But right now there were just simply no answers.

  He finished with his shower and pulled on a fresh pair of boxers and then returned to the living room, where Eva was brushing out her hair. He sat next to her. “Let me,” he said and took the brush from her hand.

  She turned her back toward him, and he stroked the brush through her long hair, loving the feel of the silky strands against the back of his hand. “I always loved to brush your hair,” he murmured.

  She dropped her head back. “I always loved it when you brushed my hair.”

  Initially he’d felt the tension radiating from her, but the longer he brushed, the more relaxed she became. They didn’t speak. No words were necessary.

  She finally released a big yawn. “You’d better stop now, or I’ll fall asleep right here.” She stood and took the brush from him.

  “Are you going to force me to sleep on this lumpy, uncomfortable sofa tonight?” he asked.

  She narrowed her eyes. “You told me the sofa was surprisingly comfortable.”

  “Your bed would be far more comfortable,” he replied. “I know it would just be for this one time, Eva. Let me go to sleep tonight with you in my arms.”

  She held his gaze for a long moment and then nodded. “As long as you understand this is a onetime thing.”

  Together they went into the bedroom and got into bed. He placed his gun on the nightstand and then turned out the bedside lamp, plunging the room into darkness.

  He pulled her into his arms, spooning her against him. She snuggled in, and his love for her beat full in his heart. Tonight filled him with hope that there really was a future for them, that they could be the family he’d always wanted.

  All he had to do was keep Eva alive.

  Chapter Eleven

  It had been almost a week since Eva had made love with Jake, and in the last week, she had tried to distance herself from him. However, it was difficult when she watched him interacting with Andy. He was so patient and loving with him, and she’d seen Andy blossom even more beneath Jake’s attention.

  He was the father she had always wanted for her son, the kind of man she would want in their lives forever. But it could and would all explode if he ever found out Andy was really his son.

  He would hate her for the lies of omission, for the secret she had kept not only for the past nine years but had continued to keep from him when he’d arrived back in town. There was no way they could have a future together. Still, that didn’t stop her from needing him now.

  “It’s nice that the weather hasn’t been as hot the last couple of days,” he now said.

  They had just seen Andy off on the school bus and were now walking back to the house. “I’m just glad it’s been another quiet week. No dead cows in the pasture and no cow hearts showing up anywhere. Isn’t it crazy that the absence of those things makes it a good week?”

  “It isn’t crazy, it’s tragic,” he replied.

  They had just reached the house when Wayne’s car pulled up into the driveway. They waited for him to park and get out of the car.

  “Morning,” he said. “I’ve finally got some information for you.” He carried a handful of papers with him.

  “Come on in,” Eva said. There was nothing about Wayne’s demeanor that got her excited about whatever information he might have. All she really wanted to hear from the lawman was that the person terrorizing her was behind bars.

  She wanted an end to her fear. Once the perp was in jail, then she’d be able to send Jake home and get the real distance from him she knew she desperately needed. She suspected she was only clinging to him right now because she was still afraid. And that wasn’t fair to him or to her.

  Eva poured Wayne a cup of coffee and then joined the two men at the table. “What have you got for us?” She gestured to the paperwork in front of Wayne.

  “I finally got the names of people who charged the purchase of a Kincaid knife from all three of the convenience stores that sell them.” He scooted the papers in front of Eva. “I thought you’d want to take a look at them and see if anyone looks suspicious. I did find one purchase a little telling.”

  “Which one?” she asked.

  “I’d rather you find it for yourself,” Wayne replied and then leaned back in the chair and took a sip of his coffee. “I had the stores go back a full year.”

  Eva picked up the first sheet of paper and began to read down the list of names. “I recognize several people, but nobody I know well,” she said when she’d finished with the first page. She handed the list to Jake and then began to read the second page.

  Her heart stopped on one particular name. “Wilma Ainsley? Griff’s mother bought a Kin
caid knife? Was this the one Griff supposedly lost in my barn?” She looked up at Wayne.

  “Look at the date on that purchase,” Wayne said.

  A small gasp escaped her. “Two days after we confronted Griff about his lost knife.” She looked from Wayne to Jake.

  Jake’s jaw tightened. “So, his mother was attempting to muddy the water by being able to show that Griff had his Kincaid knife.”

  “Either that or Griff used his mother’s credit card, which is entirely possible,” Wayne replied. “In any case, it makes him look damned suspicious.”

  “So, what are you thinking?” Jake asked Wayne.

  “I’m really beginning to think this has all been the work of Griff and a couple of his friends. It wouldn’t be a difficult task for a few big, burly teenagers to kill a cow or hang that cow heart on your porch. The peeping incident sounds more like a teenage stunt than an adult who wants to kill you.”

  “What about the attack in the barn?” Eva asked. Although her wounds had healed up, she certainly hadn’t forgotten the terror she’d felt in the moment.

  “I still think it’s possible you were attacked because you interrupted the person who was going to set a fire,” Wayne replied.

  “So, if you think Griff and some of his friends are responsible for all this, then what do you intend to do about it?” Jake asked.

  “Now I need to prove it,” Wayne replied. “This afternoon I’m going to interview several of Griff’s closest friends. I think if I lean on them hard enough, one of them will break and confess to everything.”

  “Let’s hope that happens,” Eva replied. It gave her a little relief to think that everything that had happened to her had been at the hands of a bunch of teenagers causing mischief, albeit terrifying mischief.

  “I’ll let you know how it goes later this evening,” Wayne said and stood. “I’ll definitely be talking to Griff again about the purchase of another knife.”

  “Makes him look guilty as hell in my mind,” Jake said as they walked Wayne to the door.

  “What are you thinking?” Jake asked once Wayne had left and the two were back in the kitchen.

  She leaned with her back against the counter that held the remnants of the pancakes she’d made earlier for breakfast. “I’m thinking that if this all really was the work of teenagers, then I’m not quite as afraid as I’ve been.”

  She turned around and began to clean up the dishes. If what Wayne now believed was true, then she didn’t think the teenagers would actually follow through to murder her. She finished with the dishes and then turned to look at Jake, who was seated at the table.

  “Maybe I’m not in as much danger as I thought I was in and it would be okay if you went back to your home now,” she said.

  “But what if Wayne is wrong?”

  His words hung in the air, and Eva frowned as she considered what he’d said. What if Wayne was wrong about Griff and his friends and she sent Jake home? As much as she wanted to distance herself from Jake, ultimately she was afraid to send him home until this horrifying mystery was solved.

  “You told me you were sure that the person in the barn wanted to kill you,” he continued. “Does it really matter whether it was a teenager or not? Whoever was in the barn that night is still out there somewhere.”

  “Point taken,” she finally replied.

  The truth was she wouldn’t feel completely safe until somebody was behind bars. If nothing else, she had to think of her son. If anything happened to her, what would become of Andy? It was a question she didn’t even want to entertain at the moment.

  “If you have any dirty clothes, I’m going to do laundry this morning.” She needed to keep herself busy and out of her own head. She needed the mundane of her life right now. She was mentally and emotionally exhausted from being afraid. “In fact, I’m going to spend the day doing some major housework.”

  “What can I do to help?” he asked.

  “Nothing, just stay out of my way and let me do my thing.”

  “Then I’ll just sit here and make some phone calls. I’ll check in with David and then talk to Enrique to make sure there are no problems with the winery. I’m also talking to several people who might be interested in buying the winery if we decide to sell.”

  “That’s great—now, dirty clothes?”

  “I do have some things, but you shouldn’t have to do my laundry all the time.”

  “Nonsense,” she replied.

  Minutes later she loaded the washer and got it running, then went back into Andy’s room. Once there she stripped the sheets off his twin bed and tossed them into a pile in the doorway for the next load of laundry and then went to work polishing nightstands and the bookcase.

  A smile curved her lips as she moved Andy’s treasures that he kept on the shelves. There was the special rock shaped like a dragon and a large feather from an eagle. There was also a collection of arrowheads he had found around the ranch and a handful of drawings he’d accomplished in the last week or two.

  Andy was a talented little artist, and she grabbed the handful of drawings and sank down on the edge of the bed to look at his latest creations.

  Her smile widened at the first drawing, which depicted a boy and a dog—beneath it was written the caption Please, Mom. She could only assume eventually the drawing would make its way to her bedroom, where she would be sure to see it.

  Maybe it was time to really think about a puppy for her son. When Jake went back home, it would be the perfect opportunity to get a dog that would hopefully take Andy’s thoughts off the absence of Jake in their lives.

  There were several more drawings of horses and wildlife, and then she gazed at the last one, and her heart constricted tight. It was a depiction of the backs of two people...a boy and a man. They walked side by side and had fishing poles over their shoulders.

  It wasn’t how the boy leaned into the man that squeezed her heart, nor was it the way the man had his arm around the boy’s shoulders. It was the caption beneath that nearly gutted her. The man I want for a dad and me.

  She quickly put the drawings back in order and placed them back on the shelf. As she dusted the rest of the furniture in the room, her heart held a deep sadness for her son.

  He was going to be devastated when Eva finally shoved Jake out of their lives forever. There was no way she could fix the decisions she’d made so long ago so now they could all have a happily-ever-after ending. And somehow she didn’t think a new puppy was going to help.

  * * *

  JAKE HUNG UP the phone after talking to David for some time. He was glad David was on board with the sale of the winery and had indicated Jake should go ahead with talking to any prospective buyers. They had agreed on a price that was way above what their father had paid for the winery fifteen years ago. Their conversation had then moved on to the ranch business. Jake was staying in touch with the ranch foreman, Bailey Turrel, who had been taking care of things for the past ten years.

  Jake told his brother he intended to get more involved with the ranch once the issues at Eva’s place were resolved. David once again told Jake how much he worried about Eva playing games with Jake’s heart, and Jake assured his brother he had a handle on things where Eva was concerned.

  He knew his brother meant well, but Jake didn’t want to hear anything negative about being around Eva again, and so he cut that particular subject short.

  This time with Eva and Andy had been wonderful. He felt like he’d finally found his home. Of course he would have loved to be sleeping with Eva in her bed every night, but currently he was just trying to prove he was the right man for her and that he belonged here forever.

  But first they needed to catch a predator and put him behind bars. If that person was Griff, then he and whoever had helped him in terrorizing Eva needed to be in jail for a very long time. Jake was hoping that once the danger element was removed fr
om her life, she’d realize she was in love with him again and that they deserved to live the future they had once dreamed about together.

  As she started vacuuming the living room, he stepped outside the front door. His gaze shot in all directions, always looking for potential trouble.

  In the distance Harley and Jimmy were on horseback in the pasture. Jake had come to like and trust Harley, who seemed to look at Eva like a daughter and wanted only the best for her. He was certainly less trustful of Jimmy, especially since the barn incident. Still, his money was on Griff. It was damning that he had gone out to buy another knife after being questioned about the one he’d owned.

  What he hoped for was that by the time evening fell that night, the guilty party would be behind bars. He hated the whisper of fear that never quite left Eva’s eyes. He hated that she was never able to completely relax.

  One thing he did believe, even though she hadn’t accepted it herself, was that she loved him. He saw it in the gazes she shot his way when she thought he wasn’t looking. He felt it in the way she touched him. They felt like lingering caresses when she took the dirty dishes from him or whenever they inadvertently touched.

  Yes, he truly believed she was in love with him, but she couldn’t move forward because of the danger that filled her head and heart. He recognized there just wasn’t room in her heart for him right now. He’d spent the last ten years loving Eva, and he could be very patient in waiting for her now.

  As he watched Harley and Jimmy disappear from sight, he was grateful that once again there had been no dead cows to contend with this morning. In fact, nothing had happened since the man in the ski mask had peeped through the bedroom window. Was it because Griff knew they were on to him?

  The weather had been pleasant earlier, but now there was a building heat and an uncomfortable thick humidity. He turned and went back into the house, where Eva had stopped vacuuming and had disappeared into her bedroom. He walked down the hallway and saw her preparing to put clean sheets on her king-size bed.