Brynn sat gazing at a beach she thought she’d never see again and looked up at the unusually bright full moon. Earlier, she’d told Sam she didn’t want to tour her old house today. Now, she grew more anxious by the minute to see it inside.
A few hours ago, Ray had left under Garrett’s steely stare, but Garrett had stayed for half an hour to make sure he didn’t immediately come back. While they’d waited, Cassie had told Brynn that Sam’s secretary had left a message at Love’s. ‘I was busy so she talked to one of my saleswomen. She wanted you to know that the person Sam hoped would buy your house wants to close the deal in a couple of days with a contract stipulating that, after signature, the house can no longer be shown.’
‘Why did she call Love’s and not me?’
‘She said she doesn’t have your cell phone number and my home number is unlisted. Sam told her you were staying with me and if she called the store, I’d pass on the message. Anyway, she said Sam’s taking another client to dinner and will be out of town tomorrow, so tonight around nine will be your best, maybe last chance to go in the house. He can meet you there.’
Those were Cassie’s last calm words. Once Garrett had left Cassie let loose her anger at Ray. When mad, she could talk for hours without a break. She’d started a rant session that Brynn knew would go on throughout the evening. She drank two more glasses of wine, which didn’t take off the edge of her nervousness.
Finally, she’d thought about Sam’s offer without enthusiasm. Then Cassie had angrily ripped open a package of individually wrapped butterscotch hard candies, dumping them all over the kitchen table. ‘He acted so damned proprietary!’ she’d fumed, still in the kitchen opening and slamming shut cabinet doors. ‘He told me this was his house! I’m having the locks changed tomorrow – if he had one key, he could have more. I’m sure he has more!’
‘Garrett said you could swear out a restraining order.’
‘Oh, sure. That would just make Ray get drunk and more determined than he already is to reclaim this as his home!’ Cassie was almost shouting from the nearby kitchen. ‘Besides, he’d think I’m scared of him.’
‘Are you?’
‘Not at all! Still, I feel violated knowing he was just strolling around this house like he owned the place. I threw him out of here almost a year ago and he hasn’t been back, yet here he was today, acting like he just left yesterday, like he had a right to be here! Oh, I can’t stand the thought of him snooping around in my house, the son of a bitch!’ Cassie had stalked into the living room, chomping viciously on a piece of hard candy. ‘Right now you don’t know how much I wish I was on that Miami beach with you drinking tall, cold piña coladas with extra pineapple!’
The mention of piña coladas had sent Brynn’s memories flying. Pineapple. Her father’s fortieth birthday. She recalled it as if it had happened last week.
If there was ever a man who didn’t like a fuss made over himself, it was Jonah Wilder. They held small birthday celebrations for Mark and Brynn, but Jonah wanted nothing more than a card. Everyone respected his wishes until Marguerite had decided his fortieth birthday was a landmark that demanded more than a card, so she’d planned a surprise party.
Brynn would never forget how shocked her father had looked when he’d walked into the house after a Saturday of fishing to find a group of ten friends all yelling ‘Surprise!’ They’d placed a gold foil-wrapped crown on his head and sung, ‘Happy Birthday’ before Marguerite presented two large pineapple upside down cakes – Jonah’s favorite – both flaming with candles. He’d managed to blow out all forty. Later, Jonah had grudgingly admitted it had been one of the best evenings of his life. Brynn remembered it as one of the best evenings of hers, too. Meanwhile, between Cassie’s non-stop talking and her flash of a good memory, Brynn had changed her mind about touring her old home, and she’d left Cassie’s at around eight forty-five to meet Sam there at nine.
She looked at her watch. Nine-twenty. When she’d arrived at the house on the sparsely occupied Oriole Lane, it was empty and locked. Sam’s dinner must be running longer than he’d expected, she’d thought. Always punctual, she knew he would be fidgeting by now.
Brynn looked at the beach from the top of the wooden steps leading down from the house. The house behind her was still dark – no Sam yet. Restless and enchanted by the moonlit beach, she walked down the steps, kicked off her shoes and pressed her feet into the soft sand, closing her eyes and taking deep breaths of the tangy bay water.
A sweet dampness blew in from the water, wafting her long hair, brushing her cheek and caressing her neck like a kiss in a dream – delicate, sensitive, full of promise. She suddenly felt as if she’d entered a mythical, romantic world removed from the everyday reality where she always tried to stay grounded. For her, the atmosphere turned heady and beguiling, and she allowed herself to transform from Brynn Wilder to the fairy-like, mystical character of Evangelista in her novels.
‘You drank too much wine earlier,’ she murmured to herself, but she didn’t care. For the first time in days, her body relaxed, her worry about Mark dulled, and the tension that had preoccupied her for days snapped loose like a constricting band.
Brynn started walking on the stretch of beach leading toward Oriole Lane, feeling as if she were floating in the cool night, while she looked up at the stars glittering sharply silver against a black velvet sky. She dug in her jeans pocket, pulled out the MP3 player Mark had sent her for Christmas, and flipped on Rihanna’s ‘Diamonds.’ Brynn twirled in the sand, feeling young and carefree. She turned up the music and began moving with abandon, extending her arms, letting the breeze catch the long, billowy sleeves of her chiffon tunic as she happily dipped and pirouetted.
Then, in the distance, she heard a dog barking, fast and loud, as if it were on the trail of something. Brynn stopped moving and listened. She could tell the animal was big from the deep bark and it seemed to be coming her way. She’d never feared a dog in her life. Still, alone on the dark beach, she felt a slight uneasiness. Maybe the dog wasn’t harmless and she would need to find a place of safety.
The nearest building was her former home. She looked up at the two-story house. Three minutes ago it had been dark; now a dim, golden-toned light shone in an upstairs window. That window would be in my old bedroom, Brynn thought. But I didn’t see Sam’s headlights swing into the driveway. And why has he turned on only one muted light on the second floor?
While she stared at the house, she saw a figure standing in front of the window – a motionless figure that seemed to be staring at her. In spite of the bright, moon-silvered night, Brynn could tell nothing about its facial features or even hair, which could be short or merely pulled back. Was it Sam? No, he would have opened the window and called to her, or at least waved. Instead, she and her watcher stood frozen, gazing at each other while Rihanna sang with growing ecstasy in the background and the dog’s barking grew louder. Brynn’s anxiety about the dog heightened, but she couldn’t move. For some reason, she felt she must stay still and try to remember every detail of this eerily suspended moment in time.
They stood motionless, looking at each other. Brynn couldn’t see the eyes, but she could feel them, traveling up and down her body. Brynn somehow knew she was meant to make the next move. Trapped between the eerie figure and the dog, she now had no intention of running anywhere. But how long could she stand here?
The dog barked even louder, faster, nearer. Growing fear locked Brynn in place, but she turned her head and saw a large shape racing toward her, kicking up sand with big paws and a feathery, wagging tail. Before the dog reached her, she recognized it – Henry, emitting a flurry of whines, snorts and playful growls. He gamboled around her, letting out muffled barks, leaping on his hind legs, his ears flapping.
‘Henry, what are you doing here!’ Brynn cried in shock, as if the dog could answer. She kneeled and hugged him in relief. ‘My God, I’m glad to see you!’ He wallowed his big head in her hands. ‘Don’t tell me you’ve run away from home!�
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Still hugging him tightly, she glanced up at the house’s second-floor window. Although the golden light still glowed, the watcher had gone. Had he merely ducked away from the window, or was he fleeing the house?
‘Henry Dane, you come back here right this minute!’
Savannah, Brynn thought. She was in hot pursuit of her dog and, a moment later, she ran up to them. ‘Brynn!’ she cried in surprise, then gave Henry a hard look. ‘Henry, you ditched me!’ she accused breathlessly. ‘You know I’m supposed to be in charge.’
‘I guess he doesn’t,’ Brynn said, standing up.
‘Why are you here?’ Savannah asked.
‘I was going to see my old house before someone buys it, but Mr Fenney, the real estate agent, isn’t here yet.’ Suddenly she realized Rihanna was still singing into the night. She turned off her MP3 player. ‘Actually, while I waited I decided to walk on the beach and listen to music and … well, dance.’
‘Dance!’ Savannah grinned. ‘I should have known you like to dance. Me, too.’
Brynn tried to hide her uneasiness by keeping her voice light. She smiled. ‘We’re kindred spirits. Why are you and Henry out after dark?’
‘It’s his evening walk, only we’re a little late. We only live a couple of blocks from here. We walk to the end of Oriole Lane on our usual route.’
‘Do you come to this beach?’
‘No, never. We stay on the street but I love the song “Diamonds” and Henry hears it all the time. I guess he loves it, too, because when he heard it, I lost control of him and he came flying this way. Now he’s even more excited because he found you.’ Savannah’s eyes probed Brynn’s face. ‘I hope he didn’t scare you. You look kinda freaked out.’
‘No, I’m fine. Honey, are you by yourself?’
‘Oh, no. I never bring out Henry for his evening walk by myself. Dad comes with me. He’s somewhere behind.’ Savannah jerked her head over her shoulder and lowered her voice. ‘He can’t run as fast as I can, but don’t tell him I said so. You know how men think they’re better at everything than women.’
‘I sure do,’ Brynn answered, keeping her tone confidential although she was almost shaking with waves of delayed apprehension. Settle down, she thought sternly, more grateful than she could imagine. It’s all right now. Garrett’s coming.
‘Hey!’ Garrett called, trotting up the beach. ‘Savannah, you know better than to run away from me!’
‘I had to catch Henry!’
‘That is no excuse for running away from me—’
‘Look who’s here!’ Savannah interrupted brightly, clearly trying to save herself. ‘It’s Brynn! She was playing “Diamonds” and Henry heard and he came running ’cause he knows the song and when he got here, he found Brynn! Isn’t that wild?’
‘Truly wild.’ Garrett had reached them and gave his daughter a hard look. ‘He doesn’t love the song. Dogs respond to familiar, repetitive noises.’
‘No, he loves the song and he saw Brynn dancing on the beach—’
‘Dancing on the beach?’ Garrett turned his attention to Brynn.
‘Yes,’ she said, glad it was night and he couldn’t see her blush.
‘Is dancing on the beach alone at night a Miami thing?’
‘No, it’s a one-night thing for me. An impulse. I feel silly but … oh, well, it doesn’t matter.’ Brynn took a deep breath. ‘I’m really glad to see the three of you.’
Garrett must have picked up on her tone because his anger seemed to wane. ‘Mind if I ask what you’re doing here tonight?’
‘Someone is buying the house and will be moving in next week. Sam said he’d show me round. He was supposed to meet me here at nine, only he wasn’t here, so I decided to wait. I got bored and came down here and put on the music and lost track of time and—’
‘Slow down,’ Garrett said, glancing at his watch. ‘Brynn, it’s nearly ten o’clock. If Sam was coming, he’d be here.’
‘Maybe he forgot. Only …’
Garrett frowned at her, then looked at Savannah, who’d been listening avidly. ‘Henry’s getting too near the water. We don’t want him to go swimming. Run and get him, honey.’
‘He won’t go swimming, Dad.’
‘He’ll wade. Now go.’
Savannah let out an exasperated groan and walked toward the dog, calling, ‘Henry! Red alert! You’re not allowed to wade!’
When Savannah was out of earshot, Garrett looked at Brynn with concern. ‘Now tell me what’s wrong.’
‘It’s so strange. I told you I came down here and put on the music. I suddenly felt sort of light-hearted and started dancing. I glanced up at the house every few minutes, though. I knew when Sam got here he’d turned on the inside lights. Well, that never happened. The house stayed dark except for one room.’ She pointed up at the second-floor window where the golden light still glowed softly. ‘That used to be my bedroom. All at once, I saw someone – probably a man – standing in the window watching me. At first I thought it was Sam, but he just stood there,’ Brynn went on. ‘Sam would have opened the window and yelled or waved when he saw me looking at him. The moon is so bright he had to see that I was facing him. Then I wondered why that was the only light on in the house.’ She stopped. ‘It wasn’t Sam. I’m sure it wasn’t. He stood absolutely still and kept looking at me. And I kept looking at him. I don’t know how long we stared at each other, but the time seemed endless. It was like the world stopped.’ She paused, then said in frustration, ‘Oh, I sound crazy!’
‘No you don’t,’ Garrett said reassuringly. ‘Go on.’
‘I knew I should leave, but my car is parked at the house. I wasn’t going anywhere near it. I had a feeling if I left this spot on the beach, something would happen to me. I was getting so weirded out and that’s not like me. Then Henry came rushing up. I bent to pet him – well, actually, to clutch him because he seemed so big and safe and like he’d come to rescue me – and when I looked back at the window, the man had vanished. The light’s still on, as you can see, but the guy’s gone. At least from the window. He could still be in the house.’
‘Then he’ll stay while I call for back-up and get you and Savannah to safety.’
‘And please check on Sam. I have a bad feeling about him.’
‘OK.’ Garrett removed his cell phone and called the deputies on duty, who happened to be close by. ‘Get here as soon as possible. Also, have someone call Sam Fenney’s house and see where he is.’ He ended the call, turned toward the bay and called, ‘Savannah, time for all of us to go!’
‘Brynn, too?’
‘Yeah. Let’s walk her to her car.’
Brynn had retrieved her shoes, and they’d reached the top of the wooden steps and started through the backyard when, suddenly, Henry froze. Then he began barking frantically and running at top speed toward the front of the house.
‘What the hell?’ Garrett muttered.
‘A squirrel? A cat?’ Brynn asked with tremulous hope.
Savannah stiffened. ‘Henry likes cats. He wouldn’t chase one like that. Something’s wrong! He senses danger!’
‘Henry, come back here!’ Garrett yelled. The dog didn’t respond and Garrett looked back at Brynn and his daughter. ‘You two stay here.’
‘I’m not leaving Henry!’ Savannah shouted, running after the dog. Garrett took off right behind her.
Brynn wanted to stop still. After her unnerving experience with the man in the window, she didn’t want to go anywhere near what the dog was chasing, but the momentum swept her up and she charged ahead with the other three. Besides, being left alone in the backyard might be even more frightening. Clouds had skimmed across the moon and the light dimmed. The stranger could come out of the rear door and be on her before she saw him and had a chance to cry for help.
They circled to the front of the dark house. The home across the street was also dark and the one next door barely lit. No porch light burned at the porch of her house and Sam’s car wasn’t around.
&n
bsp; ‘Sam’s not here!’ Brynn called to Garrett. ‘He never was. We have to leave now!’
Garrett didn’t answer. Brynn glanced at her car sitting in the driveway. She wanted everyone to jump in and drive away fast, but Henry raced ahead, aiming for the front door that stood open about three inches. Savannah followed him. He skittered up the front steps, across the porch, hit the door with his head and knocked it completely open before plunging into the entranceway, shadowy with moonlight.
‘Savannah, stop right now!’
Brynn didn’t think the girl even heard Garrett. She guessed the dog dominated Savannah’s concentration, both because of the teenager’s love for her pet and from the excitement of the chase. Once inside, Henry slowed his pace but didn’t stop, and Savannah dashed in behind him.
In the running tangle, Brynn somehow got caught between Savannah and Garrett. The dog nearly flew up the stairs, Savannah behind him, with Garrett pushing Brynn in his frenzy to catch his daughter. Along the way, Brynn began to hear music – an acoustic guitar and a male falsetto voice. The song was haunting and familiar. Chillingly familiar.
As they neared the top of the steps, the music grew louder, the golden light glowed brighter and Brynn’s fear grew. In an instant, panic for Savannah flooded through her. She could hear herself screaming, ‘No! Savannah, stop! Garrett, stop her!’
She heard him breathing loudly behind her, but he said nothing. Did he have a gun with him? Brynn wondered. Probably not. This was supposed to be a peaceful evening dog walk. He hadn’t been expecting an attack on a calm residential street.
Brynn’s bedroom was the first room on the right. Henry bolted inside then skidded to a complete stop. Savannah almost fell on top of him, barely catching herself before regaining her balance and going as rigid as the dog. The music washed over Brynn and she spotted an old boombox that looked just like the one Mark used to have. Steve Winwood’s hauntingly forlorn voice sang ‘Can’t Find My Way Home.’ With a growing sense of dread, Brynn glanced at the amber, yellow, blue and green imitation Tiffany dragonfly wall sconce emitting the soft golden light in her room. She remembered her delight when her father had installed it for her eighth birthday.
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