Let this be a learning lesson to me. Margo told me I could never be too prepared, and I thought I had it all under control. You never realize what you need until you’re in the situation. I should have read this or learned it from others. I should have done my research a little better. Now I was unprepared, and a part of me was afraid for my life. Once I ran from the house, I would only have a few minutes before he noticed.
“So good. Oh, that was good,” Brooks exclaimed as he leaned back in his chair.
“I’m glad you liked it. It’s my special recipe.”
“Well, then I can’t wait until you use this secret recipe again. Any other secrets you want to share?”
I spun around and glanced at him in shock.
“What’s that look for?”
“Secrets?” I asked him. “What are you talking about?”
“Well, I was talking about secret recipes. What did you think I was talking about?”
I laughed. “Okay. I thought you found my secret recipe binder and paged through it. You can’t know all my secret recipes yet. They’re mine.”
“I see how it is,” he joked as he stood.
I smiled at him. “I can finish cleaning up. I think I’m going to take a shower before we go to bed.”
“You know‚ a shower sounds good. I feel like that’s all I’ve been doing. But yeah...” He walked around‚ put his arms around me‚ and kissed me on top of the head. “I love you‚ Erika.” He then kissed my neck and bit my shoulder.
“I love you,” I whispered to him.
“Sure you don’t want any help?”
“I’m sure. I can clean up.”
“Okay. Well, I’ll head up and shower if that’s okay with you.”
I nodded. “Sounds good. I’ll just finish up here, take my shower, and meet you in my bed.”
“Your bed?”
“Well, unless you want to sleep in the bed in the guest room. Either is fine. They’re both comfortable beds. I bought the most expensive ones I could get because of the comfort factor.”
“Okay. I’ll meet you in your bed.” He winked as he headed upstairs.
I made plenty of noise, so he’d hear me still cleaning up. Once the water started, I walked to the entry table, grabbed his truck keys, and put them in my pocket. I opened the closet door, grabbed the dustpan, and dumped the pieces of shattered glass into each of his boots. I then put on my winter boots and bolted from the front door, closing it behind me.
I broke down in tears as I trudged through the drifts towards the path to Easton’s house. I didn’t know where else to go. Every warning Brooks had told me stabbed me in the chest with each step I took closer to his home.
When I reached the path, I ran as fast as I could, refusing to look behind me. The cold winter air turned my tears into ice against my skin, and my eyes burned from the wind.
I reached Easton’s dark cabin and pounded on his deck door.
No answer.
“Easton!” I yelled through the door just loud enough for him to hear me. “Easton! Please open the door!”
Silence.
I peered through the glass and couldn’t see anything in the darkness, so I ran around his house to the front door and again banged on it, yelling his name. His truck sat in the driveway, so I knew he was home. His snow machine was by the shed. Another sign he had to be home.
After minutes of pounding and receiving no response, I banged on the windows. By this time, the wind felt raw against my exposed skin, and my arms and legs felt that warm-cold, itchy feeling.
I ran back to his deck and pounded again on the door. When he didn’t answer again, I reached for the door handle. I cried tears of relief when it opened. I locked it behind me and yelled for Easton.
Silence.
“Easton! It’s Erika! Please! I need help! Please!”
I made my way through the kitchen and paused near the table. I wanted to turn on a light, but I was too afraid Brooks would see. I knew he would head this way in a matter of minutes, and I only had that much time to get help.
I walked around the table and screamed.
“Easton!” I knelt on the floor beside him and screamed again. “Easton!”
He made some sort of noise, and I grabbed his wrist, still feeling his pulse.
“Easton, who did this? What happened? You’re going to be okay.”
He was lying on his right side in a fetal position.
“I need your phone, Easton. Where is your phone?”
He mumbled something I couldn’t understand. I was afraid to turn on the light, but I knew I had to see what I was dealing with. I stood and turned the light on over the stove and cried when I saw Easton lying in a pool of blood.
“Oh God. Oh God,” I cried. “Please tell me...”
“Bro... Bro...” Easton tried to whisper.
He cringed as he spoke, and I knew he was in severe pain.
“Brooks?” I asked as I knelt beside him.
He nodded.
“Oh God. How? What did he do?”
“Get... out...” he whispered.
“I’m not leaving you here,” I whispered back to him. “Once he finds out I’m gone, he’ll come right back here. Oh God,” I cried. “Oh God...”
“Keys... truck...” He looked with his eyes towards the front door.
I ran to his front door and since he didn’t have an entry table, I fumbled through his coat pockets for his keys. Once I found them, I shoved them in my other pocket and went back to Easton’s side.
“Can you move?”
“Go...” he said. “Go... help...”
“Easton, if you can move, you need to come with me,” I begged him. “Please, Easton.”
He grimaced in pain as he moved to raise his arms. I tried to assist him as best I could. Once he could sit up, he leaned against the wall. I could see tears streaming down his face.
“Do you think you can stand? Can we get to your truck? I will drive us, Easton. I don’t want to leave you here alone.”
It seemed like forever, but eventually, I was able to help him stand, and we made our way outside. When Easton got into his passenger side of his truck, he moaned in pain. I got into the driver’s seat, pulled his keys from my pocket, and started the truck. I glanced towards my cabin and floored the truck out of Easton’s driveway.
Chapter Thirteen
“He’s ready for you now.” The young nurse smiled as she motioned to me in the waiting room. I stood and followed her to Easton’s room.
I walked in and gave him a hug. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I’ve been a nervous wreck the entire time you were in surgery.”
He smiled. “Thank you.”
“Anytime,” I said as I sat in the chair next to his bed.
“Both bullets missed everything major, so that’s a plus.”
I nodded, still unable to comprehend that Brooks shot Easton twice.
Tears ran down my checks as he spoke, “I’m so sorry. I had no idea...”
“Hey.” He smiled. “Not your fault,” he whispered. “Not your fault at all.”
“He’s not the man I knew years ago. I don’t know what happened. He’s changed.”
“I’m okay, and you’re okay. We’re both okay. And we’re both going to be fine.”
“I hope so. I just...”
“Hey,” he whispered. “It’s okay.”
There was a knock on the door, and we both turned our attention to the doorway.
“Can I come in?” a voice asked. “It’s Detective Adams and Officer Lyrok from the Hill Park PD.”
“Yeah,” Easton said.
They entered the room and glanced at me.
“She can stay,” Easton said.
They nodded.
“Well, we’re glad you’re going to be okay. We just have a few questions for you, and then we’ll leave you to get some rest for the night.”
Easton nodded.
“So did you let Brooks into your home?”
Easton shook his he
ad.
“He broke in. Well, I guess he didn’t exactly break in. I didn’t have my door locked, and he just walked in through the kitchen door.”
I was in shock, not wanting to hear what happened next.
“I heard a noise and walked into my kitchen, and that’s when he pulled the gun.”
Both officers nodded, while one jotted down Easton’s answers on a small notepad.
“At first, I didn’t recognize who it was. It took me a second, and then I just remember saying his name. Next thing I remember is riding here in my truck. But even that feels spacey, like I wasn’t all there.”
“Okay. Did he mention anything you remember?”
Easton shook his head. “I don’t think he said anything. At least, I don’t remember if he did. I mean what I told you is pretty much what I can think of.”
“Okay, well, I’ll leave both our cards here on the table if you can think of anything else. Call us if anything else comes to memory.”
Easton nodded.
“So...” I drawled. “Is he still at my place?”
“No,” Detective Adams answered. “When you arrived, the hospital staff notified us, and we had officers dispatched to your house right away.”
I nodded.
“He’s been arrested, but he’s in this hospital too. He stepped in some glass somewhere, and quite a few shards went in deep enough that it required surgery to get it all removed.”
I took a deep breath.
“Do you know anything about that?” Officer Adams asked.
I shook my head and explained the details of the last few days to the moment I ran from the house.
“Very well. Well, I’m glad you’re okay too,” Officer Lyrok said with a smile. “This all could have turned out worse, but you’re all safe, and you’re all going to be okay, including Brooks.”
“So, what’s going to happen to him?” I asked.
“Well, he already had a BOLO out for him. I guess... uh... the town he’s from... can’t think of the name right now, but they’ve been looking for him.”
“BOLO? For what?” I asked, shocked. Easton gave me a worried look.
The detective and the officer glanced at each other.
“What did he do?” I asked again.
There was another knock on the door. The young nurse from earlier peeked her head around the curtain and looked at me. “Um, sorry to interrupt. Erika, you have a visitor,” she said more like a question.
I looked at Easton and shrugged my shoulders. I had no idea who it could have been.
“We can talk more down at the station, okay?” Detective Adams said. “You need to get some rest.” He nodded to Easton. “And we may have some more questions for you over the next few days.” They handed me their cards as they said goodbye and walked out the door.
I followed along behind them with the nurse as she walked back out to the waiting room.
“Margo!” I cried as I rounded the corner. “What are you doing up here? How did you get here so fast? Did they call you?”
“No,” she laughed. “Not at all. I’m so glad you’re okay. And your neighbor? I heard about him when I got here. Well, not directly, but by overhearing the officers in the hallways. Are you okay?” She let go of me and stared at me.
“Yes. Yes, I’m fine. A little shaken up, but I’m... Yes. Um, come meet Easton, my neighbor.”
“Oh, no.” She stopped in her tracks. “I can wait to meet him. This is probably not the best time and...”
“C’mon,” I said as I held her arm and walked with her. I knocked on Easton’s door.
“Come in.”
“Easton, I’d like to introduce you to my editor Margo. She drove all the way up here to make sure I’m okay and...”
“Yes.” He grinned. “Bring her in. Bring her in.”
I pulled Margo into the room. “Margo, this is Easton. Easton, this is Margo.”
They greeted each other and shook hands.
“Nice to finally put a face to the name,” Margo said. “Wish it was under better circumstances.”
“Likewise,” Easton laughed. “I’m not usually this doped up on pain meds.”
We all laughed.
“Well, I’m glad you’re all okay. I wish you a speedy recovery.”
“Thank you.” Easton nodded.
“So, how did you get here so fast?” I asked her. “You can take a seat over on either of those chairs.”
“Well, when you don’t call me or get in touch with me for a few days, I worry, which is what happened.”
“Yeah, the storm came through and took out the power for a good day.”
“I thought that was the case. But I got concerned when I checked your cameras and saw his truck sitting in your driveway. Well, snowed in to be exact.”
“I’m a little lost in this whole thing. The detective said they were, or someone, was looking for him?” I asked her.
“Oh yes,” she said with wide eyes. “There’s been an entire search party going on for the last four to five days. The entire town has been searching fields, empty homes, abandoned farms, and everything.”
“But why? What did he do?”
“He didn’t tell you?” she asked me with a confused look on her face.
I looked at her, glanced at Easton, and shrugged my shoulders. “He just said he wanted to stop by. He didn’t talk too much on why. Well, he made it out to be that he wanted to see me one last time.”
“Yeah, one last time,” Margo said as she set her bag on the floor beside her. “Erika, Brooks left town with suicide on his mind.”
“What? That’s absurd!”
“Is it? Considering what he’s been through?”
“I already apologized to him for how I left...”
“It’s not that, Erika.” Margo interrupted as she looked at Easton and me. “Jaden is dead. He died two weeks ago.”
“What?” I sat up straight in my chair as hot tears streamed down my face. “No,” I whispered. “No. Not...”
“I’m sorry, I thought you knew. I just found out when I couldn’t get a hold of you. I tried calling you. When I saw his truck at your place, and you weren’t answering your phone, I saw your red light on in the cameras, so I called the police. By the time they got a hold of the police department up here, Easton was already in surgery.”
“What happened? To Jaden?”
“His mother. Something about her. I’m not completely sure. You’d have to ask someone who knows more. I was more concerned with finding you alive. I didn’t ask too many questions about that.”
Easton looked shocked by her response, too.
“I could tell there was something different about him. Something was bothering him. I could tell. But he wouldn’t tell me. I even brought up Jaden...” I paused. “You know what? This makes a little sense. Every time I brought up Jaden, he would get mad. Kind of go off the kilter and get angry and upset and confused. Why didn’t he tell me?”
Margo shook her head. “I’m sorry. I thought you knew.”
I shook my head. I was sick to my stomach. Jaden. Poor Jaden. What did his mother do to him? I cried in the chair. Margo walked over and held me until I could calm down. “Jaden was his world,” I whispered through my tears.
Margo nodded.
“I’m shaken,” I said as I dried my eyes. And that he was coming to say goodbye to me on his way to take his own life? I was hurting so much for him. She destroyed his world when she used Jaden against him. Now that she... now that she did this, she really destroyed his world.
Margo took a deep breath. “I have a hotel room. There’s an extra bed in there. I think you should stay with me tonight.”
I shook my head.
“I’m going out to the waiting room. Take all the time you need, okay? We’ll leave when you’re ready.”
I nodded as she said goodbye to Easton and left the room. After a few minutes of silence, I looked at Easton. “I had no idea. No idea at all. He was in all this pain, and I never noticed
. All the conversations we had, and he hid it. He has all his pain.”
“Erika, if this just happened, I’m sure he’s in complete shock. I’m sure the death of his son hasn’t even hit him yet.”
“How could I have not seen? How could I have not noticed?”
“People process pain differently.”
“Yeah, but we knew each other. At least I thought we did. I’m so blind. What did I miss?”
“Erika, don’t be hard on yourself.”
“And he was going to take his own life, Easton.”
“But he didn’t,” Easton replied. “Come here.” He motioned for me to slide the chair closer to the bed. He reached his hand over and squeezed mine. “He isn’t dead. He’s still alive. You need to look at that. He didn’t die. Even if he flew off the handle when he realized you left the house, he still didn’t harm himself.”
I nodded.
“I’m going to be honest with you.”
I looked at him.
“You know I live alone.”
I nodded.
“It was nice when you moved in, and when I found out you were going to be spending the entire winter up here, I was excited to have company again. I really was.” He paused and looked out the window for a few minutes before continuing, “When everyone is back in the summer, it’s nice, but it’s not the same.”
I nodded when he looked at me.
“Claire and I were married for thirteen years. She was the love of my life. And that’s the God’s honest truth. I’ve met no one like her, and I couldn’t see myself living one day without her. We went everywhere together and did everything together. We were that couple. You know, the ones who hold hands in public and sit together on the same side of the table at the restaurant.”
I smiled.
“We were inseparable.” He paused again for a few minutes. “We had already been through three miscarriages and with each one, she took it harder and harder. And when he fourth one happened, she couldn’t take it any longer, and I found her.”
“Oh, Easton, I’m so sorry. I...”
“I couldn’t believe it because we shared everything together. We were best friends. We knew everything about each other, and I kick myself every single day I’m alive because I wonder how in the world I missed the signs.”
The Stranger In the Guest Room Page 7