Hunted: A Suspense Collection

by J. L. Drake

  There was a pause. “What? Oh, that. Yes, well, by the way, I’m coming home soon.”

  I sat down on the corner of the bed. “Mom, it’s been four months, and I’ve heard from you three times, and you never mentioned that you are the guest speaker?”

  “Yes, yes, honey.” She was frustrated with my questions. “Marc is already working on your dress.” Of course, good old Marc. Mother often used his company, which helped private clients prepare for formal events. He had every single connection you’d ever need when it came to fashion, spa treatments, and the full meal deal. He’d have me fit for the red carpet when he was done. “Are you going to have Seth escort you?” Mother asked.

  “Umm.” I was stunned by her question. “I don’t know.” I shook my head. I was being sidetracked. “Mom, why didn’t you tell me about the fundraiser or that you were coming home? I felt like an ass when my professor brought it up.”

  “Oh, Emily, you’re being melodramatic again. I was going to tell you, but I’ve been very busy. My job doesn’t have the flexible hours your father used to enjoy. I can’t just stop when I want to.”

  I let out a sharp sigh. I hated it when she compared my father’s job to hers, like his hadn’t been important enough. An astronomer was just as important as a medical doctor, Mother!

  “Oh, Emily, I have to go. I’ll email you my flight info.” The line went dead.

  “Love you too, Mom,” I whispered and flopped back on the bed. A ball of anxiety formed in the pit of my stomach. As much as it was rough not having a parent around, I did not miss my mother’s over-the-top behavior and her lack of care for other people. And I especially didn’t miss the fake parties.

  “Oh God, the party,” I hissed as I rolled onto my side. I didn’t know how Seth would feel about going, and if he didn’t, who would be my date? Garrett, I hoped. At least he’d dance with me. I peeled myself off the bed and headed out to the kitchen.

  “Here,” Garrett said as he tipped the bottle to fill my glass. “You all right?”

  “I called my mom.” He poured a little more wine into my glass which made me smile. “Yeah.”

  “And?” He motioned for me to follow him over to the couch where Seth was, and I watched as he tossed a log on the fire. I moved to stand and look out the window. The sky had darkened, the waves had whitecaps, and the little blue dory rocked against the wharf. The lanterns were swinging, which made an eerie sound, and big raindrops started to bounce off the car windshield. I was surprised at how quickly the weather had changed. Seth wrapped an arm around my waist.

  “Storm coming in hard and fast.” He kissed my hair. “So, your mom called?” I was comforted by his affection.

  “No.” I shook my head. “I called her. I found out from my professor that she’s going to be the guest speaker for the annual fundraiser this year. They’re holding a gala in October. She already has Marc working on my dress.”

  Seth squeezed me a little harder. “Really?”

  I shrugged. “Jenny was busy, distracted by her only daughter’s call. I was told I was melodramatic about the whole thing.” I paused. “She wanted to know if you’d come.”

  Seth shifted to one side to look at my face. “What did you tell her?”

  “Um…I told her I didn’t know.” My voice was quiet.

  He thought for a moment. “Would you rather take Davis?” A faint smile traveled across his lips, and I let out the breath I was holding in.

  “Well, at least he’d dance with me.” I nudged him with my arm.

  He turned my chin to meet his face. “I’ll dance with you, McPhee.”

  “You don’t dance.”

  “You’ve never asked,” he whispered. Huh, I guessed I never had.

  Garrett cleared his throat. “You know I’m on team ‘Smiley,’ but we’re low on firewood, and I’m not sure where Sal keeps it.”

  I laughed at his nickname for us. Seth pulled on a pair of sneakers. “Be right back.”

  There was a damp chill in the air, and after Seth walked outside, the place seemed to get worse. It was dark out now. The rain fell in sheets.

  “I didn’t even know it was going to rain today,” I said as I peered out the window. Garrett stretched out on the couch.

  “Me neither. But I’m glad to be here and not camping this weekend.”

  “Honestly, though!” I laughed into my glass.

  I glanced at the clock. It had been ten minutes since Seth had left. I moved over to the door and looked out the window, but it was too dark to see anything. My hands ran over my arms to keep me warm. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Garrett stand up. I could tell he was trying to act normal, but he felt that Seth had been gone a little too long too. I reached for the door handle and turned it slowly and pulled it open.

  Garrett’s hand slammed it shut. I jumped back at the force.

  “Em, give him a minute. He’ll be back.” His voice was calm, unlike his action.

  I nodded and moved away from the door. I crossed my arms and stood in front of the fire. There was a loud knock at the door, and Garrett quickly opened it. Seth dripped water from head to toe. He clutched a big bundle of firewood covered in plastic. He dropped it into the wood box and tossed the damp sheet on an outside chair.

  My shoulders sank as the tension left my body.

  Garrett smirked. “I had to stop Em from heading out after you.”

  Seth’s eyes softened when he saw my face. He moved over and kissed my cheek. “I’m sorry, baby. The lock was stuck, and I had to find something to pry it open. I didn’t account for the time.”

  He looked as if he were frozen. I managed a shaky smile. “You should go dry off.”

  “Yeah, I should.”

  Seth went for a shower in the upstairs bathroom, and Garrett went to make a phone call. My head started to ache. Stress was a real bitch lately. I went into Seth’s bedroom and rooted around for some Advil. The bathroom drawers were full of unopened essentials, and I found tooth paste, shaving cream, floss…and Advil.

  “Yes!” I said to myself, then froze when I heard a thump.

  I looked around and moved slowly into the bedroom. Then I heard it again, but a little louder. “Garrett!” I shouted and crept toward the door. He didn’t respond. A dark flash moved by the window and caught my eye, and I gasped. My brain spun a mile a minute. I saw Seth’s gun box and opened it.

  Oh God, Em, what are you doing now? I swallowed as my braver side gave me the thumbs up. One of these days she was going to get us killed. The gun weighed more than I had thought it would. I reached for the light switch and turned it off. Then I slid out of the bedroom.

  The rain pounded the roof. I could hear it all around me. I looked around the corner into the next bedroom and saw someone trying to push the window up.

  “Garrett!” I hissed quietly. Where the hell was he? My heart pounded to the point of pain against my breastbone. I raised the gun; my hands trembled. I felt like someone had transported me out of my body again, like I stood next to myself and watched and waited, but I had no control.

  The window went up and a soaked wet leg swung in, followed by a torso. It fell to the ground with a thud.

  I cocked the gun. The sound echoed off the walls. The atmosphere in the room went dark very quickly.

  Then the hooded head tilted to one side and his eyes met mine.

  “Holy shit! What are you doing?” he yelled out. I stared at him blankly. “Stop pointing the gun at me! Connors! O’Brian! It’s me, Davis!” he screamed as he tucked himself into a ball on the floor.

  Seth ran into the room. He saw Davis on the floor and me with a gun—his gun—aimed at Davis’s face.

  “Jesus, Emily!” He lowered my hand. “Look at me.”

  I couldn’t. I was still paralyzed by my fear.

  “Baby,” his voice softened, “give me my gun.”

  I loosened my grip at last and let him wiggle it out of my fingers.

  “I’m…” I paused and choked back tears. “I’m sorry. I-I
thought it was…”

  Seth handed the gun to Garrett when he came in. His face dropped when he saw it. Seth grabbed me and held me close as I buried my head into his shoulder.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” Garrett snapped at Davis.

  Davis got up and eyed me. “I’m sorry. I tried to call your cell phones, but I couldn’t get through. I knocked on the door, but no one answered. Then I saw a window and thought I’d give that a try.” He glanced at me. “Next time I won’t be so eager.”

  I flinched at his words. I hated that I had almost killed one of our friends. He pulled out two photos and handed them to Seth. Seth glanced down and was able to keep an impassive face.

  “What?” I looked from Seth to Garrett. “What’s going on?”

  “Davis, did anyone follow you?”

  He removed his soggy ball hat as he shook his head. “No. I even switched cars.”

  Seth nodded. “All right. Well, come in and get dried off. There’s a spare room you can use tonight. Another pair of eyes is always good.”

  Garrett and I sat down on the couch together while Seth took Davis to the spare room. We stared at the fire for a bit. I couldn’t believe I had been about to shoot someone. The thought made the room tilt for a moment, the way it had after I’d almost been kidnapped. I quickly pushed it away into the ‘too soon to deal with that one yet’ box.

  The wind made the windows creak, and the rain pounded on the roof. It made for an eerie feel that spread through the room.

  Oh Lord, every horror movie and book led to this moment, the moment when the dumbass blonde goes to the remote cabin, only to be axed off by the crazy psychopath who’s been stalking her for ninety damn minutes. Okay, so what were the rules again for staying alive in a horror flick? Oh, right. One, don’t drink, and stay a virgin…I rolled my eyes. So much for that. Two, don’t run up the stairs, because the only way out is to jump. Three, don’t stand near, on, or above a window that can be easily broken. Four, never put your back to or lean on a door. Five, go ahead and slap the screaming hysterical girl. She will be the one to distract everyone when there really is danger around. Ha! That would be Davis.

  Suddenly the room lit up, and the power flickered. I nearly jumped out of my skin but somehow managed to save my wine.

  “Lightning,” Garrett said calmly. Oh sure, he was calm. He didn’t go over the rules for trying to stay alive while flippin’ Jack the Ripper came after him. I sank my body back into the couch and let out a long sigh…

  Oh man, I needed some professional help.

  “Garrett?” I whispered.

  “Mmm?”

  “What were the photos of?”

  He paused. “Us at the gas station where we stopped outside of town.”

  Well, that explained why Davis had paid us a visit.

  “Why were they sent to Davis?” I asked.

  “They were addressed to Seth, but apparently given to Davis since we weren’t there. Good thing he checked the envelope.” He gave me a sad shrug.

  I pulled my legs up. “Do you think he knows we’re here at the cabin?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. The good news is that this place is pretty safe. There’s a great alarm system, and now there are three trained officers to guard you.” He smiled as he looked down at me.

  I shrugged. “Right, because this is what you want to be doing at twenty-four years old.”

  Garrett put his arm around me. “You and Seth are my family. If one of you is in trouble, then I’ll do whatever I can, for as long as I can, to keep you safe.” He kissed my head, and I closed my eyes.

  “I hated that I was relieved when Michaels said I couldn’t do the ‘bait’ thing.”

  “We all were,” Garrett chimed in quickly.

  I set my glass down on the table and then lay back against his leg. I felt exhausted. Garrett rested his arm on the back of the couch and sipped his wine. I turned my head and watched the fire dance along the burning log.

  “I still hear his voice.”

  I felt Garrett flinch. “Lasko’s?”

  I nodded. “He waits for me in my dreams or when I’m alone.” Images from that night popped up in front of me. “I can smell him and see the way his eyes burned into mine. I—” I couldn’t finish. I just let my tears travel down my cheek and onto his pant leg. “I’m scared, Garrett.” I sniffed and took a heavy breath, not sure how to place my emotions.

  He brushed my hair behind my ear. “I know.” I started to cry a bit harder and curled my legs up. “We’ll get through this.” He rubbed my back softly to soothe me.

  I tried to focus on something else, anything else. “Why aren’t you dating anyone?” I asked quietly.

  He stopped his rub. “I’m not really interested in anyone.”

  I wiped my eyes. “Have you ever been?”

  There was a long pause before he finally answered me. “Yes, once, but she was in love with someone else.”

  I rolled over to see his face. “Her loss. You’re a great person. Anyone would love to have you. I know I do.”

  He smiled and wiped a tear away. “You’re sweet.”

  I looked at him through momentarily dry eyes. “Well, promise me that when you do find someone, you won’t leave us. She needs to know you’re a package deal.”

  He laughed a little. “That’s my plan.”

  I rolled back over to watch the fire. My eyes grew heavy and I soon gave in.

  I stood on the dock and watched the dory hit the wharf. Rain poured down my face, and the wind was so strong it nearly knocked me over. “Emily!” Seth yelled from the front door.

  I turned to look at him. When I did, I saw the old man at my side. “It’s no use, Emily. You’re his now. You’re only going to make it worse.”

  I stared at him. “Why me?” I shouted through the hail.

  He moved in and grabbed my arm. “Because you look just like her,” he hissed at me. “He wants you for himself. He desires you, Emily. Come make him happy.”

  I stepped back, but his grip was too tight. “Let’s go now!”

  I flinched and jerked my arm. “No! Please!” I shouted.

  Garrett touched my shoulder, which made me jump. “Em, it’s just a dream, just a dream.”

  My chest heaved. I slowly opened my eyes. Davis’s eyes were on me, and then I saw Seth by my side. I sat up and leaned forward and rested my arms on my legs.

  “Sorry,” I murmured.

  Seth ran his hand over my back. “Don’t be sorry. Are you all right, baby?”

  No.

  “Yeah.” I stood up and walked over to the window and watched the stormy water. My heart slowly stopped its mad race, and I turned around.

  Seth held out his hand. I went over to him as he tossed a pillow on the floor and sat me on top of it. He gently started to rub my shoulders. I leaned back and let his hands work magic on my tension.

  Garrett started to laugh a little when he saw my face. He held his hands up when I glared at him.

  “Sorry, but all I can think of is the expression on that old man when you elbowed him square in the face.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I didn’t even mean to hit him there. I was going for this chest.”

  Garrett looked at Seth. “Don’t piss this one off.”

  They all started laugh, and soon I joined in as the tension left the room.

  Davis leaned forward. “We all know she can use a gun.”

  “I’m so sorry, Davis.” I leaned forward on all fours and hugged him. When I leaned back, Seth kissed the side of my head. “Huh, he screamed like a girl!” Everyone laughed while Davis blushed.

  Seth rubbed my arms. “Small problem though, baby. The safety was on.” I could feel his smile against my temple.

  Garrett hit his shoulder. “Don’t tell her that.”

  I pushed Garrett’s leg. “It’s all right. I’ll get Johnnie to give me some one-on-one lessons,” I teased.

  “I’m sure there are a few guys at work who would be more than
happy to,” Davis said as he nearly fell over in his chair from laughing. Seth looked down at me with a big grin. I leaned up and kissed him.

  Davis tossed a pillow at us. “Go back to the on-call room.”

  I blushed. “That obvious, huh?”

  “Obvious? Guys were placing bets on how long you’d be down there.” I put my hands over my face, and my skin grew hot from my blush.

  “Nice, Davis,” Seth scolded.

  I glanced at Garrett. “Please tell me you weren’t in on that?”

  He leaned back. “I had twenty bucks on thirty minutes.” My mouth dropped open. “I’m kidding.”

  Seth looked at him. “I wish I’d known about this bet. We could have made some money.”

  I turned around to his wicked, playful grin that I hadn’t seen in a while. “Oh yeah, and how long would you have bet on?”

  He leaned in, and his lips brushed my ear. “I would have bet all day.”

  I crawled on his lap to straddle him. “Okay, I’m in.”

  He laughed and kissed me hard.

  Davis slapped the arm of the chair. “How did he land this one?”

  “I’m still trying to figure that out myself,” Garrett said, then moved to avoid Seth’s hit.

  I sat down between them. “Well, you see, Davis, the truth is I get a two-for-one package with Seth.” I put my hand on Garrett’s arm.

  He shifted and put his arm around me. “I step in when Seth can’t.” He winked.

  “Step in on what?” Davis asked as he teased Seth.

  Seth stood up. “Okay, you’re having too much fun.” He pulled me to my feet.

  “I love his jealous side. Such a turn on.”

  He pulled me into him. “Oh, really?”

  I nodded as my teeth caught my bottom lip.

  “Garrett, you got first watch,” Seth ordered as he pulled me behind him.

  I laughed. “Night, guys.” Davis shook his head at me.

  Seth pulled me into the room and shut the door. He went over to the window and checked outside before he closed the curtains. Then he walked into the bathroom to check the other window.

  I pulled off my shorts and top and pulled on his work shirt. I saw his handcuffs and slipped them off his belt. He came out and stopped mid-step. “Wow.”