Eye of the Storm (The Storm Series) (12 page)

“Was that all you did all day?”

“Nope, but that’s all I’m going to tell you about.” Lexi winked at her and proceeded to tell her all the places they had gone and seen and the people they’d met.

Evie sat up. “Hey, wait a minute. I thought you were going to be back next week at the earliest.”

Lexi smiled at her. “We were, but then…”

“But then what? Tell me, damn it.”

“Well, it seems someone doesn’t trust foreign doctors. Even ones that are world-renowned.”

“Doctors? Are you okay? What’s wrong?” Evie moved closer shaking Lexi’s arm.

She frowned as Lexi laughed at her. “I’m fine. In fact, I’ve never been better. And in just over eight months we’ll be…”

Evie screamed and started jumping up and down shouting, “You’re pregnant! Oh my god, you’re fucking pregnant! Oops.” She sat back down and patted Lexi’s stomach, “Sorry little one, I’ll try to be better with my language.”

“I don’t think the little one can understand you yet.” She patted her stomach.

“Ha-ha. Oh my gosh! I’m so excited. How’s Noah? I bet he’s over the moon. Tell me everything.”

“I will, if you’ll give me a chance.”

“Sorry.”

“He’s crazy happy. I’ve had to try to stop him from buying every baby item out there. I figure we should, at least, wait until we know if we are having a boy or a girl.”

“Well, yeah. Totally makes sense. We’re going to have to get together and celebrate. Well, some of us anyway.”

“I can still have a glass of wine a week.”

“We will plan around that then.” Pulling her into a tight hug. “I’m so happy for you. I can’t wait to see the proud papa. We should start planning.”

“Planning? Really Evie, it’s a bit…”

“Evie, can I talk to you…”

Lexi jumped up off of the couch and screamed at the sight of Anthony standing there.

In slow motion, Evie saw Kat pull the gun out of her holster and point it at Anthony.

“No!” Evie screamed as she jumped in front of Anthony. “It’s not Jeremy. Kat please put the gun down.”

“Never,” she hissed. “Move out of the way.”

“Stop. Please. Really it’s Anthony. He’s come here to get answers about Jeremy.” She was fighting against Anthony as he tried to push her out of the way.

“Evie move, I don’t want her to shoot you.” Anthony pleaded.

“How can you be sure it’s not Jeremy?” asked Kat.

Not taking her eyes off of Kat, Evie reached around to pull Anthony’s arm in front of her. “See? No scar.”

Evie let out a breath as Kat lowered her weapon even though she didn’t holster it. She finally looked over at Lexi who was backed into the corner of the room with her hand over her mouth. “I’m sorry Lexi. I was going to tell you. I just hadn’t gotten a chance yet.”

Lowering her hand and sidestepping towards Kat, Lexi glared at her. “Yeah, is there really ever a good time to bring up the fact that you’ve got someone who looks just like the bastard that left me to die twice living with you? Come on Kat, let’s go.”

“Please Lexi, let me explain.”

“Save it.” The door slammed as they left.

Anthony’s arms came around her holding her tight against him. “I’m so sorry, la mia belezza. I didn’t know she was here.”

Leaning her head back against his chest she said, “I know. I’ve got to go explain things to her.”

“I’m not sure now is the best time.”

“It never will be. It will be better going to her place, Noah will be there. Plus all the other security. She’ll feel safe.”

“I hope you’re right. Please make sure she knows it was never my intention to scare her.”

Running her hands up and down the arms that were wrapped around her waist she said, “I know. I’ll be back soon.”

~*~

Evie was distraught while driving to Noah’s. She was shaking by the time she got there and went through security to get to his home. For a moment, she worried that Lexi would tell them not to let her in.

Noah opened the door for her and pulled her in for a hug. Evie relaxed into him for a moment.

“You’ve really pissed her off.”

“I know, I’m so sorry. I didn’t have a chance to tell her what was going on.”

“Well, here’s your chance. We’re in the kitchen. Come on. The best way is to just get it over with.”

“And you know this how?”

“I married the woman and love pushing her buttons. It’s become a hobby for me. I’m interested to hear what you have to say, too.”

Evie almost broke down into tears seeing Lexi sitting there looking so lost. She went over and knelt down in front of her taking her hands in hers. “I’m so sorry. Please let me explain.”

“You’ve got five minutes.” Lexi wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“Anthony rented Grandma’s cottage. We didn’t know that until he showed up one day. After a short time of him proving he wasn’t Jeremy and explaining why he’s here, I decided to help him. Don’t you understand, Lexi? He wants Jeremy found even more than you do! You don’t know what that bastard has taken from him. We just found out he killed Anthony’s parents. His list of victims keeps growing with every new piece of the puzzle we find. Please understand, you know I can help.”

Lexi sat there for a few moments lost in thought. “It was just a shock to see him standing there. Right now, I can’t separate the two in my mind. Why did he come here?”

“He wants to talk to you.” Hearing Lexi’s gasp, Evie continued on. “He’s hoping that you will remember something, anything that might help us. We’ve already talked to people in the area where he stayed and the ex-husband of the lady that was murdered here. It gave us another name, Jay Ellison. We found property in New York and went there.”

“Did you find anything else?”

“He knows Anthony is searching for him. He’s left letters for him at both the New York home and Anthony’s home in London. He’s one sick bastard and he’s got to be caught. You could help with that.”

Lexi got up and started pacing the room. “How can I help him? It makes me sick just to look at him.”

“Lexi, they are two different people,” Noah said quietly from the other side of the room.

Lexi whirled on him. “Don’t you think I know that? Don’t you think it makes me sick that I put him away for years for doing nothing? Nothing Noah, absolutely nothing!” She sat down hard. “I still hate myself for that.”

Evie got up and walked towards her. “I know, honey, but this is your chance to help out. There might be some little thing that wouldn’t mean anything to anyone else but Anthony. Some little thing that might help us catch him before he kills again. Because he will, it’s just a matter of time.”

Noah came over and sat down next to Lexi putting his arm around her. “She’s right, you know. As much as you hate all of this, not helping when you have the chance will eat at you. You can set the terms. We can meet here, anything to make you as comfortable as can be.”

Leaning her head on Noah’s shoulder Lexi said, “I don’t know when I’ll be ready.”

“It’s got to be sooner, rather than later. Jeremy has to know with Anthony knowing about his parents, he’s going to be coming harder and faster to find him and make him pay.”

The two friends stared at each other. Lexi took a deep breath. “Tomorrow. Both of you come here tomorrow. We’ll go over everything.”

Evie hugged her. “Thank you. I love you.”

“I love you, too, now go. I think I need to lie down.”

Evie and Noah watched her walk out of the room. “Please make sure she gets some rest tonight.”

“I’ll do my best. But you know Lexi…”

“Yes, I do. Oh, and make sure you have everything you’ve got on Jeremy handy. He stole all of our paperwork in London. We’ve got a lot to go over.”

“Sure, I’ll see if I can get any other information on Jay Ellison while I’m at it.”

“Thanks, and Noah, keep her safe, that sicko is still out there.”

“That’s my mission. See you tomorrow.”

The sun was setting as Evie drove home. Distracted, she didn’t notice the headlights following her.

Evie walked slowly up to the cottage door. Before she could knock, the door flung open and she was pulled into a hug. Laying her head on his chest, she breathed in the scent she could recognize anywhere.

“Come in, I was worried about you. I hated the fact that I couldn’t go with you. It’s been the longest two hours of my life.”

“I was just at Lexi and Noah’s. There was security all over the place.”

“I know, but I was worried about the drive to and from there. Anything could have happened. Now that you are here I thought I’d cook you dinner.”

“You can cook?”

He messed up her hair. “Yes, I can cook. Nothing fancy, my mom made sure I knew how to cook. She said it would keep me from starving or dying early from eating fast food all the time.”

“Well, whip me something up, Chef Maldono.”

Grinning over his shoulder at her he said, “You kinky thing you.”

“Ha-ha.” She sat down on the couch and watched him work in the kitchen while she filled him in at how things went with Lexi and Noah. There was something sexy about a man comfortable in the kitchen.

“Noah sounds like a sensible man.”

“He has his moments. He’s really good for Lexi. He’s totally there for her, to back her up or make her see things another way. Then there are the times he can be a goofball and keeps her off-guard, which she needs.”

“She has changed so much since the last time I saw her.”

It was strange to think Lexi and Anthony had once dated. That the last time they had seen each other was in a courtroom.

“There is something else you need to know before we go over there tomorrow.”

He turned to her. “What?”

“Lexi’s pregnant. That means Noah is going to do whatever it takes to keep her safe.”

Anthony bowed his head. “I’d do the same.” Looking at Evie, she could see the anguish in his eyes. “He’s got to be caught, and soon. For all we know, he’s given up on Lexi, but we can’t take that chance. He might have a new obsession.” He stared at Evie. She shivered at the intense look in his eyes, knowing his protective instincts were for her.

~*~

After dinner, Evie was doing the dishes while Anthony dug around the board games for something to play. They’d decided they needed a break from all the doom and gloom. They couldn’t stay away from each other. She was happy when he kept coming up with ideas to keep her close by.

The window above the sink was open and the cool night air was coming through it. Lost in thought, she didn’t hear anyone approach. She stood there frozen in horror as a face popped up on the other side of the screen. The face that was so much like Anthony’s.

“You’re even prettier close up,” he whispered and proceeded to lick the screen leaving drops of saliva behind. “I can’t wait to see how you bleed.” With a manic laugh, he disappeared.

Evie screamed for Anthony who came running. She had barely gotten the words out when he grabbed a baseball bat and ran out of the cottage telling her to stay put.

Quickly she ran over to the door and locked it. With her gut in turmoil and shaking hands, she proceeded to close every window and close the drapes. She was afraid he was going to pop up again. In the kitchen, she grabbed the biggest knife she could find and armed herself with it.

Frantically, looking around the small cottage. She didn’t know where to hide. She went into the bathroom and locked the door, but scenes of
Psycho
and
The Shining
ran through her head. She didn’t want to be trapped in here with no way out. Settling on standing against the only wall in the cottage that didn’t have a window, she kept looking around waiting for him to burst through a window.

“Shit,” she said. There on the kitchen counter was her phone. She should have already called the police. Making a dash for it she grabbed it and returned to her spot. It took her three tries to finally be able to press the numbers 911.

Feeling better that the police were on the way she sat and waited, watching the clock. Hearing a key in the lock her heart leaped into her throat. For a moment she was happy to see Anthony, she started towards him and stopped.
What if it’s not him?

Holding the knife in front of her she said, “Stop right there. How do I know who you are?”

“Evie it’s me, Anthony.”

It sounded like Anthony but she couldn’t be sure. “How do I know he didn’t find you and bash you over the head, steal your clothes and come back here?”

Anthony rolled up his sleeves to show her it was him. Dropping her weapon she rushed and jumped into his arms. “Oh thank God, I was so scared.”

“Everything’s ok. The bastard is quick. He had a car waiting. I couldn’t get the plate number.”

“Shit.” She pulled back from him and hit him in the chest. “What the hell were you doing going out there by yourself? He could have killed you!”

“No, he wouldn’t. Think about it, I wouldn’t suffer near enough.”

There was a knock on the door, Evie took that opportunity to call Noah and let him know that Jeremy was in the area. She also called Jackson so that he could make sure their grandmother was safe.

After the police left, Anthony leaned up against the door tilting his head back and closing his eyes. Evie could feel the exhaustion coming off him in waves. She went and wrapped her arms around him. They stayed that way for a while before either one of them said what was on their minds.

“I don’t know what to do. Should I leave? Will that keep you safe? Or should I stay and hope I can protect you? Hearing what he said to you makes me want to rip him apart with my bare hands.”

Evie shivered. She didn’t want to think about those words. “I don’t think leaving is the right option. We pick the place, not him. Besides, maybe we could use me as bait.”

He pushed her aside and started pacing. “Are you completely and utterly out of your mind? You’ve got to be kidding me. You know what he is capable of. What if the plan doesn’t work? I will not have you as another victim. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to you. I won’t have that on my conscience.”

She walked up to him and laid her hands on his face bringing it close to hers. “Exactly. I trust you. We’ll come up with something and we’ll make sure we think of everything. We’ve got to end this.”