He and Jade came to the end of their walk and he had to speak. “I came looking for you because I’m not going to be here tonight. I’m going to Daniels’ and then to my parents’ place. They’re having Michelle for dinner. I’m not sure how late I’ll be. Are you going to be okay on your own?” He felt like an imbecile. He hadn’t meant to make it sound like she’d needed a baby sitter, but he knew by the look on her face that’s how she’d taken it. Sam didn’t get the chance to edit his words after he’d said them out loud.
He would be seeing Michelle. Jade looked confused, then injured and he could hear it in her voice. “I can handle things around here. We had sex, Sam. We both enjoyed it. You don’t owe me anything.” Her words stung, and he couldn’t formulate a response before she spun around and walked away. Dodger stayed with him as if understanding where he belonged. The dog looked up at him with sad eyes.
Sam stroked his velvet head. “I messed that one up. I am truly Jinxed. I can’t communicate with her any better than I can communicate with you. Bear with me, fella. My heart is in the right place.”
* * * *
It was dark when Jade left the clinic that evening. She’d played the scene over and over in her head. There were so many other things she could have said, all of them better than what she had said. His concern for her and her immature reaction had just reinforced the fact that she’d had so little experience compared to him. He made her feel like a child. She’d acted like one and lashed out at him.
Safely at home, she ate a little dinner and talked with the animals. They picked up her melancholy, and Jade felt guilty. She looked around her living room. She’d decorated for Christmas with what she’d brought with her, but she hadn’t picked out a tree yet. It struck her. That would cheer her up and create a little excitement at home. Would it take her mind off Sam and where he was having dinner and with whom? Probably not, but it was worth a try.
Maynards always had beautiful Christmas trees. Jade pulled into the lot. It was busy. A number of families selected trees of all sizes. She didn’t recognize the young man who asked her if she needed help, but he was friendly and filled with the spirit of the season. She described the kind of tree she wanted.
He thought for a moment and said apologetically. “We don’t have anything like that cut and ready, but you could check the uncut trees and mark it with this.” He handed her a florescent length of tape. “If you give me your address, we can cut it when things die down a bit and deliver it right to your home.” He looked around her and nodded to her car. “Is that yours?” She nodded and he said, “Not big enough for the one you described. It looks like we’d have to deliver it anyways.”
Jade laughed at her compact car. It was a hatchback, and Jade figured just about anything would fit in it. This time her eyes were bigger than her transportation. She wrote down her name and address and thanked him.
A family of five was making a huge fuss over Rags, and he ate it up. She walked over to retrieve him, but the look on the girls’ faces made her hesitate.
She apologized to the parents. “I’m going to search out my tree. He can stay here with you for a bit if you want.” The girls looked up from their steaming cocoa with hope shining in their eyes.
The father nodded. “We’d love that. Take your time. He’s safe here with us.”
Rags didn’t even notice she’d gone. Walking through the evergreens Jade breathed in their wonderful scent. Christmas tree, the only fragrance she liked as much as Sam’s. She daydreamed about him as she searched for her tree. She wasn’t sure how much time had passed but a dense cloud must have floated across the moon because suddenly, it was so dark Jade had trouble finding her way through the trees. The sounds of the families in the tree lot faded.
The crunch of a branch snapping startled her. She couldn’t see anything suspicious, but her senses were instantly on alert. Jade stood perfectly still and listened. Nothing. She sniffed the air. Just Christmas trees. She shrugged, perhaps the darkness had her imagining things. Wishing Rags hadn’t stayed behind, a frisson of fear washed over her. Jade never ignored her instincts when it came to fear. Alone in the dark evergreen forest, Jade knew she was in danger. Using a large tree for protection, she scanned the darkness. She knew it was lame, but that tree was all that provided cover as she checked the signal on her cell phone.
Chase and Reggie’s home phone rang once and disconnected. She’d lost the signal. A sliver of moon crept out from behind the cloud, and Jade breathed a sigh of relief. She quickly looked around for the cause of her fear. There was nothing there that should have caused such terror. Walking back to the tree lot, Jade decided her Christmas tree would just have to wait until daylight. She’d been foolhardy to venture out alone in the dark. She moved quickly trying to keep a handle on her rising panic. At last, the multi-colored lights of Maynards were visible through the trees. She still had some distance to go, but the sight of those red, green, blue and yellow lights made her smile.
The hair on the back of her neck stood up and her mind froze. Something was very wrong. She could sense it. She forced her body to keep moving. There was a strange silence that frightened her even more. The animals who lived in this patch of trees had gone unnaturally silent. Something was out there, stalking her. Feeling a little like the poor rodent in a game of cat and mouse, Jade did the only thing she could. She ran.
The thing that stalked her was obviously faster, but it wasn’t noisier. Jade ran toward the lights and the people at Maynards hollering at the top of her lungs. The crowd of people looked towards her. Two young men working the lot, ran out to meet her. Rags out distanced them easily, reaching her first.
The boys met her halfway. Panting, she kept moving until they were sheltered under those beautiful colored lights. When she finally caught her breath and told them what had happened, they looked uncomfortable and shook their heads with skepticism.
“It was probably a fox.” The young man who’d sent her into the trees looked guilty. “I’m so sorry. I should have gone with you.”
The look of regret on his face was genuine.
Safe, but a little embarrassed, Jade tried to make light of the situation.
“Well that was good exercise at least.” Still shaking, she tried to laugh it off. “If you don’t mind, I’ll come by tomorrow when it’s still light out and pick my tree.”
The young man obviously felt badly about not protecting her. “Your tree’s on me. Select whichever one you want, and I’ll deliver it and put it up for you.”
Jade smiled graciously. “That would be lovely. See you tomorrow.”
* * * *
It wanted to scream but there were too many people close to its hiding place. She’d been within reach and instead of taking her swiftly, cleanly, it had played with her. It enjoyed the chase, and this one was particularly sweet. But that little indulgence had cost it the prey. Effortlessly, it ran deeper into the forest and farther away from people. It stopped on a dime and smiled at its precision. Was there any creature more sublime? Obviously not, it was the only one of its kind, a new breed that sat confidently at the top of the food chain. It needed to procreate. It had to be. The prey got away…with a strange sort of half growl, half scream it tore at its chest and licked the warm red blood off its hand.
Jade drove home with great care. She focused all her attention on the road trying not to think of her close call. Thank God for the first time in her life she’d thought to draw attention to herself, gambling on the chance that the creature would shy away from crowds. Her gamble had paid off and probably saved her life. The gravity of the events earlier that evening sunk in, and Jade started to shake.
Headlights appeared in her rearview mirror and she frowned. It shouldn’t have frightened her. It wasn’t like she thought the creature stalking her jumped in a car and followed her. The cell phone rang and startled her. She glanced at the call display and saw Sam’s name. Her chest tightened.
“Hi, Sam.”
“Hi, Jinx. I managed to make it home earlier than expected. I’m in the car right behind you. I thought I’d better let you know it’s me, so I don’t terrify you when I pull in behind.”
Jade sighed. It was good to hear his voice. She’d been so frightened in the evergreen forest, and yes, she valued her ability to take care of herself, but right now she just wanted him to hold her.
Upon reaching the house, Jade waited in her car until Sam opened the door for her. She stood up and put her arms around Sam’s waist, her cheek against his chest. The zipper on his coat was cold but Jade knew the warmth Sam had inside.
“Whoa, what happened? You’re shaking. Come on, let’s get you inside. You can tell me all about it.”
She nodded, not trusting her voice to stay steady. Once safely inside, Sam helped her off with her coat and shed his own. He threw them both over a chair and took her into his arms. He was so warm. All Jade wanted was to stay in his embrace and savor the secure feeling.
Sam leaned back and looked her in the face.
“What is it, Jinx? Come on tell me. You’re worrying me.” He led her to the couch, and they sat down. Still, she held on to the front of his sweater.
In a husky voice she told him what had happened at Maynard’s. With her ear against his heart she could hear his pulse quicken.
“Have you called Travis yet?”
She shook her head. “No. I just wanted to get home.”
“I understand.” He pulled her closer. They sat like that for a few minutes, and finally Sam stirred. “I’ve got to call Travis and have that area checked out. They probably won’t find anything except those strange tracks, but we have to report this.”
She nodded and sat up. “I think I’ll make some hot cocoa. Do you want some?”
He shook his head as he punched in Travis’s number on his cell phone. He smiled at Jade. “But I wouldn’t say no to coffee though.”
Walking away, she muttered, “Where’s Reggie when you need her. She’d have cocoa with me.”
She was in the kitchen heating milk on the stove when he finished his call and walked up behind her. He put his arms around her and bent to kiss her neck. Despite the heat from the stove, Jade shivered.
“You’re still shaking. Let me do that.”
She took her hand off the wooden spoon, and he picked it up and started to stir. While he did, he rocked her gently. It was incredibly soothing, and when he was done he poured the cocoa into a mug and handed it to her. “Now what would you prefer, a fire or a hot bath?”
She smiled at him. It was nice to be pampered for once in her life. No man except her brother had ever taken such tender care of her. Her fear was gone, and her confidence returned.
Images of him in the bath with her did crazy things to her pulse rate but she chose the former. “I think I’d like a fire.”
He poured himself a cup of the coffee she’d made while he was on the phone. They walked together into the living room.
Sitting on the couch, her legs tucked beneath her she said, “To tell you the truth I’m kind of proud of myself.”
Busy with the fire, Sam looked over his shoulder at her, “You have every reason to be proud of yourself. You outsmarted that thing. I’m not sure anyone else has ever done that.”
“What did Travis say?”
“He got on it right away. I had to talk him out of coming here to check on you. I know I couldn’t keep Chase away, so if you don’t mind, I’d like to wait and tell him in the morning.”
“Good idea. Chase would have me all packed up and moved into McCann house so he could watch over me.”
“I know how he feels.”
She didn’t think of Sam as a brother though and that made all the difference. Making a stand, she said firmly. “Just because I let you take care of me tonight, doesn’t mean I can’t take care of myself.”
He held up his hands in self defense. “Whoa there, message received.”
“How did it go with your man on the inside at Daniels Pharmaceuticals?”
He sighed with frustration. “He wasn’t able to give me anything conclusive, but he did say that my father had a number of files shredded about a month ago. It was top secret, and the geek wasn’t supposed to see. The whole thing smelled funny to him. The money I offered the other day made him remember this little bit of information.”
“I don’t imagine it’s easy for you to deal with such people.”
He nodded. “I’ve always distanced myself from the business and my parents’ activities. Now I’m forced to do something. Maybe I’ve taken the coward’s way out. I should have been actively opposing them all along.”
Jade disagreed. “You are no more responsible for the actions of your parents than I am responsible for the actions of my father.”
“But you tried to stop him.”
“Yes, I did, but I knew without a doubt what he was up to. You have no evidence against your parents, Sam.”
“Maybe I’ve been blind.”
He pulled her into his arms and held her very close. His hand lightly stroked the back of her neck. It felt good, and she closed her eyes to enjoy the sensation. A little sound of pleasure escaped her lips, and he took advantage of it. His mouth swept down and took hers. She responded enthusiastically.
He was blunt. “I want to stay the night.”