He knocked softly. After a moment, he knocked again, then turned the door handle and walked in. “Hey, sleepyhead,” he called softly, but the words died on his lips. Devra wasn’t in the room. Her bed was made and a note lay on her pillow. He picked up the note.
Dear Riley,
“Thank you for your hospitality,” doesn’t seem enough after all we’ve shared. As you might have guessed, the man who took my locket, the man in the sketch, is the same man who killed Michelle. I am certain of this, because when I was a child, I saw this man kill a friend of mine and he’s haunted me ever since. I must go before I put you and your family in further danger. I can’t bear to witness the death of another person I care about. I’ll treasure the time we spent together. My only wish is that we had more.
Fondly,
Devra.
P.S. You’ll find your car at my house.
Riley winced. If she was so certain this man from her past was Michelle’s killer, why didn’t she stay? Why didn’t she confide in him? Why didn’t she trust him? He walked back into the kitchen.
Tony took one look at his face and said, “She’s gone?”
Riley nodded and dropped the note onto the table.
Tony shook his head. “How far can a lady and her cat get? We’re in the boondocks out here.”
“She took my car. She’s scared and she’s running from whomever she saw in this sketch, from whoever attacked me last night.” He pointed to the drawing on the table, but even as the excuse tumbled off his tongue, he tensed with frustration. He could have taken care of her; he could have taken care of them both.
Tony took another slug off his cup. “Guess I can forget about that nap.”
“Guess so,” Riley agreed and left the room to finish getting dressed.
Five minutes later, they climbed into Tony’s car. “She couldn’t have had too much of a head start on us,” he reasoned, but couldn’t help but feel relieved when he saw his Expedition parked on the street, and Devra’s Suburban still in the driveway outside her house.
“Listen, Tony. Do me a favor and drop me off. I need time to convince her that she should be the one to tell the captain about Tommy. It’s the best way to defuse the situation.”
Tony threw him a skeptical look. “Are you sure you’re being objective here about our pretty Miss Morgan?”
Riley sighed. “I’m trying. If she doesn’t talk to him then I’ll go in and do it myself. Trust me, Tony. I’m following my gut here, and my gut says she’s innocent.”
“What about our talk last night about her coming unhinged?”
“That was before she went after the intruder with my gun. Besides, last night Mac looked just as good a suspect as she did. I think there’s a lot more to this puzzle that we need to figure out and my money is still on Devra giving us the pieces.”
“All right,” Tony relented. “You’re lucky I was up half the night and am exhausted. I’ll give you a call around four.” He pulled over and let Riley out.
“Thanks,” Riley said as he hopped out of the car. He watched Tony drive away, then hurried up the walk just as Devra came out the front door with boxes teetering in her arms.
“Riley,” she gasped.
“Morning, doll.”
Without looking him in the eye, she handed him a box. “I’m glad you’re here,” she said with a little laugh that didn’t quite ring true. “I absolutely hate being here alone.”
“Then why chance coming back? Why not ask for help?”
She grimaced and, for a second, had the decency to look sorry for running out on him.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“Far away from here,” she responded with dead seriousness.
Did she really not trust him to help her? To protect her? He cringed as the words ran through his mind. He was lousy at protection. He hadn’t been able to stop his mother from being killed right in front of him, nor had he been able to help Michelle. He pushed down the utter feeling of failure that swept through him every time he thought of it and focused on Devra. “Stay and let me help you. We can figure this out.”
She stopped, dropped the boxes in the back of her Suburban and stared at him. “Didn’t you get my note?”
He didn’t respond.
“Well, then, you know I can’t.” She grabbed the boxes he’d been holding and slid them in the back hatch with the others.
He leaned against the car. “You’re leaving to protect me?”
“That’s right. And the rest of your family. That man could have killed you last night.”
Did she really think he couldn’t take care of himself? Stunned, Riley stared at her. “Or you,” he countered.
She stopped, but still didn’t look at him. “Exactly.”
“In other words, you don’t trust me to do my job to keep you or myself safe?”
Devra took a deep breath and turned to him. She could hear the hurt pride in his tone, could see it in his eyes. She softened. Suddenly, the fear she’d been keeping at bay, refusing to think about, swarmed inside her.
“Do you think it’s a coincidence that you and Michelle are both blue-eyed, curly-haired blondes?” he asked.
“No,” she whispered.
“And that you both fit the profile of other victims. Victims, I might add, who were found in cities where you lived. Didn’t you think it was just a matter of time before he came after you?”
She stared into his eyes, willing him to understand. “He did last night and you almost paid the price.” She reached for him, and ran the tip of her finger along the bruises on the side of his face. He caught her hand in his, the contact sending a deep ache straight to her heart. “I have to leave. I have to go somewhere where he
won’t be able to find me.” But even as she said the words, she knew it wasn’t possible. She knew wherever she’d gone he’d always been able to find her.
You can run, little girl, but you can’t hide.
“He’s found you before.”
His words echoed her thoughts, sending a feeling of fatalism bearing down on her. It was true. There was nothing she could do. Nowhere she could go.
But at least he won’t hurt you, too.
“Let me help you.” His dark brown eyes pleaded with her.
“What do you suggest?”
“That you’re the one who needs protecting. Don’t leave. Trust me.”
She wished she could.
“Stay.”
As his eyes met hers, she turned away, afraid she was folding, afraid she’d give in. If she did, then what? Then her nightmares would finally catch up with the both of them. “I thought you weren’t in the protection business,” she countered.
“I’m not.” He grabbed her, refusing to let her turn away from him, and pulled her roughly against him, his strong arms banding around her as if he’d never let her go. “But for you, I will be.”
The warmth of his embrace, the utter feeling of safety almost undid her. “Why would you do that for me? I was running out on you. You never would have heard from me again.”
Regret flashed through his eyes, then disappeared so quickly she wasn’t sure it had ever been there. “Good
question. I guess I’m not ready for you to run off and leave me yet.”
Was it possible? Could she really trust him?
“But I need something from you first.”
Her balloon of hope filled with lead and dropped to the pit of her stomach. “What?”
“I need you to come into the house, fix me a cup of coffee and tell me exactly what’s been going on. Especially about Tommy Marshall. Everything. Got it?”
She looked into his face and wondered if she could tell him everything. Could she trust him that much?
Chapter Ten
As Devra stared at Riley, she knew she couldn’t take the chance. She couldn’t tell him everything, but she could tell him about Tommy. She just wasn’t sure if she was ready to unearth and relive all the memories.
He led her into the kitchen, where she poured them both cups of coffee, then sat next to him at the table.
“It’s really okay,” he said encouraging her. “I’m not here to judge.”
“What do you want to know?”
“Let’s start at the beginning. Let’s start with Tommy Marshall.”
She nodded; it was inevitable that he’d find out. She couldn’t hide from what happened, but still she was reluctant to let her mind go back to that day fifteen years ago. “As far back as I can remember I’d had a normal life. Some would even say an ideal life. I grew up in a small town in Washington State.” She took a long sip from her cup. “Every free moment I had I played in the forest.”
He nodded, encouraging her to continue.
“That particular day was one of those rare sunshine-filled days when the big leaf maples with their thick undergrowth of ferns and ivy came to life in a sea of green.” The memories started filtering back. “Tommy was my best friend and closest neighbor.” A small smile touched her lips. “He had stepped out of the bushes, joining me on a rock beside the river with a large bowl of wild raspberries in his hand.”
She remembered he’d handed her the bowl and she’d taken a bite of the soft fruit, all the while wondering if he’d noticed her chest had begun to develop. She closed her eyes as the memories of that long-ago day washed over her and suddenly she was thirteen years old again, and Tommy was the light of her life.
Wanna go for a swim?
he asked, a wicked grin splitting his face.
You crazy? That water’s freezing.
I’ll keep you warm.
He waggled his eyebrows and she imagined him holding her tight, the way they do in the movies, causing a rush of embarrassment to streak across her cheeks.
Don’t be silly, Tommy Marshall,
she said and, laughing, threw a handful of river pebbles at him.
Come on, Devra. You’re thirteen years old now. Don’t you think it’s time you stop acting like a kid?
He reached out and touched the daisy she had tucked behind her ear.
A strange rush of excitement quickened her blood, making her almost dizzy.
W-what do you mean?
she stammered. How was she still acting like a kid?
We could…um. I mean, how about if we kissed?
Shock washed over her and her heart started to pound. Tommy had never talked to her that way before. Though, she had to admit she liked it, just a little. She did want to kiss him, had even dreamed about kissing him. He must have read the look on her face, for he pushed the raspberry bowl nestled between them to the side and leaned forward, his lips inches from hers.
She stared into the green depths of his eyes, afraid to move.
Close your eyes,
he whispered.
Obediently, she did, as anticipation rushed through her. His soft lips falling tenderly across her own sent her soaring.
A twig broke.
The blood rushed to her head, making it swim.
A shadow fell across her face.
Laughter bubbled inside her. She was so deliriously happy.
A sharp thud.
Tommy fell to the side, his shoulder knocking into her.
Devra opened her eyes.
“I can’t,” she said to Riley. “I can’t go back there.” Her heart was pounding so hard she could barely breathe.
“You can. He can’t hurt you. I’m here.” He hesitated a moment, then pulled her onto his lap and wrapped her in his arms. “I’m right here. Tell me what happened.”
Her first instinct was to pull away. But he was so warm and comforting, and she felt safe in his arms, safer than she ever remembered feeling. She took a deep
breath, and continued. “Tommy and I were…talking by the river. He gave me my first kiss. My eyes were closed, and the next thing I knew he was lying on the rocks in the shallow water. Blood was oozing from the side of his head and running down his cheek.”
She shuddered as the images barraged her. “His wide, unblinking eyes were staring at me. I screamed and tried to back away from him, but I couldn’t move. My hand had landed in the bowl of raspberries, squishing the berries. I tried to wipe them off on my blouse, but there was blood all over me. Tommy’s blood.” She swiped at the tear running down her cheek and nestled deeper into Riley’s lap.
He held her and murmured in her ear. “It’s okay.”
But it wasn’t okay, it would never be okay. She knew that now. “Stones crunched behind me. I scrambled to my feet and there he was, watching me.”
“The man in the sketch?”
She nodded. “The look of the devil Papa had always preached about glowing in his eyes. A large rock covered with blood was clutched in his hand and his lips were curved in a triumphant smile.” She stiffened. “Oh, God!”
“What?” He clutched her tighter.
“I remember what he said to me.” She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think, just kept hearing his voice whispering in her mind.
“Peekaboo.
”
Suddenly, she was a child again and, like the proverbial spilt milk, the images wouldn’t stop flowing. She’d turned and ran up the bank of the river and into the
northwestern woods she knew like the back of her hand. “No matter how fast I ran, every time I’d turn he was still behind me. After a while, I was so tired. I stopped to lean against a tree and slid down its trunk.”
She took a deep breath. “Then I saw him. He was still holding the bloody rock in his hand, still smiling. He wasn’t even breathing hard. I remember being so scared, I remember freezing as his eyes met mine. ‘You can run, little girl, but you can’t hide. Not from me.’ Those are the words he said to me. The words I keep hearing again and again.”
Just like last night.
She clenched her fists and forced herself to continue, when all she really wanted to do was get into her car and drive far, far away. “I ran in so many directions, I was no longer sure where I was, or which way was which. I remember the river looming ahead of me. I remember thinking if I could just reach the river’s path, I could follow it back home. Back to Papa. But I slipped on a patch of wet pine needles. The pain in my left ankle almost brought me down, but I knew I couldn’t fall. I knew if I did, I wouldn’t be able to get back up. So I kept running, no longer caring about the path or the pain.”
She hesitated.
“Go on,” he encouraged. “You’re doing fine.”
“As I reached the river, a large hand grasped my shoulder and pulled me backward. I fell to the ground. The impact knocked the air from my chest. Pain sliced through my head. Something wet and sticky ran down the side of my face.”