Target on the Mountain

by Elizabeth Goddard

  The man barely smiled. “No need for formalities with me, son. We’ve been through too much for that. You can call me David.”

  He’d prefer the formalities while at his place of employment, but he didn’t want to argue. Saying nothing, Ryan offered a tenuous smile and led the man to the conference room. He gestured to a chair. “Coffee? Water?”

  “Nothing for me, thanks. I would have called you, but I wanted to have this conversation in person.”

  “I could have stopped by the house. I don’t live that far from you.”

  “I didn’t want Sheryl to know that I talked to you. Or Tori, for that matter. She’s coming over for dinner tonight, by the way.” His eyes brightened with the words, if only slightly. “Please join us, if you like.”

  “Mr. Peterson. Um... David, please tell me what’s on your mind. Have you remembered something about Sarah that could help the investigation?”

  David clasped his hands and hesitated, then finally said, “This is about Tori, not Sarah.”

  Ryan had figured as much. “Go on.”

  “Her mother and I, we don’t want her to stay here. I can’t lose another daughter.”

  Ryan measured his words. He wanted Tori to go, as well, but he had to tread carefully here and not get into the middle of a family disagreement. “I’m confused. How can I help?”

  “I’m hoping as a detective you can discourage her from trying to find Sarah’s killer, that’s how. Isn’t there something you can do to keep her out of the investigation? If she can’t look into things, she has no reason to stay.”

  Ah. “There’s nothing I can do to stop her. I’ve already tried to talk her out of it. She’s determined to find the killer. All I can do is keep her close. Work with her as much as possible.”

  David crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair. “We need her to be safe. What can we do?”

  “Maybe she needs you,” Ryan said. “She needs the familiarity of her home and the people she loves.”

  “We’ve thought of that. That’s why we offered to move with her. Or at least visit her where she lives in South Carolina for months, however long is necessary.”

  Ryan’s heart went out to the man. There were no easy answers. “What you need is a therapist or a counselor. Someone who can help you all work through this time of grief. I take it you’re not seeing one.”

  He shrugged. “Even thinking about that...it just hurts too much. We don’t want to talk about our feelings with a stranger.”

  Ryan refrained from scraping a hand down his face. “I’ll talk to Tori, but you know she probably won’t listen to me.”

  “Thank you. And, son, you have more influence over her than you know, despite what happened in the past. She still admires you and I believe she’ll listen to you.” David blew out a breath, relief apparent on his face.

  As if Ryan alone could make Tori change her mind. David was about to be disappointed.

  “I’ll give it a try,” Ryan said. “Was there anything else?”

  “No. That’s it.” David stood. “I appreciate you taking a few minutes to listen.”

  Ryan was surprised David didn’t ask if they had made any progress on Sarah’s murder case. “Of course. I’ll walk you out.”

  After Tori’s father had gone, Ryan headed to his cubicle. He still needed to finish writing up his reports, but that would have to wait. He rubbed his eyes. He’d already tried to call Tori this afternoon and she was ignoring his calls. She’d texted him to let him know she was okay, so at least there was that.

  He needed to maintain his emotional distance while still keeping his finger on the pulse of her little private investigation. The other side of the equation—he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her since she’d returned. Opening a drawer, he slammed it shut to vent his frustration with himself, earning a few looks from his fellow county employees. How had he gotten to this place in his life? He thought he had finally moved on from her but instead, he was right back to square one. It made no sense!

  He exited the county offices and got in his vehicle. If she wasn’t answering, he should check up on her.

  The sky had been gray and rainy this afternoon and he turned the windshield wipers to the highest setting as he steered through town toward home. He would stop by the bungalow first; he hoped she was there and not out in this weather.

  To his surprise, Tori steered right past him, going in the opposite direction.

  Ryan made a quick U-turn in the middle of the highway as he grumbled under his breath, although he didn’t know why he bothered to keep his voice low. He was alone in his vehicle as he followed Tori.

  She would be furious when she found out he’d tailed her. If she found out.

  Following her hadn’t been his intention, but she’d ignored his call, choosing to text him a short message instead. And her father had paid him a visit.

  Still, the investigation into the multiple homicides needed to be his top priority, not Tori herself. But after the two attempts on her life, he remained concerned about her safety. And she was tangled up in this investigation whether he liked it or not.

  The rain wasn’t helping matters. His windshield wipers couldn’t keep up with the torrent.

  Tori drove out of town and just kept driving along the freeway. What business could she have out here? Tension built up in his shoulders as he followed Tori for a good forty-five minutes, and she never noticed him on her tail—he could thank the weather for that.

  In Shady Creek, Tori parked her vehicle at the curb near a cluster of apartments. Across the street was a laundromat, an insurance office and a coffee shop advertising free internet. The downpour continued as if the storm had traveled with them to the next town. The rain had probably ceased in Rainey—he laughed out loud at that. But in Shady Creek, the storm kept up.

  Shady Creek was in Maynor County, so it was still part of his jurisdiction, but if she’d gone as far as Shasta County he would have continued to follow her as part of this investigation.

  She’d learned something. He knew it. But what?

  The thought soured in his stomach. He thought they had an understanding and had agreed that she would share whatever she learned so that he could more quickly find the murderer. He parked across the street from where she’d parked and noticed she had remained in her vehicle so far. He was down a ways, too, and needed to think through his next steps. Should he follow her from a distance or should he make his presence known? If he did reveal himself, would she be forthcoming with what she’d discovered?

  Though it was still raining, Tori got out of her vehicle, wearing a hooded jacket. She started down the sidewalk of the quiet two-way street.

  Ryan tugged his wind jacket on and pulled the hood up. Looked like he was getting out in the rain, too. Hoodie covering his head, he tried to follow her. He decided that once he knew her destination, he’d make his presence known. Unfortunately, he wasn’t certain she would give up what she knew, even though he was the detective on the case.

  Unease crept up his spine and his senses kicked into high gear.

  Something wasn’t right. Call it instinct or a gut feeling, but he’d learned to never ignore it.

  Tugging her jacket tighter, Tori glanced over her shoulder at the slow traffic as if to rush across the street. She started across and Ryan made to cut her off, done with trailing her.

  An engine revved behind them as a vehicle rushed forward, heading directly for Tori.

  “Look out!”

  SIX

  The grille of the blue crossover filled Ryan’s peripheral vision as he propelled himself forward. Tori twisted around as he grabbed her. Gripping her arms, he dove with her out of the vehicle’s path. Together they slammed against the sidewalk, though Ryan rolled to absorb the bulk of the impact. Pain stabbed through him, but he ignored it.

  Protecting her, he held her on top
, his back against the asphalt. Tires squealed as the vehicle sped away. Gasping, he tried to jerk his gaze around to catch the license plate, but he couldn’t see it as it turned the corner. Still, he had the make and model. He would radio the information in for law enforcement to be on the lookout.

  Would the vehicle come back? Had the near collision been intentional or had he overreacted? He didn’t think he had.

  As if it hadn’t been pouring hard enough, the ground began to crackle with drops. The rain wouldn’t give them a break.

  “Ryan!” Tori’s voice startled him.

  He’d been focused on the vehicle and only now realized she’d been calling his name. She stared down at him. “You can let me go now.”

  What? Oh, he still gripped her tightly to him. “Are you all right? Are you hurt?”

  “No, I’m not all right.” Her dark green eyes pierced him. Her frown deepened. “What are you doing here?”

  “Saving you, apparently.” He opened his hands, releasing her.

  She got to her feet, then offered her hand to assist him up. Her grip was slick with rain and his hand slipped free, but he got to his feet anyway.

  “I’m good.” Was he? His back might never be the same, and for sure he’d have a few bruises. But rushing Tori out of the way had been worth it. No doubt there.

  He glanced around them. Was someone else watching and waiting? The rain kept everyone inside, and if someone had witnessed what happened, no one had stopped to help them.

  “I don’t understand. Why are you here?” Water droplets beaded on her weather-resistant hoodie.

  “Let’s get out of the rain and go somewhere safe and dry,” he said. “Maybe you can tell me where you were going.”

  Hands on her hips, she angled her head. “And you can tell me why you were following me.”

  “You know, it’s kind of hard to have a meaningful conversation in this downpour.” He offered a grin to defuse the tension.

  “Come on.” She took his hand, and they rushed over to the café across the street.

  Tori stepped through the glass door first and a jingle announced their presence. The small internet café was empty except for an employee—the barista—arranging mugs. The space felt warm and welcoming, and the aroma of fresh coffee filled the air.

  The barista glanced up and waved them over. “What’ll it be? And it’s on the house.”

  “Really?” Ryan angled his head.

  “Sure. You two look like you could use a free cup of joe today.”

  Tori chuckled.

  Ryan’s shoes squeaked as he made his way to the counter. He glanced at the menu, his mind on anything but coffee. “A regular coffee for me.”

  “Cappuccino macchiato for me.” Shivering, Tori hugged herself.

  “Give me a minute to make a call.” Ryan tugged out his cell, grateful it had remained dry, and moved to stand by the glass storefront.

  He stared at the gray sky’s relentless payload while he made his call. Would he see the vehicle again? Was someone following Tori—someone else? He contacted dispatch and reported the type of vehicle that had tried to run her down. He didn’t think he’d mistaken the vehicle’s intent. Still, without a license plate there wasn’t much more to go on. Deputies could be on the lookout in the area and they would go from there.

  When he ended the call, he turned his attention back to the café and spotted Tori in a booth against the wall, a fusion of bar towels wrapped around her. She’d taken off the jacket, which hadn’t exactly been waterproof enough for this deluge. The blue T-shirt she wore was soaked. He approached and smiled down.

  “The guy was really nice.” She gripped the mug with both hands to warm herself. “He brought me this towel and is bringing some more. Said business had been slow today.”

  “I’d think more people would be here getting coffee in this weather,” he said.

  She shrugged and sipped on her cappuccino. He slid into the booth, next to her, forcing her to scoot over, then reached over to grab his plain coffee placed across the booth.

  “What are you doing?” She scooted closer to the wall. “You’re supposed to sit across from me.”

  His preference, too. “I can’t see the door from that side. Would you like to sit over there instead?”

  “No. Then my back would be to the door.”

  “Then I guess you’re stuck with me sitting here.”

  Weren’t they a cute law enforcement pair? Except they weren’t a couple at all. Still, sitting next to her like this, he could almost pretend they were. But he would steer clear from thoughts like that.

  “Actually, now that you’re here, I could use your warmth. You can stay.” She smiled. “For now.”

  “Funny. You do realize that I’m blocking your escape. You have to go through me to get out.”

  She arched a brow. “Is that a challenge?”

  He chuckled. What am I doing sitting here with Tori and laughing? “No.”

  There was a killer out there. At least one. Maybe more than one. He took a swig of the hot coffee and focused on the situation.

  Ryan stared out the window, watching for any other anomalies. Anyone else who might want to hurt Tori. He let the anger of the situation sober him. He needed something to create resistance to the warmth he could feel coming off her.

  Tori positioned herself at an angle against the wall so she was half facing him, half facing the table. He felt her green eyes on him but continued to watch out the window. He almost wanted the driver to come back so he could detain him. Or her. He honestly didn’t know if it had been a female or a male.

  Then again, maybe they shouldn’t stay long enough for whoever it was to come back. It might be better if he ushered Tori home. She didn’t seem to realize that someone had just tried to kill her. Again.

  Or maybe she didn’t want to accept it.

  “What happened back there?” she asked.

  He turned to look at her. The wet ends of her hair were finally drying.

  “Why were you following me?” Tori stared at him over the rim of her mug.

  “I wasn’t exactly following you.”

  “Oh, yeah, what would you call it? You showed up here. How did you get here if you didn’t follow me?”

  “You didn’t answer my call, for one.”

  “No, but I texted you that I was okay.”

  “After what happened, I wanted to make sure that was true. For all I knew, someone else could have stolen your phone and sent that message. I headed home and thought I’d stop in to make sure you were all right, plus find out if you learned anything today. You sped right past me. So yeah, maybe I turned around to see where you were going.” He’d leave her father out of it for the moment. She had enough issues going with her parents.

  “And followed me.”

  Ignoring her indignation, Ryan watched the slow traffic through the big plate glass window. Time to redirect her. “Why don’t we focus on the more serious issue? You haven’t said one thing to me or asked me about why I pushed you out of the way. Did you realize that someone tried to run you over?”

  He turned to see her reaction. Her face paled and she shifted her position. She was entirely too close.

  “I thought... I thought I had somehow stepped out in front of a car. I didn’t realize... Are you sure?”

  “Yes. It caught me off guard, too, but I was approaching you to make my presence known when I heard the engine rev and the vehicle pulled from the curb and headed straight for you. I yelled for you to look out.”

  “I turned to see who was yelling.”

  “I didn’t have time to explain. I only had time to shove you out of the way. Didn’t you hear the vehicle speeding up?”

  She stared into her cappuccino macchiato. He knew that admitting that she hadn’t been aware of someone following or targeting her would be hard fo
r her. She hadn’t even known that Ryan was following her. He suspected Sarah’s death was clouding her mind and impacting her usual perceptiveness. More now that she realized Sarah had been the intended target. The grief and stress were pressing in on her. That was why a bereavement leave was given. But instead of using this time to cope with her loss and work through her feelings, Tori refused to give herself time to process Sarah’s murder. He wouldn’t press her on what she’d missed today, but there was something else he would press her on.

  “So, what’s here? Why did you come to Shady Creek? I have a feeling you’re following a lead.”

  * * *

  She had hoped he wouldn’t go there. “Back up. I’m still reeling over the fact you claimed someone tried to run me over.”

  Tori squeezed the bridge of her nose and took a breath. What was the matter with her? If what Ryan said was true and someone had tried to run her down, then this latest attack meant that two people had been following her and she’d missed that. Or one person had followed her and one had waited for her here. Either way, she was getting careless. Her hand shook as she tried to lift the now tepid drink to her lips.

  Ryan still waited for an answer to his question and Tori wasn’t ready to give him one. She eyed him over the rim of her cup. She wished she had opted for sitting across from him now. He was much too close.

  She tried to shake off the effect his nearness was having on her. How had she found herself so close to him twice in one day? She shivered again, the still-damp clothes fighting against her attempts to get warm. She almost wished she could lean into Ryan and soak up some of his body heat, but she was drawn to him for other reasons, too. Reasons she wouldn’t indulge.

  But he was waiting on an answer. “Clearly, I didn’t make it to the place where I could learn something, as you put it.”

  “Come on, Tori. You know we’ll get to the bottom of this faster if we work together.”

  “As soon as I know anything solid, I’ll share it.” She angled her head to look at him. She knew a little but it was mostly a feeling she was going on here. “I don’t have any facts worth your time.”