A Love for all Ages (Crockett County Trilogy Book 1)

by Phillips, Brenda

  Deciding this was a day to celebrate he had called his parents inviting them over for steaks. He even permitted his Mother to pretend she didn’t already know the cause of the celebration. It was only after they arrived did he divulge to Carrie he knew she had known first.

  Stephanie had wanted Marty to be here but she had to work at the hospital and Johnny was also on duty tonight. However all in all the night was filled with laughter and joy. His Father had explained the renovations they wanted to do for the baby. Telling Stephanie they were going to do two rooms one for the nursery and the other for a toy room. Laughing Stephanie had listened to the excitement around her.

  However several times Chase had seen Stephanie with sadness in her eyes; he knew she was missing her family. Understanding Stephanie’s sadness was due to their child would never know her relatives; as Stephanie is the last known descendant. Chase had stayed close to her side, bringing her into the conversations and hopefully easing her pain. He was aware this would be an ongoing dilemma for her. One he would have to help her deal with at times. With his help she will grow to understand his family is also her extended family. Both his parents love her and will spoil their child and God willing their children.

  After they had eaten their dinner Stephanie and Carrie had gone to the living room to look at ideals on the internet. It was then his Father had brought up the investigation. As they sat around the kitchen table Chase and Andy filled CJ in on the latest evidence and the theory Johnny had. CJ had sat quietly then had offered to go speak with Mr. Wilson’s older sister at the nursing home. She is in her nineties and still able to remember her early childhood. Agreeing this would help, Chase had told him the color of the car then explained it was a common color during that time period.

  It was then through mutual agreement they had decided to actually catch the person. Knowing the danger Chase had expressed his desire to keep Stephanie away from the house when it happened. He refuses to take any chance with her being hurt. Andy informs them he knows a policewoman that does undercover work and she could dress up as Stephanie for the trap. He would call tomorrow to check in with his Captain and put in a request for her to contact him.

  Archie had also made an announcement; informing them with pride his ability to actual throw items. Watching Andy he was surprised when Andy had agreed that was wonderful and would be a huge asset. Andy had made a good point that the person may have heard the house is haunted so Archie moving things could throw the person off enough to make a mistake. Archie had laughed declaring he will work on becoming a scary ghoul.

  It had been almost ten thirty when his parents had left. While Stephanie had straightened up the downstairs area he had come upstairs to run her bath water. Once she was in the tub, Chase had stayed with her discussing the direction of the investigation. Stephanie had listened then nodded her head in agreement. It was then Chase became aware just how tired she was, because he knew Stephanie would have insisted she could handle the situation. When Stephanie had gotten out of the tub he had helped dry her and then he had put her to bed. Knowing Andy will double check the locks before he comes upstairs and Archie will begin his patrol of the house; Chase had gotten in bed beside her.

  Bringing his thoughts back to the present Chase places his hand on Stephanie stomach; feeling protective of both her and their unborn child, Chase slides Stephanie closer to his body keeping his hand over the area holding their baby.

  As Chase drifts off to sleep he tries to figure out the best time to propose to Stephanie. Dressed all in black he makes his way to the hay barn. Moving only in the shadows to hide his whereabouts he crouches low as the last several yards he will be out in the open. Studying the windows facing the barn he doesn’t see any movements. The idiots have gone to bed, believing they are safe. Knowing he needs to move quickly he rechecks the windows then pushing to his feet takes off running. Once he is at the barn door he slides the hook open slipping inside.

  Standing with his back against the door he allows time for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Making sure his ski mask is still in place, he pulls his hood up over his head. He realizes he needs to be covered when the fire starts, he can’t afford to take any chance of getting burned. He can’t have any injuries that would be difficult to explain. Snorting he pushes away from the door. Having observed the area during daylight hours he remembers to his left is a huge pile of hay while on the right is the hay tractor and equipment.

  Having spent the last five days learning their routine he had been surprised when the bitch had left one morning with the bastard’s Mother. After a couple of hours the Sheriff had left and the two had come back together. Normally the house is quiet and bedtime is early, but that night they had company. Observing their routine had actually given him time to go over his plan. Doing a practice run in his mind, he had determined he would need to give the fire time to really burn, and then he can sneak to the house. When they come outside running to the barn, he will be able to search the attic for the ledger. Calculating he would have about thirty minutes to search and be out. Every minute over the allotted thirty would heighten his chance of being discovered.

  Clicking the light button on his watch he checks the time. Just past midnight, relieved the time has come; he takes a match from his pocket striking it. As the flame grows he tosses it onto the old hay pile; he quickly steps back when the hay immediately burst into towering flames. Standing out of reach of the heat he gawks as the flames leap to travel up the wall. Realizing the old wood and hay is burning quicker than he first anticipated, he turns to leave.

  Pushing the barn door open he stumbles outside breathing in the fresh air; no longer than he had been inside has his lungs burning from the smoke. Hearing voices yelling to hurry, he crouches behind the shed closes to the barn, hiding just in time as the woman and the two men burst through the trees, sprinting towards the barn. Cursing he watches helplessly as they use fire extinguishers to quickly get the fire under control even as he hears the siren from the local fire truck.

  Frantically he looks around trying to figure out a way to escape, he admits tonight is a loss cause. Soon the yard will be full of men from the local fire department, he can tell by the sound of the siren the truck is now on the driveway. Glancing quickly around the shed he sees the men go back inside the barn while the woman waits outside. Wishing he could take her life now, however he realizes he will be caught if she screams; he stares at her while visualizing cutting her throat and her falling to the ground, even imagining in his mind her blood pooling around her.

  Shaking his head to clear his vision he recognizes this is his only chance to escape; he takes off running trying to stay low to the ground, hoping to make it to his car nearly two miles away. After ten minutes of running he slows to walk. Sure he isn’t being followed he becomes furious for the wasted time spend setting the fire. As each step brings him closer to his car he plots their demise. He will make sure their deaths will be painful.

  Archie stands at the window doing his nightly patrol. This is his third trip scanning beyond this window. Concentrating on the area between the barns he detects movement. It’s very slight, but he senses someone is out there. As he stands concentrating on the shadows he sees the quick movement of a black figure. Shock has him staring as the figure goes inside the barn where the hay used to be stored. Deciding it’s time to wake the men he fades.

  Appearing beside Andy’s bed Archie tells him to wake up. No sooner than the words are out of his mouth Andy opens his eyes. As Archie explains what happened, the bedroom door opens, seeing both Chase and Stephanie standing in the hall, Archie starts over with the details. Moving quickly they turn to go downstairs. Andy calls 911 as he begins following them down the hall. Chase stops to look at Stephanie, not wanting her to come with them, he opens his mouth only to shut it again when he sees the determination in her eyes.

  When they reach the kitchen Chase passes the fire extinguishers to them, he then turns to Archie. “You stay here; I feel this is just a divers
ion to get us out of the house. I think our intruder is planning to come in while we are out fighting the fire.” Seeing Archie nod in agreement Chase rushes outside following close behind Stephanie as she hurries towards the burning barn.

  Hearing the sirens from the fire truck Stephanie is relieved help is on the way. As they reach the barn Stephanie is grateful to see the fire hasn’t engulfed the whole barn. Chase yells above the noise of the flames telling her to stay outside as him and Andy enters the building with their extinguishers.

  Standing by the barn door Stephanie searches the shadows making sure no one is waiting to sneak up on them. Turning in a full circle she jumps as several men burst through the tree line holding industrial size fire extinguishers.

  Chase and Andy exit the barn allowing the fire fighters to do their job. Putting his arm around Stephanie’s shoulders he asks, “You ok?”

  Smelling the smoke on him she wiggles her nose as she wraps her arm around his waist, “I’m fine. Are you and Andy ok?” Laying her head on his chest they stand watching as the firemen come out declaring the fire out.

  The Captain stops in front of Chase. Nodding toward the charred building he says, “Sheriff, the fire was set. This isn’t an accident. Do you have any idea who would do this?” Standing waiting for an answer the Captain glances over at Andy then back to Chase.

  Andy puts his hands in this jean pockets and rocks back on his heels. Clearing his throat he waits for the Captain to turn back towards him, when he has the Captain’s attention he tells him, “I am the one that called 911. Not thinking I just said the Cain’s barn is on fire.” Shrugging his shoulders he continues, “I don’t know the actually address, but figured the locals would know where to come.”

  Chase adds his part of tonight event, “I got up to get a drink of water and I saw the smoke from the living room window. I then ran upstairs to wake Andy and Stephanie. We came out with the fire extinguishers to try to put the fire out.” Pausing Chase sees suspicion in the Captain’s eyes staring at him. Standing up straight to his full 6’ height Chase continues using his Sheriff Voice, “Jacob, I have no clue who started this fire, but I will find out.” Turning to Andy he asks, “Will you take Stephanie to the house?” Feeling her tense beside him Chase kisses the top of her head as Andy nods in agreement.

  Peering up at Chase, Stephanie senses his frustration with the Captain. By using the Captain’s given name he has reversed their roles, making Chase the one in charge. Understanding he did this due to the part Archie had in tonight’s account, recognizing the tension in Chase is caused by him falsifying his statements. Being the Sheriff she is aware he hates doing this. Deciding to leave Chase to handle the Captain, Stephanie pivots on her heels following Andy back to the house.

  The Captain turns back to Chase after he watches them walk away. Not liking the way the Sheriff dismissed the two other witnesses. He folds his arms across his chest as he stares at Chase. “I am going to call a fire investigator to come out in the morning to check out the barn. He will need to speak with you and the other two. Make sure you are all available.” The anger for the Sheriff is reflected in both his attitude and voice.

  Chase stands looking at Jacob for a few seconds then declares, “You can call whomever you want. But this happened while I was here; I will do my own investigation. After all, I am the Sheriff and this property belongs to my fiancée.” Looking over Jacob shoulder at the barn, he concludes, “Now Jacob I am going to the house, I need to check on Stephanie and then I need a shower. You go ahead and call the Fire Marshall and I will do what I need to do.” Not giving Jacob time to respond Chase walks away.

  Chase enters through the kitchen door, knowing that everyone would be there waiting. He wasn’t surprised when he sees them all sitting at the kitchen table. Coffee mugs in front of Andy and Stephanie, noticing at the same time both has already showered.

  Stephanie rises up from her seat and moves to the coffee pot; she fixes Chase a cup as he takes a seat at the table. Raking his hands through his hair he turns to Archie. “This is a mess; I just had to lie to Jacob.” Huffing out a breath he asks, “So what exactly did you see?” He smiles his thanks when Stephanie sets his coffee mug down in front of him.

  Andy answers before Archie can respond, “Chase we waited for you, figured Archie could just tell it once instead of going over it several times.” Giving Archie a nod to begin Andy lifts his mug taking a sip of the hot liquid.

  Stephanie sits down on her chair as she slides a note book and pen to Chase. Knowing he would want to take notes she remains quiet as everyone waits for Archie to relate the incident.

  Looking around the table Archie feels the tension, deciding to just state the facts he begins, “I was doing my rounds, as I stood at the window in the living room I saw movement in the shadows. I stood there watching to make sure it was not just the wind; I spotted a figure run into the barn. It was then I went upstairs to wake up Andy. You all know the rest of the story.”

  Chase stops writing as he looks up at Archie, “So you came up as soon as he went inside the barn?” Archie nods his head as Chase documents in the note book.

  asks, “Can you describe the person?

  statue?”

  Rising his head again Chase

  What he was wearing or his Archie thinks a few minutes before he replies, “He was wearing all black, it was too far away so couldn’t see his face.” Looking directly at Chase he says, “But I know it’s the same person from before.”

  Curiosity has Stephanie asking, “How could you tell that?” Not sure how far the house is from the barn but knowing it’s a good distant has her questioning, “You said he was in the shadows, how can you be sure it’s the same person?”

  Chase concurs with Archie, “It’s the same person, who else would it be?” Turning his attention to Archie he clarifies, “So this person was dressed all in black, stayed in the shadows and then ran into the barn?” When Archie nods Chase continues with his thoughts, “I think my earlier assessment of the circumstance is accurate, he started the fire deliberately to get us out of the house, hoping to give him time to get in to search the house.”

  Andy chuckles, “But he didn’t plan on Archie doing the patrolling at night. He either doesn’t believe in ghost or hasn’t heard the stories. And if he hasn’t heard about Archie then that throws our theory of local family out the window.”

  Smiling Stephanie injects, “I vote for not believing in the legion. After all, just about everyone in the area knows about this house.” Looking at Andy she asks, “Before you came here did you believe in the supernatural?”

  Andy glances at Archie then back to Stephanie, “Well no, actually I always thought people who believed in the supernatural were nut cases or crooks trying to con the nut cases.” Chuckling softly Andy shrugs his shoulders turning to Archie he confides, “I for one am no longer a non-believer. But I can relate to anyone who doesn’t believe.”

  Chase having been listening to the other’s speculations decides to interrupt, “It may just be my opinion but I agree with Stephanie; the person is local but doesn’t believe in the ghost stories.” Pushing the note book to the center of the table he resumes with his thoughts, “Now this is my theory for tonight’s crime. The person thought we wouldn’t see the fire for a while, maybe until it was a full burn. I think he had planned to search for something tonight. If he just wanted to kill us he would have set the house on fire not the barn.” Hearing Stephanie sharp gasp Chase pauses as he reaches across the table laying his hand on top her hers. Keeping his hand over hers he continues, “The way I see this, it’s not going to stop, we either have to catch the person or figure out what he is after and set a trap.”

  Andy rises from his seat moving to look out the back door window. Seeing the firefighters leaving he strides back to the table, placing his hand on the top slat of his chair he says, “I agree with you Chase, but I don’t think we should wait for us to figure out what this person wants.” Holding up his hand to stop Chase from
interrupting Andy continues, “My friend Maria can be the decoy for our trap. I know she will agree; she owes me.” Looking at Stephanie he mentally compares the two women, Maria is a little taller about 5’6”, and she is more curvy. Maria would need a wig because her hair is short but it is about the same color. To Stephanie he says, “Maria would be able to pull off being you, she does undercover work all the time.”

  Frowning Stephanie asks, “How can we pull off the switch, he has to be watching the house. Wouldn’t he know if I leave and she comes back?” Normally she would have insisted to being part of this trap, but she realizes this requires a professional. Murders have already been committed and he told her he would kill her and Chase. Now with her pregnant she doesn’t want to take any chances with the baby growing inside her womb.

  Chase pushes back his chair going to the counter he grabs the coffee pot; refilling his mug he walks back to the table and begins filling the other mugs sitting there. Placing the pot on the mat setting on the table he takes his seat again. Tired to his bones Chase looks at Stephanie noticing the fatigue on her face. Understanding her need to stay and help figure this out he didn’t insist on her going to bed.

  Sliding the note book back in front of him Chase flips it open, as Andy sits back down Chase asks, “When do you think Maria can get here? I don’t want to put off the trap any longer then we have too, keeping Stephanie safe is my top priority. I can’t emphasize that enough.”

  Flexing his shoulders to loosen his muscles Andy answers, “I can call in the morning. But I won’t know how soon until I check with our Captain. I can stress the importance due to solving the murders, but I know he won’t pull her if she is on an assignment.” Picking up his mug Andy takes a sip then sets it back down. Clearing his throat he continues, “This plan is going to have to be fool proof. We can’t just throw it together and hope it works. If this doesn’t work, I just don’t think we will get a second chance.”