by Evie Nichole
“Are you ready to do this?”
“We just have to get to the woods,” she nodded.
He shifted off of her, placing his body between her and the door. Jareth’s growls had turned into a series of vicious snaps, but he was still some distance out. There might be enough time to get her away before they could see her.
Derek pushed up into a crouch, his eyes darting around for a weapon. Harbour’s hand caught his wrist and gave him a solid yank, pulling him closer to the wall. She met his glare with one of her own.
“Stay there, idiot.”
Her eyes darted to the window before she reached under the bed and pulled out a zipped sack.
“Remember not to hit the cops,” he said as he watched her pull out a crossbow.
“Yeah, I remember.” She tossed him a quiver of arrows.
Keeping to the wall, she got to her feet, stepped on the front of the bow and pulled the bow string back to cock it. Eyes locked on the door, she reached out for Derek to hand her an arrow. With practised ease, she loaded it and lifted her arms to aim the dangerous tip to the door.
Slowly, she lowered back into a crouch, the crossbow remaining as still as stone. She reached back with one hand, retrieved her knife, and passed it hilt first to Derek. Jareth was going wild, the sound closer.
“You’re going to need a shirt.”
“Harbour.”
Her voice left no room for argument. “Here’s the plan. Get a shirt and get out of the way.”
“They could have guns, Harbour.”
“And you only have a knife. Besides, I’m a good shot.”
Derek pulled a sweater out of the backpack and smiled. Her eyes flicked off of the door as she pulled the strap of the quiver over her head. She noticed his smile.
“What?”
“I just wanted you to know, if something happens to me.”
“If you choose now to use the ‘L’ word, I’m going to shoot you.”
“Actually, I just wanted to say that this whole touch-my-man-and-I’ll-mess-you-up thing you’ve got going on,” he smiled, “Is so doing it for me.”
Harbour shook her head and, remaining in a low crouch, shuffled silently to the door. Showing the ease of a hunter, she inched up to check the window, bow at the ready.
Jareth’s barking was vicious enough to make Derek’s hair stand up on the back of his neck. He took note of where the axe had fallen and grabbed the fire poker. As gently as he could, he tapped it against the pot, just enough to get Harbour’s attention. It settled something twisting inside of him that she didn’t need a word to understand the question. She nodded and he tipped the pot. The flames released a thick hiss as the water smothered them. Darkness rushed into the room as the fire reduced to embers.
Feeling safer in the darkness, Derek ran to Harbour’s side, picking up the axe as he went.
“Be careful with that.”
Jareth had backed up and sounded no more than a few feet from the door. Crouched on either side of the door the pair waited, holding their breath, listening for any sound beyond Jareth’s wail. The patio boards creaked.
There was a sharp crack and Jareth yelped. Harbour almost flung open the door but Derek grabbed her and pulled her to the side. The patio groaned again and Derek quickly drew himself to full height. He flipped the axe around so the blade would point away and held it like a bat. He didn’t like this disadvantage. They were aiming to kill, while he and Harbour had their hands shackled by the law. Jareth let out another snap, softer than before, but still there.
The door burst open and Derek swung. There was a loud crash and pained groan before the sky lit up with a thunderous roar. In the darkness, the gunfire was blinding. He toppled onto the floor, trying to keep the man below him from lifting his weapon. The momentary blindness worked in his favor as the second man couldn’t line up his shot. The bullet whirled past him, colliding with the doorframe just above his head.
A split second later, Harbour poked out from behind the wall, crossbow steady. The arrow released a sharp whoosh as it flung from the crossbow. It was met by a pained cry from somewhere in the darkness. Derek reared back and brought his fist down with a satisfying snap of pain.
***
Light exploded through the forest burning Harbour’s eyes and making her flinch back behind the safety of the wall. She didn’t need sight to reload, the wire digging into her fingers. Chaos existed outside of the cabin. It sounded like a thousand feet were running through the underbrush, the disembodied voices crying out over each other until the meaning was lost. Under it all, she could hear Jareth’s excitable barking and breathed a sigh of relief. The first shot must have missed him.
Blinking rapidly to clear her vision, Harbour lifted her crossbow and edged into the threshold once more. Derek’s thick bulk hid the man below him from sight as they struggled. She stepped up behind him, arrow aimed at the point over Derek’s shoulder. Derek shifted and she spotted Phil’s face, nose already spilling blood and eyes alight with fury. She could tell the second Derek realized who it was. His whole body went rigid, frozen with shock.
Phil tried to buck him off and Harbour lined up the shot. Chloe ran out of the blinding light, her uniform stained with grass and sap, her firearm held at the ready. The portable floodlights that the police had brought with them reduced the rest of the force to shifting shadows.
“Back up, Derek. I’ve got him,” Chloe said calmly.
Derek was already poised to hit him again.
“What the hell?”
Harbour couldn’t decide who he was talking to.
“I’ve got him,” Chloe said again.
Harbour loosened her finger on the trigger of her crossbow but didn’t put it down. Chloe’s eyes darted to her, nodding her reassurance. Slowly, she lowered it and placed it on the floor. The limited members of the Nowhere police force swarmed the small clearing. Her eyes adjusted and she could see that they already had Ron face down on the ground.
“Derek,” she spoke softly.
He trembled as he his childhood friend to the floor. The weapon Ron would have used to kill them was still pressed between their bodies. Derek shook as Chloe edged forward and delicately removed the weapon. He gave it up but wasn’t as keen to let Phil go just yet. In a flash of movement, Derek forced his forearm up, pressing it across Phil’s neck hard enough to make him choke.
“Why?”
Chloe and Harbour rushed forward, dragging Derek back as another officer came to claim Phil. It took them both working together to pry him off, and even then he shook them off easily. Derek lunged forward, his face twisted in rage. Chloe gave him a hard shove, pushing, and Harbour pulled until he was back inside the cabin.
Harbour wrapped her arms around his. His muscles were like stone and she knew that he could throw her off if he wanted to. He whirled on her with helpless eyes, chest heaving, hands shaking.
“Come with me,” she whispered.
His whole body seemed to deflate in an instant, anger giving way to defeat and years of pent-up exhaustion. Leaning into her side, he let her guide him deeper into the cabin.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Derek sat on the end of the bed, his elbows on his thighs and his head in his hands. He couldn’t even begin to sort out what he felt and the only thought within his mind was the repeated question of why. Harbour had let him be, focusing instead on trying to get the fire started again. The sodden wood had to be removed, the wet ashes pushed aside. It took time and wasn’t the easiest task given that the room was only lit by the glaring lights outside.
He didn’t know how long he sat like that, but when Harbour pulled a blanket over his shoulders, the noise outside had quietened and a fire blazed, offering a heady heat to the small space. She sat down next to him, passed him a foil pack and a fork, and leaned against his side.
Too tired to smile he kissed the top of her head. “What is this?”
She chuckled. “Just eat it.”
He had only gotten through a few
mouthfuls before Chloe entered the cabin, closed the door with a soft click, and pulled one of the chairs over so she could sit in front of them.
“They’re headed back into town. Ron and Phil are both under arrest for attempted murder. I don’t think anyone else was involved.”
“Did they say why?” Derek asked.
“I don’t think they’re going to do much talking without a lawyer present.”
Harbour kept close enough for him to feel her warmth, something he greatly appreciated, and lifted her head.
“You don’t seem surprised it was them.”
“I had my suspicious,” Chloe admitted.
“Want to share them?” Derek’s snarl earned a sympathetic look from Chloe and a squeeze from Harbour.
“Like I said, I had a hunch that all this tied back to your attempted kidnapping. And there’s only so many reasons someone would want to take you.”
“Violence, lust, or ransom,” he said numbly.
“Or to cover something up.”
“What was there to cover up?” Derek asked.
“Well, that’s the key to the kingdom, isn’t? So I started looking through old files and cases to see what was happening around that time. There wasn’t much to find. A few missing hikers, some illegal poaching, and the Collin sisters’ accident.”
“I didn’t have anything to do with any of that.”
Taking a deep breath, she leaned back in her seat. “Do you remember much of when we dated?”
“You want to get into that now?” he said, “Chloe, I admit I was a jackass, and I probably did you wrong, but I never intended to. I don’t even remember most of it.”
“That’s what I’m talking about.”
“What?”
“Those officers back then, the ones who were assigned your kidnapping case, they didn’t know you like I do. They didn’t know how you are completely oblivious to most things happening around you. Or your tendency to forget the night before if you go one drink over. Or how, with a bit of prompting, pieces of the night can come back to you.”
Derek put down his fork. “What has this got to do with anything?”
“I also remembered how you, Ron, and Phil liked to get trashed and go joy riding in your daddy’s boat. Normally in the harbor.”
His stomach felt like a solid lump of ice that grew with every breath. “You think I hit the Collin girls.” He could barely get the words out through the squeeze of this throat. “Would be something I would do, wouldn’t it? A stupid prank with no thought of the consequences.”
“A prank like that isn’t really your style. Nowhere near elaborate enough and not directed at Harbour.”
A small smile crossed his lips, but he couldn’t make it last.
“But it did get me thinking,” she continued. “Someone ignorant of the dangers would have thought they would be okay. The shore was right there; their canoe was at hand. They probably thought the girls would end up wet, cold, and annoyed. Could you image sobering up the next day and finding out you committed manslaughter? Seems like a secret worth covering up.”
“You think the three of them were in the boat?” Harbour said.
“So it’s still my fault,” Derek swallowed thickly. “I was the only one who ever drove that boat.”
Chloe’s brow furrowed. “No, you weren’t.”
“I let them drive back to the dock when I’d had too much, but that’s it. I’m the only one who drove it in the harbor.”
“Derek, I was with you guys a few times. They’d just let you sleep it off on the back seat and keep going.”
“No.” Even as he shook his head, fractured memories bubbled to the surface. Had they done that?
“I think it was just supposed to be a joke,” Chloe said, “But then they found themselves in a scary kind of limbo. They had no way of knowing if you slept through it, or if it was lurking somewhere in your mind, ready to come to the surface. I think the stress and guilt built up until they thought they had to do something. For a teenager, kidnapping you and scaring you into telling them what you knew might have seemed like a good idea.” She hesitated to continue. “If they weren’t trying to completely eliminate the threat.”
“So what? When I got away and left town they just decided that I didn’t know, so they dropped the whole thing?”
“Maybe. Although,” Chloe sighed.
“Although what?”
“Florence.” Harbour gasped and squeezed his arm. “He knew you had been in Florence.”
“They were keeping tabs on me. This whole time.”
“And then suddenly, around the same time of year as the accident, you came back unannounced.” Chloe continued. “And you made a beeline for Harbour. I think they thought that you had remembered something and were trying to get Harbour, who had messed them up before and knew the waters, to help you sort things out.”
“So what if I did remember?” Derek said. “It was years ago. I wouldn’t be seen as a credible witness.”
“But it’s not just a stupid prank gone wrong anymore,” Chloe said. “With their attempts to cover this up, they accumulated a few charges. Off the top of my head, we’ve got tampering with evidence, attempted kidnapping, assault, interfering with a witness, probably a few shipping related offenses to get that God awful car in, and years of stalking across state and international borders. If you remembered that night, everything would fall apart. They couldn’t risk it. Not anymore.”
Derek raked his hands through his hair, exhaustion crushing him with unrelenting force. “They were my friends. I never saw it.”
Chloe reached out and patted his arm. “Do you want a lift back into town?”
“I just want to sleep.”
Harbour looked to Chloe. “We’re safe now, right?”
Chloe nodded. “We have no reason to believe anyone else was involved.”
“Then we’d be okay to spend the night? Hike back out in the morning?” Harbour’s hand traced patterns along Derek’s hunched back and she spoke softly to him. “If you want to?”
Derek nodded, beyond caring. Everything else could wait until tomorrow. As Harbour showed Chloe out, undoubtedly discussing the general details of what had yet to be done, Derek kicked off his shoes, pulled off his sweater, and climbed in under the fur covers. It could all wait. The world could wait.
He had already begun to drift off when Harbour sat down beside him. Her fingers ran through his hair, coaxing him back to the waking world. Everything was so quiet now, with only the crackle of the fire and the whispers from Jareth sleeping in front of the fireplace.
Derek tried to smile but knew he didn’t achieve it. “I never saw it.”
“I know.”
“A lot of my problems come from being oblivious, huh?”
She nodded, her fingers trailing along his neck. “You got room in there for me?”
“Sure. But there is a strict no shirt policy.”
Harbour rolled her eyes. He almost lurched upright when she removed her top. Too soon the wealth of skin was hidden underneath the layers of blankets as she lay down beside him, squirming and wriggling. He was just about to ask her what she was doing when she tossed her jeans onto the floor.
She cocked an eyebrow at him and he quickly met her challenge, adding his pair to the pile. He pulled her close. Only the thin cotton of her underwear separated them and the sensation was heady but comforting at the same time. The faint traces of pine and smoke now clung to her hair and her skin was a smooth as silk against his own. Using his arm for a pillow, she idly traced the line of his jaw with her fingertips, toying with the thin spikes of stubble.
“You’re really pretty.”
Derek broke into a chuckle. “And you haven’t seen all of me yet.”
Biting her lips, Harbour raised her eyebrows and the edge of the blanket. She wasn’t shy about looking and took her time. He knew he should have worn his boxers today. It seemed unfair that she still had parts of her concealed while he was bare to her inspection. Cold
air played against his chest as she slowly let her eyes wander. Finally, she dropped the sheet back down and looked up at him.
“Really pretty. Wait, is that a blush?”
“No,” he grumbled.
“I made Derek Quintana blush.”
“You can make Derek Quintana do a lot of things.”
Harbour stretched out across his chest, a lazy smile on her lips. “A theory I’ll be testing once he has a good night’s sleep.”
Her kiss was a slow, lazy drag that made his muscles relax and his mind quieten. With it, the comfort of sleep came inching back. Derek closed his eyes, listening to the fire and her contented sigh.
“I’m going to miss this.”
He snapped his eyes open. “What do you mean?”
“Well, you’ve done what you came to do. There’s nothing keeping you here anymore. I’m sure you have other responsibilities.”
“So what?”
She shuffled, resting her chin against his chest, and holding his gaze.
“Derek, Nowhere is my home. I don’t want to leave.”
“You don’t have to.” He tightened his arms around her waist. “But we can go on holiday.”
“And how would that work?”
“We spend the tourist season here and then you travel with me for the rest of the year while I get my work done. Las Vegas, Florence, Cape Town. We’ll see the world.”
“And what would I do there?”
He leant down enough to kiss her temple. “You can go white water rafting in Las Vegas. And there’s the Grand Canyon.”
“Tempting,” she smiled.
He slid his hand along her spine until he could toy with the hemline of her panties. “In Cape Town, you can go cage diving. They have great white sharks.”
The moment Harbour ducked her head to hide her smile, he knew he had her. But he was going to make sure that, after tonight, there would be no lingering doubts in her mind. Gripping her hips, Derek slid her along him, pulling her up until he could easily capture her mouth in a searing kiss. One he didn’t release until her moans tickled against his tongue.
