“That’s none of your business! I’d like you to leave.”
Jeremy grabbed her and pulled her to him, but she broke free and slapped his face with all the strength she could muster. Jeremy let go in shock, and she ran off into the crowd.
“Is something wrong?” Alexander stood behind her.
“Nothing.” Ellie looked away.
“You know, that’s the second time you’ve told me that tonight.” Alexander studied her face. “I want to help you, Ellie. I hope you feel like you can tell me anything.”
Ellie laughed. “Sometimes it’s almost like you’re trying to be perfect—like something out of a storybook.”
Alexander averted his gaze. “I’m not perfect, Ellie. I’m not who you think I am.”
Ellie’s brows knitted together. “What do you mean?”
For a moment, Alexander didn’t answer. “I haven’t had the easiest life. There are a lot of things I wish I could change, but when I’m with you, none of it seems to matter.” The square dancing stopped, and couples began slow dancing instead as the music became softer. Alexander extended a hand. “Would you like to dance?”
Ellie took his hand, and they joined the other couples, swaying slowly and moving together in the night.
“Thanks for making these last few weeks special for me. I wasn’t expecting someone like you to come along.”
“It doesn’t have to end. We’ve still got plenty of summer left.” Alexander stared into her eyes with a look that was almost mesmerizing. He leaned closer, as if to kiss her, but stopped abruptly.
“Is something wrong?”
“Not at all. Everything is perfect.” Nevertheless, he made no move to kiss her again.
The square dancing picked up again, and the rest of the evening went by in a blur. They stayed for hours, until the food was gone and Coach Tompkins thanked everyone for coming. Soon it would be time to load the wagons.
“I’ve got to get my purse,” she said at last. “Wait for me.”
When she returned, Alexander had vanished.
Alexander spotted Malory by the empty wagons, looking forlornly at the moon.
“Is this seat taken?” When she didn’t reply, he sat beside her. “You look sad.”
“I know you.” She looked confused. “You’re Ellie’s friend from the arcade.” She wiped tears from her eyes. “What does it matter to you?”
“I know what heartbreak feels like.” For a moment, he left it at that. “Tell me his name.”
“Jeremy.” Her voice was full of longing. “He wants Ellie, not me.”
“Jeremy is the type of person who’s just going to keep on hurting those around him. It’s who he is. You can tell yourself he’s going to change, but he never will. Take it from someone who’s been around for a while.”
She laughed. “You haven’t been around for that long. You don’t look much older than me.”
Alexander only smiled. “You shouldn’t blame Ellie Sullivan for Jeremy’s hang-ups. She’s a good person, and she’s done nothing to deserve your hatred.”
Malory averted her eyes.
“Think about it for me, will you? Because I suspect you’re capable of a lot more than bitterness. You’re young. You have your whole life ahead of you. Don’t start down a path you can’t turn away from.”
He caught Jeremy’s gaze. Jeremy and his friends were watching him, apart from the crowd. Alexander left Malory and walked behind the barn, away from the others. His black shirt flapped in the wind. He closed his eyes and listened to the night.
“Hello, Jeremy,” he said with his back to them. He opened his eyes and turned around. There were five in all. “I don’t believe we’ve been properly introduced.”
“I don’t believe we have.” Jeremy glared at him. “That was my girl you were dancing with.”
“She certainly doesn’t see it that way. I would warn you about starting trouble, but now that we’re alone, it really doesn’t matter, does it?”
Jeremy’s face broke into a thin sneer. “No. It doesn’t.” He ran at Alexander, forming a ball with his fist.
Moving with unnatural speed, Alexander intercepted Jeremy’s fist and tossed him to the ground. Jeremy’s friends immediately sprinted to his defense. Alexander let them surround him and took them all on at once. They were clumsy, inexperienced fighters addled by inebriation. They had no idea what they were up against.
He took them apart with ease and flung them away one by one, as if they were weightless, until only Jeremy was on his feet.
“You’re going to pay for that, freak!” Jeremy lunged at him.
This time, Alexander didn’t try to avoid the blow. Instead, he caught Jeremy’s hand in his own and applied enough pressure to bring him to his knees. “I heard you mention your scholarship to Ellie earlier. Tell me Jeremy, do you know what it’s like to have your life ripped away from you?”
Jeremy shook his head.
“I do. Now you’re going to find out how it feels.” With a simple twist, he broke Jeremy’s arm. The bones snapped like putty, and Jeremy screamed. His football career was over.
“Consider this your only warning. Leave Ellie Sullivan alone.” With that, Alexander slipped into the darkness and went in search of Ellie.
“There you are!” Ellie said when Alexander returned. “I thought you might not make it back in time.”
“Sorry, I wandered off.”
They took their spots on the wagon, and Ellie checked her phone for any messages from Sarah. She didn’t want to worry Alexander, but if she didn’t see Sarah at work the next day, she would have to say something to someone. For the time being, they would simply enjoy the remainder of the hayride together.
When they reached the parking lot, Alexander jumped off and held out his hand to help her down. “It’s getting late. I’d better get you home.” They held hands the whole way back. “Want to get lunch tomorrow at the café?”
Ellie grinned. “Wouldn’t miss it.” Her house appeared at the end of the road. She hesitated, leaned over, and kissed him on the cheek before exiting the vehicle. Boomer greeted her at the front door as Alexander drove away.
“I’m so glad to see you!” Ellie sat beside him on the porch and petted him while thinking about the dance. She didn’t need a man in her life to make her feel complete, but Alexander had definitely stirred something in her she hadn’t felt before.
Alexander advanced down the abandoned trail. He had no difficulty navigating the woods in the dead of night. The abandoned house glowed under the moonlight where the path ended.
He opened the door and went inside. A familiar scent tickled his nostrils, and he paused to sniff the air. Something was out of place. He passed the living room, where two candles glowed faintly among the shadows. A floorboard creaked in the next room. He wasn’t alone.
Alexander listened carefully for a sound from the intruder but heard only wind beating against the weathered house. Suddenly, he was aware of someone standing behind him. He spun around, but only darkness greeted him. When he turned back to the living room, a figure sat in the leather chair next to the fireplace.
“You have guests.” The woman’s green eyes observed him with a gleam of amusement.
“Aristae,” Alexander said.
“Alexander.” Passion and ferocity lined her face, but her eyes were cold.
Something about her presence simultaneously unnerved and excited him.
“What of the ones below? Are they a gift?” She licked her lips.
“No.” He did his best to keep his face an emotionless mask. “They’re bait. Don’t touch them.”
“Remember to whom you speak.” It was only a whisper; the words contained a power that nearly made him shudder.
Alexander didn’t flinch. “I will need them before the end. They’re essential to my plans. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”
“It is. I’ve come to see if you will see it through.” Aristae rose from the ancient-looking armchair, and her green eyes glowed
in the candlelight. She wore a black top and a long red skirt matching the color of her lips. “Tell me, what have I missed?”
“Ellie is falling in love with me.” He didn’t mention that he’d stopped himself from kissing her, or why. Aristae was the last person in the world with whom he wanted to share that.
“Of course she is, my Alexander.” Aristae reached out and stroked his face.
“I’m having dinner with her family Tuesday.” Saying the words gave him a newfound courage and renewed his wavering commitment. He had waited a long time for this.
Alexander watched their reflection in a fractured mirror that hung over the fireplace until she turned him away from the mirror to face her again.
“I have missed you.” She kissed him on the lips.
Alexander embraced her. The candlelight died, and the house stood still.
Chapter Ten
She wasn’t dead. That was something, at least.
Light crept into the cellar. Sarah paced the dilapidated floor. She’d made it through one night of captivity.
Floorboards groaned above. Her captor was up there somewhere. Sarah approached the locked door, the only apparent exit from her waking nightmare. She tried throwing herself against the door, which refused to budge under her weight. It was no use.
Hunger stabbed at her gut, and she discovered a stack of granola bars near two bottled waters. Someone must have left them in the night. She sat cross-legged on the floor and opened a bottle. She needed to keep up her strength if she was going to escape. The water was cool and refreshing. Her throat was dry from shouting. Her efforts to alert outsiders to her whereabouts had accomplished nothing.
A narrow window near the high ceiling served as her only contact with the outside world. Unfortunately, it was far too small for anyone to fit through, but at least it let the light in. A film of thick grime covered the dusty glass, leading Sarah to guess the room was a cellar of sorts.
“You’re up early,” Winston said.
Sarah didn’t reply.
“You could try being a little more pleasant. Seeing as we’re trapped here together.”
She wheeled around to face him. “As far as I’m concerned, that’s your fault. If you hadn’t selected me as your accomplice in your insane quest to investigate Alexander Thorne, I wouldn’t be rotting in this cellar with you.”
Winston’s gaze shifted toward the water bottle. “I guess he came during the night.”
“Why are you so sure Alexander kidnapped us? I told you, I heard a woman’s voice last night.” The only time she knew for sure there was anyone else in the house was when a door slammed shut above.
“It’s too much of a coincidence. We follow Alexander into the woods and wind up here?”
“What would Alexander want with us?”
Winston shrugged. Like Sarah, he hadn’t seen their assailant.
Everything that happened after being whisked off her feet remained a blur. Sarah still couldn’t figure out how Boomer tied into everything. Why was Ellie’s dog in the woods near Mrs. Wells’ house?
If only I hadn’t lost my cell phone.
“What do you think they want with us?”
Sarah considered the question. “I don’t know. If they wanted to kill us, they could have done it already. They must have some reason for keeping us alive.”
“Why haven’t the police come looking for us?”
“They will. We’ve only been gone one night. It’s just a matter of time.”
“I hope so. Mother expected me home for dinner. We were going to work on the crossword last night.”
“Sometimes I wonder just what planet you’re really from.” Sarcasm seemed strange in the face of possible torture and death at the hands of an unknown kidnapper, but it brought her a familiar sense of comfort. Sarah resumed pacing. Her mother would realize something was wrong, or Ellie would try to find her when she failed to show up for work. Help would come soon, if they could just wait long enough.
Above, a door slammed shut.
In what was shaping up to be the hottest day of summer, Ellie was shocked to find Alexander wearing another long-sleeved button-up shirt and blue jeans. She waved to him as she approached from the parking lot. Ellie wore shorts, a t-shirt, and running shoes.
“Perfect timing. I just got us a table.”
Ellie laughed. “There’s never a line here—one of the advantages of growing up in a small town.”
Lamp House Coffee was the best place to grab a coffee in town. Soft music selected by the employees played in the background, and the aroma of coffee hung in the air. Ellie used to meet students there when she tutored in high school.
They ordered and settled into comfy chairs opposite one another.
“Thanks for a lovely time last night. I’ve never had so much fun on the hayride.”
“Then we’re even. I’ve never square-danced before.”
“I can’t believe you. You’re a natural dancer.”
He grinned. “A gentleman doesn’t reveal all his secrets.”
After making small talk, Alexander excused himself to collect their food, and Ellie pulled out her cell phone to type a new message to Sarah. There was still nothing.
Where are you? If Sarah didn’t show up for work, Ellie would have to contact her mother and find out what was going on. She thought again of Jack Taylor, frightened out of his mind, and imagined Sarah pursued by some unknown creature.
“Here we are.” Alexander handed her a drink.
“Thanks.”
He noticed her checking her phone again. “Still no sign of Sarah?”
“I’m sure she’ll turn up. The animal attacks have me on edge, that’s all.”
Alexander took a bite into a thick hamburger, and pink juices oozed from the red center.
Ellie made a face. “That’s really rare.”
“It’s the only way to eat ‘em. The rarer the meat, the more tender, flavorful and the juicier it is.”
“And more likely it’s filled with E. coli.”
He chuckled. “So, got any big plans for tomorrow?”
“Work this evening, church tomorrow. Want to come with me?”
“I would, but Dad and I are taking a camping trip. We’ll be gone for the rest of the weekend.”
Before Ellie could speak, the front door opened, and a woman entered the café. She drew prolonged stares from several of the café’s patrons but did not spare them a single glance. Her hair was the color of midnight with a dyed streak of red near her face.
When Alexander saw the change in Ellie’s expression, he followed her gaze. His face darkened, as if the woman had elicited some unknown emotion within him.
The woman brightened at the sight of them. “Alexander! I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
Ellie raised an eyebrow. How did this stranger know Alexander?
The woman approached with near-perfect posture.
“Hello, Aristae,” Alexander said through clenched teeth.
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your friend?” Aristae’s tone sounded more like a command than a request.
“Aristae, this is Ellie Sullivan. Ellie, meet Aristae.” He did not offer a last name.
When Aristae’s green eyes wandered over to Ellie, their unnerving intensity made Ellie shudder.
“So this is the one I have heard so much about.”
“Pleased to meet you.” Ellie motioned to an empty chair. “Would you like to join us?”
“Yes.” Aristae’s eyes never left Ellie’s. “I very much would.” Her voice was smooth like crystal, polished and refined. Ellie thought she could detect a faint accent behind it—French, perhaps.
Aristae pulled up the chair and sat between Alexander and Ellie like a cat playing with two mice. She looked like a model out of a catalogue and wore expensive-looking clothing.
“How do you two know each other?” Ellie asked.
Alexander hesitated. “We used to date.”
Ellie almost spilled
her drink.
“What?” Ellie’s brow arched in surprise. At most, Alexander was twenty. This woman looked eight or nine years older than that.
“We broke up recently.”
“But we remain close friends,” Aristae added. “Isn’t that right?”
Ellie remembered when Alexander shared the story of his past two relationships. One had broken his heart, and the other was still close to him. Ellie never imagined the latter was someone who looked like Aristae.
“We had some good times, didn’t we?” Aristae grinned at Alexander, who appeared uncomfortable.
Ellie quickly started to realize that she didn’t like this woman.
“I’ve been a bit lonely and in need of some company. Fortunately, Alexander was willing to give me a place to stay.”
Ellie frowned. Aristae was staying with Alexander? “Really?” She looked to Alexander for answers.
He shifted uncomfortably. “She’s from out of town. She won’t be here long. I promise.”
Ellie frowned. “Where are you from, Aristae?”
“Here and there.” Aristae looked from Ellie to Alexander. “She really is quite pretty. I can see why you like her.” There was something vaguely predatory about her smile.
The café door was thrown open before Alexander could reply. Ellie recognized the newcomer as Patrick Doyle, Jeremy’s older brother.
From the way Patrick stumbled into the café, Ellie suspected he was currently under the influence. When Patrick saw them, he started in their direction.
What does Patrick Doyle want with us? Did it have something to do with her confrontation with Jeremy at the dance? To her surprise, Patrick seemed to ignore her altogether in favor of Alexander.
“You.” Patrick’s fingers trembled, as if he was itching to strangle Alexander.
Ellie had never seen so much hate in another human being.
“Do we know each other?” Alexander asked.
“You’re the punk who broke my brother’s arm. Jeremy’s never going to play football again. He’ll lose his scholarship, and it’s all your fault!”
“You fought with Jeremy?” Ellie couldn’t hide her surprise.
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