by Laura Scott
“I’m not sure I’d survive another loss,” he said in a low tone. “And somehow, the thought of having a family makes me feel like I’ve turned my back on the one I had.”
She suppressed a sigh. “I’m sure losing your family was difficult, but refusing to open yourself up to caring about someone else isn’t the answer, either. Don’t you see? Caring for others is part of taking care of yourself, too.”
“I don’t know,” he murmured. “But it still seems wrong to carry on as if nothing had happened.”
“No one is asking you to do that,” she pointed out. “I wouldn’t want you to act as if you hadn’t loved your wife and your daughter. Loving them has made you the man you are today. But I think you also need to consider that love is one of God’s greatest gifts. By choosing not to open yourself up to love and happiness, you’re actually letting Suzanne and Amelia down.”
Zack sat down in the driver’s seat and gazed at the sunset, as if contemplating her words.
She sat back down, too, enjoying the rest of the sunset while hoping that somehow, someway, Zack would find his way to peace and happiness, putting the past to rest once and for all.
____________
Zack couldn’t say how long he sat there while Merry’s words reverberated through his mind, but it was well after the final golden rays of sunshine disappeared behind the towering trees along the west side of the lake.
He knew that Merry’s assessment was right on, but he still wasn’t sure how to let go of the past. And he couldn’t help wondering if Merry was right about attending church. Maybe he should try to share his burden with God.
He blinked and realized that darkness had fallen. “Sorry about that.” He twisted the key in the ignition and the small lights came on in the front and the back, giving off enough illumination that no other boaters would accidently run into them.
Even in a no wake zone, two boats colliding could be trouble. He should have known better than to sit out in the lake, lost in his thoughts.
“It’s no problem,” Merry said. But when she huddled down in the seat, he knew she was chilled from the light breeze.
“I have a blanket you can use.” Zack set the boat on idle while he lifted the seat cushions in along the back to pull out the spare blanket. It didn’t smell too musty as he unfolded it and shook it. He flipped the blanket over her and she clutched at the edge, seemingly glad for the warmth.
“We’ll be back at the townhouse soon,” he promised. They were on the opposite side of the lake and, with the no wake rule, he figured they would be back in fifteen minutes or so.
Merry didn’t say much as he steered the boat and he wondered if she was disappointed in him. Not that he could blame her. This was the second time he’d kissed her in two days and he still couldn’t seem to get the tangled mess in his head straightened out.
They hadn’t eaten any of the leftovers and he knew that was probably his fault, too. He wasn’t hungry, but Merry was still recovering from her concussion and her cracked collarbone. She needed to keep up her strength.
“We should eat dinner when we get back,” Zack said.
“I’m not hungry,” Merry murmured.
Her dejected tone stabbed deep. What was wrong with him? Why couldn’t he just relax and take things one step at a time?
Because Merry deserved more, that’s why. She deserved a man who was serious about a relationship. She’d admitted she cared about him.
And he cared about her, too. More than he wanted to.
The last thing he wanted to do was to hurt her. After everything she went through with Blake in the past, and what she was going through again, was rough enough. Merry needed some stability in her life. A man who knew exactly what he wanted. A man who’d share her dreams.
Despite what Merry had said, she deserved the man he’d once been, not the man he’d become.
Zack maneuvered the boat around the lake, the light on the stern of his boat flickering across a few of the For Sale signs. The idea of purchasing a property along the Crystal Lakeshore wouldn’t leave him alone.
As he approached Julie’s pier, he slowed considerably and watched as Merry stood along the side of the boat, reaching for the rope to pull them in, looking as comfortable as if she’d often done the same thing.
It occurred to him that they made a great team.
Merry opened the side door of the boat so she could step out, and Ace followed her. When she was safely on the pier she reached for the bag of leftovers and he couldn’t help feeling another spurt of guilt. It was his fault they’d gotten all serious, which had made her lose her appetite. “I’ll get that,” he called.
“It’s okay,” she said, turning to make her way up the grassy slope toward the house.
The darkness made it difficult to see, but he managed to get the boat into the lift. He took a few minutes to crank the wheel so that the boat was raised out of the water.
He heard Ace growl and glanced up toward the house.
“Ace down,” Merry commanded sharply.
Zack frowned and quickly abandoned the boat lift to catch up to Merry.
“Hi, Meredith,” a male voice said.
“Hi, Blake. What brings you here?”
Blake? Zack froze, mentally kicking himself for letting Merry walk up to the house alone, and for not bringing his service weapon. He wanted to rush over to Merry’s side, but at the same time, remembered the incident with Leonard. He edged closer, staying in the shadows, searching for Blake. His heart stopped in his chest when he realized that Blake was standing just a few feet away from Merry, holding a gun.
____________
Merry fought to remain calm, trying not to do anything that would set off Blake’s anger. She’d learned from her past mistakes that disagreeing with Blake was the wrong approach. He would only get angry and more irrational. At the same time, she was deeply afraid that Blake wouldn’t hesitate to shoot Zack, especially if Blake considered him a threat. She hoped and prayed Zack would stay back, out of sight.
“Thank you for the note,” she said, trying to keep Blake’s attention focused on her. She held onto Ace’s collar, unwilling to give Blake the chance to shoot the animal. “What brings you to Crystal Lake?” she asked.
“I came to see you, Meredith,” Blake answered in a reasonable tone, as if he wasn’t holding a gun. “To bring you back home where you belong.”
It took every ounce of willpower she possessed not to turn around to find Zack. Her best chance right now was to treat Blake like a friend rather than put him on the defensive. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and a denim shirt, once again wearing the blue baseball cap. In the dim light it wasn’t easy to see his bright red hair.
“Is Caro with you?” she asked, trying to stall. She didn’t think Blake’s sister would go along with his plan, but if she gave Zack enough time, he could circle around to get on the other side of the house to call for help.
“No. But Caroline misses you, Meredith,” he said in a chiding tone. “You shouldn’t have left without telling us where you were going.”
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, wishing she knew exactly how Blake had found her in the first place. “I miss Caro a lot, too. I miss all of you.” And in a way she did, because the fun times she’d spent growing up with the Caruthers family were some of her happiest memories.
But the months she’d spent dating Blake were also her saddest and darkest memories. As nice as he sounded right now, she knew full well he was capable of killing her. Especially if he found out she had no intention of going back with him.
“How is David? And Joey?” she asked, hoping she could gain a few minutes by discussing Blake’s siblings.
Blake waved the gun as if they weren’t important. “There will be plenty of time for you to catch up with the rest of the family later. Right now, you need to come with me.”
She tightened her fingers on Ace’s collar as fear shimmered along her spine. No matter what he threatened, she couldn’t bear the thought of
going with him.
Help, me, Lord! Show me the way!
“You’ll have to give me a few minutes to pack my things,” she said, playing along with him. “If you’ll wait here, I’ll be right back.”
“I don’t think so,” Blake said in a harsh tone. “Do you think I’m stupid?”
She swallowed hard and tried not to back away from him, even though he was beginning to show the depth of his mental illness. She reminded herself that it wasn’t his fault that he had a mental illness. Although it had been Blake’s choice not to take his medication, which brought them full circle.
“I didn’t say that, Blake. You were always smarter than me in school, remember?”
Blake took a few agitated steps making Ace growl again.
“Easy boy,” she whispered.
“Do you have any idea what I’ve gone through while you’ve been gone?” Blake asked harshly. “And what I had to go through to find you? And then come out here without getting caught?”
She couldn’t sense Zack behind her, which gave her hope that he was on his way to getting help. How long before the sheriff’s deputies would get here? She had no idea.
“That was you out in the fishing boat, wasn’t it?” she asked. “And that was you I saw looking into my kitchen window, too, wasn’t it? Why didn’t you say something? Or come inside to talk to me, then?”
“You know why,” Blake said, pacing again, back and forth in an agitated way. “Because that man was there. I thought about trying to kill him, but first I had to get away.”
Her blood ran cold as Blake voiced her greatest fear. She couldn’t bear to think of Zack getting hurt, or worse, because of her.
A wave of helplessness washed over her. What if Blake never got over his obsession with her? What if she ended up running away from him for the rest of her life?
“Is he your boyfriend now?” Blake demanded. “Did you move here because of him?”
“No, Zack isn’t my boyfriend,” she said. “He’s the brother of a friend, that’s all. I haven’t dated anyone since you, Blake.”
Blake twitched and glanced over to his right, as if seeing something that wasn’t there. “I know, I know. We have to go. Soon.”
Her stomach clenched with fear as she recognized the outward sign of Blake’s hallucinations. At times he could seem so rational, so normal, and then suddenly he was talking to people who weren’t there.
And if he was losing his grip on reality, there would be no way to reason with him.
“I’ll just put the dog inside the house, so he doesn’t run away,” she said, taking a step sideways to get closer to the house.
“No!” Blake’s sharp tone made her jerk her head backward, as if expecting a slap. “We have to go now, don’t you see? Everyone is waiting for us.”
“We can’t take the dog with us, Blake,” she said striving to sound reasonable. “I’ll just put him inside where he’ll be safe.”
Blake mumbled something she couldn’t hear as he turned and walked several steps away before spinning back around to face her. “Why do you have a dog?”
“He’s not my dog,” she tried to assure him. “I’m just taking care of him.”
“Fine, but hurry up. We have to get out of here.”
She wanted nothing more than to get Ace inside the house where he’d be safe, but something on the grass in the area behind where Blake had been standing caught her attention. She frowned, trying to figure out what it was.
A shoe? Why would there be a shoe there? As she stared at the sight, she realized the shoe was attached to a leg.
Dear Lord, was there was a person lying on the ground? Had Blake already shot and killed someone?
And if so, who?
Chapter Thirteen
Zack crept along the farthest edge of the lawn, staying in the shadows of the pine trees as he made his way around to the front of the townhouse.
As soon as he was safely around the corner, he broke into a jog and pulled out his cell phone to dial 911. The ringing on the other end of the line seemed to go on for an exceptionally long time before the dispatcher answered. “Hope County Sheriff’s Department. What is the nature of your emergency?”
“I’m at 2414 South Lake Drive and there is a Blake Caruthers here threatening Merry Haines with a gun,” he said in a low voice. He stopped short when he realized there was an unfamiliar car parked along the side of the road. In the darkness he could just barely make out the emblem of the sheriff’s star on the side. “There may be a deputy already on the scene. There’s a squad parked in front of the townhouse.”
“We haven’t dispatched anyone to that location,” the dispatcher said. “What’s the license plate number of the squad located there?”
“First I need you to send additional deputies, but no lights and sirens,” he ordered. After listening to her send out the call for help, he rattled off the license plate number.
“I’ve dispatched two squads to the address,” the dispatcher informed him. He could hear clicking of computer keys in the background. “The squad on the scene belongs to Deputy Armbruster.”
Zack wondered if Armbruster had stumbled across Blake’s black Jeep and followed him here. But then where was the Jeep? He didn’t see any sign of it. How had Blake gotten there? The guy must have parked the Jeep further down the street and came up on foot.
“I don’t see Armbruster, but I’m sure he’s close by,” Zack said, hoping he was right. Just knowing he wasn’t alone already made him feel better. “Please tell those squads to hurry!”
He didn’t wait for the dispatcher to respond, but disconnected from the call. He paused, debating between going inside for his weapon and circling around the other side of the townhouse to sneak up on Blake.
Since Blake was armed, Zack figured he needed to even the odds. Even if Armbruster was already behind Caruthers, Zack would prefer to be armed, too. He silently opened the front door and used his key to get inside. Forgoing lights, he felt along the wall until he found the hallway that lead to the two bedrooms. He found his service revolver on the top of his duffel bag, and then went back through the townhouse the same way he came in.
Zack stayed close to the house as he went around to the other side so he could sneak up behind Blake. When he reached the corner of Julie’s garden, he abruptly stopped, staring at the ground in horror.
Armbruster was sprawled face down on the grass. And there was only one explanation. Zack was very much afraid Blake had shot and killed the deputy. They hadn’t heard a gunshot while out on the lake though, so either Caruther’s weapon had a silencer or he used some other type of weapon on him.
He was thankful he’d gone to get his gun as he planned his next steps, knowing that backup wouldn’t arrive for at least five to ten minutes.
Zack listened to Merry’s attempt to reason with Caruthers and sent up a quick prayer for her safety.
Then he lowered himself to a crouch, easing into a position where he could see Caruthers. The man was pacing erratically and occasionally talking to himself.
He didn’t want to shoot the guy, especially if there was any chance of hitting Merry. But he would shoot if he had no other choice.
Zack hoped Merry would keep her distance, giving him room to maneuver. But just then he caught sight of her stepping closer to Caruthers.
Where was Ace? He couldn’t see any sign of the dog, which was odd since he’d heard Ace growling at the guy, earlier. He wished Merry had kept the dog close at hand, just in case. And why on earth did it seem like she was going along with Caruthers?
He wanted to shout at her to stay away, but all he could do was wait and watch for an opportunity to take Caruthers out.
____________
Merry didn’t want to walk any closer to Blake, but since he was waving the gun at her again, didn’t have much of a choice. She couldn’t tear her gaze from the shoe. She’d stalled as long as possible after putting Ace inside the house, but Blake was getting more and more agitated. She felt bad f
or Blake having to wrestle with his demons, but she also knew that he was the one who kept refusing to take his medication.
“Where have you been staying?” she asked, hoping that if Zack was nearby, he could find a way to follow them. “At the campsite?”
Blake laughed a horrible sound that grated along her nerves. “I was there at first, but for the past two days I’ve been staying right next door to you, Meredith.”
She tried not to gape at him. “Really? Where?”
“At the house two doors down from you that’s for sale,” he said in a smug tone. “I jimmied the basement window to get inside. Pretty smart, huh?”
As much as it pained her to admit it, Blake’s idea of staying in a vacant house was a stroke of genius. No wonder they hadn’t been able to find him. And now she knew how he’d disappeared so quickly the day he’d peered in the kitchen window.
Had he laughed as he watched Zack run around looking for him? The idea made her shiver. They were so lucky that Blake hadn’t tried shooting Zack back then.
“Is that where we’re going now?” she asked. A brief movement from the corner of the house caught her eye, and she breathed easier knowing that Zack was nearby.
Now she just needed to think of a way to disarm Blake before he started shooting.
But how?
She stopped in her tracks and it took Blake a moment to realize she wasn’t coming along. “What are you doing?” he asked.
“Did you hurt someone, Blake?” she asked. “I see someone lying on the ground over there.”
Blake didn’t so much as glance behind him. “He tried to stop me, but I took care of him. Let’s go. Now! Or I’ll have no choice but to hurt you.”
It was on the tip of her tongue to point out that he had a choice, but she bit back the argument. “I’m a nurse, remember? If that man is hurt I need to go and help him.”
From the corner of her eye she noticed Zack edging closer. When he scowled, she belatedly realized she should have been trying to get Blake further away from Zack’s hiding place rather than bringing attention to the area.
