Dark Obsession

by Lynette Eason

  Grabbing his coat from the back of the chair where he’d tossed it last night, he slipped it on, snatched up the keys and headed for his truck.

  At the end of his driveway, he took a left and climbed the curving road to the next turnoff. Twenty yards later, he spun into the parking lot.

  Holly’s little red truck sat in front of the church.

  Just as he climbed out, she came out of the front door of the church and down the steps toward him. She raised a brow in the direction of his vehicle. “That’s quite a load.”

  At the sight of her, Eli’s heart thumped a little faster, sweat slicked his palms. She had on denim jeans, her heavy coat, hat and scarf. She looked adorable.

  She reached his truck and he leaned over to hug her. At first, she went stiff, then relaxed. He relished the feel of her in his arms. “Thanks for coming to the hospital last night. It was really good to see you. I needed that.”

  She placed a hand on his cheek, opened her mouth to say something then snapped it shut when a sheriff’s cruiser pulled into the parking lot.

  Alex.

  Eli heard her indrawn breath as she pulled away. She muttered, “If I didn’t know better, I’d swear that man planted a tracking device on me.”

  Eli felt his ire rise. If Alex didn’t back off, he was going to have to have words with him.

  Alex climbed from the cruiser.

  “What are you doing here?” Holly crossed her arms and leaned back against the truck.

  Even though he’d seen the cozy embrace, Alex said nothing. “I got a call about a silent alarm going off.” He nodded to the church.

  “What?” She straightened. Instant red suffused her face and she darted back to the building. Thirty seconds later, she reappeared. “Is it off now?”

  Alex got on the radio, said something, listened, then nodded. “All taken care of.”

  Holly shook her head. “I’m so sorry.”

  “No problem.” He smiled then looked at Eli’s loaded truck. “You need some help?”

  Surprised at the offer, Eli studied the man then shrugged. “Sure, since you’re here.”

  Thirty minutes later, Eli’s truck bed was empty. Eli rolled his shoulders and decided he liked working as a team with Holly even with the addition of Alex and his determination to compete for Holly’s affection. Her fluid grace made every movement a pleasure to watch.

  Alex’s radio crackled and he stepped away from them for a moment.

  Holly locked up the church and Eli pulled his keys from his pocket. “We never did get around to eating those doughnuts.”

  “Guess I’ll have to take a rain—”

  “Holly?”

  Eli looked up to see Alex coming toward them wearing a frown. Foreboding hit Eli. “What is it?”

  Alex looked at Holly. “Someone spray painted graffiti all over your store. The alarm never went off so I don’t know if they attempted to get inside, but we need to go take a look.”

  “What?” Holly didn’t wait for an answer. She spun on her heel to head for her truck.

  Eli grabbed her arm. “Hold on, Holly, I’ll go with you.”

  Alex intervened. “You’re not a cop here anymore, Brodie, remember?”

  “I don’t care, I’m a friend.” He shot a hard look at Alex. The man stared back, some emotion Eli couldn’t identify glittering in his dark eyes. Jealousy? Possessiveness?

  Finally Alex shrugged. “Fine. Anne, one of the cashiers at the grocery store next door to your store, called it in and Alice radioed me.”

  The three of them climbed into their respective vehicles and headed down the mountain.

  Five minutes later, she pulled up in front of her store, shock pounding through her.

  Climbing out of the car, she just stared at the building. Bright red words glared at her. “Time’s up,” she read in a whisper. She wouldn’t say the other painted words out loud, but they burned in her brain nonetheless.

  “Who is doing this?” Eli wondered aloud.

  “And why?” Alex added.

  Anger—and more than a touch of fear—made her fingers shake as she pushed the door open. She couldn’t hold back her cry of dismay. “It’s been destroyed. All my hard work…Everything…” She wanted to puddle into the floor and wail. Instead, she straightened her spine, sucked back the tears and took in the damage.

  Alex laid a hand on her shoulder and she felt too shell-shocked to move away. He turned her to him and said, “I promise I’ll get this guy for you.”

  Eli’s gaze darted between them and she gave him a tremulous smile. She moved over to the Valentine’s display she’d spent hours putting together. Smashed chocolate, stuffing ripped from the cute teddy bears, flowers strewn across the room. Everywhere she looked, destruction greeted her. “I’ll have to refund orders. Valentine’s Day is the day after tomorrow. I’ll never be able to have this cleaned up in time.”

  “What about insurance?” Eli asked.

  She nodded. “I have insurance, but even with it…” She shook her head and swallowed hard. “I may have to close the store.” The phone line had been cut, explaining why the alarm hadn’t gone off. The trouble light blinked, telling her she needed to investigate.

  That was a lot of help after the fact.

  Two hours later, she had her police report filed, and Alex had collected all the evidence he could. Eli had gone back to his ranch to sell his horses and Holly had called her insurance company. Now she set the broom aside, slumped into a chair and stared at the destruction.

  Despair hit her. “What’s going on, God? I don’t understand why all this is happening.” The whispered words brought a bit of comfort. She didn’t know what was going on, but God did. That was the important thing.

  She hated to break the news to her mother, but money was going to be tight from here on out. They still had some insurance money left from her dad, but the medical bills from her mother were no small thing.

  Sighing, she wondered briefly if she’d have to sell the house now.

  The thought struck her hard, ricocheting against every nerve. She sat up slowly, her brain looping over itself as she processed that thought.

  Was that what this was all about?

  Once the idea took root, it grew. She remembered the menacing James Miller from Transcross and his subtle threats, the man with the dark glasses that seemed to keep turning up and both men telling her that good offers were rare and she should take advantage of their generosity.

  Narrowing her eyes, she contemplated that idea. To some it may sound silly, but what other reason could there be? Her property was the only thing of any real value she and her mother had.

  But how could she prove it?

  And would anyone even believe her if she said anything?

  Eli would. Even if no one else in this town would hear it, Eli would.

  But the thought of turning to him for more help scared her. She remembered the hug in the church parking lot. How right it had felt. How wonderful it had been to feel his arms around her once more.

  If he had truly changed…

  Time would tell.

  * * *

  Eli parked back in front of Holly’s shop. He’d sold the three horses and dropped the payment at the bank. A phone call to check on his dad raised his spirits. Buckeye informed Eli that all was fine, they would be home in time for supper and no, Eli didn’t need to make the trip to the hospital. Eli promised to meet them at the house.

  Unable to get Holly off his mind, he decided to come back and help her clean up and see what she was going to do now.

  As he got out of his truck, he noticed a car sitting two doors down past the grocery store. He’d seen the two men sitting in the sedan as he’d passed by but hadn’t thought much about it. Now he realized they had a perfect view of Holly’s shop.

  Strangers? Tourists?

  Of course they could be here for the auction.

  However, these guys made his cop instincts hum. They hadn’t been there when he’d left a few hours a
go. What could they be up to now? And why were they just sitting there watching Holly’s store?

  He shut the door of his truck and debated whether or not to approach them. He could at least get a license number and have a buddy at his old department run it for him. Just to satisfy his curiosity.

  Decision made, Eli headed in their direction. Once they realized they were his intended targets, one said something to the other and the car backed up, did a three point turn and sped down the street.

  But not before Eli got a plate number.

  Suspicious behavior warranted proactive behavior, he always said. Pulling out his cell phone, he punched in a number.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey Ken, this is Eli. How ya doing?” Ken Larson, a fellow detective in New York, had been one of his best friends on the force.

  “Eli? Good to hear from you. What are you up to? When are you planning on coming back here?”

  “My dad was hurt in an accident so I’ve been helping out around the farm. As far as when I’m coming back…well, I don’t guess that’s going to happen. You know I applied to be considered for the captain’s job and haven’t heard anything so…I think maybe I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.”

  Silence. “Really?”

  “Yeah.”

  “As far as I know, they haven’t made an announcement yet on who the new captain is, so you might be getting a call after all.”

  That rocked Eli back a moment. He’d completely given up on the position. But all he said was, “We’ll see, I suppose.”

  “So why are you calling?”

  “I have a favor to ask.”

  “Shoot.”

  Eli gave him the plate number and Ken promised to get back to him.

  The door to Holly’s store opened and she carried a filled-to-the-rim trash bag.

  “Hey, you need some help?”

  Her head snapped up. “Eli? What are you doing back?”

  “Thought I’d offer my cleaning services.”

  Her eyes warmed and lingered on his, then she blinked and looked away. “Sure, if you’ve got the time.”

  Shooting her a wry look, he said, “What else have I got to do? Buckeye is taking care of Dad, I sold the horses and made a few bucks,” he said as he shrugged. “Other than that, I’m feeling pretty useless all in all, I guess.”

  Holly laughed, a sincere chuckle that shot joy through him. “Eli, you are far from useless. You said you sold your horses.”

  “True.”

  She paused and an expression crossed her face. One he’d never seen before and didn’t know exactly how to identify. “What?”

  Opening her mouth, she started to say something, then stopped and shook her head.

  He grabbed her arm in a gentle grip. “What? Come on, you can’t look like that and not tell me what you were thinking.”

  She took a deep breath. “I was thinking that you should run for sheriff.”

  “Huh?”

  A shrug. “I know. Dumb idea, wasn’t it? Like a former New York detective would be interested in being a sheriff in a small town place like this.” She waved a hand. “Never mind. Momentary lapse of sanity.”

  Turning, she led him back into the store and handed him a broom.

  As he swept, her words lingered in his mind. Run for sheriff? Build a life with Holly? Yeah, he thought, smiling, he could see that happening. He turned to leave.

  As he did the vision of the two men in the sedan sitting across the street from Holly’s place chased away his pleasant musings. Time to figure out who was threatening Holly. If he didn’t, she might not have a future to share with him.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Bundled against the wind and cold, but in need of some exercise, Holly stepped onto the front porch and pulled up short. “Alex?”

  He sat in his sheriff’s car at the top of the horseshoe-shaped drive and shot her a sheepish grin through the open window. “Hi. You caught me.”

  “Caught you? What are you doing?”

  Duster and Sassy danced at her heels. Then Duster nosed her way up to the car. Through the open window, Alex reached down to scratch the canine’s ears. “Working up the nerve to ask you to be my Valentine’s date.”

  Dread curled around her. “Alex, we talked about this….”

  He held up the hand that had been on Duster’s ears. “I know, I know. But—” He turned to the passenger seat, gathered what was there, then opened his door.

  She walked toward him, staring at the bundle of roses that lay in the crook of his arm. “I really care a lot about you, Holly.” He shifted and sighed. “Here.” Before she could blink, he shoved the roses to her arms, and climbed back in the car.

  “Alex, no! I don’t want these!”

  She tried giving them back, but he refused to take them, saying, “I’ve got to go, just think about it, will you? At least give me equal time.”

  “Equal time?” Holly tried one more time to push the flowers through the open window. One of the buds fell off and landed at her feet.

  “I know you and Eli used to be a couple and his coming back here has probably played with your emotions.”

  “Alex, you’ve got to stop this!”

  His radio cut off her protests. “Gotta go. Just think about it.”

  Before she had a chance to respond, tires spun on her gravel and his taillights blinked as he headed down her drive.

  Helpless, she just stood there a moment then spun on her heel. Walking back up to the front porch, she set the flowers on the rocker then went back down the steps.

  With Duster and Sassy at her heels, she made her way to the mailbox at the end of her long drive.

  While she walked, she thought. About Alex. What was she going to do with him? Why wouldn’t he back off? Pushing thoughts of Alex aside, she kicked a stone in frustration and moved on to more pleasant musings.

  While keeping a watchful eye on the area around her.

  Her mother had gotten in early last night still looking thin and sickly, yet refreshed, with a new sparkle in her eyes. Thankfully, the remainder of the evening had been quiet.

  No one lurked outside her home, no middle of the night disturbances and no hang-up phone calls. After cleaning up her store as much as she could, she and Eli had worked at the church until dark, although she had to admit her heart hadn’t been in it. Alex had been there, too, but at least he had behaved himself.

  Tomorrow night, the auction would get underway. From what Holly could tell, everything was close to being ready. The workers had given a hundred percent and the church gym nearly bulged with all of the items. Advertisements had gone out into neighboring towns and even into some of the larger cities.

  People from all around would make their way to the tiny town of Rose Mountain and from seven p.m. to eleven would bid on the various items. They all knew it was for a wonderful cause and were glad to help.

  Opening the mailbox, she spotted an envelope with a yellow rose place carefully on top.

  Who? Alex again? No…Eli.

  Opening the envelope, she whistled for the dogs and started her trek back to the house. “Come on, guys.”

  The note said, “Will you meet me at The Steak House for a Valentine’s evening? Romance and candlelight to be included. But most importantly, friendship. Then I’ll escort you to the auction where we can watch the money roll in for the orphanage.”

  Her heart caught in her throat.

  The Steak House, one of the nicer, pricier restaurants in town, only opened for dinner. Valentine’s Day. Tomorrow.

  She picked up the single rose and sniffed. Eli. She was falling for him again and realized that at some point she’d finally allowed herself to believe him when he said he was home for good this time.

  Still a little part nagged at her. A small kernel of doubt kept her slightly on edge. As though she was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  Back at the house, she gathered the flowers from the rocking chair and stepped inside to find her mother sitting in the
den. “Hey,” she said as she turned to enter the kitchen to search for two vases.

  “I got a phone call,” her mother called.

  Holly froze as the flowers tumbled from her arms to the sink. She darted back to the den. “The one we’ve been waiting for?”

  “Yes.”

  “And?”

  Her mother rose and held out her hands. Tears dripped from her cheeks. “It’s gone. They said I beat it again.”

  Joy exploded inside her. She felt the smile begin to spread. “You did?”

  “We did. You, me and God.”

  “Oh, thank You, Jesus.” Holly pulled her mother into a hug. Sobs of thankfulness shook her. Finally both of them started laughing. And laughing.

  It felt good. “So, what…”

  The sound of a gunshot, the yelping cry of a wounded animal and the roar of a motorcycle interrupted her words and blended into one roaring sound of rushing terror between Holly’s ears.

  * * *

  Eli pulled up on the reins and brought his horse to a skidding halt. A gunshot?

  He’d ridden right to the edge of Holly’s property line. He wasn’t but a mile from her house. Spurring Chester’s side, Eli pushed the horse into an all-out run toward Holly’s house.

  Within a couple of minutes, he galloped into her yard to see her kneeling next to Sassy’s side pressing gauze onto an area just above her front leg on the meaty part of her shoulder. Holly’s mother stood on the porch speaking to someone on the other line.

  Holly looked up, eyes blazing. “Someone’s gone too far this time.” Tears streaked her cheeks and her hands shook. He didn’t know if it was from grief or rage.

  Mrs. Maddox said, “Doc Gardner said he’d meet you at the office.”

  Eli pulled his cell phone from his pocket and placed a call to the sheriff’s office. Within minutes, he had officers on the way. He slid his arms under Sassy and lifted her against his chest. “Let’s get her to the vet. I’ve called Alex and he’s sending Joel and Harlan. One will stay with your mother while the other one investigates.”