Hidden Threat

by Connie Mann

  Beatrice nodded. “Let me know if there’s some way I can help.”

  Eve left the shop, stunned to have found such an unlikely ally. Beatrice was the same age as most of the biddies who were talking trash about Eve.

  She climbed into her Prius and had barely made it out of Safe Harbor on her way to Cole’s when a shiny black pickup truck appeared in her rearview mirror. At first she thought it might be Cole, but this was no work truck. This one gleamed like a showroom special. Eve had turned up the radio, flipping stations, looking for something to soothe her jangled nerves, when the truck rammed into the back of her car.

  What in the world? Eve gripped the wheel and hung on, fighting to keep the car on the road.

  She glanced in her rearview mirror, trying to see the driver, but he was wearing dark glasses and a ball cap, and she couldn’t make out a thing.

  She sped up and hugged the shoulder, hoping he’d pass, but he stayed on her bumper. Her heart pounded and fear raced through her. Why was he doing this?

  He sped up and rammed the back of her little car again. The taillight shattered, and Eve started praying out loud as she fought to keep the car on the road. Thankfully there was no one coming from either direction on the two-lane highway who might get hurt. “Dear Jesus, help me, please.”

  He rammed her a third time, and this time, she heard glass shatter as the car went into a slow spin. Eve went with the spin, overriding her body’s urge to turn the wheel the other way. She held her breath, praying she’d made the right choice, and the car finally stopped spinning and regained traction on the road.

  She risked a glance in her rearview mirror and saw the truck getting closer again. She didn’t know how many more times she could do this.

  Just then, another car came around the bend from the opposite direction. But not just any car—a Safe Harbor police SUV. Eve flashed her brights at him just as the truck eased back behind her, a nice, normal distance away.

  She looked in her rearview mirror, hoping the cop would turn around, but he just kept going. The truck passed her in the opposite lane and she squinted to read the license plate, but there wasn’t one. Eve looked in her rearview mirror and saw that the cop had finally done a U-turn, and he pulled up behind her and turned on his lights.

  She pulled over and hopped out of her car. “Thank goodness you’re here. That man—”

  “Get back in your car, ma’am. Now.”

  “What?” Eve waved off into the distance. “That truck just tried to run me off the road. You have to go after him.”

  “Ma’am. I won’t ask again. Get back in the car.”

  Eve studied his expression, but it was the gun he’d pulled from his holster that really got her attention.

  She raised her hands above her head. “OK, I’m going. But you don’t underst—”

  Another police SUV swung in behind the first, lights and sirens on. The siren thankfully shut off, but the lights didn’t. Eve glanced behind her as she climbed into her car and groaned when she realized who it was. She did not want to deal with Chief Monroe.

  But she did want to know what he was saying, so she rolled down the window and strained to listen.

  “What’s going on here, Buddy?”

  She could almost hear the young cop swallow from here. “I’m not sure yet, sir. I pulled her over for a busted taillight, but she came flying out of the car like a crazy woman, so I told her to get back in the car.”

  Eve rolled her eyes as she looked in her side mirror and watched the chief swagger up to the car, hands on his utility belt. He leaned closer and Eve grinned, just because she knew he’d hate it.

  “Eve Jackson, why are you giving my officer a hard time?”

  Eve wanted to roll her eyes, but she knew it would only make things worse. The truck was long gone by now, anyway. The best she could hope for was to get him to look into it. “Look, Chief, someone was following me out of town and tried to run me off the road. That’s why my taillight is smashed. He smashed it. And the shattered glass in the back is from some canning jars that broke from the impact. I tried to get Officer Friendly to go after him, but he wouldn’t listen.”

  The chief pushed his hat farther back on his head, then turned and walked to the back of her car and took a long look at her taillight. He took his sweet time coming back, glancing at the broken jars in her back seat, and then he pulled a little notebook from his shirt pocket. “What kind of truck did you say it was? Did you get a license plate?”

  “It was black. Big. Sounded like maybe it was diesel. It didn’t have a plate.”

  He raised a brow. “I’ll do what I can, but you know that’s not much to go on.”

  Eve fought to keep her frustration in check. “Right. If he tries to run me off the road again, I’ll be sure to let you know.”

  Her sarcasm went right over his head. “You do that. Don’t go looking for trouble, though. Your sister caused plenty of that recently.”

  Did he realize how close she was to slapping him upside the head for being a complete idiot? She locked her hands together to fight the impulse. “Sasha did what she had to do. I wouldn’t call that trouble—”

  “I’m not talking about Sasha, although she’s caused her fair share.”

  “Wait. Who are you talking about, then?”

  “The new one. The one with the pink hair.”

  “Blaze? What kind of trouble is Blaze in? What happened?”

  “Seems she picked a fight after school, just outside the Sunrise Café. Early release today.”

  “Is she OK? Did she say what happened?”

  “She wouldn’t say, but it looks like it was three to one.” He grinned. “She’s a scrapper, that one.” Then he sobered. “But the others said she started it.”

  Eve didn’t doubt it, but there had to be more to the story. “Thanks for letting me know, Chief. I need to get going.”

  “Not so fast, young lady; there’s still the matter of your taillight. I could write you up for that.”

  “Oh, for crying out loud, Chief. Seriously? The guy in the truck smashed it. I’ll call the rental place right away, OK?”

  He scratched his head, then finally nodded. Eve drove away, slowly, and that’s when the shakes set in. Someone had tried to run her off the road! The fact that the chief didn’t take her seriously could mean several things. Either he didn’t believe her, which was her first thought, or he knew something she didn’t.

  The second possibility made her teeth start chattering, too, and she gripped the steering wheel until her knuckles turned white. She knew people in town thought she’d cried wolf too many times, or made mountains out of molehills, as the clichés went, but when something was wrong—or even if she thought something was wrong—she acted. Simple as that.

  Because she’d learned the hard way that if she didn’t do anything, bad things could happen to the people she cared about. She didn’t need any more guilt in her life.

  On that long-ago night in Chicago, if she hadn’t left when her mother told her to, or had come back sooner, Eve was convinced she’d have been able to save her mother’s life. Maybe called 911, or found one of her mother’s friends who would help her. Maybe even found her English teacher and asked her for help. Or better yet, never given her mother that nasty-looking water to begin with. But her mother had been so sick, and so thirsty, begging for water. Eve should never have left her mother alone. But she’d been terrified that the man who’d been there earlier would come back and try to take her away. Her mother had feared the same thing and made Eve promise not to come back until morning.

  So Eve had hidden in a dark alley, a cold, terrified thirteen-year-old, huddled in the smelly shadow of a dumpster, until the sun came up. But by the time she crept back to their roach-infested apartment, her mother was gone, her body already cooling. Eve had been too late, and all the recriminations in the world wouldn’t bring her back and wouldn’t atone for Eve’s indecision.

  She wouldn’t let her own fears hurt anyone else, ever
again.

  Chapter 16

  Eve raced home and slid to a stop beside Jesse’s truck. She grabbed her purse and hurried into the house. “Blaze. Where are you?”

  “Kitchen,” Sasha called, and Eve burst through the kitchen door and stopped short.

  “Oh, ouch. That looks bad.” Eve tried to hide her shock. Blaze had a cut on her cheek, and when she pulled the ice bag away, it showed one eye was almost swelled shut. The other was half-closed. “Geez, I hope the other guy looks way worse.”

  Blaze tried to smile but winced. Eve glanced at her swollen lip and understood.

  Jesse paced the end of the kitchen. He stopped, jabbed a finger in Blaze’s direction. “There were three of them.” He shook his head, visibly trying to control his anger. Then he grinned. “But Blaze pounded them into the ground.”

  Eve slid into the chair opposite Blaze. “Can you tell me what happened?”

  Blaze glanced at Sasha. “Hurts to talk.”

  Sasha nodded, turned to Eve. “So, from what Blaze said, she was walking downtown when she got into an argument with a couple of kids from school. Things got heated, punches were thrown, and one of the shop owners called the police. By the time Nick got there, Blaze was the only one left standing.” She grinned, then sobered. “Not that fighting is the way to solve anything,” she added, as though she’d just remembered to act parental.

  Eve held up her hands in a time-out gesture. “There’s a whole boatload of information you’re leaving out.” She looked steadily at Blaze. “What started the argument?”

  Blaze shrugged and wouldn’t meet her eyes. “Just some kids being dumb. Staying stupid stuff.”

  “What kind of stupid stuff?”

  Another shrug. “Just stuff.” She tried to push back from the table, but Eve reached over and grabbed her hand.

  “Tell me. Please.”

  Blaze looked away, then turned back. “They were saying stuff about you, OK? That you were some kind of environmental nut job, and this town would be better off without a mixed breed like you stirring up trouble.”

  Eve sat back, shocked. But then, people had been calling her both of those things for a long time. She just hadn’t realized they’d passed those terms on to their children, though she shouldn’t be surprised. Not in Safe Harbor. No, the surprise was that Blaze had stood up for her. A lump formed in her throat, and she swallowed it back.

  “If you start blubbering, I’ll punch you, too,” Blaze warned, and Eve laughed, breaking loose from the emotional quicksand.

  “No blubbering. Promise.” But Eve leaned forward and grabbed one of Blaze’s hands again, hanging on even when she tried to pull away. “But I do want to thank you. No one’s ever gone to bat for me that way. Ever. It means a lot.”

  “Though fighting is never a good idea,” Sasha added quickly, and both Blaze and Eve rolled their eyes.

  “Yes, Mother,” Eve said. She looked at Blaze. “She’s right, but I do appreciate what you were trying to do.”

  A blush slid over Blaze’s bruised face, and she shrugged it off. “Family sticks together. Right?”

  “Right.” Eve smiled, then looked to Sasha and Jesse. “Did the cops say what happens next?”

  “Probably nothing. There was a lot of he-said-she-said about what happened.”

  “I know what happened,” Blaze added. “They were total jerks.”

  “Will this affect your scholarship applications?” Eve asked. She knew Blaze had already started applying for scholarship money to help pay for college when the time came.

  “If I don’t get the money, I’ll stay here. Take care of Mama. I should probably do that anyway.”

  “No,” all three adults said at once.

  Sasha leaned over, touched Blaze’s shoulder. “You need to go to school, live your life. Jesse and I will be here to help Pop take care of Mama. That is not your job.”

  Blaze looked at Eve, who nodded. “She’s right. You need to—”

  The old-fashioned phone on the wall jangled and interrupted what she’d been about to say.

  Jesse stalked over and answered. “Martinellis’.” He looked over at Sasha. “She is. Who’s calling?”

  Sasha raised her eyebrows, but Jesse only shrugged. “Hold on a minute.” He covered the receiver with his hand. “It’s a woman, asking for Sasha Petrov. Not a voice I recognize, but her accent appears to be Russian.”

  All the color leached from Sasha’s face, and Eve automatically squeezed her hand before she reached for the receiver. Jesse immediately stood behind his wife and put his hands on her shoulders, and Eve’s heart melted at the obvious love they shared. A twinge of envy slid over her, a quick stab of longing to be loved like that. Cole Sutton’s face burst into her mind, but she shoved all of that aside and focused.

  “This is Sasha Petrov.” Eve watched Sasha stiffen at whatever the woman was saying, then reach back for Jesse, who immediately wrapped both arms around her middle and pulled her securely against his chest. Sasha’s hand on the receiver tightened until the knuckles turned white. Eve watched, shocked, as a single tear slid over her sister’s cheek. Sasha, the fearless one who never cried. Eve exchanged worried glances with Blaze, who looked equally shell shocked.

  The caller talked for several minutes, but Sasha didn’t say a word. Finally she croaked, “I’ll have to think about it.” She swiped at the tears that were now streaming down her face. “OK. Let me get a piece of paper.”

  Eve hopped up and grabbed the grocery list from the fridge along with a pencil. Sasha glanced up, her eyes filled with confusion, and wrote down a number, carefully repeating it before she said, “I’ll call you in . . . in a few days.”

  She hung up, and Jesse turned her into his arms, holding her as she sobbed soundlessly on his shoulder.

  Eve gripped Blaze’s hand as they waited, and for once, the teen didn’t pull away. Something was seriously wrong, but what?

  Finally Jesse pulled back and wiped the tears from his wife’s eyes. “Tell me.”

  Sasha looked from him to Eve and Blaze, and a tremulous smile slid over her face. “That woman says she’s my aunt Sophia, my mother’s sister. She saw the picture of me after I won the Tropicana, and she recognized my name, and the mariner’s cross I was kissing in the picture. She said . . .” Her voice trailed off, and she had to start over. “She said she’s been looking for me for years and had thought she’d never find me again.”

  “That’s fantastic news,” Eve said, and hurried over to hug her. When Sasha didn’t respond, Eve pulled back. “Isn’t it?”

  Sasha shrugged and swiped at her tears again. “I think so. I don’t know. It’s so weird, you know? I’m not sure what to do with it. She said she’s in Tampa.”

  Jesse turned her to face him. “You don’t have to do a thing. Not today. Just give it a little time to sink in. Then decide what to do next.”

  Eve wasn’t sure what to say, so she was relieved when Pop walked in. “What happened to your taillight?”

  All eyes turned to Eve. She didn’t want to add to their worry, so she shrugged and said, “I need to pay closer attention when I back up. I’ll call the rental company. How’s Mama?”

  He smiled, but Eve saw the effort behind it. “She is as stubborn as ever, my Rosa. The doctor says she is improving.”

  “Of course she is.” Eve smiled and patted his arm, then grabbed a plastic trash bag and went outside to her car. After she called the rental company, she carefully scooped the shards of glass into the bag, hauled the shop vacuum from one of the sheds, and cleaned out the inside of the car.

  She put the vacuum back and wandered out to the dock. With her back against one of the pilings, out of view of the house, she loosened the grip she’d kept on her emotions. Someone had deliberately tried to run her off the road. She wrapped her arms around herself as the shakes increased.

  As the trembling eased, her resolve hardened. It would be tempting to quit, but she knew that was exactly what whoever had done this wanted. She wouldn�
��t stop until she figured out who was behind this. That driver wouldn’t scare her away. She owed it to little Glory—and her own mother’s memory.

  Chapter 17

  The next morning, Blaze moved like an old woman, but insisted on going to school. “I’m not hiding out at home,” she snapped, and headed out the door, again picked up by the mystery boy she didn’t want to talk about.

  Eve stopped by the hospital to check in with Mama Rosa and reassure her that Blaze was fine. They all knew the grapevine would deliver the news if they didn’t tell her first, so Eve had called her last night and told her a kinder, gentler version of what happened.

  “Good morning, Mama. How are you?” Eve kept her smile in place as she leaned over and kissed her cheek, the skin paper thin. She sat in the chair by the bed and gently took Mama’s hand.

  “Good morning, my Eve. How is Blaze?”

  “Like I told you last—”

  Mama waved that away. “You didn’t want me to worry. But I’m a mother. Worry is part of the job. Now, how is she, really?”

  Eve sighed. “She’s moving slow this morning, but she insisted on going to school.”

  “That sounds like Blaze. She reminds me of you at that age.”

  Eve grinned. “I think you’re right.” She pointed to the colorful scarf Mama held. “Where did you get that? It’s lovely.”

  “I found it on my bedside table this morning. There was no card.”

  Eve picked it up and expertly wrapped it around Mama’s head, then tied a pretty knot. “There you are. You look ravishing.”

  They chatted until Mama tired, so she left. She ended up at the local Stuff Mart, trying on jeans and T-shirts. It felt weird to wear the kind of clothes she hadn’t worn since she had left for college and decided she would dress for success, always, even if the clothes came from a thrift store. Now here she was, back in the clothing of her childhood, and she wasn’t sure what to think. The ladies’ fitted T-shirts felt good against her skin, and she couldn’t deny she liked how she looked in the jeans, especially with the boots from Cole. She felt like she’d gone back in time and been reborn, all at once.