Spring Fever

by Deborah Cooke

  She stepped into the house, her heart racing, called herself an idiot and put down her things. She tossed her keys on the counter, fighting the persistent sense that something was not right, and took off her jacket.

  She needed a shower. Maybe a bit of sleep. She plugged in her phone, acting like everything was routine, then headed for the stairs.

  Reyna froze when she smelled cigarette smoke. Worse, those cigarettes. She knew that brand. She knew that smell. She’d been sure she’d never smell it again. Her heart stopped cold and her palms sweat.

  No.

  Sean couldn’t be in her house.

  Not after three years. Reyna had escaped. She was safe. He was a part of her past, not her present or her future. He couldn’t have followed her, and he couldn’t have found her. She was wrong.

  He wasn’t in her house.

  But he was. The hair on the back of Reyna’s neck was prickling and her heart was skipping. She couldn’t see Sean but she could sense him like a pending thunderstorm. And he was angry, even better. The tang of trouble was sharp in the air, so potent that she didn’t want to take a breath.

  Well, she knew that she couldn’t run from him, and his presence proved she couldn’t hide. There was no one to call to help her, because he would just hurt anyone who got in his way. Reyna would give him what he wanted and be done with it.

  She forced herself to look indifferent, then walked to the shop.

  Sean was there, of course, lounging in one of the little white chairs, tipping it back as if he wanted to break it. His arms were folded across his chest, his legs were stretched out and crossed at the ankle, his expression was impatient. There was a familiar fire in his eyes, one Reyna wished had been extinguished, and his gaze roved over her with a familiarity that made her want to wash. He could have been such a gorgeous man but his character tinged his expression and made him look like a monster.

  Once she had thought him irresistible.

  That was because she’d only looked at the surface.

  Sean had taught her the price of that mistake.

  He got up slowly, turning to draw the blind, and Reyna thought her heart would just stop cold.

  It would be easier in a way if it did, because she knew what he was going to do next. She was chilled with her certainty, as cold as ice, but still trying to hide her fear.

  “Sean. What a surprise.” Reyna folded her arms across her chest and leaned in the doorframe, as if she wasn’t freaking out inside. Thank goodness she was dressed. He could have surprised her while she was in bed.

  If he wanted it, he’d have to work for it.

  She was going to go down fighting.

  “Kind of let yourself go, haven’t you?” he said by way of greeting. “You’re looking old and frumpy, Reyna.”

  “Am I?” She shrugged. “It’s my new look.”

  “It’s a shit one,” he sneered. “Not even a bit of lipstick. Nobody will ever want you when you look like that.”

  Reyna didn’t believe that, not after her night with Kade, but she also knew that it was part of Sean’s strategy to denigrate her, and probably all the other women he abused.

  To think that she had once, briefly, been dumb enough to believe him.

  “Oh well,” she said lightly. “I like living alone.”

  “I doubt that. You were always needing it.” His gaze swept over her. “Desperate for it. You were so lucky that I felt like obliging you.”

  There was no reply Reyna could make to that. “I suppose you want a coffee after driving all this way.”

  “I want more than a coffee and you know it!”

  It was a win that he’d raised his voice first, and Reyna knew it. “Do I?” she asked mildly. “I know I want a coffee.” She moved toward the coffee maker, as if she wasn’t afraid of him at all.

  Sean crossed the shop in two steps, seizing her arm and drawing her up to her toes. He was still taller and heavier than her, still stronger, still a whole lot meaner. For a moment, Reyna’s brave expression faltered and she knew he’d seen it, because he smiled. “Where’s my money?” he demanded.

  “I didn’t think you had any money.”

  “Don’t play games with me, bitch. You took my money and I’ve come to get it.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Liar!” Sean flung her against the counter and she was momentarily surprised to have gotten off so easily. He raised a hand and Reyna ducked behind the glass-fronted display. “Where’s my money?”

  “What money?”

  “The money you took when you left. The money you got from your grandmother. I want it.”

  “It wasn’t your money,” Reyna replied, defiant. “It was mine and you know it.”

  “Just because you inherited it from your grandmother doesn’t mean it wasn’t ours.”

  “It wasn’t!”

  “It is,” Sean bellowed and smashed his fist into the glass on the display case. It vibrated hard but didn’t break.

  “It isn’t,” Reyna replied, seeing his fury at being denied but determined to defend herself. “We weren’t married.”

  “It’s half mine even so. Common law.”

  “No.” Reyna shook her head. “We weren’t together long enough. Ask a lawyer. I owe you nothing. That money was mine.”

  “I’m not asking any fucking lawyer to get what’s mine!” His eyes flashed and he strode across the shop. He seized one of the chairs, swung it around and smashed it into the display case. This time, the glass shattered noisily and Reyna flinched.

  “Give me half,” he snarled, grabbing her shirt with his other hand and pulling her face close to his. “And I’ll go away.”

  “As if!” Reyna scoffed, not caring if her attitude made him more angry.

  “You greedy bitch,” he whispered. “You spent it all, didn’t you? You wasted it on this house, this place, all this shit.”

  “I built a business with my money,” Reyna insisted.

  “A business.” His lip curled and his tone was condescending. “Making cupcakes. That’s not a business, Reyna. It’s a hobby.” He suddenly swung the chair at her and Reyna ducked, warned by the flash in his eyes. His move cleaned off the counter, sending the coffee maker crashing to the floor. The stack of empty paper cups hit the floor and bounced, scattering in all directions. Another swipe and the ceramic mugs that had been lined up in neat rows were shattering on the tile.

  “Stop!” Reyna cried.

  He turned to face her, the chair dangling from his fingertips. One of the cushion ties had snapped and the cushion dangled from the other. “Where’s my money, Reyna?”

  Even though she was terrified, she straightened. “It wasn’t your money.”

  His gaze landed on the framed article from the Portland paper. “Stupid bitch. That’s how I finally found you, you know. They picked up that picture in New York.” He snatched the framed article and flung it at the floor, ensuring that the glass shattered. “You and your stupid cupcakes.” He strolled toward her, content that he had her cornered, and ground the glass into the floor under his boots. Reyna eased backward and found the wall behind her. Sean smiled. “You’re going to give me half the money, Reyna, or I’ll burn this place down with you in it.”

  “You won’t get away with that.”

  “No, you’re the one who’s not getting away with what you’ve done.” He struck her then, moving with the speed of a cobra the way he always did. His fist collided with her face, snapping her head hard to one side.

  Pain exploded behind Reyna’s eye even as she blinked in shock. He’d never hit her in the face before and the fact that he’d done so now convinced her that he was going to kill her.

  He backed her into a corner, then ran a fingertip down her arm as she struggled with her realization. He mixed a caress with his violence in a way that sickened Reyna. “You know why I picked you?” Sean whispered. “Because your ink always hid the bruises.”

  “It won’t hide this one,” she said, h
earing her own fear.

  Sean heard it, too. He smiled. “Maybe it doesn’t matter anymore, Reyna,” he replied, his voice low and dangerous. “Maybe no one’s ever going to see that bruise.” His eyes widened and her terror doubled.

  She was never going to leave this house alive.

  He had a plan, one that got him all the money and left her dead. If it was the last thing she did, Reyna was going to make sure that plan didn’t come to fruition.

  Chapter Eight

  Honey Hill was so quiet it might have been abandoned.

  Kade rode down the main street and parked in the driveway of his aunt and uncle’s house.

  His uncle met him at the door, his expression grim. “Who is he?”

  “Who?”

  “The guy who showed up at Reyna’s place late last night.”

  Kade was startled and was sure it showed. “I don’t know.”

  “New York plates. A rental. He drove through town then parked out of sight. He might have gone into Reyna’s place from the back.”

  “I thought Reyna came home this morning.”

  “About half an hour ago. I saw her truck.” His uncle frowned. “Then someone lowered the blinds on the windows at the front of the shop. I thought I heard something break.”

  Kade went cold. “Three years ago, Reyna left a guy in Manhattan, a guy who used to beat her up.”

  His uncle nodded. “She might need help.”

  Their gazes met. “She did call me and ask me to come.”

  “From here?”

  “No, she must have been on her way home. It was hours ago. I don’t think she knew there was anyone here. I left Portland as soon as I got her message.”

  His uncle’s gaze swept over him, lingering on the bulge of his gun. “I think it would be wise to make sure Reyna is okay.”

  “So, do I,” Kade agreed. “Just neighborly.”

  “And she did call you.”

  Kade nodded agreement. The two men exchanged a look, then there was the unmistakable sound of a gunshot.

  Kade ran, his own gun in his hand.

  Reyna heard the bike.

  She knew whose bike it was and relief surged through her that Kade had arrived. Then she felt a stab of fear that he’d walk right into the middle of this mess, that Sean would hurt him, that everything would go wrong. Had she locked the back door after she came home? No. But she had to get Sean away from the doors, so he wouldn’t see Kade arrive.

  “Who’s that?” Sean demanded, moving to the window. Unfortunately, only a deaf man would have missed the sound of Kade’s bike.

  “Some old guy up the road,” Reyna lied. “He only rides on sunny Saturdays.”

  Sean was peering around the blind. “It can’t be that far up the road. The engine stopped.”

  “He runs out of gas sometimes.”

  Sean turned to face her and pulled a gun out of his jacket. Reyna’s heart stopped. “I think you’re lying, bitch.”

  He fired then, completely surprising Reyna, and pain shot through her left hand. She looked down to find that there was a hole in her hand and blood flowing onto the pristine floor. She blinked, sure her eyes were deceiving her.

  Then the pain blossomed into her hand and up her arm.

  “Tell me the truth,” Sean demanded.

  “I did tell you the truth!”

  He took a step closer and Reyna knew the only way to distract him. “All right!” she said, lifting her injured hand. “I’ll give you the money. Just don’t hurt me anymore.”

  Sean smiled. He grabbed a cloth from the counter and flung it at her. “Don’t make such a mess,” he said with disdain and she wrapped up her hand tightly in the cloth. The wound was throbbing and she felt a bit dizzy at the realization that it was her blood all over the place.

  But she had to keep Kade safe.

  “And don’t give me some shit that it’s all in the bank and we have to wait until Monday,” Sean sneered. “You like cash as much as I do. Don’t think I’d forget that.”

  “You were always so smart,” Reyna said, making sure she sounded defeated. “I keep it upstairs.”

  “In the bedroom?” he swaggered to the stairs, indicating with the gun that she should do ahead of him. “Maybe we’ll find something else to do once you’ve paid up.”

  Reyna hid her hatred of him as well as she could. She gripped her injured hand tightly, using the pain to help keep herself focused. When she climbed the stairs, Sean was right behind her, the gun in the small of her back and his other hand squeezing her butt.

  “You’ve gained some weight,” he whispered. “I like it.”

  Reyna struggled not to shudder.

  “How many lovers since me?”

  “None,” Reyna lied.

  Sean chuckled. “Because no one else can compare. You’ll be like a virgin again.”

  They passed her bedroom and she saw that the drawers had been dumped and the bedding tugged from the bed. Sean had already searched for her money. Her closet was in the same chaotic state but he must have run out of time before he got to the library. It was still pristine.

  He shoved her over the threshold. “I should have known it would be in your fucking books.”

  She went to the shelf and reached for a specific volume but Sean stopped her. “I’ll get it,” he growled, keeping the gun pressed against her as he took down the book. It wasn’t really a book, but a box. She felt his delight when he saw the cash she always kept there. “Take it out,” he ordered. “Count it for me.”

  Reyna did as instructed, although she deliberately messed up the count twice and had to start over each time. She counted out loud, too, making as much noise as possible to cover the sound of Kade arriving.

  Thank God she thought her cash was safe in her house in Honey Hill and hadn’t gone to the bank lately. It gave her a good way to distract Sean.

  She heard a subtle creak as she counted out loud one more time. She knew that sound. It was the fourth stair. Sean didn’t seem to have noticed.

  Funny how six hundred dollars in twenties could distract him. He really must have become desperate for cash.

  She calculated the time required for Kade to reach her, knowing he would be moving slowly. She had to give him a clear shot somehow. At the moment, she was between Sean and the door, probably because Sean had planned it that way.

  “That’s a start,” Sean said with satisfaction. He folded the money with one hand and shoved it into his pocket. “But a long way from all you owe me.”

  “I have to go to the bank to get more.”

  Sean shook his head. “That’s not how we’re going to do it, Reyna.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Of course not, bitch. You have a filing cabinet downstairs.”

  She studied him, not understanding.

  “It’s got your tax returns neatly filed away and your bank statements. I had plenty of time to read them all and find out exactly how much you owe me.”

  Reyna couldn’t anticipate where he was going with this.

  He smiled, enjoying her uncertainty. “I also had time to file your will in that drawer.”

  “I don’t have a will.”

  “Just fixing your oversight.” He cocked the gun and lifted it to her temple. “Seems you’re going to be the victim of a robbery gone wrong. I guess you came home early and surprised the thief. I guess that wasn’t a smart move on your part.” He smiled and she saw his finger begin to move.

  She heard the wooden floor in the hall creak.

  Then she didn’t really have to pretend to faint.

  It was just like the domestic.

  But a thousand times worse, because the intended victim was Reyna.

  There was blood on the floor, a line of red drops leading up the stairs. Kade wondered where Reyna had been hit. She must have been mostly okay because she was moving and talking.

  In a way, the blood made it easier. He knew she was injured. He knew this guy had fired the shot. The situation was as cle
ar as crystal.

  Kade was glad to feel a familiar calm resolve fill him, the conviction that let him calculate the best possible resolution without emotional engagement. He eased down the second floor hallway, listening to Sean’s threats all the way. He kept to the edge of the corridor, assuming the old floor would creak less there. The door to Reyna’s library was slightly closed, which gave him a bit of a hiding place.

  The guy’s words removed any doubt about his intentions.

  Kade heard the safety being removed. He stepped around the door, saw the guy’s surprise, then Reyna fainted. Whether her faint was real or not, didn’t matter at the moment.

  She gave him a clear shot and he took it.

  Without hesitation.

  The bastard didn’t even have time to aim at him.

  One shot was all it took.

  Reyna didn’t want to let go of Kade. She came to when he was kneeling beside her and she knew from his expression what had happened to Sean.

  She had to look, just to know for sure.

  And then it all overwhelmed her. Reyna began to cry but Kade gathered her into his arms. “I knew you’d come. I knew you’d fix it,” she whispered against his shoulder. “You always keep your promises.”

  He held her tightly as she heard sirens approaching.

  He carried her down the stairs to meet the paramedics at the door and they gave her a shot for the shock. She was aware that he went with her in the ambulance and held her good hand all the way to the hospital. She felt change between them but was too sore and tired to think about it.

  The drugs didn’t help her to focus.

  Kade was with her and that was enough.

  Reyna woke up in post-op to find a nurse checking her vitals. There was a bandage on her hand and it still hurt, but not as much. “Lucky lady,” the nurse said. “The bullet missed the bone.”

  “What does that mean?” Reyna managed to say.

  “The damage is in the tendons and nerves,” she replied. “You might get full functionality back with physiotherapy. The surgeon will tell you more.”

  Reyna nodded and floated back to sleep again.

  The next time she woke up, she was in a hospital room. The sky outside the windows looked like a morning sky, so she guessed a day had passed. One of Kade’s business cards was on the nightstand and she picked it up, turning it over to read the writing on the back. See you in the morning. Which morning? How long had he stayed with her?