Fugitive Father

by Carla Cassidy

He hesitated a moment, then realized she needed to know. “It’s Suzanna, Sarah. It’s been Suzanna all along.”

  “Oh, my God.”

  Sarah’s gasp fed Reese’s fear. “I’m on my way out there now. I won’t let anything happen to Jackie. Sarah, it will be all right. I’ll call you later.” He hung up, his sense of time running out now a living, breathing demon inside him. Suzanna had Jackie. His daughter was in danger.

  Chapter 15

  Sarah hung up the phone slowly, feeling as if she were moving under water. She gasped. The room seemed to have been sucked clear of oxygen. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t move.

  Suzanna? It had been Suzanna and she now had Jackie. Sarah had just handed her baby to a potential killer. The thought broke the paralysis that had momentarily gripped her. Grabbing her purse and car keys, she flung herself out of Reese’s house and into her car. She had to find Jackie. She had to get to her before it was too late.

  She drove the familiar route to the farm, her thoughts whirling around in her head. Why? Why did Suzanna hate her? Why did she hate her enough to want to kill her? Kill her daughter?

  She frowned, searching her mind for an incident, a reason for Suzanna’s hatred. She’d hardly seen Suzanna since she’d been back in town. Her frown deepened as she delved into memories of the past, trying to remember a slight, a wrong she might have dealt Suzanna, anything that would make sense of what was happening now.

  Something whispered in her ear...the edge in Suzanna’s voice when she talked about Sarah taking up all of Reese’s free time. Reese? Was it possible he was the reason for all this? Of course. That had to be it. Reese might not have thought his relationship with Suzanna was serious, but Suzanna had been deadly serious about Reese. It was the only thing that made sense. She thought of the times she had felt the woman’s eyes on her, those blue eyes narrowed in hatred. She thought of that moment in the café when Suzanna had taken Reese aside and spoke with him, then stomped off angrily. It all made sense now. Suzanna was angry that Reese was leaving with Sarah. Suzanna had always loved Reese and the reappearance of Sarah in Clay Creek had threatened her.

  Sarah tightened her grip on the steering wheel and emitted a sharp burst of hysterical laughter. Oh, how absolutely incredible it all was. Suzanna must have believed that Sarah had Reese’s affection, his love, and the only way to get it back for herself was to get rid of Sarah. What Suzanna didn’t realize was that Sarah didn’t have Reese. Reese belonged only to his own painful past and the burden of his fears.

  She shoved aside thoughts of Reese, instead focusing on Jackie. Oh dear God, don’t make me be too late, she prayed over and over again. Surely Suzanna wouldn’t harm an innocent child. And yet as she thought of the bruises around Jackie’s neck, bruises received when the little girl had been choked, Sarah knew Jackie’s very life was threatened.

  What if they weren’t at the farm? Jackie had only been with Suzanna about thirty minutes. What if Suzanna had never intended to take the child to the farm to feed the dogs? Sarah shook her head. She couldn’t think of all the what ifs. If she did, she would surely go mad.

  She pressed down on the gas pedal, gravel spewing out from beneath her tires as she turned onto the lane that led to the farm.

  She nearly sobbed in relief as she pulled up in front of the farmhouse and saw Suzanna’s car. Maybe Reese was wrong about Suzanna, she thought as she turned off the engine. Maybe the woman really had just wanted to baby-sit Jackie and had nothing to do with the threats, the near misses. For a moment, Sarah was unsure what to do. She rolled down her window and listened. Nothing.

  “Jackie,” she called as she stumbled out of the car and toward the front door.

  “Mama!” Jackie’s voice drifted faintly out from the inside.

  “Jackie!” Sarah screamed in relief. She burst through the front door and into the living room, her relief expanding as she saw Suzanna and Jackie sitting on the sofa.

  “Hi, Mama,” Jackie greeted her with a cheerful smile, gesturing to the picture-book opened on her lap. “I’m reading to Suzanna.”

  “Ah, Sarah, I’m so glad you’re here. It saves me a phone call to get you here.”

  “G—get me here?” Sarah looked curiously at the blond woman. A little smile curved her lips and her eyes held an unfocused, faraway expression that caused a shiver of dread to sweep through Sarah. “Jackie? Why don’t you come over here with me?” Sarah said softly. She needed her daughter beside her, where she would be safe. Suzanna looked so odd.

  As Jackie started to get up to go to her mother, Suzanna moved with the speed of hummingbird wings, grasping Jackie around the neck and pulling her more closely against her.

  “No, I want Jackie to stay right here with me,” Suzanna protested softly, the smile not wavering from her full lips. As Sarah watched, she pulled a knife from her coat pocket, the silver blade glinting in the afternoon sunlight that danced in through the window.

  “Suzanna...” Sarah’s voice trembled as Suzanna slid the weapon back into her pocket, her hand remaining inside, the point of the knife obviously directed at Jackie’s side. “Suzanna, what do you want?”

  Jackie, hearing the tension in her mother’s voice, looked at Sarah in uncertainty. Sarah saw Suzanna tighten her grip on the little girl. Jackie’s eyes widened and her bottom lip began to tremble. “Mama?”

  “It’s all right, Jackie,” she said smoothly, her arms aching with the need to gather her daughter close, make her feel safe again. She focused her attention back on Suzanna, trying to keep her fear at bay, not wanting Jackie to see the terror that churned inside her. “What do you want?” she repeated.

  “I think we should all take a walk outside. It’s a beautiful day. Wouldn’t you like to take a walk with me, Jackie?” Suzanna stroked the top of Jackie’s head. Jackie nodded hesitantly, her gaze going back to her mother.

  Sarah wanted to scream. Don’t touch my baby. Get your filthy hands off my daughter. She bit her lip to keep her outrage, her horror, inside.

  Suzanna stood, her grip on Jackie not loosening as she tugged the little girl off the sofa. “After you,” she said pleasantly to Sarah, motioning to the front door with a nod of her head.

  As Sarah walked out the door and down the steps to the grass, Suzanna held tight to Jackie, keeping a healthy distance between them. “Just head out toward the grape arbor,” Suzanna instructed her. She pulled the knife from her pocket, keeping it trained close to Jackie’s side.

  “Suzanna, let Jackie go. Whatever is going on, it’s between you and me. She’s just a child. Let her go.” Sarah hated the pleading tone of her voice, hated having to beg for her daughter’s safety.

  What she wanted to do was smash Suzanna in the face, take the knife and plunge it into her. The violent thoughts both shocked and satisfied her. She hadn’t thought herself capable of such hatred, but as she saw the fear that wrinkled Jackie’s brow and widened her eyes, she felt a flood of anger so rich, so full, it caused her head to pound.

  “I can’t let her go,” Suzanna said, the pleasant tone of her voice as incongruous as the glint of the knife in the sun on this beautiful fall day. “I can’t let her go until after the accident.”

  “What accident?” Sarah asked, her heart beating with dread. She felt as if she were living her worst nightmare...a nightmare that was never-ending.

  “The one where you accidentally fall down the well.” Suzanna shook her head regretfully. “It would have been so much easier had you just fallen in that first time. None of this would have been necessary if you’d just died when you were supposed to.”

  “Mama?” This time there was undisguised panic in Jackie’s voice.

  Sarah kept her gaze carefully focused on Suzanna, knowing that if she looked into Jackie’s eyes, saw her daughter’s fear, she would do something stupid. There was nothing worse than seeing your own child’s fear and not being able to do anything to soothe it. “Why, Suzanna? Just tell me why you are doing this.”

  The smile on Suzann
a’s face fell, replaced by a grimace of such hatred that Sarah unconsciously took a step backward. “He was mine,” she spat. “He would have eventually been mine forever if you hadn’t come back here. You changed everything. You ruined everything. I hated you years ago when you had him.” Her eyes narrowed and the knife trembled in her hand. “I saw you once, you know. In the grape arbor. I followed him and I saw him make love to you. The best day in my life was when you left town...and the worst day of my life was when you came back here.” She gestured toward the grape arbor. “Now walk,” she demanded.

  Sarah took a few more steps, then stopped and turned back to Suzanna. “We’ll leave again,” she insisted fervently. “We’ll go back to New York and never come here again.”

  “Do you think I’m crazy? Don’t you realize it’s too late for that?” Any facade of control was gone. Suzanna’s face flushed red and her voice rose with a note of hysteria. “He’ll never stop thinking about you...not until you’re dead. You have to be dead!”

  Jackie was crying now, mute sobs shaking her body. “Suzanna, for God’s sake, let Jackie go,” Sarah said softly. “Please, she’s just a baby.”

  “His baby,” Suzanna whispered, her hand once again stroking Jackie’s hair. Again a glaze seemed to descend over the blueness of Suzanna’s eyes. “Don’t worry, sweet Jackie. This will all be over soon.” She looked back at Sarah, the glaze lifting and replaced by a look of harsh enmity. “Let’s get this over with—to the well.”

  If only she’d let go of Jackie for a minute...a second. If only she’d allow the knife to waver an inch...a fraction of an inch. Sarah knew time was running out for her, but there was nothing she could do as long as Suzanna held Jackie. And she also knew with a fatalistic horror that she would prefer to jump to her death in the dank, dark well than see Jackie hurt.

  Where the hell was Reese? Why wasn’t he here? It felt as if she’d been here for hours...days. She saw the board that covered the well just ahead and she slowed her pace, her knees nearly buckling beneath the intensity of her fear.

  “Shove that board off the top,” Suzanna instructed.

  “Mama,” Jackie sobbed.

  “Shh,” Suzanna soothed. “It’s all right. It’s all going to be over very soon. Then your daddy and me and you will live happily ever after.”

  There was a dreamy singsong to Suzanna’s voice and Sarah realized the woman had completely lost touch with reality. Did she really think she could kill Sarah and then be mother to Jackie? Did she really believe she would get away with this? That Reese wouldn’t know? That Jackie wouldn’t tell?

  “I told you to move those boards off the well.” The sharpness of Suzanna’s voice jolted Sarah back to the horror of her own situation. Still she hesitated, buying time. The knife flashed closer to Jackie’s face. ”Don’t force me to hurt her,” Suzanna warned, her voice ominously quiet.

  Sarah bent down and shoved the board off the well, her mind racing to figure out a way to save both Jackie and herself. If only Suzanna would move closer...if only she could kick the knife out of her hand and push Jackie out of harm’s way. But she couldn’t risk Jackie’s safety.

  The horror of the well reached up to her, and as she remembered those minutes she had hung inside, she felt her throat closing up, her body start to shiver.

  She looked around frantically. Where was Reese? Dear God, where was Reese? Her gaze focused once again on Suzanna. The smile was back on her face, a soft, dreamy smile. The knife was still a mere heartbeat away from the tender skin of Jackie’s neck. “Jump,” Suzanna said.

  “Reese!” Sarah exclaimed, her gaze darting behind Suzanna.

  Suzanna turned to look, the knife point dropping for just a second. Sarah launched herself at Suzanna and Jackie, knocking all of them to the ground. She was vaguely aware of Jackie’s screams as the little girl scrambled crablike away from the two adults. “Run, Jackie,” Sarah yelled. “Run to Mama’s favorite hiding place.”

  As Jackie took off running, Sarah dodged the sharp edge of the knife. Suzanna slashed at her, her face twisted with a malevolence that nearly stole Sarah’s breath away. They rose to their feet at the same time, Suzanna still gripping the knife, her chest heaving.

  “You always ruin things,” she said, striking out with viciousness. Sarah jumped back, aware that Suzanna was backing her toward the uncovered well opening. “Reese would have fallen in love with me years ago if it hadn’t been for you. And eventually I would have gotten him if you hadn’t come back here.” Again she struck out, causing Sarah to stumble backward another two steps.

  The thick brush around them made it impossible for Sarah to contemplate running. The only way out was down the well or through Suzanna and the knife. Neither held much appeal. “It was you who shot at me, wasn’t it?” she said, wanting to stall, hoping that Reese would arrive at any moment.

  Suzanna nodded. “I shot at you. I also cut the well cover. You’ve been so incredibly lucky.”

  “And it was you that put the poison in the casserole.”

  “Lindy gave me a key to the house last year when your mother had the flu. It was so easy to get in and put the poison in the food.” She grimaced. “Once I was in the house, I crept upstairs. I didn’t mean to hurt Jackie. I just wanted to get you. I went into her room by accident and I lost control...it was a mistake.” Suzanna sighed. “I’m tired of this now. I’m tired of you. Why don’t you make this easier on both of us and jump?”

  “Did you kill my mother?” Sarah asked, holding her breath for the answer. She had to know if somehow Suzanna had orchestrated Sarah’s return to Clay Creek by killing Margaret.

  “Your mother?” Suzanna’s face reflected her bewilderment. “I didn’t do anything to Margaret. I heard she fell down the stairs.” Her features tightened again. “Stop talking. I don’t want to talk anymore. Just jump,” she demanded.

  “Suzanna.” Reese’s voice boomed as he stepped into the clearing behind her.

  A rush of warm relief swept through Sarah at the sight of him. “Reese,” she whispered. But he didn’t look anything like a hero come to save the day. He looked like an avenging angel, his eyes lighted with the fires of rage, his entire being seeming to expand to fill the clearing. His gun was drawn, adding to his ominous appearance.

  For a moment as his gaze scanned the area, Reese’s heart bucked in raging protest. No, he couldn’t be too late. Where was Jackie? The uncovered well taunted him. If he’d arrived too late and something had happened to Jackie, he knew it wouldn’t take another thought to kill himself.

  In that instant he recognized the depth of his love for his daughter. His daughter...his love...his life. “Whwhere’s Jackie?” His voice was hoarse with anger and dread.

  “She’s safe, Reese,” Sarah answered quickly.

  “She can be our daughter, Reese,” Suzanna said, the singsong quality back in her voice.

  “Drop the knife, Suzanna, it’s over.”

  She cocked her head and looked at him quizzically. “I can’t. It’s not finished yet. It won’t be finished until Sarah is gone for good. Then you’ll love me.” She took a step toward Sarah, who had no place else to go but into the well. The knife blade glittered cold and harsh in the light and Reese saw the flare of fear that darkened Sarah’s eyes.

  He felt a responding surge of anger—a rage so intense he felt his finger tighten on the trigger of his gun. For a moment he fought against the familiar red haze of his boyhood rage. “Suzanna, if you hurt her, I’ll have to kill you.”

  Suzanna blinked and stared at him in confusion. “You don’t understand. If she’s dead, then I’ll have you. You’ll be mine.”

  “No, Suzanna,” he said wearily. “Killing Sarah won’t make me love you. Even in death she’d have my heart.” He looked at Sarah for a moment, felt her love radiating toward him. “She and Jackie, they’re my family and you’ve threatened them. I will never love you, Suzanna.”

  Suzanna stifled a moan with the back of one hand, her eyes never wavering fro
m Reese. “But, Reese—”

  “Never.” There was a hard finality in his voice and with another moan Suzanna crumpled to the ground, the knife falling from her grasp. Immediately two deputies jumped out of the brush and took control of the woman, while Reese rushed toward Sarah.

  He enfolded her in his arms, fighting against a sob that was caught halfway between his chest and his throat. “Oh, thank God,” he finally managed to mutter into the sweet fragrance of her hair. “Thank God you’re all right.”

  “Reese, what should we do with her?” one of the deputies asked. Reese looked up to see Suzanna, her head hanging down, her hands cuffed behind her back.

  “Take her into town and book her for attempted murder. I’ve got a few things to clean up here.” He tightened his arms around Sarah, still unwilling to let her go, realizing he was never going to let her go. “God help me but I wanted to shoot her. When I saw her threatening you, I wanted to kill her,” he whispered.

  “Why didn’t you?” She pulled away and looked at him.

  “I would have...once. I would have let my anger sweep me away to a place where I didn’t worry about consequences, wasn’t concerned with repercussions. But I’m not that boy anymore. And I’m not the man I was yesterday or even this morning.”

  She stepped completely out of his arms. “What do you mean?” she asked, her voice trembling slightly.

  He looked at her, the face he loved, the woman he wanted, desired like no other. “When I stepped into the clearing and saw Suzanna threatening you, I felt just as I had years ago when that bullet entered my body and I knew my life was worth nothing. I thought since that time I’d made all kinds of strides in personal growth. I’d left behind my boyhood rebellions, become a man the town respected and admired. But when I saw Suzanna threatening you, I knew I hadn’t come far enough. If I let you walk away from me again, my life would continue to be as empty, as bleak as ever. And in that instant I knew I couldn’t let you walk away.”

  “Oh, Reese.” She started toward him but he held up a hand to stop her.