by Tori Scott
With a trembling hand, she reached up and covered his larger one. "I know. I would have felt the same way if you or Brandy had been hurt. But don't make more of it than it is--just a natural reaction."
"Is that all it is? Are you so sure, Maddie? Seems I've felt like this forever. When you left me, I told myself I didn't care, that I was better off without you."
"Were you?" Maddie held her breath, almost afraid to hear his answer.
He lowered his head until their lips were no more than a whisper apart. "No, Maddie. We were always better together."
She lifted her chin until her mouth touched his. She only wanted a taste, just a quick sample of what she'd missed for the last fourteen years. But he drew her close and plundered where she would have nibbled. He'd always been that way, taking more than she was ready to give.
Angry with herself for leading him on, letting him think she wanted more than a sweet kiss between old friends, she tried to pull back. His arms held her still as his tongue traced her lower lip, begging for entry. Maddie kept her lips stubbornly closed, even as the rest of her body wanted to sink into his.
When she refused to respond to his kiss again, Rand dropped his arms to his sides and stepped back. "Okay. You win. You can keep me from sleeping in the house, but you can't keep me from sleeping outside in my car." He settled his hat on his head and shoved the wooden screen door open, letting it slam behind him as he strode across the lawn to his vehicle.
Maddie slowly closed the door and leaned against it, her mind whirling. What was that all about? Did Rand still care for her in some small way, or was it just a reaction to the stress of the day? She'd dreamed for so long of being held in his arms once more, but when he never came after her, she closed off that part of her heart, swearing she'd never open it again.
With a sigh, she pushed away from the door and headed for the kitchen to finish putting away the dishes she and Brandy had bought. When she'd run home to Greendale, it was with the idea that it was temporary. But as she settled into the rental, the possibility of staying, of raising her daughter in the town where she'd grown up, was beginning to appeal to her.
And that was almost as frightening as being stalked.
***
"Take this to the lab in Dallas. I want a rush put on the ballistics report. It's not much use without the gun that fired it, but maybe we'll catch a break and find the gun at some point. "Rand handed Cody the slug he'd dug out of the ground after Maddie had been shot and waved him toward the door. "Don't dawdle. Get it up there and get back."
Cody gave him a quick salute and hurried out the door. Rand watched until he pulled away from the curb, lights rotating and casting shadows against the office wall. The sun had just begun to peek over the horizon, but he hadn't been able to sleep in his car, so he'd left a deputy to watch Maddie's house and went back to work. He had to find out who had invaded his county, slipping in without notice.
Something didn't add up about all this. What was the connection between Anne Pioretti's murder and the person stalking Maddie? Why was he toying with Maddie, when he'd killed Anne quickly and efficiently? What had made him change his signature?
Maddie had asked him to check into Susie Campbell's murder. With a sigh, he booted up the computer and pulled up the cold case files. He'd only been a teenager when Susie was murdered and, until the body was identified, he'd lived in fear that it was Maddie. She'd disappeared the day before and no one seemed to know where she'd gone. Finding out it was Susie Campbell had brought both relief and horror.
A serial killer had terrorized Smith County, about an hour east of Greendale. The victims had all been young women in their late teens to early twenties, mostly redheads, all shot once in the head, execution style, then hanged. And in every case there had been one distinguishing body part removed. Susie was his first victim.
After a few minutes, he found what he was looking for.
Ten young women murdered approximately a year apart. The FBI and the Smith County Sheriff's department brought in forensic experts and profilers, trackers and even a psychic, all to no avail. And every year, like clockwork, there was another one. Until five years ago. Then as suddenly as the murders had begun, they'd stopped. No one knew why. Maybe the killer was in jail on other charges, or he'd died. But after reading through the files, Rand knew the killer wasn't dead. He'd struck again, this time far from his usual territory.
He placed a phone call to the Montgomery County Sheriff's office.
***
Maddie woke with a start. It took a moment to realize what had awakened her. Something--or someone--was moving around in the kitchen. She heard the scrape of a chair leg against the linoleum, a soft bump.
Where was Rand? Why hadn't she gone to the pound and found a dog? Even an untrained one would have barked. She fumbled for her cell phone and dialed Rand's number.
"McCade."
"Rand? Someone's in the house."
She heard a quiet curse on the other end of the line.
"I'm on my way. Where are you?"
"In my room. But I have to get to Brandy." She tried to listen to see if she could tell where the intruder was at that moment, but heard nothing but Rand's terse instructions.
"No! He's after you, not her. Stay where you are, hide if you can. I'll alert the deputy outside your house, and I'll be there in two minutes."
No way would she hide in her room when her daughter could be in danger. Maddie hung up without a word and let him assume she would follow his orders. For the hundredth time, she wished she had a gun.
All she could find for a weapon was a can of hairspray, so she carried it with her as she eased the door open and tried to see down the hall in the dark. No shadows moving, but she could still hear movement in the kitchen. Something rustled the grocery bag she'd left sitting on the kitchen floor.
At least she knew the intruder was still in the other part of the house, so she silently closed her door and moved down the hall to Brandy's room.
***
Brandy had checked to be sure her mom was asleep before she signed onto her favorite chat room. Her mom would kill her if she found out, but Brandy needed to talk to Sam. Sam understood her, he was always there for her to talk to when she was upset or had been fighting with her mother.
She blew out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding when she saw the familiar Boondoggie screen name. Sam was there, and he'd talk to her until she was tired enough to fall asleep.
BRANDYWINE: Hey, Sam. Glad you're here.
BOONDOGGIE: I'm always here for you, Brandy. Where have you been? I've watched for you every night, but you weren't here.
BRANDYWINE: Sorry. Mom's in trouble and we had to run in the middle of the night. I didn't get a chance to let you know. But I'm here now.
BOONDOGGIE: Where is here? And why is she in trouble?
BRANDYWINE: Some guy is after her. He tried to kill her today. I'm scared, Sam.
BOONDOGGIE: Really? Is she okay? What about you? Are you in danger?
BRANDYWINE: Don't know. Don't think so, but he was in my bedroom while I was sleeping a few days ago. That freaked me out, you know? Some guy I don't know watched me sleep, then stole some of my clothes and put them on a dummy. He smeared blood on it and left a note saying I was next. Can't sleep, don't feel like eating. Every night I wonder if I'll wake up in the morning.
BOONDOGGIE: I'm sorry, Brandy. If you'll tell me where you are, I'll see if I can come up there and watch over you.
BRANDYWINE: Not supposed to tell. Mom said I couldn't even tell my best friend. She thinks this guy might hurt someone else if he thinks they know where we are.
BOONDOGGIE: I can't help you if you don't tell me where you are. Just don't tell your mom you told me. She'll never know.
BRANDYWINE: Can't. Promised Mom I wouldn't. Helps knowing you're here to talk to, though. Oops, heard something. Mom might be waking up. Gotta go.
Brandy signed off and closed her laptop before climbing into bed and feigning sleep.
A minute later, the bedroom door opened. She peeked through her lashes and saw her mother in the open doorway. That was too close. If her mom had caught her talking to Sam, she'd be grounded from the computer until she was eighteen.
And she didn't think she could survive this without Sam.
***
It had been pure luck when he'd first found her online. He'd been trolling teenage chat rooms when he'd caught the tail end of a conversation between two girls in a Math club chat. When one had mentioned that her mom had embarrassed her during a television interview, and the other referred to an article in the Montgomery Monitor about Judge Maddie Cooper, he'd latched onto the conversation and read every word.
It had been years since he'd heard Maddie's name mentioned. No one in Greendale ever spoke of her. He'd had no idea where she'd gone when she'd disappeared all those years ago, but he hit the jackpot that day. He'd not only learned her whereabouts, but he learned she had a daughter. A daughter who was too young and innocent to know she shouldn't give personal details on the Internet.
He courted Brandy's friendship, pretending to be sixteen, waiting for the right time. That time had finally come. If Brandy only knew how close he'd been to her…and if Maddie only knew. But she would know. Soon.
His whole screwed-up life was Maddie's fault. He'd punished many for her crimes over the years because he hadn't been able to make her pay. But now he he'd forced her back into his territory. Or at least close enough. Now all he had to do was lure her out of Greendale and into his killing field. The stupid Sheriff wouldn't let him get close enough to her if she stayed in town. He should have controlled his urges and not killed her friend. This would have been so much easier if she hadn't run. And it was stupid of him to play games, try to scare her instead of just killing her. But he'd thought he could toy with her a bit, make the kill more satisfying. And it would be satisfying. Like an orgasm, the longer it took, the more the tension built, the better the release.
He would kill her, eventually. But someone else was also trying to scare her, and he had to find out who. Although he had a pretty good idea. And that person was on his list, too. In fact, he'd make the perfect patsy. Wouldn't be hard at all to pin Maddie's murder on him. He needed to pay for what he had done, too.
When this was all over, maybe he'd take Brandy and move far, far away.
***
Maddie slipped into Brandy's room and closed the door. She was pretty sure her daughter wasn't asleep. Her breathing was a little too fast. She moved to the side of the bed and sat on the edge. Brandy stirred and Maddie put a finger across her lips. "Shh. Someone's in the kitchen."
Brandy sat up, rubbing her eyes. Domino yawned and snuggled back into the covers. "What are we going to do?"
"It's okay. Rand will be here soon." Maddie hoped she sounded confident instead of scared out of her wits. She really wanted to go out and confront whoever was doing this to them, but she couldn't risk her daughter's life on a fool's errand.
Flashing lights sent wild arcs around the room and Maddie breathed a sigh of relief. Then she winced when she heard the front door being kicked in. The landlord would kill her even if the stalker didn't.
A few minutes later the door opened and the light came on. She blinked at the change from darkness to light as she put herself between Brandy and the looming figure at the door. Rand.
"You guys okay?"
"Yes. Did you catch him? I didn't hear anything…"
He shook his head. "There's no one here. I looked everywhere."
"Are you sure? I wasn't imagining things." Someone had been there just moments earlier. She wasn't crazy.
"Maybe you just had a bad dream…"
"No! I know what I heard. Someone was here. They were in the kitchen. I heard them even after I was wide awake, just a few minutes ago."
Rand sighed and pushed his hat back on his head. "Okay, I'll look again. You two stay here."
Maddie pushed herself off the bed. "I'm coming with you. Brandy, stay here."
"No way. If you're going, I'm going too. I don't want to stay in here by myself." She tossed the covers back and forced herself between Maddie and Rand.
Rand blew out a frustrated breath. "Fine. But both of you stay behind me. I have a deputy combing the yard for footprints or any sign of an intruder. We'll take the house room by room."
As soon as they stepped through the door, Maddie heard the sounds again. Something bumped against a chair leg. "Did you hear it?"
Rand didn't answer, but he pulled his gun from the holster and motioned for Maddie and Brandy to stay put.
He crept down the hall, gun at his side. Maddie and Brandy were right behind him. Maddie wasn't about to be left behind with no weapon to defend them.
***
Rand eased around the corner of the dining room and turned on the kitchen light. Nothing. No one moved in the small room, but he couldn't see behind the bar. He'd checked the room earlier by flashlight and hadn't seen anyone lurking there.
The rustle of a grocery sack drew his attention and he dropped to a crouch. His first thought was that it was a possum or skunk, checking out the trash. Using the barrel of his gun, he lifted the top edge of the bag. His heart lunged into his throat and he fired twice.
Maddie cried out. "Rand? What happened?"
He double checked to be sure the shots had hit home, then dropped flat on his backside on the floor.
The deputy rushed into the house, gun drawn, carefully making his way to the kitchen. When he swung through the door, Rand shouted, "It's me, damn it. Don't shoot!"
"Geez, Rand. You about gave me a heart attack."
Maddie and Brandy crowded into the doorway. "What's going on? Where is he?"
Rand pointed to the sack. "In there."
The deputy looked in the bag. "Damn. That's a mean looking snake."
Maddie's knees went weak. "A snake? How did a snake get in the house?"
Rand pushed himself to his feet. "It's not all that unusual for a snake to get inside in the summertime, but it's a bit early to find them right now. I'd say someone probably put it inside and it went looking for a place to hide."
There was no way she was looking in that sack to see what kind it was. "Is it poisonous?"
"Oh yeah," Rand said. "Copperhead. Plenty of them around here if you know where to look, but most every hospital and fire department in the area keeps antivenin, so they're rarely deadly. Just extremely painful when they bite."
"I don't understand. Why is he doing this? It's almost like he's trying to scare me rather than kill me."
Rand looked at Maddie. "You know what? I don't think whoever is behind this is the one who's after you. It's someone who doesn't want you here. And I have a good idea who that might be."
"Then maybe it would be best if we went back to Oklahoma. I don't want to risk Brandy's life because someone doesn't want us here."
Rand shook his head. "No. There's still whoever killed Anne and left you that warning. I don't think these are connected."
That shook Maddie to the core. "Are there really that many people who hate me?"
"I don't know, Maddie. Maybe you need to tell me exactly what you did when you left Greendale. Where you went, why you left, and who you pissed off in the process. Besides me, that is."
Maddie nodded. "Yeah, I owe you an explanation. Tomorrow morning, I promise. I told Brandy I'd take her to the ranch. We can talk there."
***
They arrived at the ranch just as dawn broke over the horizon. Rand led the way in his squad car, with Maddie following close behind. Not that she needed him to lead the way. She could have driven the route with her eyes closed. She tensed for the bump as they drove over the cattle guard, maneuvered around the small potholes left by the spring rains, and prepared herself for the first view of the ranch house.
The two story home stood on a small hill overlooking a hundred acres of hay meadow ringed with tall oaks, cottonwood, and crabapple trees. A creek cut across the pasture to the north
and several stock ponds dotted the landscape. The house had upper and lower porches that went around three sides. Red azaleas in pots on either side of the front door provided a splash of color against the grey siding. The white trim looked freshly painted, and the old porch swing still hung at one end of the porch.
Maddie took a deep breath at the sight of the swing. It, too, looked like it had been recently painted. Red pillows matching the flowers lined the back of the swing. God, how many hours had she spent there with Rand, bare feet dangling over one end, her head in Rand's lap at the other?
It felt too eerily familiar. Maddie could almost see Rand's mother stepping out onto the front porch to see who had come to visit, then shaking her head when she saw Maddie's car and going back into the house, shutting the door behind her. Even now, Maddie felt like she wasn't good enough, though Rand's parents were long dead.
Not much had changed with time.
Brandy fidgeted in her seat, her gaze sweeping from the land to the house and back again, trying to take it all in at once. She laughed at the Blue Heeler who raced along beside them, barking--whether in greeting or warning, Maddie wasn't sure.
"So, what do you think?" Maddie asked as they pulled in front of the house.
"Geez, mom. Why didn't you tell me my dad was rich?"
Without waiting for an answer, Brandy yanked open the door and jumped out of the car. She stopped to pet the dog before bounding up the front steps to where Rand stood waiting. They both turned to look at Maddie, probably wondering why she didn't get out of the vehicle. But she felt frozen in place, old haunting memories paralyzing every muscle.
She could not, would not, step foot inside that house again.
Rand waved at her. "Come on, Maddie. Daylight's awastin'."
She shook her head. Rand shrugged his shoulders and opened the front door, ushering Brandy inside.
Once they were out of sight, Maddie drew in a shuddering breath and looked away from the house, across the expanse of pasture. She could see Rand had made some improvements, with a new barn and round pens, what looked like a dog kennel, and a new fence around the back of the house. Otherwise, the place looked almost the same. Intimidating to a kid from the wrong side of the tracks way back then, and even more so to the adult she had become because of the memories of what had transpired here.
