“And how’s that?” the sheriff challenged, coming up nearly an entire head beneath Gage’s chin. “What did you expect us to do?”
“Look at old case files, collaborate with other departments in North Carolina or maybe even the damn federal database to find out if this matched somebody’s M.O. Take the threats seriously instead of thinking that it’s going to die down. Interview people in town who work in highly visible areas to see if they report seeing any new faces. She almost got killed out there.”
“Under your watch!”
Gage’s fingers twitched. He felt the vein in his neck come alive. He needed to walk away. If he didn’t, the space between the sheriff’s eyes would act as appeasement for his need to shoot something.
“My fault,” Tayler’s soft response squeaked out. “I left the house. I would’ve been safe if I’d listened to Gage.”
She glanced up at him. Her eyes were still dead, but the sound of her voice spoke directly to his anger. He began to calm.
“You’re damn right about that,” he replied. “But I get why you left. Don’t worry about it.”
“It was a man,” she went on. “He was, I don’t know, maybe a foot taller than me. I couldn’t see his face—he was wearing a mask. It was so dark that I couldn’t tell you what race he was. He was wearing all black clothes. I only managed to get away because he took off when Gage showed up.”
Townley pulled out a pad and began to scribble. “And this was in the woods next to the lake?”
“Yes.”
“Anything else?”
“I can’t think of anything right now.”
“Alright.” He closed the notepad and stuffed it into his pocket. Then he sighed. “And how’s Ares?”
Just like that, she was gone again. Any life that might have shown before completely evaporated.
“She’s done for the night,” Gage said.
“Have her call me if she remembers anything else. Come down to the station when you’re finished here. I’m sending some men over to canvas the woods.”
Gage nodded, but knew that if she did remember something else, he would handle it himself. He couldn’t rely on the department’s incompetency, especially when he had his own resources at his disposal.
Townley briefly placed a reassuring hand on Tayler’s shoulder before leaving the waiting room, and Gage felt himself settle enough to take the seat next to her. He grabbed one of the coffees and handed her the second. When she accepted the cup and brought it to her lips, a rush of relief seized him.
“I lied,” she suddenly said, their eyes connecting. “So did you. You didn’t give him the knife.”
“Just so they can lose it or fuck up the chain of custody? I’ll take care of it.” He frowned. “What did you lie about?”
She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a mobile phone. “This…it was lying next to Ares in the woods. The person called me with it and put it next to his head so that I could hear him in pain. That’s why I left the house.”
Gage leaned over and kissed her forehead. The gesture was so automatic that it caught him by surprise.
“No, you didn’t lie,” he said. “You did just fine.”
*****
Four hours later, veterinary doctor Jason Wu walked out to the waiting room. Walking in at the same time from the direction of the entrance was Katia wearing pajama bottoms, a coat, and a beanie. Gage noticed that the Amazon wasn’t with her, which didn’t sit right with him.
Tayler had managed to doze off for a couple of hours, but as the doctor approached, he knew that he would have to wake her. He never liked the thought of waking her.
“Hey, the vet’s here,” he said, rubbing her shoulder.
“Oh Gage, thank God you’re with her,” Katia said, touching her hand to her chest. “The story’s spreading through the town like wildfire.”
“Where’s your friend?” he asked.
“She said she was going out of town to see her aunt for a bit.”
Tayler’s eyes flickered and darted around the room. Once she registered where she was, she scrubbed a hand over her face and stood. The movement was too swift, and she wavered. Gage and Katia reached out to steady her before she fell to the floor.
“So sorry,” her voice cracked. “What’s the news, Jason?”
Katia turned to her husband. “Only good news, baby. Please.”
“He took a laceration to the stomach that punctured his liver, so he came in right in the nick of time,” Jason said. “His front paws are broken and they both also had lacerations. His ear was nearly split in two, but we patched him up pretty well. Ares is going to make it.”
Tayler began to swoon a second time and Gage realized that they’d never gotten around to dinner, so it had been several hours since they’d eaten.
“Katia, let’s go find a vending machine,” he said, walking off.
Katia followed him without protest.
“There were also multiple bruises all over his body,” Jason added when the pair was out of earshot. “It was like someone beat him. Repeatedly. This person…this is a sick person, Tayler. I’m worried about you. So is Katia. Is there anything we can do?”
A visual appeared in Tayler’s head about what Ares had probably gone through. How the man had likely broken his legs to prevent him from fighting back and then beat him for absolutely no reason. Who the hell was this person? Why did they want her so badly that they’d attacked her dog just to prove a point?
“Just…be careful,” she replied. “Keep both of your eyes open. That’s the best that I can tell you. I don’t know what this person’s play is or what they want with me, but stay safe for yourself, Katia, and the kids.”
He nodded.
“When can I see Ares?” she asked.
“You can see him now.” He looked toward the corridor. “Or you can wait for your friend to come back. I can tell that he’s as worried about Ares as you are. He’s even more worried about you. Did Townley offer a protective detail?”
“Not yet, but I know it’s coming. His guys are up at the scene right now.”
“Will your friend allow that?”
Katia’s footsteps tottered down the hallway, and although she couldn’t hear him, Tayler knew that Gage was walking right next to her.
“I doubt it, but yeah, I’d like to wait for him. He’d like to see Ares, and Ares has taken quite a liking to him.”
“I think, maybe you have taken a liking to him as well?” Jason asked.
Her mouth curved into the best smile she could fashion, but she didn’t say anything more.
Katia’s head came around the corner first with Gage just behind her. Innately, she knew that he’d trailed her friend out of a natural safety instinct, which made her like him even more.
“We can go see him,” she said, taking the soda that he offered.
“I’ll wait out here,” Katia spoke up.
“Come to my office, honey,” Jason offered. “I’d feel better if you were back there with me.”
“Yes, please,” Tayler added.
Katia nodded and followed him while Gage trailed Tayler to the room where Ares was being kept.
Ares was lying on a hospital bed with his front paws in blue casts. The stitching on his ear was also bandaged, and there was another larger piece on his midsection. His entire body appeared larger, and she assumed that it had to do with the internal bruising that Jason had mentioned. It had left him with loads of inflammation.
He was asleep, and she wanted to hug him, but the chances of hurting him outweighed the odds of her finding somewhere that was unscathed. Instead, she stroked the areas where his dark fur was visible, keeping her touch light.
“Tayler, take another sip of the soda,” Gage urged. “You haven’t eaten in several hours.”
The can went to her mouth, and then she handed it to him. “You need sugar too.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“I know you will, but just drink, Gage. For me.”
He tipped back the can and watched her as she continued tracing her fingers through Ares’ fur.
“What the hell could somebody want with me?” she asked. “And to the extent that they would do this? I can’t think of a single person that I’ve ever even suspected wanted to do bodily harm to me and yet, here we are.”
Her fist clenched, and he handed her the can to give her something to occupy the reaction.
“You’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you,” he said.
Her head popped up with hesitance in her eyes, but he wouldn’t lie to her. It was better to give people the truth so that they would have the option to determine how they wanted to deal with it.
“Some men don’t attack for revenge,” he explained. “They’re not working off of emotional attachments. They didn’t just lose their jobs or were dumped by girlfriends. They’re not acting out of scorn because they couldn’t snag the girl of their dreams. Some men hunt for sustenance. Other men hunt for sport. This is part of the thrill.”
“Part of the thrill?” she asked.
“He’s doing this so that you’re thinking about him. You’re anticipating the next time he’ll appear. It feeds his motives. Drives him. It’s the traditional cat and mouse. Cats are born predators. Instinctually, they want to chase and hunt. Some cats will hunt a mouse and play with it for hours before killing it, never eating a single morsel of it. They’re hunting for sport.”
Tears streamed down her cheeks, and the sound of aluminum crunching in her hand made Gage reach for the can.
“And you’re telling me this because you need me to understand that there may be no motive with the exception that I drew the short stick,” she said.
“Yes. Also so that you know how badly I will fuck this man up if he even breathes the same air as you do again.” He swiped a finger across her cheek. “By the way, I’m taking you and Ares to Malibu to stay with me for a bit.”
She didn’t even think to protest. Asking him to leave had been dancing on the back of her tongue anyhow. “I’ll need about a week to get everything in order for my current patient load.”
“Fine, but I’m coming with you.”
“Gage, consider us Siamese twins.”
-9-
A crowd of worried faces and well-wishers showed up the moment Tayler and Gage entered the medical center. The sheriff had requested that officers take shifts guarding the exterior of the house, something that Gage had been surprisingly okay with. Although he still saw the police department as incompetent, any extra measures taken to reassure her safety had been welcomed.
Residents randomly showed up at the house to give her information about a new face or a suspicious looking person they’d come across at the market, movie theatre, or while shopping at one of the downtown boutiques. No additional notes had appeared although she was pretty sure that the notes were over with. Ares had been able to come home after four days at the hospital, and now she was sitting in the middle of the finished living room going over her checklist to ensure that she hadn’t forgotten to pack anything for the trip. The closer the day came for her to leave, the more she felt as though she was being squeezed by a bubble that wouldn’t burst until the plane’s wheels touched down at LAX.
“You only have to pack essentials,” Gage said, appearing from the kitchen with a slice of chocolate cheesecake on a plate. He held her at night without question and was there whenever she needed him, but he still found it necessary to shower her with confections. It was his way of trying to make her happy, and she’d never been one to turn down sweets.
“Everything else, I’ll get for you.” He set the plate on the coffee table.
“That’s what I’ve packed. I’ve got clothes—”
“You won’t need them. I’ll buy you whatever you need. Just bring whatever you’ll need to travel. I’ll handle the rest.”
He handed her the fork. She’d probably already put on a few pounds from his kindness alone, but hopefully only in the good places.
“Talk to me,” he suddenly said. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”
While she now considered him to be a good friend, there was also a slight disappointment that it was all that he’d become. She’d hoped that shared kisses and nights spent so aligned with his body that it was as though they were seamless would turn into something more. So far, nothing had blossomed. Gage also didn’t seem like the type to want someone in his life on a permanent basis.
“I’m just hoping that leaving will actually be beneficial,” she replied. “It’s weird being the center of someone’s twisted attention. No matter where I am, even if I’m indoors, I feel his eyes on me. In my sleep, I feel his hands on me. I don’t think there’s a word to describe how it feels to be the lone target in someone’s sordid game of bullseye. I mean, what if I leave and everything stops? Won’t it just start again when I come back? You’ll eventually have a life to get back to, and the police department doesn’t have the resources to keep an eye out for me for the rest of the year, never mind the rest of my life.”
He nodded. “You want me to kill him.”
It was as though he’d asked her what she wanted to drink after dessert.
“I want the threat gone,” she clarified.
“Tayler, if peace of mind for you is this man’s lifeless body, then I will do that for you.”
A part of her wanted to be noble and humane and tell him that it was up to the justice system to determine this man’s fate, but the part of her that had fought in the woods wanted to make sure there was no possible way that this man could ever be a threat again.
There was a loud knock at the door. Gage opened it, and Townley stepped inside. Behind him, an officer sat in a cruiser in the front yard.
“I just came to check on you,” Townley said, taking a seat next to Tayler. “You got everything packed?”
She nodded.
“Good.” He turned to Gage. “You sure you can keep her safe over there in California?”
“Don’t ask him that,” Tayler said. “When you question his authority, it just pisses him off.”
“I can say the same,” Townley argued. “The man thinks my men are incompetent and doesn’t even hide it.”
“Not incompetent,” Tayler lied. “He’s just protective. Military folk, you know.”
“I’m beginning to think that you do look at me like you do Ares,” Gage cut in.
“You two aren’t that much different,” she replied with a smile. “You’re both protective of me. You both bark and grunt at people. You both have less than ten percent body fat, and a kiss from either of you makes my day better.”
Townley cleared his throat, and his brows curled in disapproval. Gage’s shot up curiously. Why the hell was he wasting his time with pies, cakes, and brownies if he could have been kissing her the entire time? He hadn’t wanted to come off as too aggressive, but he thought about much more than the feeling of her lips against his. Keeping her safe was a given, but he also just wanted her. He didn’t bother thinking about how long he intended for that to be although the thought of leaving her at any point made him uneasy.
He noticed Townley’s expression. “Something wrong, sheriff?” he asked.
“Exactly how close are you two getting?”
“If you ask me, not close enough,” Tayler replied.
Gage’s eyes found hers, and he explored them as though the lines in her irises were streets on a map. He had to know if she was serious.
“I suggest you keep it professional,” Townley added. “In my opinion, women in your current state are prone to making bad decisions.”
Gage walked to the door and opened it. “Goodnight, sheriff.”
“I’m not ready to leave.”
“I’ll be fine,” Tayler reassured. “I’ll call once I get settled in Cali.”
Townley stood with an exaggerated sigh and gave her a once-over that her father might have given her if she was a teenager dating someone of whom he didn’t approve. While she appreciated t
he sheriff’s concern, she already had a father. One who, at some point, she probably should call to let him know what was going on.
The deputy that had been in the car came rushing up to the door. His eyes were wild as though he’d seen something that he would never forget for the remainder of his life.
“I just got a call over the radio,” he said. “The old cottage where Dr. D used to live? It’s on fire.”
*****
Flames licked at the dark, curling wood, releasing a scent of ash and pine into the air. The angry orange blaze was ominous against the dark sky. Plumes of smoke suffused the area surrounding the cottage and drifted down the neighborhood, wrapping up the unaffected homes in its misery. The house that Tayler had called home for three years was succumbing to fire.
Streams of massive water pressure were aimed at the cottage which, though small, was sucking the moisture from two tankers like dehydrated skin. Residents had congregated to watch the spectacle wrapped in blankets, sweaters and jackets, whispering about how the flames consumed the wood. It was a thing of both pure evil and beauty—nature devouring itself in a different form, stoked by an individual with nothing but sociopathic inclinations.
Gage was behind her. Even in the midst of the throng of people surrounding them, three feet of distance was too dangerous. The antagonist’s eyes could be on them at that moment, looking from her face to the blaze and receiving a convoluted, erotic pleasure from drinking in her fear.
She looked around. It wouldn’t have mattered anyhow. She could barely make out the faces of the people standing around in the dark.
“I want to go,” she found herself mumbling. She wanted to break down, but not in front of all of these people.
They weaved through the crowd and ignored watchful and curious glares. Tayler sucked air into her lungs and didn’t release it until she crossed the threshold of the lake house. She hurried upstairs to the bathroom, slipped inside, and climbed into the dry bathtub. Back in the days when she’d lived with her father, she would sit in the fiberglass sanctuary and cry hard enough to gag.
Angels & Assassins: BWWM Romance Page 10
