by Rachel Lee
The grin remained, almost painful on her icy cheeks as she trotted through the door Jake held open for her. He smiled back at her, an expression that lit up his whole face. Apparently he, too, had shelved worry for the moment.
And why not? Living every moment on the edge of doom would serve no purpose. Whether she had many minutes left or only a few, no one could say. Regardless, it was a shame to keep wasting them.
She nearly danced as she pulled off her hat, gloves, jacket and scarf. The bootjack took care of her boots, and she giggled as she felt a sock pull halfway off. Bending, she tugged it back on, and felt Jake playfully swat her butt.
“Nice view,” he said.
A laugh escaped her as she straightened. She could see Rosa through the glass panes on the interior door, standing at the stove, so she resisted the urge to turn and kiss Jake.
Amazing that she now felt as if she could do so anytime she wanted. Just amazing. How life could turn around!
Inside, Rosa’s famous hot chocolate awaited them, along with a heap of peanut-butter cookies fresh from the oven. Nora ate with more gusto than she had felt in forever.
“Cold air,” she announced, “is great for the appetite.”
“That and working outside in it.” Jake waved Rosa to join them.
She shook her head, smiling faintly. “Dinner is in the slow cooker. If you don’t mind, I’d like to go home. Some time with Al would be nice. Is he almost done?”
“We finished up. And more snow is on the way, so go, go, go. Thanks for everything.”
When Rosa had disappeared out through the mudroom, Jake’s eyes lit again on Nora. “I think she senses we might like some time alone.”
“Now where would she get that impression?”
“I feel like I’m wearing a sign. Don’t you?”
Nora flushed faintly. “Does it really show?”
Jake shrugged and grinned. “Who cares?”
Moments later they were racing up the stairs and giggling like schoolkids. What followed, though, was very grown-up.
* * *
It was late, snowing lightly and cold by the time Langdon reached the outer edges of Conard City. A mile outside of town he turned onto a quiet county road and found a place to pull over.
The pressure to get at Nora was almost overwhelming now, and he sat stiffly, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel, fighting it down. If he let the compulsion take charge before he found her, he might do something stupid.
On the other hand, he might get very smart. He’d been smart enough to get Nora the first time and smart enough to get his wife. All without being seen or detected.
The world changed as the compulsion took over. Colors brightened, and even the dark snowy world seemed almost to sparkle with the magic of the power that was growing in him. He’d know what to do, and he’d know instinctively. It had worked before.
The power thrummed through him, pulsing in every vein. There was nothing like the control over life and death. He’d failed so far to completely deal death, but he would correct that soon. Then the power would become complete, filling him with strength beyond compare.
He relished the thought, the anticipation, the knowledge that would soon be his. He no longer needed the excuses he’d manufactured to justify his first attack on Nora. Only the weak needed justification, and he was no longer weak.
In the next day or so, he would deal with Nora. Then, filled with refreshed energy, he’d be on his way to collect another life. Yes. He would become so strong that nothing could stop him.
He pulled out the map of Conard City he’d found online before leaving Minneapolis and his old, hampered existence behind. The Loftis address had been easy to locate because the idiot was in the phone book.
So he knew exactly where to start looking. Night would be best, he decided. No one would know if he took out the old man, too, but he wasn’t interested in that unless the guy stood between him and Nora.
The important thing was to learn where Nora was right now. Then he could plan and choose his own time. And using that badge he’d bought would be easier with less light to give him away. It resided now in a leather wallet that would make it look all the more official, and he had no intention of letting anyone look closely.
The Loftis house. If she answered the door, he’d snatch her right now. If her father answered, he’d cover.
It would work. He had no doubt whatsoever. One way or the other. The power filled him.
* * *
Jake stood at the living room window looking out over a world that sparkled with lightly falling snow. Every so often enough thin moonlight would break through to create a magical world that seemed alive somehow.
He felt replete. Complete. Satisfied. Nora had given him a sense of fulfillment beyond any he had ever known. It troubled him, because he was quite sure once they got that creep behind bars for good, she would want to return to the life she had made for herself, to all her friends. She sure as hell wouldn’t want to spend her days in the middle of nowhere, not after living in a nice city with a great job.
So he had opened himself up to loss. Well, he could live with it. What mattered was that Nora had what she wanted and needed. He didn’t want to make her unhappy. Quite the contrary.
Life dealt losses. They were inescapable.
He sighed and thought about making some coffee. At this hour that seemed crazy, but Nora had finally fallen into a deep sleep after hours of repeated lovemaking. He should have done the same, but instead he was wide-awake.
His gaze ceaselessly scanned what he could see of the world outside, and he realized he understood now what Nora had meant when she said she felt as if she were caught in a web and the spider was coming. He felt it, too, crazy as it sounded.
Not even lovemaking could relax him enough now to banish the feeling. Threat existed somewhere out there, threat to Nora, and he could feel it almost as if a tension whispered on the night air and crept inside him with nearly silent warnings.
Langdon was coming. Maybe even close. He could not sleep or rest now. His mind sorted through every possible way of protecting Nora, and he realized no protection could be perfect. How could it? One man. One woman.
Stapling himself to her side sounded good, but it was unrealistic. Sooner or later an opportunity would arise, and if that creep was around he would seize it. If he found Nora.
He had to remind himself that Loftis had been warned not to give away her whereabouts, but anyone in the county could talk loosely, unintentionally. Langdon might already know where she was, and this ranch was a big place. Even three sets of eyes could lose track of Nora just long enough.
Maybe he should never have taken her from her father’s house. Maybe she would be safer in town. But when he thought of how Fred had been treating her, his stomach churned with fury. No one should have to put up with that. No one should be subjected to the scene that man had caused right at Jake’s front door. Accusations of sin in front of other people. What kind of father did that?
God, the woman had suffered enough, and he had the most ridiculous urge to shelter her from everything. Wrap her in bubble wrap or something. Which would only hurt her more, but his protective instincts weren’t exactly rational. They just were.
His fists were clenching and unclenching, and for the first time in a long time he realized patience was about to kill him. He wanted this done with. He wanted Nora free of fear. He wanted that creep behind bars for the rest of his days. He wanted all that right this instant.
Instead, he had to stare out at a snowy night waiting and worrying.
And for the very first time in his life, he wanted to commit murder.
* * *
In the middle of the night, Fred Loftis answered the knocking at his door. It was quiet but persistent, and he figured Nora had finally seen the error of her ways and had come home to be a good girl. About damn time, too. He was envisioning his sermon on Sunday, when he would address how the fallen could be saved, indirectly using her as hi
s example.
He didn’t put on his glasses, which meant everything closer than ten feet was pretty much a blur. Getting worse, too, thanks to cataracts he should have removed soon. Regardless, how much did he need to see at his own door?
It was all a fog, but he could see a man standing there, and despite cataracts and old eyes and dim light, he knew the flash of a badge when he saw one.
“Mr. Loftis, I’m Detective Fielding from the Minneapolis Police Department. I’ve come to speak to Nora Loftis.”
“She ain’t here no more,” Fred grumbled and started to close the door. A hand stopped it.
“Where did she go? I need to let her know that her attacker is back in jail. I also need to remind her of a court appointment.”
Loftis glared at him. “Boy, you go ’round knocking on doors at this hour, you’ll get yourself shot, badge or no badge, especially out at the ranches. You talk to her in the morning, hear?”
“The morning? I have to get back. A ranch, you said?”
“Dang Jake Madison has her out at his place. Like I said, you’ll get yourself shot, you go out there now.”
“I can’t stay. Will you just tell her for me?”
Fred started to close the door again. “I’ll tell her in the morning. The guy’s in jail. What court date?”
“I’m sure she remembers. Ask her to call if she doesn’t.”
Fred slammed the door. In an uncustomary action, he locked it.
He shuffled back to his bedroom, giving only a brief thought to calling out to the Madison place. He dismissed the notion. Idiot cops who banged on doors in the middle of the night sure as hell wouldn’t hesitate to go out to a ranch.
Man, they did things different in Minneapolis. He couldn’t imagine a local cop rousting him for such a thing.
Fool. He climbed back into bed and put it all from his mind. It wasn’t important. Nora would learn soon enough.
* * *
Driving away, Langdon faced a new problem. How would he find the Madison ranch? Were they labeled? Who could he ask? He’d managed to get the information he needed from the old man, but pulling into a gas station at this hour asking for directions to a ranch might get someone’s attention.
The old man, though, hadn’t seemed at all suspicious, and had said he’d tell Nora in the morning that Langdon was back in jail. She might or might not have the cops check it out. If they did, then his time would shorten dramatically. He had to find this ranch and hide himself out there before the cops started looking for him. He doubted they’d believe a Minneapolis cop had come all this way so late at night. But the added pressure only enhanced to his excitement. A real cat-and-mouse game, eluding cops while getting Nora. He could do it. Look how long he’d managed so far.
He pulled into the empty supermarket lot and thought about it. The location of ranches couldn’t possibly be a secret. All he had to do was figure out how to find the place without arousing immediate suspicion.
But the power was filling him, and when he considered how easily he had gotten the important information from the old man, he was sure he would find it easy to get the rest.
The badge, the reasoned approach. Or maybe a more casual one. He thought about it, then smiled to himself and headed out of town.
He knew exactly what to do.
Chapter 14
The afternoon had turned absolutely gorgeous: cold and sparkling with fresh snow. She and Jake had come back from town only an hour before to discover that Al was concerned about a couple of the cows in a far pasture. Warning Nora to stay indoors with Rosa, Jake set out with Al, promising to be back in a few hours.
“I’ve got to look, sweetheart,” he told her with a light caress to her cheek. “Even bovines get sick, and if they are I need to deal with it quickly. We don’t need something spreading through the herd, and we may need the vet.”
She smiled, leaning into his touch, reveling in the joy he had brought to her over just the past couple of days. “Don’t worry about me,” she said. “Just hurry back.”
She watched him leave with a smile on his face, feeling an internal warmth she had never known before. Knowing Jake was becoming something like living inside a big hug all the time. His lovemaking was spectacular, but it was far more than that. He made her feel truly special, truly cared for.
But then, he was special himself. A very special guy. She almost hugged herself with happiness.
Rosa insisted she wanted no help cleaning bathrooms upstairs. Nora stood looking out at the beautiful day and decided there was no reason not to go out in the yard. If she needed help, Rosa would hear her, and she wasn’t likely to need any help.
Outside, bundled in her best Minnesota winter gear, she stood at the fence and fed carrots to Daisy, who was fast becoming the next best thing to a friend.
Before long, however, Daisy lost interest in the carrots and began to toss her head and trot around the corral as if she were disturbed.
Restless, Nora thought. Well, of course, she’d been cooped up over the past few days because of the weather, and while Al and Jake had ridden off on two of her friends, she was probably feeling neglected. Maybe even jealous.
Nora sighed. There wasn’t much she could do. Well, she could. Jake had taught her how to saddle Daisy and she’d gotten pretty good at it. But going for a ride alone was forbidden.
Daisy pawed the ground and tossed her head repeatedly before cantering in another circle. Then she came back to Nora and nudged her so hard Nora stumbled back from the rail.
Well, that was a clear demand: Get me out of here.
She’d never seen Daisy act this way before, and when she thought about it, she wondered if the sickness Jake had gone to investigate in his herd might have infected her. Could horses and cows get the same disease?
But then Daisy cantered in another circle, tossed her head some more and came to stand right in front of Nora. Definitely she wanted to get some real exercise.
Nora hesitated, and then decided it couldn’t hurt. Out here in the middle of nowhere, she could ride around and even someone who knew where she was would have a hard time finding her.
She hesitated a little longer, but Daisy’s agitation didn’t diminish. Finally she decided to go get the tack and see if the sight of it calmed the horse. If so, they could ride just around the immediate vicinity.
She was pleased that she had enough strength now to heft the saddle, hard though it still was. With reins dangling over her shoulder, she panted her way out to the corral and slung the saddle over the top rail. Daisy’s ears perked and she came over, assuming her usual stance for saddling. Yup, that was it.
Nora started to climb the rail when the back of her neck prickled with the unmistakable sense that she was being watched.
She froze and looked around, but except for the familiar buildings, there was nothing out there except a distant line of trees and the mountains. Not a soul or animal in sight.
Probably Rosa looking out the upstairs window. She’d better hurry or the woman would be out here in just a minute to scold her.
But Rosa never came, even as Daisy stood patiently, enduring Nora’s inexperienced efforts to saddle her. Nora patted the mare’s neck. “You’re such a good girl, Daisy.”
Ten minutes later, she and Daisy were trotting out over the snow, under the golden afternoon sun. Not far, Nora thought. They wouldn’t go far.
When she felt the prickling of eyes on the back of her neck again, she was sure it was Rosa. There’d be a scolding when she got back, she was sure.
The notion brought a smile to her face.
* * *
It had been easy, Langdon thought. Amazingly easy. In the wee hours he’d stopped well outside of town at a gas station and told a half-awake kid he had a delivery for the Madison ranch but didn’t know how to find it.
He’d gotten the directions, but he’d also gotten a serious shock of unease. Madison was also the chief of police in town.
Not that it really mattered. But it settle
d firmly in his mind that trying to get Nora in town might be a big mistake. This guy probably had his whole crew on alert.
That left the ranch for sure.
He had found the place midmorning and had driven up and down the surrounding roads casing the place. Finally he parked out of the way and went into the woods. He had no idea what Madison looked like, but there was a guy there working around the barn. No sign of Nora.
Then shortly after noon another car had driven in and he had finally seen Nora. Sweet, sweet Nora, who was going to enhance his powers with her suffering. He was pleased to see she looked healthy again, which meant he could torment her longer.
But even in his Minnesota winter gear he was starting to feel the chill as he hid in the woods, growing increasingly aware that the house was awfully far away, and that there were two men around Nora. Two men. Finding the right time was going to be difficult. He hated thinking he might have to wait a day or two, especially under these circumstances.
But he counseled himself to patience, battering down the now nearly overwhelming compulsion to act. If he didn’t get her today, he’d sleep in his truck tonight somewhere out of the way. There’d be tomorrow. It would give him time to really plan now that he knew the lay of the land. Clearly, he needed a decent plan.
But then he saw the two men ride away to the north. He was debating whether to wait or chance striking out for the house when Nora came out and began paying attention to one of the horses. This could be it. He just had to bide his time for an opportunity.
* * *
Daisy seemed glad to be out of the corral, even though she was still being ridden in circles. But they were wider circles and Daisy could get up her speed a bit more than when she was within the confines of the fence. Nora was loving it, too, even as her cheeks burned from the cold, and slowly widened the circles so Daisy could move even faster.
With every swing around the outer arc, Nora looked in the direction from which Jake and Al should come. They were taking longer than Jake had predicted, and she hoped they hadn’t discovered something awful.
