Fabric rustled, and Will glanced back, relieved they were done hugging. “I’ll be okay. Do you know anything else?” She looked toward Will. “Do you have any leads?”
Did he know anything else? Hell, yeah. He knew way too fucking much. More than he ever wanted to know.
“No.” Will rubbed a hand over the top of his head. “No solid leads yet. But we’re still working on it.”
“Okay.” Sam’s voice dropped. “I’m sure you’ll find something soon. You’re the best police chief in the county.”
Instead of pride, guilt swept through Will. Yeah, he was some chief. He had two unsolved murders sitting on his desk from as many weeks, and he had a strong hunch he knew who had killed both victims. He just couldn’t tell anyone or make an arrest, because then he’d be implicating himself in something he just wanted to forget.
“I know he will,” Jeff said. “Are you okay at the house? I can’t imagine staying there is easy.”
“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”
“You’re more than welcome to stay here. It’s a big place.” Jeff glanced around with that lost look again. “Empty now.”
Will bit back a curse. If Sam fell for this sack of shit, he was gonna bust an artery. And then he was gonna hurt someone.
“That’s sweet of you, Jeff, but the last thing you need is a houseguest.” Sam reached for his hand. “I’m so sorry. I wish there were something I could do to make this better.”
“Just seeing you helps.” Jeff smiled weakly.
Will was pretty sure he’d puke if he had to listen to much more. “Kellogg, I gotta get back to the station.”
Jeff tore his gaze away from Sam long enough to shoot Will an irritated glare that Sam obviously didn’t see. “Yeah. Thanks for stopping by and giving me an update.”
“Anytime.” To Sam, Will said, “You got a few minutes? I have a couple things I need to talk to you about.”
“Um. Sure.” She looked back at Jeff. “You’ll call me if you need anything, right?”
“Sure. You know I will.”
Jeff hugged her once more, way longer than was socially appropriate, and Will had to clear his throat to get the moron to release her.
Sam eased out of Jeff’s arms and followed Will across the foyer.
The door snapped closed behind them. A cool breeze blew across the yard, sending leaves skittering over the ground.
“God, he looks so sad,” Sam said.
“He’ll get by. He always does.”
Sam sighed. “What did you want to talk with me about?”
He tucked his hands in the pockets of his jeans as he followed her across the paved drive toward her car. “Did Maggie ever hang out with anyone at school?”
“Do you mean with any of the staff?”
“Yeah.”
She stopped next to her car. “Not that I know of. She was always the last teacher to arrive and the first to leave.”
“What about that Dr. McClane?”
“Ethan?”
“I saw them getting cozy on the porch at Jeff and Maggie’s party. And a few people mentioned that he observed in her room more than in some of the others.”
Unease crossed Sam’s face, but she masked it quickly. “He observed in a lot of rooms. Doesn’t mean he was involved with her. As for that party, we both know Margaret liked to sink her claws into things that didn’t belong to her.”
He’d ruffled her feathers. There was definitely something going on between Sam and the doctor. And Will wasn’t sure how he felt about that. Especially when he still couldn’t figure out how he knew the guy.
“I’m just trying to cover all bases here. I’ve been thinking about what Kenny said the other night at the party. Strange things have been happening since Dr. McClane arrived in town.”
“But he wasn’t around when my house was vandalized.”
“That doesn’t mean he couldn’t have been here and we just didn’t see him.”
Her face paled. “B-but those remains we found have been up there for at least fifteen years. He definitely wasn’t here fifteen years ago.”
Will rubbed a hand over his chin. Maybe, maybe not. But something in the back of his mind said Dr. Ethan McClane was somehow linked to this town in a way he hadn’t yet uncovered. Or remembered. “As I said, Sam, I’m just trying to cover my bases. I’m sure you’re right. It’s my job to be suspicious, remember?”
“Yeah. Okay.”
He reached for her car door and pulled it open. He didn’t like scaring her, but in this case, scared could be good. Especially if it pushed her into leaving Hidden Falls once and for all. “Look, just be careful, okay? You got all the locks changed?”
She nodded.
“Good. Lieutenant Hanson’s still keeping an eye on your place at night. We’ll figure out whoever’s behind this. Don’t worry.”
Sam nodded again as she climbed into her car. But when she gripped the steering wheel, Will saw the way her hands were shaking. “Bye, Will.”
He closed her door and watched as her car pulled out of the circular drive and disappeared down the long treed lane. But instead of worrying about her, his mind rushed back over the years, trying to remember if he’d ever seen a younger version of Ethan McClane in Hidden Falls.
He came up blank.
Still, something inside screamed that figuring out Ethan McClane’s real reason for being in town was important to everything.
Strange things have been happening since Dr. McClane arrived in town . . .
As much as she’d tried to get those words out of her head, Sam kept hearing them. They’d been spinning in her mind as she’d graded papers last night, as she’d climbed into bed and lain awake in the dark, as she’d showered and brushed her teeth this morning. And now, when she was running late for school because she was so exhausted she could barely move from not one but several nights of no sleep, they were still there, clawing at her subconscious until she wanted to scream.
It was a coincidence. Will and Kenny were both wrong. Ethan was not involved in any of the weirdness happening in Hidden Falls.
She jogged down the stairs and glanced at her watch, thinking about Ethan and the silly hypnosis session she’d agreed to tonight. Ethan had needed to go back to Portland yesterday for afternoon meetings and early ones this morning, so he hadn’t been able to stay over again. She missed him already, and she had a feeling that was the reason she’d agreed to the hypnosis when they’d talked on the phone yesterday. She didn’t have any great hope the session was going to cure her, but she was looking forward to seeing Ethan and spending the weekend with him again.
She hurried into the kitchen, poured fresh coffee into her travel mug, grabbed her bag and keys, and headed for the front door. Grimly trailed along at her feet, perky and annoying as always, thank goodness. “Sorry, bud. No time for a walk this morning.” She rubbed his ears. “I’ll take you this afternoon before we go to Ethan’s. Promise. Be a good boy while I’m gone.”
Juggling items in her hands, she yanked the front door open, then jerked back. Kenny stood just on the other side of the threshold.
Coffee sloshed over the rim of the cup. With the keys clenched between her fingers, she pressed her hand to her chest and sucked back air. “Kenny. Oh my God, you scared me.”
She grasped the rim of the cup with her other hand, hissed as the heat burned her skin, and shook the hot coffee from her fingers. “What are you doing here?”
He didn’t answer. Confused, she looked up, then stilled.
Something dark simmered in his eyes. Something dangerous. His gaze traveled slowly down the length of her body. It was the same look he often gave her at school, the one that made her stomach pitch. Only this time it was accompanied by a depraved twist of his lips.
Sam’s adrenaline jumped, and perspiration dampened her skin. Everywhere.
“I’m really late, Kenny. Can this wait?” She gripped the door handle, pulling it toward her as she closed the gap between them and shifted back
to shut him out.
“No, I don’t think so.” He slapped a hand on the door. “This has already waited long enough. It’s time you and I got this over with once and for all.”
Trust your first instinct. Her mother’s advice just before Sam had left for college rang in Sam’s head.
She didn’t think, she reacted. Flicking her wrist, she tossed the hot coffee toward him, then shoved her hip against the door.
He screamed as the scalding liquid connected with skin. Before she could slam the door in his face, though, he shifted his foot in the jamb and pushed hard against the door with his hands. “You fucking bitch!”
Grimly growled at her feet. Her pulse went stratospheric. Whipping around so her back was to the old wood, Sam thrust her weight against the door until he had no choice but to jerk free before he lost a finger or a foot.
Oh God, oh God, oh God . . . She flipped the lock, latched the dead bolt, and jerked away from the door. He roared and pounded on the door with his fists.
“I’m gonna make you pay for that, you little whore!”
Sam scrambled for the phone on the antique secretary at the base of the stairs. Her fingers trembled as she punched in numbers.
“Nine-one-one,” a voice echoed through the phone. “What’s your emergency?”
Glass shattered in the sidelight. Sam shrieked and whipped toward the sound. Kenny shoved his hand through the hole in the glass, slicing his skin as he reached up and flipped the lock.
Sam gripped the cordless phone at her ear and raced toward the kitchen. “There’s an intruder in my house. 2753 Inglebrook La—”
Kenny slammed into her from behind. The phone flew from Sam’s hands. Her body sailed forward, and she hit the side of her head on the corner of the table. Sharp pain exploded across her face, blocking out everything else around her. She bounced off the hard surface and tumbled to the ground.
“You’re a feisty one,” Kenny growled, stepping over her and grasping her by the hair. “Maggie was feisty too.”
He pulled hard, and pain ripped down Sam’s scalp. She cried out as he picked her up by the hair and threw her to the side. She smacked into the cupboard and slumped to the floor. Spots filled her vision. Glass and pottery shattered. But all she could focus on was the pain echoing through every inch of her body.
“You just wouldn’t take the hint,” he sneered. “If you’d done what you were supposed to do, none of this ever would have happened. Maggie would still be alive, and I wouldn’t have to be here.”
Maggie . . . he was ranting about Margaret. Had he killed her? Sam wasn’t sure, but she knew from the look on his face he was going to rape her. Probably kill her too.
She kicked out and slapped at his hands. He grasped her blouse at the shoulder and yanked. Fabric ripped. Sam scrambled to break free, clawed out. Her fingernails connected with skin, and she used every ounce of strength she had to rake them through his flesh.
He screamed, shifted, then smacked his elbow hard against her face.
Pain ripped through Sam’s cheekbone, and she saw stars.
“I know you remember.” Gripping both of her hands in one of his, he pinned them to the floor above her and locked her legs between his. “I told them you were at the cabin. I told them you were a problem. Right from the beginning. But no one ever listens to good ol’ Kenny. Well, they’re listening now.” He lowered his weight onto her. “They’re gonna fucking listen.”
Remember . . . The cabin . . . A fresh wave of fear washed over her. What did he think she remembered about the cabin?
He grasped her blouse at her chest and yanked. Buttons flew across the kitchen. His gaze drifted over her white bra and cleavage and flared with both malice and heat.
No, no, no. Sam’s whirling thoughts came to a grinding halt, and she struggled against his hold. She had to get away. She had to get free. But he was holding her too tightly. His weight was too heavy.
“Yeah, you’re gonna listen now, aren’t you, bitch,” he growled, staring down at her breasts.
Sam choked on a sob, fought harder.
A growl echoed somewhere close, and Kenny jerked back and howled.
“Motherfucker!” Kenny screamed. He lifted his weight off Sam long enough to kick out. A thud sounded, followed by Grimly’s whimper.
Sam’s vision turned red. She struggled harder. Kenny laughed, an evil, malevolent sound—the same sound she’d heard from outside her supply room door the day she and Ethan had been locked in. He let go of her with one hand, reached for his belt buckle. The moment he relaxed his grip on her legs to free himself from his pants, she jammed her knee up into his groin as hard as she could.
He gasped. His eyes shot wide. His whole body stiffened, but he loosened his grip on her hands long enough so she could jerk free and jam two fingers into his eyes.
Kenny shrieked and rolled off her.
Air clogged in Sam’s lungs. Blood ran down her hands as she scrambled to her feet. Broken dishes lay around her, and she slipped once as she took two steps toward the back door. Just as she reached the handle, Kenny’s hand darted out, wrapped around her ankle, and yanked hard.
Sam yelped as her balance went out from under her, then grunted when she hit the floor with a thud. She tried to get up again, but Kenny tossed her onto her back once more and straddled her thighs. Blood and sweat trickled down his face, but his eyes were filled with so much rage, she knew this was it.
He grasped her by the neck, lifted her head an inch off the floor, then smacked it back against the hard wood. Pain stabbed through her skull. The edges of her vision darkened.
“You’re gonna pay for that,” he growled. “We were gonna have a little fun first, but I just changed my mind.” His hands tightened around her throat, cutting off her air.
Sam gasped, clawed out, tried to pull his hands free. Her vision grew darker.
“Let her go, Kenny!”
Kenny darted a look over his shoulder but didn’t lessen his hold. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
“Let her go,” Will said again.
Tears filled Sam’s eyes. She slapped at Kenny’s hands. Kenny squeezed hard once, then growled and jerked off of her. Sam gasped in a breath, but the relief was short-lived. Because Kenny scrambled to his feet, grabbed her by the hair, and hauled her to her feet. Yanking her back against his body, he wrapped his forearm around her throat. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, Branson?”
Will gripped a gun in two hands as he moved around a kitchen chair lying on its side. “Let her go. I’m not going to say it again.”
“Maggie was right. She was right about everything. This bitch is a problem, and you know it.” Kenny’s voice grew fast and high as he tugged Sam back with him, deeper into the kitchen. Sam reached up to pull his arm free, but his grip was too strong. “You wouldn’t dare shoot me.”
“Don’t tempt me, Kenny.”
“There’s no other way.” Panic filled Kenny’s voice. He reached out with his free hand and grasped a thick-bladed knife from the butcher block. “You know that.”
“Drop the knife.” Will’s voice was low and even. He shifted the gun a fraction to the right.
“No.” Kenny shook his head swiftly. “This time you’re going to listen to me. You always had a soft spot for her. Goddammit.” Kenny lifted the knife. “Put the gun down or I’ll fucking cut her. I swear to God, I will. Right here.”
Fear tightened Sam’s chest until she couldn’t breathe.
“We both know that won’t solve your problem,” Will said in that same low tone.
“She’s my problem. You’re my problem!” Kenny yelled. “You always have to be in control. Well, you’re not this time! I’m in control. Do you hear me? I say when!” He lifted the knife toward Sam’s throat.
Sam tensed. Will’s finger tightened on the trigger.
A gunshot echoed through the kitchen.
Kenny’s body stiffened at Sam’s back, and his hold on her throat loosened.
Sam st
aggered forward and sucked in air as she turned. The knife slipped from Kenny’s fingers and clattered against the floor. Blood trickled from a hole in his forehead. He swayed and reached out for Sam. His body hit the counter, then crumpled to the floor.
Oh God. Oh God . . .
The room tipped. Sam stumbled. Before her legs went out from under her, strong arms wrapped around her waist and hauled her against a warm, solid body.
“Stay with me,” Will said from what sounded like somewhere far away. “You’re okay.”
Darkness descended. Sam wasn’t sure where she was or what had happened. Then, slowly, it faded, and she opened her eyes to see Will’s concerned face.
“Yeah, you’re okay,” he said. “Just stay still.”
He pressed a rag against her cheek. Pain echoed from the spot, and Sam hissed in a breath, dazed and confused and unsure what Will was doing in her house when she was already so late for school.
“Sorry.” Grasping her hand gently in his, he lifted it to her cheek, then closed her fingers over the rag. “Hold this here.”
He pushed to his feet and stepped away. She didn’t know where. Her head grew light. Glancing down, she realized her blouse was open, the buttons missing.
“Whoa.” Will’s arms darted around her before she could ask what was going on, and he pushed her back into the chair she didn’t remember sitting in. “Don’t quite have your bearings yet. That’s okay.” He moved her chair up against the table so she had something to brace against, then he took the rag from her hand—the bloody rag, she realized with a roll of her stomach—and wrapped it around a bag of ice before pressing it back against her cheek. “Don’t let go of this.”
Her fingers shook, but she held the ice against her cheek and swallowed hard to find her voice.
“You got it?”
She nodded. Something was wrong. Something had happened.
“You sure?” he asked. “I need to call this in. I don’t need you falling flat on the floor.”
That was a silly question. Why would she fall flat on the floor? “I-I’m okay.”
His expression said he wasn’t so sure, but he pushed to his feet again and tugged a radio from his belt. His deep voice echoed in her kitchen, some strange numbers she didn’t understand and didn’t have any desire to decode.