Amish Christmas Hideaway
Lenora Worth
She’s hiding from killers…Can she find a haven in Amish country? A festive evening quickly becomes a holiday nightmare when Alisha Braxton witnesses a double murder. And the killer’s cold eyes promise that she’s next. There’s only one person Alisha trusts with her life—private investigator Nathan Craig, the man she once loved. But hiding in Amish country, can they outwit a murderer who’s determined she won’t survive Christmas?
She’s hiding from killers...
Can she find a haven in Amish country?
A festive evening quickly becomes a holiday nightmare when Alisha Braxton witnesses a double murder. And the killer’s cold eyes promise that she’s next. There’s only one person Alisha trusts with her life—private investigator Nathan Craig, the man she once loved. But hiding in Amish country, can they outwit a murderer who’s determined she won’t survive Christmas?
With over seventy books published and millions in print, LENORA WORTH writes award-winning romance and romantic suspense. Three of her books finaled in the ACFW Carol Awards, and her Love Inspired Suspense novel Body of Evidence became a New York Times bestseller. Her novella in Mistletoe Kisses made her a USA TODAY bestselling author. Lenora goes on adventures with her retired husband, Don, and enjoys reading, baking and shopping...especially shoe shopping.
Also By Lenora Worth (#uda613ac7-f9c6-5b42-8ed0-6a1cc5fc147d)
Undercover Memories
Amish Christmas Hideaway
True Blue K-9 Unit
Deep Undercover
Military K-9 Unit
Rescue Operation
Classified K-9 Unit
Tracker
Classified K-9 Unit Christmas
“A Killer Christmas”
Rookie K-9 Unit
Truth and Consequences
Rookie K-9 Unit Christmas
“Holiday High Alert”
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk).
Amish Christmas Hideaway
Lenora Worth
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-0-008-90077-9
AMISH CHRISTMAS HIDEAWAY
© 2019 Lenora H. Nazworth
Published in Great Britain 2019
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.
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www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Note to Readers (#uda613ac7-f9c6-5b42-8ed0-6a1cc5fc147d)
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“Just get me out of here...please.”
Alisha’s car was mere inches away from what looked like a sizable drop-off into a ravine.
“I’ve got you,” Nathan said. “C’mon, take my hand.”
She nodded. “My bag.”
“Okay, grab it. But careful.”
She lifted the big businesslike leather bag and handed it to him.
“Turn slowly toward me, okay?”
She nodded, the car rocking with each movement and slipping another inch against the old tree trunk.
Nathan’s breath caught. That old stump wouldn’t last much longer.
“On three,” he said. “One, two...three.”
He tugged her up and out and then pulled her away from the now-shaking car. With a groan, the car’s front right fender scraped against the rock before sliding over the edge of the ravine and crashing down below.
The sound of metal breaking apart echoed out over the hills.
“Are you all right?”
Alisha let out a long, shuddering sigh. “I could have died if you hadn’t come along...”
Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
—Psalm 2:1
To all of the friends I’ve made while writing Amish fiction. Thank you to our loyal readers!
Contents
Cover (#u28f978e1-ffe2-56ea-91cc-5616432001c8)
Back Cover Text (#ucc4e3959-4c07-5cae-8c6a-066ff3171b8f)
About the Author (#u8dba1fb4-75e8-5534-8ef2-f6305bb7bb98)
Booklist (#u17fc1afd-1153-5e7e-9c90-6c6667a863f8)
Title Page (#u875715cc-79b4-56c2-abef-b282371f898b)
Copyright (#u0e63804e-298c-5763-9395-d1640b463806)
Note to Readers
Introduction (#u742a9285-751c-51ab-b4c0-536a1fe525af)
Bible Verse (#ud0128bf6-9c1f-535a-aa90-00aed44a9fce)
Dedication (#ufc6c01c2-ce44-5248-8cd7-e20c7c1403fc)
ONE (#u98fe6c97-6157-5a4c-a47e-92f336ca61a3)
TWO (#ubfe5c810-11c1-5a21-901b-7681c538b75b)
THREE (#u3e008f05-e9f1-5e58-bf7b-41be273cf050)
FOUR (#u2410998a-8f17-5c11-9112-e61ef189c2b0)
FIVE (#udda0600c-3d9c-5614-8723-304a909edbdb)
SIX (#litres_trial_promo)
SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)
NINE (#litres_trial_promo)
TEN (#litres_trial_promo)
ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)
THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
SIXTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
SEVENTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
EIGHTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
NINETEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
TWENTY (#litres_trial_promo)
TWENTY-ONE (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
ONE (#uda613ac7-f9c6-5b42-8ed0-6a1cc5fc147d)
She’d stopped here on a whim. Tired from a lengthy deposition in Philadelphia, Alisha Braxton planned to find a strong cup of coffee. She needed to stay awake to drive the two hours from the city to the small community of Campton Creek in Lancaster County to celebrate Christmas with her grandmother Bettye Willis.
This quaint Christmas market on the outskirts of Philadelphia beckoned her with the promise of something warm to drink and maybe something wonderful to nibble on while she traveled. Too busy to shop for gifts before now, she decided she’d do a quick browse and buy her grandmother something special. And maybe Mrs. Campton, too.
The two elderly women lived together in the carriage house at the Campton estate, now called the Campton Center. Alisha did several hours a week of pro bono work at the center. It was a good chance to visit with her grandmother and help out the community.
But this week she wouldn’t be working as much. A whole week with Granny—a gift from her firm. Five days before Christmas. Her boss had insisted and, as much as she loved her career as an associate with the law firm of Henderson and Perry, Alisha needed a break.
She looked forward to spending the upcoming holidays there with her grandmother, who’d been Judy Campton’s assistant for years and now her companion since they were both widowed. A week off and then she’d get back to her paying hours at the small law firm near Reading where she’d worked since law school. The firm was a satellite branch connected to the main firm in Philadelphia. Alisha hoped to work at the big firm one day, but for now she was paying her dues and working her way up the firm’s ladder.
Taking in the bright lights lining the marketplace that had once been a town square on the outskirts of Philadelphia, Alisha pulled her small blue sedan into what looked like the last available parking place. A couple strolled by together, holding hands and laughing, packages hanging from their arms. The man smiled down at the woman then tugged at her long dark hair.
A surge of longing hit Alisha, causing her to sit there in the dark while the couple kissed by a stark white sports car parked directly across from Alisha. After putting their packages in the tiny trunk, the man helped the woman into her seat and hurried around to get inside.
They looked so happy, so in love.
Would she ever have that? Probably not. She’d sealed away her heart and focused on work. No time for romance or anything that followed. Once, she’d fallen in love. Once. Putting her memories away, Alisha took in her surroundings.
Dusk moved over the sparkling Christmas trees decorating the tiny square, causing the whole scene to shimmer and glisten. People bundled in scarves and jackets strolled along the busy open market, sipping hot drinks as they laughed and took in the lovely holiday displays. Beautiful but so deceptive. She’d seen the underbelly of life too often lately to appreciate the forced facade of a commercial Christmas. And she sure didn’t need to sit here longing for something she’d never have.
“When did I become so jaded?” she said out loud before opening her car door. She needed caffeine and maybe something with pumpkin spice.
She lifted one booted foot out onto the asphalt parking lot, the chilly air hitting her in a burst of December wind. Hoping the snowstorm headed this way would hold off, Alisha watched a vehicle approaching at high speed. The black SUV came to a skidding halt behind the white sports car now trying to back out of the parking space across from where Alisha had just pulled in.
Before she could exit her car, a window came down on the SUV. Then the air shattered with the sound of several rapid-fire gunshots, aimed at the sportscar.
Alisha screamed and sank down in her seat. When the shots kept coming, she crouched low and watched in horror as the couple in the sports car scrambled to find protection.
The gunman kept shooting. And they had no way out.
Alisha looked up and saw the gunman’s face in the bright lights from the twinkling decorations and the glow of streetlights. His cold, dead gaze stopped and froze on her.
She got a good look at him.
And...he got a good look at her.
Ducking back down, she held her breath. He’d try to kill her, too. She’d seen him. Bracing for a bullet, she heard people screaming, heard footsteps rapidly hitting the pavement as pedestrians tried to scramble away.
Dear Lord, please help these people and protect me. Help me. Alisha’s prayers seemed to freeze in her throat as she waited for more gunshots.
Instead, the vehicle’s motor revved and then the dark SUV spun away, tires squealing, the smell of rubber burning through the air. Only a few seconds had passed but the scene played over in Alisha’s mind in slow motion as she relived the sight of that face and then the screams from inside the tiny car. And then...a stunning split second of silence.
She heard people running and screaming. Quickly pulling out her phone, her hands shaking, she called 911 as she wobbled onto her feet and hurried to the car that now looked like it had been in a war zone, bullet holes scattered across it, the heavy vinyl convertible top split and torn.
“A shooting,” she said to the dispatcher. “At the Christmas market near West Fairmount Park.” She named the street and told the dispatcher what had happened. “I... I witnessed the shooting.”
People had gathered around and a security guard stood staring into the car, his expression full of shock. “What in the world?”
The dispatcher confirmed the location and told Alisha to stay on the phone.
“Officers on the way,” Alisha said to the scared guard after the dispatcher had told her as much. “Secure the scene and get these people back.”
She stepped away, her stomach roiling at the carnage in the two-seater car. Blood everywhere and both passengers slumped over, holding each other, their bodies riddled with bullet holes. They’d been smiling and happy seconds before and now they were obviously dead.
The other vehicle was long gone but while she waited she managed to give a description to the dispatcher.
“Large black SUV.” She named the model. “A driver and one shooter but I couldn’t make out the license plate. I didn’t see anyone else inside.”
But she remembered the shooter’s face. A light scruffy beard and stringy long dark hair covered by a thick wool cap. His eyes—black as night and dead. So dead inside.
Alisha stayed on the phone but heard the sound of sirens echoing through the chilly night. Her boots crunched against something as she tried to scan the surrounding area. She looked down and saw the delicate, gold-embossed Christmas ornament that had decorated the now-shattered streetlight hovering over the sports car. A star shape, shimmering white.
The ornament laid broken and crushed underneath her feet.
Hours later, Nathan Craig heard a ringing in his ears that would not go away. “Stop it,” he groaned, coming awake to find a weak slant of moonlight filtering through the darkness of his bedroom. He wiped at his sleepy eyes and glared at the dial of his watch.
Eleven o’clock.
Exhausted after an all-night surveillance and a day full of reports to his client, he’d gone to bed early and at his own place for once. Now he’d never get back to sleep.
Then he realized his phone was ringing. Not so unusual. Being a private investigator meant he had a lot of late-night calls from either clients or informants. And sometimes, from the angry subjects of his investigations.
Sitting up, he grabbed the annoying device and growled, “This had better be good.”
“Nathan?”
The voice was winded and scared, his name a whisper from a raw throat. But that voice held a familiar tone that hit deep in his gut.
“Alisha?”
“Yes.”
Now he was wide awake.
Knowing she’d never call him unless she was in trouble or really mad at him again, he said, “Alisha, what’s wrong?”
“I... I think someone’s trying to kill me,” she said, the tremor in her words destroying him.
He stood and grabbed his jeans, hit his toe on a chair and gritted his teeth. “Where are you? Are they after you right now?”
“I’m almost to Campton Creek. Just a few miles from the turnoff. I know they’re following me but I don’t see the SUV behind me. He’ll be back. I saw his face, Nathan. I witnessed a man shoot and kill two people. And you know what that means.”
“Hold on,” he said, his mind racing ahead while fear held his heart in a vise. “I can be there in fifteen minutes. You stay on the line with me, okay?”
“Okay.”
Then he thought better. “Have you called the police?”
She heaved a deep breath. “I had a police escort following me, watching my back. Two officers.”
“Where are they now?”
“Dead, I think. Someone shot out their tires and they crashed on the side of the road. The patrol car exploded. I should have stopped to help.”
Nathan closed his eyes and tried to focus. “You didn’t stop. Smart move.”
“I wanted to stop but... I saw the SUV. I sped up and rounded the big curve near Green Mountain.” Heaving a sigh that sounded more like a sob, she said, “I pulled off on a dirt lane but it’s a dead-end. I think the SUV went on by but I’m afraid to get back on the road.”
Nathan knew that curve. Just enough time to get her out of view of any car following her but also a dangerous place where someone could hide and wait for her.
“Did you call anyone else?”
“I called you,” she said through a shuddering sob. “Because this won’t end with the local police, Nathan. I witnessed a double homicide that looked like a hit job. Those two officers are probably dead. The FBI will probably be called in and I’ll need to testify.”
FBI? Now he was tripping over his own feet. “Alisha, I know the road you’re on. Find an Amish farm and wake someone up. Stay with them until I get there. Do you hear me?”
She didn’t speak.
He held the cell between his ear and shoulder while he grabbed at more clothes and found his weapon and wallet.
“Alisha?”
“I know a shortcut,” she said, sounding stronger. “I’ll take that route once I hit the turn. I’ll try to find a house, I promise. My cell battery is low. I have to go.”
“Alisha, tell me what to look for.”
“Black Denali SUV. Two men in the vehicle. I have to go.”
“Alisha, don’t—”
She ended the call.
Nathan stood there in the dark, the images playing in his mind a terrible torment. If anything happened to her...
He’d been through this kind of terror before. He would not go there again.
With that vow in mind, he finished putting on his clothes and hurried out of the cabin toward his big Chevy truck. His heart pumping adrenaline, he headed toward Green Mountain. Once underway, he called his friend Carson Benton at the sheriff’s department. While per Pennsylvania law, the deputy couldn’t apprehend the suspects, he could serve in tracking them down and alerting the state police and the FBI if needed. He could also help in transporting them if they were apprehended.
Nathan and Carson went way back, had been friends for years. Carson sometimes helped Nathan in an unofficial capacity with missing person cases.
“This had better be good,” Carson said, echoing the same words Nathan had uttered about ten minutes ago.
“I need you to check on a woman driving alone and headed toward the turnoff just past Green Mountain, toward Campton Creek. She thinks someone is following her. Someone dangerous. She witnessed a shooting near Philadelphia and she had a police cruiser following her but the perpetrators ran the patrol car off the road.”
“Hello to you, too,” his longtime friend said with a grunt. “Got it. Who’s the woman?”
“Alisha Braxton,” Nathan said, one hand on the wheel as he broke the speed limit. Then he described her vehicle. “I’m on my way.”
“I know how you drive, Nathan. You’ll beat me there,” Carson replied in a tart tone. “I’m on it.” Then he asked, “Hey, isn’t she the one who—”
“Yeah,” Nathan said. Then he ended the call.
Alisha Braxton.
The one who got away.
This had to be bad if she’d called him.
Because Nathan knew he was the one man on earth she’d never want to call for help.
Why had she called him?
Logic told Alisha her first call should have been to 911. But she’d panicked after she’d seen the patrol car behind her bursting into flames and when she’d grabbed for her phone, Nathan had come to mind. He lived close by when he wasn’t traveling. Thankful that she’d caught Nathan at home, Alisha knew he could get to her fast. And he’d act first and ask questions later.
He was the kind of man who took matters into his own hands.
He was also the kind of man who broke all the rules, one of the reasons she’d given up on him long ago.
Now it was the only reason she wanted him by her side.
The one man she didn’t want to call was also the one man who could help her escape from a couple of killers.
The irony of her situation made her laugh a tiny hysterical laugh while she slipped her car back onto the main road and kept watch behind her. She’d seen the SUV and now it had disappeared. But she wasn’t imagining this. If she turned down Applewood Lane and hooked a left back to the old covered-bridge road, she could throw them off. Then she could take the back roads to Creek Road and then Campton Creek proper. She’d be safe soon. She knew these roads, had traveled them as a child.
Had met Nathan in a park out by the creek when they were both in their late teens.
Nathan, who’d been Amish then.
Nathan, who now had few scruples when it came to bringing justice to this world.
He no longer lived among the Amish but for close to fifteen years, he had made it his life’s work to always help and protect the Amish. Because he had to help others seek their loved ones so they wouldn’t have to live with the pain he carried in his heart.
His younger sister had gone missing after Nathan and his father had fought about his relationship with Alisha. Hannah had been found dead a few weeks later.
Nathan blamed himself. Alisha lived with that same guilt.
She shouldn’t have called him tonight. She had her life in order, had her routines down, worked hard, rarely dated. She’d learned to be her own hero. Because she never wanted to go through that kind of pain again, either.
Nathan could complicate all of that.
He could also save her life.
Alisha checked her mirror again and tried to stay calm. She knew how to take care of herself. She’d given the police her statement, described in detail the vehicle and the man she’d seen, left the officers and detectives her contact information and finally had been given permission to leave.
“Will you be all right, Miss Braxton?” one of the detectives at the gruesome scene had asked her.
“I will be when I get to my grandmother’s place,” she’d replied, glancing around the empty parking lot. The marketplace had been shut down until the crime techs could scour the scene. By then the authorities had questioned all of the witnesses, but most of them had just heard gunshots and seen the SUV speeding out of the parking lot.
Alisha had been the only eyewitness to the murders.
“We can give you an escort,” one of the detectives had suggested.
“That might make me feel better,” she’d admitted. “It’s about two hours from here.”
They arranged for a patrol car with two officers to follow her, staying close. She’d watched their car through her rearview mirror, feeling safe, until she’d heard screeching tires and gunshots.
And watched the patrol car careening off the road and into a rocky incline. It had burst into flames.
Now she prayed for those two officers, but she knew in her heart they were probably dead. If the crash hadn’t killed them, the shooter would make sure they were dead.
She would be next.
Hurry, Nathan.
When she saw a car approaching, Alisha gasped and watched as it zoomed close. Dark, big, gaining on her.
Alisha couldn’t tell who was behind her, but the driver had a lead foot. Coming up on another curve, she took a quick glance in the rearview mirror. The big vehicle was still gaining on her.
Then she saw the headlights of another vehicle off in the distance, coming from the other direction. Her turnoff was up ahead but the on-coming car could be the SUV retracing the same route. Could she make it before either vehicle caught her? She’d have to speed up and make a hard right turn. Checking again, she gauged the distance and monitored the oncoming car, hoping she’d be past it before she spun to the right. Meantime, she prayed the vehicle behind her would keep moving ahead instead of following her.
The night was dark and cloudy, with a possible snowstorm headed across the state. Out here, where few streetlights existed, the hills and valleys looked ominous and misshapen. The ribbon of road twisted and turned and meandered like a giant gray snake.
The vehicle behind her gained speed. When it came close enough to tap her bumper, Alisha let out a gasp and held tight, bracing for a collision. But the vehicle didn’t hit her. The driver stayed close but never made contact.
It was now or never.
Taking a breath, Alisha held onto the wheel and watched for the turnoff. Then with a prayer and another gulp of air, she slowed enough to turn the wheels of her car to the right onto the narrow road. Her car wobbled and fishtailed her heart bumping and jumping while she tried to keep control. If she lost the wheel, she’d go careening down into a deep ditch. Or worse, a rocky embankment.
Her nerves tightly knotted, Alisha managed to regain control of the car and stay on the road. Letting out a breath, she gathered her wits and glanced into the rearview mirror. To her dismay, the car that had been approaching from the other direction was now following her.
They’d found her.
TWO (#uda613ac7-f9c6-5b42-8ed0-6a1cc5fc147d)
Nathan hit the steering wheel again, wishing Alisha’s phone worked. Her battery must have finally fizzled out. He couldn’t reach her. But he’d been tailing her for two miles when he looked up and saw another car coming down a hill toward them.
Then he’d watched in horror when Alisha had made a sharp right turn, his heart stopping while he watched her car careening wildly.
She’d made it off the main road and he was headed to follow her when a big dark SUV coming from the other direction turned onto the same route she’d just taken, cutting Nathan off as it whipped in front of his truck.
“No.” Nathan slammed on his brakes to avoid a collision and then hit the gas pedal again. “Where are you, Carson?” The deputy sheriff should have been here by now. Carson would have alerted the town police, too, since he didn’t have the authority to make any arrests.
But if those men saw the deputy tailing them, they could have shot at Carson, too.
Lord, please protect my friend.
The silent prayer felt foreign and raw inside Nathan’s head. He rarely prayed these days, but he still believed deep down inside. Right now, he needed the Lord to hear him on a lot of accounts.
Alisha needed him. He had to get to her.
He slipped and slid onto the turnoff, noting where Alisha’s car had gone, his heart doing that jumpy thing it always did each time he came back to the place he’d once called home.
The place where he’d fallen in love with a beautiful Englisch girl who had her own dreams and ambitions. The girl who’d walked away from him because she felt as if she’d only remind him of the worst night of his life.
If he didn’t find her, this would be the worst night of his life. He might have lost his sweet little sister Hannah, but he would not lose Alisha.
Not this time.
Nathan hurried along the dark, deserted road and noted the two vehicles up ahead. The big SUV hovered near Alisha’s sedan. He had his weapon concealed in a shoulder holster and he’d shoot first and ask questions later.
When Alisha’s vehicle swerved around a curve, Nathan took off and caught up with the SUV following her. While the sleek vehicle inched closer to her, Nathan did the same with the aggressive SUV.
He knew a certain spot up ahead where if he hit at its back bumper just right, he could force the SUV off the road long enough to allow Alisha to get to safety.
Preparing, Nathan kept his eyes on the two cars up ahead. Then he looked in his rearview mirror and saw another vehicle approaching. A traffic jam on this road late at night? Unbelievable. He hoped Carson had found them.
His cell buzzed. Careful to keep his gaze on the road, he let the call come through his truck’s Bluetooth.
“I’m behind you,” Carson said. “The locals are out in force since they’ve heard what happened. There’s a BOLO out based on the eyewitness description.”
“They’re following that witness,” Nathan replied, relieved for the backup. “I can’t let them get to her.”
“I’m trying to catch up with them.”
“They have to be the same people who killed someone in front of Alisha earlier.”
“Why did she come here?” Carson asked.
“She’s afraid and...she must have been coming to see her grandmother. I don’t know. She panicked, I think.”
She had to have panicked to call him, Nathan reasoned.
“Dangerous situation,” Carson replied.
“Be careful,” Nathan warned. “They’re armed.”
“I won’t do anything stupid,” Carson said. “I’m here to observe and help with transport, if needed.”
“Okay. I’ll tail them until we meet up.”
Carson ended the call and sped around Nathan to alert the town police up on the main road out of town. Nathan watched the road ahead. His friend had the authority to stop them for speeding if nothing else. But these people were dangerous. Carson shouldn’t take that risk. Smarter to get the police out here.
Nathan focused on the vehicle behind Alisha. The big vehicle bumped against Alisha’s car. The driver tried to force her off the road. Nathan gunned his truck, thinking he’d smash into the other vehicle.
Too late.
He watched in horror as the SUV bumped hard against Alisha’s sedan again. Unable to help, Nathan shouted as her tiny car went spiraling across the road and headed into a deep ditch.
“No,” Nathan said, slamming on the brakes as he came up on the scene.
The SUV took off, speeding away. The town police should be waiting up ahead. Nathan had to check on Alisha.
Nathan put the still moving truck into Park, left it running, and hopped out and hurried toward Alisha, pulling open the driver’s-side door.
Nearly out of breath, he called, “Alisha?”
“I’m okay,” she said, her hands tight on the steering wheel, her head slumped over. “I’m all right, Nathan.”
She didn’t sound all right. More like out of breath and going into shock. “I’m calling for help.”
“No.” Grabbing his arm, she said, “Just get me out of here, please.”
He looked at her and then looked down into a dark abyss. She’d somehow managed to stop the car against a jutting rock, but most of the car sat nestled against an old jagged tree trunk. A rotting and weathered trunk that could give at any minute.
Mere inches away from what looked like a sizable drop-off into a ravine.
“I’ve got you,” he said. “C’mon, take my hand.”
She nodded. “My bag.”
“Okay, grab it. But careful.”
She lifted the big businesslike leather bag and handed it to him. Nathan set the bag on the ground and gently tugged at her. “Turn slowly toward me, okay.”
She nodded, the car rocking with each movement. Once she twisted and managed to put her legs on the ground, the car moaned and slipped another inch into the old tree trunk.
Nathan’s heart slipped right along with the vehicle, his breath caught. That old stump wouldn’t last much longer. “On three,” he said. “One, two, three.”
His hands on her waist now, he tugged her up and out and then pulled her away from the now shaking car. With a groan and the hissing of tires and metal, the car plummeted against the weak tree trunk, causing the weathered wood to crumble into a hundred powder-dry pieces. Nathan held Alisha down, the sound of the car’s front right fender scraping against the rock as it slid over the edge of the ravine and crashed down below with a last moan. A hard crash and then the sound of metal breaking apart echoed out over the hills.
They fell together onto the grass near the curve in the road. Nathan held her close, shut his eyes and took in the sweet scent of her hair.
“Alisha.”
She suddenly sat straight up and scooted away from him. “What?”
He lay there, checking her over, the urge to hold her close still strong. “Are you all right?”
“Yes. But my car... It’s gone.”
Nathan took in her dark golden hair all scattered and wispy around her heart-shaped face. “I’m sorry about that, but I had to get you out. Too late for your car but I need to get you away from here.”
Brushing at her hair and clothes, she let out a long, shuddering sigh. “I still owe on that car.”
Still practical, he thought, his pulse pounding like a jackhammer in his ear. “You have insurance?”
She gave him a nod, her expression blank now. “Did you call reinforcements?”
“Yes—a friend nearby and the locals waiting down the road. Tell me if you hurt anywhere. Did you hit your head?”
“No. I mean I bumped against something but I’m okay. When they rammed me, I tried to steer the car toward a tree. I found a rock and a tree. Bounced a bit. I could have died if you hadn’t come along.”
She was shaken but Nathan knew this woman. Tough and stubborn.
“Okay, but you did not die.” He stood and offered her his hand. She hesitated and then grabbed on while he tugged her up, the touch of her skin against his fingers jarring him with a current of awareness. “I called my friend Carson Benton. He’s a deputy sheriff who helps me out a lot.”
“Unofficially, I’m sure. I hope he chased them away.”
“Unofficially, yes. I hope they don’t shoot him.”
Looking her over, he took in the boots and straight black skirt, the tan leather jacket and black turtleneck sweater. Classy. “Alisha, listen, they don’t know you’re still alive. That gives us time. We need to get you somewhere safe, okay?”
“I’m going to Campton House.”
Just as he’d thought, and the closest place to hide for now. “Good. Mrs. Campton has a state-of-the-art security system.”
“I know. I told her to get a system installed because of the sensitive nature of some of our cases. It serves as a safe house at times, too.”
“Well, that will come in handy since we have to hide you until I can figure this thing out. The longer they think you died in that car, the better our odds of keeping you alive.”
“You mean, until we can figure this thing out. I’m the one who witnessed a double murder.”
He liked her spirit but heard that stubborn tone in her voice. “And I’m the one who’ll protect you and help you find justice. You have to stay hidden.”
He took her by the arm. “I’ll report the crash from the truck. And before you start up, it’s too cold out here to argue about this right now.”
“I’m not going to argue,” she said. “I’m exhausted.”
Nathan’s heart went out to her. “Alisha...”
“Don’t,” she said, holding up a hand. “Don’t baby me, Nathan. Just get me to my grandmother’s house.”
Nathan grunted and let her open her own door. Then he grabbed her big leather bag and hopped in on the driver’s side. “Here’s your purse.”
“This is not a purse. It’s full of work, my laptop and a flash drive, clothes. And my phone. My life is in this bag.”
And hidden chocolate, if memory served him.
“That’s a lot of life crammed into one fancy lady purse.”
“I don’t have a life,” she said. Then her gaze met his in sheepish surprise. “It’s a briefcase.”
“You didn’t mean to admit that, did you? The part about not having a life.”
“I’m tired. Not making much sense.”
“Well, if I have it my way, you’ll have a lot of life left in you.”
His cell buzzed. “It’s Carson.” Hitting Accept, he said, “Did you find them?”
Carson’s voice came over the Bluetooth connection. “Saw them, followed while the locals gave chase and we had them surrounded.”
“But?” Nathan glanced over at Alisha since she could hear the call. Her expression held dread.
“They crashed the SUV near the main highway down the mountain. Got out and ran away on foot. We’ve got men searching the area and we’ve called in the K9 unit, but I have a feeling they had another ride coming. It’s still not safe.” Then he added, “One of the escort officers is alive but critical. The other one died at the scene. I’m sorry, Nathan. The police are up to speed and they’ve alerted the proper authorities in Philadelphia, including the FBI.”
Alisha let out a sob, her hand going to her face.
“Thanks.” Nathan said, glancing at Alisha. “I have Miss Braxton with me. I got her out of the car, but it went into the ravine. They’ll send someone to circle back around to make sure she’s dead. I’d like them to think that for a while. Just until I get her somewhere safe.”
“Understood,” his friend said. “But you know how this will end, right?”
“Yeah. With me bringing these people to justice.” Nathan ended the call and turned to Alisha. “So you heard. Your pursuers managed to escape. You’re not safe.”
He saw the shudder she tried to hide. “What they did was horrible. I can’t get it out of my head.” Looking out into the darkness, she whispered, “I should have done something for those officers.”
“You did the only thing you could do—you got away. It was probably too late for the one who died at the scene and hopefully, the other one won’t die.”
He didn’t want her to meet that same fate.
“That will be in the news, too. His poor family. To lose him at Christmas. Maybe I should have gone back to Reading.”
“No.” Nathan couldn’t tell her that he was glad to see her, glad to help her. “No. You need to be with family right now.”
She nodded, her head down.
“Tell me what you saw tonight,” he said in a gentler tone, wishing he could touch her, hold her and make her feel better.
But that would be the worst idea he’d ever had and he’d had a few bad ones at times.
She nodded and started speaking, her voice strained and weary. Once she’d finished, Nathan couldn’t stop himself. He reached over and took her hand. This reeked of a professional hit. But he wouldn’t tell her that until he did some digging.
“You’ll be safe at the Campton Center for now.”
She stared down at his hand and then pulled hers away. “Of course I will. It’s solid.”
“And I’ll be there to make sure.”
“What exactly does that mean?”
“That means we’ll be spending Christmas together,” he replied with a soft smile. “Because I’ll be staying there with you until we find these killers.”
THREE (#uda613ac7-f9c6-5b42-8ed0-6a1cc5fc147d)
“Oh, no,” Alisha replied, the shock of his statement overtaking the shock pumping through her body. “That is not going to happen.”
“It’s happening,” he retorted as he took all the back roads she’d planned on taking. “I’m not leaving you alone.”
“I won’t be alone. I have my grandmother and Mrs. Campton.”
“Right. Two elderly ladies who have to use an elevator to get downstairs.”
He had a point but Alisha wasn’t ready to concede. “And a good security system.”
“That helps but we both know a good criminal can work around that.”
Right again. But Alisha wasn’t about to let him hang around. Yes, she’d called him in a moment of panic but reason was taking over now. “Nathan, I’m a big girl. I can hide out there while I do some checking. For all we know, they might give up on me and go into hiding.”
“I’m not willing to wait and see if that happens. Are you?”
She shook her head. “No. I have a week before I go back to the office in Reading the day after Christmas.”
“Call your boss and make that two weeks. Just until the New Year.”
“I can’t do that.”
“Yes, you can. Explain the situation. Take some vacation time.”
“I’ll take the time I have allotted and I’ll use that time to track these killers.”
“You do realize Christmas is not the time to work, right?”
“Yes. But watching a gunman shoot up a Christmas market five days before the holidays kind of puts a damper on things.”
“Are you going to tell the ladies the truth?”
“I have to,” she said, hating the idea. “They need to be warned so they can be aware.”
“And they need protection, too.”
“Maybe I should stay somewhere else.”
“No, this is the best plan for now. But, Alisha, I’m going to stay there with all of you whether you like it or not. I know the place has a couple of extra bedrooms in the main house. I’ll bunk in one of those.”
Bad idea. So why did she feel safer, just knowing he’d be nearby?
Because she was frightened, shaken and... She’d need his help. Nathan Craig was good at his job and he could go where others didn’t dare go. He found people. Good people. Scared people. Lost people. And sometimes, the worst of people.
“I can see those wheels turning inside your head,” he said when she didn’t retort right away. “What are you thinking?”
She twisted to stare at him as they turned onto Creek Road. “I don’t have much of a choice. I need you—I mean I need your experience and expertise.”
Her head told her to be logical, while her heart shouted that she did need him, too. She’d always needed him.
But she’d been fighting that need since she’d first met him the summer after her senior year. Funny, how he’d been on the fringes of her life for most of her life. Around but always out of her reach. Once, they’d been so close. Teenage sweethearts. But they were both adults now. Professional and on a case. Nothing more. Because neither one of them had anything more to give.
Tonight, he’d saved her. Alisha couldn’t forget that.
“Don’t worry,” he said in a tight tone, as if he knew exactly what she was thinking. “I’ll stay out of your way. I’ll have plenty to keep me busy.”
Justice. The man always wanted justice.
Well, so did she, but she sure hadn’t planned on getting it with Nathan’s help. She didn’t want to spend her holidays chasing after a killer, but her instincts told her the murderers would keep chasing after her.
“I’ll be busy, too,” she said. “I just want this over.”
“Are you referring to this murder investigation or being forced to keep me around?”
“Both,” she admitted.
Nathan pulled the truck up to the quiet, looming house and switched off the motor. “We’ll have to wake them and I’ll need to hide my truck in the garage.”
Alisha stared at the stately redbrick mansion trimmed in white columns, the rows of tall windows now looking vulnerable instead of comforting, the big evergreen wreath on the door reminding her of all the holidays she’d spent here.
Too many memories for tonight, coupled with Nathan being here beside her. A great weight of fatigue and shock pushed at her soul. “Yes. Let’s get inside and do what we have to do.”
Nathan quickly came around the truck and opened her door, his gaze scanning the old oaks and high shrubs and then the driveway and parking areas. “At least the backyard is gated and fenced.”
“We have security lights and alarms everywhere.”
He helped her down, his hands on her waist. Alisha stared up and into his eyes, really seeing him for the first time in a long time. He had always been good-looking, but that world-weary cragginess that shadowed his face made him handsome and mysterious. His eyes, so cobalt blue and shimmering, held too many secrets and his dark hair, always unruly, curled against his neck. A rogue sweep of heavy bangs shielded his frown while his gaze held hers.
He was off-limits and yet, right now, she wanted to reach up and brush those thick curls off his forehead.
“Thank you, Nathan,” she said instead.
“You can thank me when this is all over,” he replied, removing his hands as if he’d been burned.
Alisha accepted that, the loss of his touch already moving through her with aching clarity. Grabbing her briefcase, she hurried to the double doors of the carriage house entryway, where an open portico separated the garage and the upstairs apartment from the main house. Glancing up at the enclosed upper breezeway, which allowed people to move from the garage and second-floor apartment to the main house during bad weather, Alisha breathed deeply and shivered in the late-night cold. She had a key but she rang the bell instead so she wouldn’t scare her grandmother by slipping into the house.
“Alisha?”
Hearing her grandmother’s sweet voice over the intercom brought tears to Alisha’s eyes. “Yes, Granny. It’s me. Sorry I’m so late.”
“Come on up,” Bettye said, buzzing the door open.
Relief filled Alisha’s soul but with it came the letdown of adrenaline and the horrible realization of what she’d witnessed. Her hands started shaking but she held her briefcase with a death grip to keep from falling apart.
Nathan stepped up and placed his arm across her shoulder, tugging her close. He then took the heavy bag. “I’ve got you,” he whispered as he pushed open the door for her. “Don’t fall apart on me now, okay?”
Alisha swallowed her fears and the delayed reaction to everything she’d been through in the last few hours. “I’ll be all right.” She didn’t want to fall apart and she didn’t want him to be kind to her.
But she didn’t push him away. She did need Nathan. And not just to help her stay alive. The strength of his grip reminded her that he’d once made her feel so secure. That feeling had returned tonight, but she’d have to get it out of her system.
Bettye Willis met them at the landing where the stairs from the portico doors met the second floor in a wide entryway. A small table held a sparkling ceramic Christmas tree, the smell of cinnamon-and-spice potpourri lingering in the air.
Bettye took Alisha into her arms in a tight hug. “Alisha, we were beginning to get worried.” Stepping back to get a good look, she said, “I sent Judy on to bed.”
Then her grandmother saw Nathan there in the shadows. Her surprised gaze moving from Alisha to him, Bettye asked, “Mr. Craig, what are you doing here?”
Nathan smiled at Bettye. “That’s a long story, Mrs. Willis.”
“He’s here to help me, Granny,” Alisha said, hoping her grandmother wouldn’t press. “We can explain in the morning.”
Bettye scoffed that away. “I was up reading,” she said. “Come into the kitchen and I’ll make you something to eat. And then you can tell me what’s really going on.”
When they hesitated, her grandmother put her hands on her hips. “You do realize that while I’m old, I’m not completely hapless and senile. Alisha, you would not bring Nathan Craig here in the middle of the night without an extremely good reason.”
Alisha shot Nathan a warning glance. “I’ll explain then, Granny. No need to keep you up all night wondering.”
“That’s unbelievable,” Bettye said after Alisha retold what had happened to her. Turning to where Nathan sat in front of a half-eaten roast beef sandwich, she patted his hand. “I’m so thankful Alisha thought to call you, Nathan.”
Nathan stared at the cookie waiting by his plate and then glanced at Alisha, concern hitting him in the gut. What if he hadn’t answered his phone? What if he hadn’t been at the cabin?
He wouldn’t think about that. He was here now with her and she was safe. “Me, too, Mrs. Willis.”
“Call me Bettye,” the older woman said. She wore a blue flannel robe to keep warm in the wee-hour chill of the spacious art deco–style kitchen. “More coffee?”
Nathan held up his cup, thinking he wouldn’t get much sleep tonight anyway. “Thank you.”
Alisha sat holding her mug, absorbing the warmth. Her grandmother had found her a cozy sweater and a pair of jeans. Alisha kept some clothes here since she often worked pro bono into the late hours and spent the night now and then.
“So, you’re going to be our protector,” Bettye said, nodding her head. “We’ll explain all of this to Mrs. C in the morning. She’ll certainly agree that this is the safest place for both of you right now.”
“I don’t want to put you or her in any danger, Granny,” Alisha said. “This is just for a couple of days.”
“Until after Christmas,” Bettye said. “Remember, you have the whole week off.”
“Maybe until the New Year,” Nathan repeated again.
“I hope it won’t take that long,” Alisha replied, a stubborn glint in her green eyes.
“No matter,” her feisty grandmother replied. “As you know, Alisha, the center will be closed for the next few days and we have lots of baking to do and packages to wrap. We go visiting the Amish during Christmas. You can help with all of that.”
“Okay, Granny,” Alisha said. But her voice held little enthusiasm. She would work day and night to solve this thing.
“I’ll take a room in the main house,” Nathan said to Bettye. “But at least I’ll be on the premises.”
“I feel better already,” Bettye replied. “Now, let’s get you both settled in. I’m sure you are exhausted. We’ll continue this discussion in the morning.” Getting up, she added, “You two must not have been hungry.”
“I’ll save my cookie for later,” Nathan said.
“I’m sorry, Granny. Hard to eat.” Alisha took her own sandwich to the sink. “I’ll do the dishes and then I’m going to my room.”
Nathan lifted his eyebrows, questioning.
“Relax,” Alisha said. “My room is right across from Granny’s. This place has three bedrooms. The big suite where Mrs. Campton stays and two smaller bedrooms across the hallway, with a bath and small sitting room between them.”
“It’s quite cozy,” Bettye said with a shrug.
“Yeah, cozy. I vaguely remember the layout.” Nathan thought of all the things that could go wrong. “Do I need a key or a code to get to the main house?”
“I’ll show you,” Alisha said, her tone anxious.
“I’ll wait here then,” Bettye said, her grandmotherly gaze taking in all the undercurrents flowing around them. “Then we’ll lock up tight.”
Nathan nodded and thanked Bettye for the food. “I’ll be close if you need anything.”
Remembering the house from his time here before, Nathan guided Alisha to the glass door that led to the enclosed breezeway, where two rows of windows provided views of the big front yard and the sprawling tree-lined backyard and lighted pool area.
“Too many windows,” he said, holding her elbow while he scanned their surroundings.
“I’ve never worried about that before,” Alisha admitted. “Granny will feel better, having you close by.”
They made it to the matching set of doors on the other side of the breezeway, bypassing wicker chairs and tall parlor ferns.
Alisha keyed in the code and the doors clicked open. Then they moved into the upper hallway of the estate house, now a center to help the Amish and anyone else who didn’t have the money to pay for doctors, lawyers and counselors.
“The elevator is to the left if you ever need it,” Alisha reminded him, her words echoing over the big upstairs floor. Then she pointed to the right. “There are two bedrooms on the front of the house. And two more on the back. The master is up here on the other side down another hallway. It faces the backyard. We put mothers with children in there.”
“I’ll take one to the front,” he said, “since the back should be fairly secure, but the front yard could be compromised.”
Alisha nodded and took him to a bedroom that had a direct view to the street and to the carriage house. The yard was well lit, at least.
“Sheets and towels are in the linen closet in the bathroom,” she said, pointing to the adjoining door. Then she turned at the main door. “I guess I’ll see you in the morning.”
Nathan reached for her arm. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
Alisha nodded but he could see the fatigue and worry shadowing her eyes. “I’m good now that I’m here. I doubt I’ll sleep but I’ll be okay.”
“I can walk you back across,” he offered.
“You don’t need to do that.”
“I’ll go as far as the doors to the breezeway, to be sure.”
She nodded and they walked back up the hallway together.
“This is an amazing house,” he said once they’d reached the breezeway.
Alisha nodded. “The Camptons founded this town over a century ago. It’s sad to think the Admiral and Mrs. Campton lost their only son Edward. He was killed in Afghanistan. He was a navy SEAL.”
“I’ve heard about him,” Nathan replied. “I still have friends around here who tell me the latest news.”
“And family?”
Her question threw Nathan. They never discussed the past.
“A few,” he said. “My parents will always be here.”
He was about to tell her good-night when he heard a noise outside and then saw a flash of light.
Without thinking, he pushed Alisha down beneath the windows and went with her, shielding her.
“Someone is in the front yard,” he whispered, his heart hammering. “Don’t move.”
Alisha nodded. “Granny—”
Nathan put a finger to her lips, his grip on her so tight he felt her heart beating against his. “I’m going to check it out. You stay right here.”
Alisha gave him a wide-eyed frown. “Nathan, don’t do that.”
When they heard another noise, he gave her a quick nod.
“If I’m not back in five minutes, call 911, okay?”
Then he turned and headed back across the breezeway so he could sneak out the garage door downstairs, the beat of Alisha’s heart still racing through his pulse.
If these goons had found her here this quickly, how did he have any chance of protecting her and keeping her alive?
FOUR (#uda613ac7-f9c6-5b42-8ed0-6a1cc5fc147d)
Alisha huddled underneath the windows, the cold floor making her shiver while fear for Nathan made her shudder. Should she go after him? Alert her grandmother? Find a weapon?
Granny. What if someone hurt her grandmother?
Deciding a weapon would be good, just in case, she hurried back into the big, dark house and went to the master bedroom. Moving past the eerie glow of all the sconces, she stood at the bedroom door and spotted the big fireplace inside. Then she hurried to find the fire poker.
The wieldy iron poker in her hands, she slipped to the windows lining the room and checked the sloping backyard. Shadows cascaded out over the grass and shrubs to reveal a quiet stillness. The yellow glow of the security lamps gave her courage. But she needed to get back to the front of the house and check on her grandmother and Nathan. Had it been five minutes?
Alisha moved quickly back up the wide hallway, going past the stairs. When she heard a noise coming from the front yard, she stopped. Should she go down or call 911?
Before she could decide, a strong arm pulled her close. She tried to scream but the sound caught in her throat. Then a hand clamped down over her mouth and a man breathed close.
Frantic, she tried to raise the poker.
“Be still and don’t make a sound.”
Nathan.
He released her and touched his finger to her lips. Then he whispered close. “I’ve got this.”
Relieved but wanting to kick him for scaring her, Alisha whispered, “Who was out there?”
“Carson,” he said. “He was done with the search and decided to drive by to see if we’d made it here safely. But he did spot a prowler. We met up in the front yard. He’s still out there rattling around.”
“Why didn’t you just say that instead of scaring me?”
“I didn’t want to startle you and cause you to scream.”
“What makes you think I’d scream?”
“Why didn’t you stay put?”
Tired and still shaking, she glowered at him. “I went to get this,” she said, holding up the poker. Her hand shook so she held it down again.
Nathan’s frown darkened. “I told you to stay where you were.”
“I was worried about you and my grandmother. I had to do something.” Then she checked him over. “What happened?”
“I’m fine. The prowler ran away and got in a vehicle about a block from here. Carson’s off-duty, working on his own time to see if he can find any prints.”
He took the poker from her. “Are you all right?”
Nodding, she turned toward the breezeway. “I need to check on Granny.”
“I went over there when I couldn’t find you,” he said. “Her door is closed. The lower door is still locked. Everything’s okay over there.”
Nathan’s phone buzzed. “Carson, all clear inside. I’ll meet you at the front door.”
Alisha followed Nathan down the stairs and put in the code to unlock the door.
The deputy came in, shivering and nodding. “So we had a visitor.”
“Yep.” Nathan turned to Alisha. “Alisha, this is my friend Deputy Carson Benton.”
Alisha shook the man’s hand, noticing he was about the same age as Nathan but his hair was clipped and close-cut and he was built like a linebacker. “Thank you for all of your help, Deputy Benton.”
“Call me Carson,” the deputy said with a smile. “Nasty business, but we’ll get things going. The town police will want to get your statement, Miss Braxton. We can do that in the morning.” Then he glanced toward Nathan. “And we can talk more in the morning. I want to help but I’ll need information.”
“Why not now?” Alisha said. “I can’t sleep and it’s quiet here. We can go in the office.”
Carson’s stern expression never changed but his gaze moved to Nathan. Did he have to get the PI’s approval? “I’ll need to call the officers who worked the scene where your car went over. They’ll be the ones working this side of the case.”
“I would expect all of you to follow proper protocol,” Alisha replied, daring Nathan to argue with her.
“You heard the woman,” Nathan said. Then he turned to Alisha. “I know you’re antsy but you’re gonna crash and burn if you don’t get some rest.”
“I want to find these killers,” she replied, moving ahead of them. But she couldn’t deny that she was sinking fast. Turning at the stairs leading down, she waited. “The sooner I get this report done, the sooner I can rest.”
Carson shook his head and shrugged at Nathan. “We all agree on that.” He walked aside to call in one of the officer who’d been on the scene earlier.
Alisha motioned them along the downstairs central hall. Soon they were settled in the big office that used to belong to Admiral Campton. She kept the blinds closed and turned on a desk lamp while she wondered if someone could still be lurking around out there.
Once the other officer arrived, they all sat down across from the desk, quiet and observant until they got down to business.
Officer Cantor looked sleepy, his salt-and-pepper hair thick and unruly. “Once I take your statement, I can work with the state police to get on with this investigation. They’ll put out an APB on the vehicle Nathan described, the same one you saw. The Philly police issued a BOLO on the two suspects who are now wanted for the double homicide that you witnessed and for murdering a police officer and injuring another one, and for your attempted murder. We’ve got men searching the woods but I have to believe whoever showed up here tonight had to have been one of those men. Or both.”
“They might not even realize we came here since my truck is hidden in the garage,” Nathan said. “Maybe they were looking to steal a ride.”
“Or finish the job,” Carson pointed out.
“So let’s start at the beginning,” Officer Cantor said. “I know you told the LEOs back in Philadelphia what happened but whatever information you can give the town police will help them to coordinate with Philly to make sure we’re after the same driver and shooter, got it?”
Alisha nodded. “I’m a lawyer. I’ve got it.”
Carson’s appreciative glance eased her worries a little. She had to wonder what Nathan had told his friend about her. She wondered about a lot of things regarding Nathan Craig. He was back in her world in a big way so she needed to handle this with a logical approach. Not a good time to get all tangled up in the past and what might have been.
For the next few minutes, she talked about what had happened hours ago in Philadelphia. When she was finished, she had no energy left. Retelling the horror of watching two people die had outdone her.
Nathan held up his hand. “That’s enough for now. Alisha needs to get some rest. I’ll stand guard.”
“You need to sleep, too,” she said, glad he was here but still holding out reservations on how this was going to work.
“I don’t sleep much,” he said, his tone quiet, his eyes shuttered.
“Okay.” His friend stood and crossed his arms over his chest while Officer Cantor gathered his things. “You two work out the details on who’s more tired and I’ll get back with you tomorrow to see how you’re doing.”
Alisha didn’t argue. “Thank you, Deputy Benton and Officer Cantor.” Then she added, “You’ll probably hear from the Philadelphia FBI field office. I’m more than willing to talk to them, too.”
“We can arrange that,” Officer Cantor said. “Bring you into the station.”
Nathan walked them to the side door and then came back to where she stood in the hallway. “Okay, upstairs. You need sleep.”
Alisha wanted to fuss at him but fatigue made her dismiss that idea. She had a feeling they’d have lots of discussions before this was over.
When would it be over?
Nathan walked her back to the upstairs door to the carriage house. “Alisha.”
“I’m all right, Nathan. I just want a shower and sleep.”
“Okay.” He turned to go across the breezeway, but pivoted to stare outside, checking. “It’s snowing,” he said.
Alisha looked through the windows on both sides of the wide room. “So it is. I used to stand here on nights like this, waiting for the snow to fall. This has always been a beautiful place, the one place where I felt loved and happy.”
“Alisha,” he said again, something raw in the way he said her name. “I know you don’t want me here but... I can’t leave now. This is dangerous, too dangerous. You have to know that we might not be able to stay here.”
“I might not be able to stay here,” she retorted, her heart battling a mighty war. “You can go on about your business.”
“No, I can’t,” he said, his tone sharp. “I’m in it now. They know my vehicle and they must know I brought you here.”
What if they hurt Nathan? She hadn’t considered that he was in trouble, too. “I shouldn’t have involved you. I wasn’t thinking straight.”
“I don’t mind being involved and I want to find these people, same as you. We have to work together and that means we might have to leave together.”
So he could protect her and seek justice, not because he wanted to be near her. She wished she’d never called him. “But we don’t know who was out there in the yard.”
“Yes, we do. They sent someone here because they know everything about you now. The minute you looked into that hit man’s eyes, they started digging and now you’re on their list.”
“So you believe this was a professional hit?” She’d suspected that herself.
He lifted his chin. “The way you described it, the way they came after you, yes. It had to be.”
Alisha leaned against the door jamb. “This is bad. I should have left and gone far away from here.”
“But you didn’t. I’m glad you didn’t. Now I can help you and protect you... That is, if you let me.”
With that he turned and went to the other side of the rambling old house.
Alisha shivered and closed the door between them, thinking there was a lot more between them than just a hallway in a house.
More like a lifetime of regret and longing across a broken bridge that couldn’t be mended.
God, if you had to send me a hero, thank you for sending this one. Even if I didn’t want him here. Thank You, Lord.
With that prayer centered in her head, she went into the tiny room with the window alcove she’d always loved, showered, threw on some old pajamas then sprawled across the purple chenille spread her grandmother had turned down.
And promptly fell into a troubled, nightmarish sleep.
Nathan sat in a chair by the window in the room across the house from Alisha, his eyes burning from fatigue while he noticed every little thing in the muted darkness below. The snow silenced most of the noises, but years of stakeouts and doing surveillance that kept him up in the wee hours made him tense and alert. He’d told Alisha the truth. He never slept well.
While he sat in the shadows, he remembered the girl he’d fallen in love with. He’d been willing to give up his way of life for this girl but as it turned out, he’d had to give up the Amish community for another reason. That reason had opened a chasm between Alisha and him, all of their dreams shattered and broken in one long horrible night.
A night so different from this one but full of the same kind of fear and angst.
Summer. With a full moon and the world at his feet.
Sitting there, he drifted into sleep, his memories an aching reminder of the family he’d left behind. Just a few miles from here but so far away.
He thought of Alisha with her long golden-brown hair and bright green eyes, laughing in the wind, her sundress long and flowing. He’d been out in the garden right here helping his father work the soil and plant a butterfly garden for Mrs. Campton. Alisha had been visiting her grandmother and she’d been sitting by the pool, reading a book but also watching them at work.
He’d met her briefly once before when her grandmother had come calling at his family’s house. And he’d never forgotten looking into her pretty eyes.
Now she was staring at him, smiling at him.
After he’d clumsily dropped a whole crate of plants and sent dirt flying everywhere, she’d hopped up to help him salvage what he could before his father saw what had happened. They’d become fast friends and Nathan had gone home with a big crush on a girl he was forbidden to like.
“You’re different, Nathan. You’re like no one I’ve ever met.”
He’d felt the same about her. Always.
We were so young and carefree that summer.
And so naive.
Nathan came awake with a start. Had he heard something outside? Or had he been dreaming?
Standing, he grunted in pain, every muscle in his body protesting. Wiping at his eyes, he noticed the time on his watch. Four in the morning. He’d slept in this cushioned chair for over an hour.
Wide awake now, he studied the front yard and saw that it was now covered in snow. No alarms had sounded and the motion-detection lights hadn’t triggered.
He was imagining things.
But his gut told him to be cautious so he washed his face and decided he’d do a walk through the old house and wait for the sun to come up.
For good measure, he grabbed his weapon. He’d been licensed to carry a concealed weapon for years now but he rarely had to use the thing. Still, he’d learned that being out alone in the wee hours could be dangerous.
He padded in his socks up the wide upstairs hallway, the wooden floors creaking here and there underneath his weight.
He made it to the master bedroom and took his time checking on the backyard. It stretched like a white blanket down to the deep creek that ran through this town. He remembered swimming and fishing in that creek with his younger siblings.
“Tag, you’re it.”
“I’ll find you,” Nathan would call to his two younger brothers. He’d always been the one who looked after the kinder.
Then he thought of Hannah.
“Nathan, do not leave us. We love you. You must not leave. What about me, Nathan? I won’t have my big brother. Don’t go. Please don’t go.”
Tears formed in his eyes. He’d left his little sister crying. “I’ll find you, Nathan. I’m come and bring you home.”
Only she’d become the one who’d never returned.
Too many thoughts crowding his mind. He’d never planned to be back here under these circumstances.
Nathan turned back and went downstairs, amazed at the size of this mansion. He checked two other bedrooms and then moved toward the large den where a massive fireplace took center stage. Beyond the den with all of the family portraits and fancy trinkets and treasures, he saw the sunroom that formed a rectangle at the back of the house.
More windows here, rows and rows of them, with two sets of French doors leading out to the terrace and a huge pool that was covered for winter.
The yard looked the same from the lower floor, white and stark against the security lights. But he knew a criminal could be hiding out there, alarms or no alarms.
He headed to the front of the house and went to the dining room window to peek through the heavy curtains.
Then he saw something that had him on high alert again.
A fresh set of heavy footprints had marred the beauty of the new-fallen snow. Someone has passed through the front yard while he’d been moving through the house.
FIVE (#uda613ac7-f9c6-5b42-8ed0-6a1cc5fc147d)
Nathan hurried upstairs and across the breezeway, checking both sides of the yard as he went. Nothing in the back and nothing, no one, in the front. Maybe someone walking to work had cut through the yard, but this place was so stately and secluded he doubted that. The Amish would respect the property and stay on the roads or sidewalks. Anyone else would drive to work. Why would anyone walk through the snow on private property this early in the morning?
Knocking softly on the door, he waited, hoping Alisha would hear and check through the peephole since her room was the closest. When he heard movement behind the door, he did another sweep of the front yard. Other than those glaring, man-size footprints in the powdery white, the world looked serene and safe. Like a Christmas card.
Alisha opened the door, a cup of coffee steaming in her hand, her expression wary. “What are you doing?”
“I couldn’t sleep.” He swept past her. “What are you doing up?”
“I couldn’t sleep much, either. I’ve been up a while.”
Not into small talk, he said, “I saw footprints down in the snow.”
She puttered in thick red socks to the windows of the tiny sitting room across from the big kitchen.
Nathan tugged her back. “Hey, don’t get too close to the windows.”
“I want to see.”
“Trust me—the footprints go right through the yard.”
Giving him a sleepy stare, she said, “What should we do?”
“Nothing for now since they’re gone and we don’t know if they were just passing through or not.” He eyed the coffee.
“Go get a cup,” she said, reading his mind.
Soon, they were nestled in the dainty sitting room. The deep burgundy brocade covering the furniture looked old and comfortable, worn in all the right places but adorned with feminine things like doilies and crocheted blankets. He watched as Alisha curled up with one of the blankets, papers and folders scattered all around her.
Nathan inhaled a sip of the good coffee and then watched her while the brew burned all the way to his stomach. “What have you been working on?”
She gathered the papers and shoved them to the side. “A case regarding a divorce. Nothing for you to worry about.”
“And this?” He pointed to a bullet-point list and skimmed the information. “You’re building a case for what happened last night, right?”
“I’m jotting down things as I remember so I can sort through them, yes.”
“That’s very lawyerly of you.”
She took a long sip of her coffee. “Did you sleep at all, Nathan?”
“No, but the one time I did fall asleep someone decided to take an early morning stroll through the yard. Some bodyguard I am.”
“You don’t have to do this. I don’t expect you to watch me 24/7.”
For a brief instant, he wondered what it would be like to have her around day and night. But he pushed that dream away, like he always did at three in the morning when he ached with loneliness and hopelessness. “I told you already, I want to do this.”
Picking up her list, she studied it for a moment and then dropped it back on the couch. “I stopped there to get coffee last night. I wanted to shop since I’d been so busy. Everything looked so pretty. Like Christmas. I thought it would put me in the spirit.”
Nathan’s heart, so hardened and withered, crumbled a bit. She wasn’t ready or willing to collapse and she sure wouldn’t do it with him in the room. She’d always been strong, sure, secure. Now her world had been shattered.
Now he was back in her world and she would fight him every step of the way. “You can talk to me, you know.”
She bobbed her head in acceptance. “I don’t even know the names of the victims. I mean, I heard the crime scene people talking, but I don’t remember. I remember so many details, so why can’t I recall that? I need to find out who those people were.”
“We can do that,” Nathan said, thinking the shock was still messing with her head. “We’ll get a full report and compare what you told the police to what the police in Philadelphia have. You can stay in contact with all of them, but you don’t have to leave here to do that.”
“We won’t get anything done if we don’t go into action.”
“I say we lie low here today,” he told her. “You need some time with your grandmother. I’ll start digging into things.”
“I want to dig with you.”
“Well, we can do that but first, try to relax and enjoy being here, okay?”
“Is that possible after last night?”
“I said try.”
“I won’t put them in danger.”
“I’m going to map out a way for us to slip out of here if we need to do so. I’ll also coordinate with the police about beefing up security for them if we do run.”
“I don’t plan to spend the rest of my life on the run,” she said. Standing, she held her cup and watched the dawn breaking, careful to stay back from the opening in the drapery. “It looks so peaceful out there, doesn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“But that’s the thing about life. The surface covers so much more. So many undercurrents and hidden things. That couple last night obviously had it all but they knew something—or were hiding something—that caused someone else to want to murder them.”
“Or they could have done things that made someone extremely angry.”
Nathan also wondered if the couple had witnessed events they didn’t need to see or if they’d managed to make dangerous people put a hit on them. Probably both.
Thinking about Alisha’s jaded view of life, he waded through the undercurrents in this room. His chest hurt with trying to breathe while being this close to Alisha again. As grim as it was, working on this murder would help him to clear his head. He’d barely had time to process being in her life again or having her back in his in such a shocking way. The last time he’d seen her here, they’d both wound up working on a missing person case involving an abandoned baby in the Amish community up the road. He’d found the young mother and reunited her with her older brother, who was now married and raising the girl’s baby with his new wife.
He and Alisha had worked together, grudgingly. But they both wanted the same things—justice and helping those in need.
“Are you hungry?” Alisha asked, her gaze touching on his face and moving on.
“Starving.”
“I can cook some eggs and toast. Maybe some bacon.”
“I’d like that.”
They moved to the kitchen and worked in a comfortable silence since Alisha didn’t want to wake her grandmother or Miss Judy. But the smell of coffee and bacon acted like an alarm clock.
“Well, what do we have here?”
Nathan turned to find Alisha’s grandmother smiling at them, hope in her crystal blue eyes. She wore the same robe that covered her from neck to feet and fuzzy reindeer slippers complete with red noses.
“Granny,” Alisha said, smiling for the first time since Nathan had entered the apartment. “Did we wake you?”
“Child, I have been getting up at five-thirty in the morning for most of my life,” Bettye said as she shuffled into the kitchen and found a mug. It read: Be Still and Know. The mug had a butterfly motif on it. “But I have to admit, that bacon smells good.”
Nathan smiled and flipped the bacon onto a plate lined with paper towels. Used to eating solitary meals, he enjoyed the coziness of this kitchen. Too much.
Bettye filled her cup and glanced down the long hallway. “I usually wake Judy around six-thirty. She has a nurse who comes and helps her with her bath and makes sure she’s had her medication. She still insists on dressing for the day—usually in a pastel pantsuit. I fix her a tray for breakfast and make a light lunch, sit with her while I knit or crochet and then I cook supper. We watch television—she loves romantic movies—and I read to her in her room. We lead a pretty boring life.”
“Sounds good to me,” Nathan said while he delivered the bacon with a flourish to the small four-top breakfast table. “Your food is ready, madame.”
Bettye giggled like a schoolgirl and came to sit by him. “It’s so good to see you again, Nathan. I know we run into each other from time to time, but having you here is a blessing despite the reason for you being here.”
Nathan knew Bettye Willis to be a good, faithful woman even though she’d done the same as him—jumped the fence and left the Amish. He appreciated her sweet declaration. She’d found love and happiness in the outside world but she’d sacrificed seeing her Amish family since she’d moved here from another community. Her husband Herbert had been alive when Nathan first met Alisha. A great man with a larger-than-life personality. He had worked for the Camptons, too, as their maintenance man and groundskeeper.
“I’m glad to be here,” Nathan said, glancing at Alisha. “I hope we can find these people before they commit any more crimes.”
Bettye buttered her toast. “I’ll explain to Judy when I go in to wake her. She’s fuzzy in the mornings but once she gets going, she is still wise and spry.”
Alisha sat down beside her grandmother. “Nathan and I plan to work in the main office today, Granny. We want to crack this thing but we have to be watchful.”
“Of course you do,” Bettye said. “I have plenty of supplies for the holidays, so I’ll cook us a hearty supper. Judy loves company and she’s looking forward to seeing you, Sugar-bear.”
Alisha’s eyes widened in embarrassment as she looked over at Nathan, a becoming blush moving over her face.
Nathan couldn’t stop his grin. “You hear that, Sugar-bear? Supper cooked by the best of the best. We’re in for a treat.”
“If you call me that again, you won’t be invited to supper,” she retorted, but her eyes held a twinkle.
Bettye smiled her sweet smile and sipped her coffee.
Nathan remembered calling Alisha that long ago after he’d heard her grandfather calling her Sugar-bear.
And Bettye Willis must have remembered, too, since she looked pretty smug and proud of herself. Matchmaking during a murder investigation.
That was a new one.
Alisha silently cringed while she washed up the breakfast dishes. Sugar-bear? Why had Granny brought up that old nickname?
Maybe because the handsome man sitting at the breakfast table had made her grandmother’s pragmatic mind go completely giddy?
Nathan had that effect on people. Which made him a great investigator since he could get people to talk, but it also made him too dangerous for most women.
She should know. She’d been smitten with him ten years ago and even now, when they were forced to come face to face on cases, she had to fight not to revert back to being a wide-eyed schoolgirl.
Deciding that couldn’t happen, she hurriedly got dressed and gathered her files, shoving them into her briefcase. Her grandmother wanted her to find love and be happy but pushing Nathan back at her wouldn’t take Alisha back down that road. The man had a quest that took all of his time. And she had her own sense of justice which meant long hours and sleepless nights. She was still an associate at the law firm since she’d only been practicing a couple of years. But one day she hoped to make partner. Which reminded her, she needed to call her boss and explain what was going on here before anyone saw it on the news.
“I’m so glad we got to visit,” her grandmother said from the kitchen when Alisha came out of her bedroom. Granny was making cinnamon bread, one of Alisha’s favorites. The place smelled divine.
“So am I,” Miss Judy said from her dainty chair by the small fireplace. “What a good day to stay in and bake.”
Judy sent Alisha a soft smile. Even in old age, Judy Campton as still a regal, beautiful woman. Her hair was white now but clipped in a precise short bob. She wore a blue cashmere sweater and her famous pearls, classic and commanding. “Can you come and sit by me before you head to work, darling?”
“Of course.” Alisha crossed the room to settle on the ottoman by the chair. “I hope we didn’t upset you with our news, Miss Judy. I won’t let anything happen to either of you.”
Judy scoffed at that. “Alisha, your grandmother and I are tough old birds. We’ve seen a lot in our lives. We have faith that God is always in control.”
“His will, not ours,” Bettye echoed, her hands moving with grace over the bread dough. Granny still had the Amish doctrine ingrained in her.
Judy patted Alisha’s hand. “You are safe here. Your grandmother and I will pray all day while you and your handsome protector do what needs to be done. God gave us brains to help in His work, you know. You might be terrified, but He put you in that spot at that time for a reason, Alisha. You fight for the underdogs and you fight for those who can’t help themselves. You will bring these evil people to justice.”
“I hope so,” Alisha said. “It’s something I can’t get out of my mind. I’ve worked a lot of cases since law school but seeing a murder will stay with me a long time.”
“Seeing justice done will help you come to terms with that image,” Judy said. “Now we have security and Mr. Craig has assured me the authorities are aware of the situation. I can rest easy and enjoy all those cute Christmas movies on television. You know, they are so romantic.”
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