“Dad.” Rachel shook the suds off her hands and wiped them on her apron. Then she hugged her father. “I’m glad you’re here. Don’t think you aren’t important to me. I just miss Mom.”
“So do I.” Richard hugged her back. “I know you have concerns about Rebecca. We are friends and I hope we will remain friends. But I am not going to pursue a new relationship or remarry. My heart belongs to your mother. I’m going to do my best to live a life that honors her memory. I’m going to remain devoted to you and your brothers, and your families.”
Rachel sniffled against his shoulder.
“Life can change in an instant.” Richard’s voice shook. “But we have to have hope and look forward. And not waste our time in conflict with those we love. So don’t be angry at your mother because she hasn’t appeared to you. And don’t fight with Scott.”
“I like fighting with Scott.” Rachel’s voice was muffled.
“Could you try to like it a little less?”
“That I could do. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
Father and daughter hugged in the kitchen, while nearby, a candle flickered in the window.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Crack!
Gabriel sat up, his face pointed in the direction of the noise.
“What is it?” Julia asked, clutching the blanket to her naked chest.
Gabriel hushed her, straining his hearing while fumbling for his clothes.
Snap! Another branch broke, sounding closer.
Gabriel stood and yanked on his clothes. Julia did the same, slightly dazed.
As he scanned the tree line, Gabriel perceived what he thought was the beam of a flashlight. It was visible only for a second, and then it was gone.
“Someone is out there,” he whispered, pulling on his coat. “I want you to run back to the house, quick as you can.”
He felt around for the flashlight and began rolling up the blankets.
“We should stay together,” Julia whispered back, thrusting her arms into her coat.
Gabriel helped her to her feet and handed her the flashlight. “No. It could just be a teenager, spying on us. Or it could be something else. I want you to go back to the house. Can you find the way?”
“What else could it be? A deer?”
“There isn’t time,” Gabriel hissed.
Julia noted his agitated tone and decided not to press him. She tucked the blankets under her arm. “Should I call the police?”
“Not yet.” Gabriel kissed her on the forehead and pointed her toward the house. “Run.”
Julia switched on the flashlight and hurried into the woods.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Gabriel sprinted to the tree line. The moon favored him, pouring light above the trees, which dispersed to the ground below.
Noises came from just ahead. Gabriel gave chase, but the figure wasn’t visible nor was any flashlight.
Gabriel knew the woods well. His long legs ate up the distance as he pulled closer and closer to the source of the sounds.
And then the noises stopped.
Gabriel slowed, turning his head in an effort to discern any possible clue. The moon chose that moment to hide and the woods were dark. He could barely see a short distance in front of him.
He stood next to a tree and waited, listening for any movement. A breath of wind whispered through the trees. His heart pounded in his chest.
Someone was out there. Someone had come across him and Julianne in the clearing. Someone who drove a black Nissan was stalking him.
Now he was standing in the woods effectively playing a game of chicken with an unseen intruder.
He inched forward, placing his feet carefully to avoid stepping on a branch. He circled around where he thought the trespasser might be, hoping to use the power of surprise.
But when he came to the center of the circle, there was no one to be found. Unless the intruder had dematerialized, Gabriel must have lost him. After thirty minutes of searching, he gave up.
He switched directions, walking quickly and quietly back to the clearing, and then skirted it, heading toward the house.
He was almost to the edge of the back lawn when he came across something he had not expected—Julianne’s flashlight, still lit, lying on the ground.
Panicking, he cast around until he found her, lying a few feet away.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Oh my God!” Rachel flew from the sink to the back door, suds and soapy water dripping from her hands.
She ran out onto the back deck, just as Gabriel crossed the lawn, carrying Julia in his arms.
“What happened?” Rachel ran to her brother’s side, noting that Julia was conscious, but her pale face was pinched in pain.
“I think she broke her ankle.” Gabriel’s words were clipped, as if he, too, were in pain. His hair was disheveled, his coat streaked with dirt, and mud was spattered across his jeans.
“What about you? Did you fall?”
Gabriel ignored Rachel’s question and brushed past her and Richard, carrying Julia into the house.
Scott, Tammy, and Aaron were all gathered in the kitchen.
“I tripped over a branch.” Julianne gave the group a sheepish look. “And then I couldn’t get up. I would have called for help, but I left my cell phone upstairs.”
“Can you put weight on it?” Aaron stepped forward, a concerned look on his face.
Julia shook her head.
“I’m taking her to the hospital,” Gabriel announced. “But before we go, you should know that I think someone else was out there. I chased them but couldn’t find them.”
“Me and Scott can go outside and look around,” Aaron said.
“Also, keep an eye out for a black Nissan with tinted windows. I saw the same car outside our house in Cambridge and down the street before we went for our walk.”
“You never told me,” Julia whispered. Her eyes met Gabriel’s and he looked away.
“Let me get some ice.” Richard opened the freezer and removed a tray of ice cubes. He placed the ice in a freezer bag, sealed it, and wrapped it in a towel.
Julia took the ice pack gratefully.
“Did you get a license plate?” Scott asked.
“No visible license plate.”
“Should we call the police?” Rachel interjected.