Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
“ Y ou slept together?”
Aspen huffed as she coated her toenail in pink polish. “Don’t say it like that.”
“Like what?”
Aspen eyed the phone on the coffee table. Her best friend was on speaker, but they still had to compete with the rain outside to hear each other. “Like we did more than just sleep. We didn’t. He carried me to bed. I was half asleep and feeling sorry for myself, so I asked him to stay. And he did.”
“Of course he did. When a beautiful woman asks a red-blooded male to sleep in her bed, he’s not going to say no.”
“He’s been torturing me ever since.” A week had passed since that morning. An entire week of torture. “Three times, I’ve caught him walking around shirtless, his perfect washboard abs out for the world to see. And yes, before you say it, I know this is his house, but I just feel like shouting at him to cover up his glorious body.”
Callie laughed as if she was joking…she wasn’t.
“Where is he tonight?” Callie asked.
Aspen’s gaze went to the window. It was dark and wet. “Working. I just hope he doesn’t get home too late. The storm’s expected to be bad.”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m warm and dry. But unfortunately, it had already started raining when I realized I don’t have food.”
“Jesse wouldn’t have left you at home in a storm without food or a car.”
No, he wouldn’t. Her gaze shifted to the note he’d left on the counter…the one about the pasta he’d said she was welcome to help herself to in the fridge. “I don’t want to eat his food.”
“Why not?”
“He already gives me cheap rent.” Like dirt cheap. She’d actually fought him on the amount, but he’d refused to accept more. “I can’t eat his food too.”
“So you’re just going to not eat?”
“Of course not. It’s Cheap Tuesday at Burt’s Pizzeria. I ordered a pepperoni.” She finished her little toe and capped the bottle of nail polish.
“Wait, aren’t the pizzas there supposed to be really bad?”
“ Really bad. I’m intrigued and kind of excited to try it.”
“You’re such a weirdo.” Callie sighed. “I miss you so much.”
Aspen lifted the phone and leaned back on the couch. “I miss you too. How’s the morning sickness?”
“It’s awful. Lock made this curry the other night, which I usually love , but the second I stepped into the house, I got sick just by the smell of it. He’d spent so much time making it, but the second I reappeared, it was gone, the windows were open, and there was a takeout menu on the counter.”
Aspen cringed. “I’m sorry. But on the bright side, you’ve got yourself a good man.”
“The best.” There was a small pause. “Are you doing okay with your mom there?”
“Well, I haven’t heard from her in a few days, so I’m hoping she’s left.” It was probably wishful thinking, but she could hope.
“I’ll let you know if I see her around here.”
“Thank you.” The line started to cut in and out just as the doorbell rang. “Oh, pizza’s here. And I think I’m losing signal with the storm.”
“Okay. I can’t wait to hear how disgusting it is. Chat—”
The call cut out.
At least she’d gotten a good twenty-minute conversation with her best friend first.
She rose from the couch and grabbed some cash from her purse. When she opened the front door, a tall, wet, bleach-blond shaggy-haired teenager stood in front of her.
She smiled at him. “Hi.”
“I have a pepperoni pizza for an Aspen.”
“That’s me.” She handed him the cash, and he gave her the pizza.
He turned to look at something over his shoulder before turning back to Aspen. “Do you know there’s a guy in his car on the street watching your house?”
Her back straightened and she looked over his shoulder. “There is?” That was kind of creepy.
“Yeah. Want me to talk to him? See who he is?”
“Oh, no, you…please don’t—”
“It’s fine. I don’t mind.” He turned and walked toward the car before she could stop him.
She called for him to come back, but her voice was drowned out by the rain.
Dammit. What if the guy was dangerous?
She watched the kid move toward the car, nerves running down her spine. If the person was dangerous, she had no idea what she would actually do. There was no phone service, and she didn’t have a weapon. But she couldn’t just walk away. The kid was only a teenager.
It was too dark to see the make or model of the car. Hell, if someone asked her the color, all she’d say is that it was dark…maybe black or navy blue? And there was no way she could see the person inside.
Her heartbeat sped up as the kid drew closer to the vehicle.
He was only a couple feet away when the headlights turned on and the car sped away.
Water splashed the kid, and he flipped the car off before heading back to his own.
A slight chill ran over her skin as Aspen closed the door, making sure it was locked. Who was the person in the car? And were they really watching her?
No. The kid must have been confused. It was probably just someone waiting out the storm.
She moved back into the house and closed the curtains before sitting on the couch. Trying to take her mind off it, she scrolled through Netflix, picking a random movie she’d never heard of before opening the pizza box. A romantic comedy and pizza…exactly what she needed.
She took one bite of the pepperoni pizza and involuntarily made a face.
Good God, it was as bad as everyone said. The dough was soggy but also burnt, the tomato sauce was flavorless, and the cheese…it tasted kind of off, but also, kind of tangy.
Gross.
Burt must be really nice for people to keep this place in business.
She took two more bites, because maybe it would get better…
Nope. She couldn’t do it. She tossed the slice back into the box.
Lightning flashed and thunder immediately boomed outside, making her jump, and the lights flickered.
Chill out, Aspen. It’s just a storm.
The words had only just whispered in her head when everything went dark. The lights. The TV.
Looked like she wasn’t watching that movie tonight.
Blindly, she reached for her phone on the coffee table and turned on the flashlight. When she could finally see, her gaze shifted to the front door. She could check the power box, but that would involve going outside into the rain in the middle of a storm.
No, thank you.
She checked the time. Eight thirty. Technically too early for bed. Well, actually, there was no technically about it. It was far too early…for her, anyway. Maybe she could do some writing before she slept. She’d been on a roll lately, which was good because, boy, did she have some catching up to do.
Pointing the flashlight in front of her, she put the pizza in the fridge and went to her room.
She opened her laptop and pressed the power key. Then her fingers started moving. Sometimes it was like this. She’d often thought of it as magic. Her mind just took over and a story moved from her head to paper, a bit like a movie.
Sometimes she wondered where the story ideas came from. Sometimes she wondered if it was from developing a really good imagination as a kid, kind of like a form of escapism from a mother who’d been mentally unwell.
But other times she wondered if it was just the romantic in her trying to create a happy ever after for everyone.
She got about an hour of work in before the battery died.
Great .
Maybe this was the universe telling her she needed an early night tonight.
She changed into her pajamas and slid into bed. Closing her eyes, she tried to sleep, but the sound of the rain pounding against the windows was loud.
She grabbed a pillow and pressed it over her head.
Nope. That didn’t help.
She was just taking it off her face when her eyes caught on the window. She hadn’t closed the curtains, and right there, on the other side of the glass, was the outline of a person.
“You still pissed at me?”
Jesse shot a glance at Luke before turning back to the road. “No.”
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“Because you still feel like shit about what you did.”
“Hm. Nope. That’s not it. I think it’s the scowl on your face.”
He turned right, the rain making it hard to see the road in front of the car. “I’m scowling because I don’t like Aspen being home by herself in this storm.” And it was just getting worse by the minute. At least he could go home after this callout.
“Ah, I see.”
Jesse frowned. “What do you see?”
“You want to be cuddling your cute roommate on the couch while listening to the rain outside. Romantic.”
“Don’t call her cute.” It sounded wrong coming from him.
“Sexy?”
“I’m not talking about Aspen. Are you back to dating Margot?” The two had been hanging out a lot together around the station.
He lifted a shoulder. “On and off.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means we’re not exclusive. We see each other when we want to see each other.”
“So you’re sleeping with other people too?”
“When we feel like it.”
Jesus . They worked together. It was never going to end well.
“Hey. She’s just as against the idea of an exclusive relationship as I am.” He looked at the GPS. “So this is an Airbnb?”
“Yeah, the owner of the house is away right now, but he has external cameras. They’re on his listing, so anyone who stays there already knows about them. But apparently the person there right now covered the cameras. When he contacted them, asking for the cameras to be uncovered, they did, but then the Wi-Fi went out and the cameras went offline.”
“Could be the storm?”
Jesse shook his head. “Happened before the storm.”
“What are they trying to hide?”
“My thoughts exactly.”
He pulled up in front of the log cabin. The curtains were drawn, but faint light came from the windows. Someone was home.
Jesse climbed out and jogged through the rain toward the door, Luke close behind him. He lifted his fist and knocked. Immediately, a noise sounded from inside. Footsteps against wooden floorboards…but not toward the door.
A few seconds passed. When no one answered, Jesse knocked again before calling, “This is Sheriff Hayes and Deputy Pine. We know someone’s inside. We need you to answer the door. If you don’t, we will be entering the premises. We have permission from the owner.”
It was only technically true. George, the owner, hadn’t told them to enter, but he’d wanted Jesse to do everything he could to get the cameras back up and running.
Another few seconds passed. Jesse almost lost hope of the person inside coming out, but then footsteps sounded again and the door swung open.
Jesse frowned. “Karen?”
Aspen’s mother put a fist on her hip. “What do you want?”
“What are you still doing here in Amber Ridge?”
“Unless there’s a law that says I have to get out of town, I’d say that’s none of your business.”
Luke’s gaze shifted between them. “You two know each other?”
“This is Aspen’s mother,” Jesse said between gritted teeth.
Karen lifted a brow. “You never answered my question. What do you want? This Airbnb is paid for. I’ve done nothing wrong.”
“You covered the cameras—”
“Then un covered them,” Karen cut in.
“Did you then tamper with the Wi-Fi?”
The flare of her eyes gave Jesse his answer, contradicting the shake of her head. “No. I didn’t.”
“We need to take a look at the Wi-Fi router inside the house.”
“No. I’m renting this place, and I don’t give you permission to come onto the property.”
“Actually, by tampering with the Wi-Fi and effectively turning off the external cameras, you’re breaking the terms and conditions that you agreed to when renting this cabin, so unless you let us in to look at the router, we’ll need you to leave immediately.”
Her eyes narrowed. “ Fine . But checking the Wi-Fi is all I give you permission to do. You check it and you leave.” She turned and walked toward the kitchen counter, leaving the door open.
“Is there something you don’t want us to see?” Jesse asked as he followed her.
“No.”
Why did that answer come unnaturally quick?
Karen stopped beside a shelf in the kitchen where the Wi-Fi box sat.
Luke picked it up, and they both saw the damaged cord at the same time.
“Did you do this?” Luke asked.
“No. Maybe it was a rat. I’ve seen them scurrying around here. I could probably get a partial refund because of this.”
Jesse almost laughed. “Looks like scissors.”
“Well, if someone cut it, it wasn’t me.” She raised a brow, challenging him to argue with her.
Jesus, the woman didn’t make this easy. “I’m going to send Claudia out here, one of my deputies, to fix this router.” It wasn’t in their job description, but seeing as this involved Aspen’s mother, he was making it their job. “Once the Wi-Fi is up and running again, I don’t want any more problems with the external cameras. Do you understand?”
Karen’s lips pressed together. “Are you trying to insinuate something, Sheriff Hayes ?”
She knew exactly what he was insinuating, and she also knew it was true. Jesse just didn’t know what it was that she didn’t want anyone else to see.
Luke cleared his throat. “We just need your confirmation that there won’t be any more problems, ma’am.”
Her gaze shifted to Luke, but there was an air of defiance in her expression. “There won’t be any more problems of my doing.”
Interesting choice of words. “You got your return ticket booked for Misty Peak?”
Karen rounded the counter and moved to the door, where she tugged it open. “Have a good evening, gentlemen.”
Jesse’s jaw clicked, and he headed outside.
Once in the car, Luke shot a look at him. “That was a bit frosty. Not in good relations with the in-law?”
“Call Claudia. Get her out here immediately. I want the Wi-Fi back up and running as soon as possible.”
Luke pulled out his phone.
Jesse drove faster than he should have back to the station. He wanted to get to Aspen, and he wanted to get to her fast . The storm was getting worse, and something in his gut told him he needed to be with her.
When he reached the station, he didn’t get out. “Do me a favor and write up the paperwork on this one for me. I need to get to Aspen.”
Luke frowned but dipped his head. “Sure thing.”
The second Luke was out, Jesse drove to his house, glad he didn’t live too far. He tried calling her on the way, but it went straight to voicemail.
He parked in the drive and jogged through the rain to the door. The lights were out down the entire street. The power must have gone out. He checked his phone.
No signal. Dammit, she’d been home alone with no power and no signal. That wasn’t fucking safe.
He’d just opened the door when a scream pierced the air.
Aspen’s scream.