Chapter 24
Sloane
I woke with my heart pounding, disoriented in the pale dawn light. For a moment I couldn’t remember why Knox’s arm was around me, why we were in my bed fully clothed. Then it all came rushing back.
I shuddered, and Knox’s arm tightened.
“You’re safe,” he murmured, still mostly asleep. “I’ve got you.”
But I didn’t feel safe. Not really. Not when I knew a killer was out there somewhere, watching, waiting for another chance.
I eased out from under Knox’s arm, my muscles stiff from sleeping tensed and ready to run.
Every shadow in the room made my pulse spike.
Every creak of the house settling made me flinch.
Last night had proven our security wasn’t enough.
He could get close enough to watch through windows, maybe even cut our power. And we’d been helpless to stop him.
I hurried barefoot to the bathroom, closing the door with a soft click.
My reflection in the mirror was wrecked. Hair tangled, mascara smudged beneath my eyes, wrinkles creasing my top from hours pressed against Knox’s chest.
I ran cold water from the tap over my hands and splashed my face, scrubbed away yesterday’s makeup. I brushed my hair and teeth, the best I could do short of a shower, but I didn’t want the water to wake him if he was able to fall back asleep.
Knox met my eyes when I emerged. Propped against the headboard, eyes tracking my movement across the room, expression unreadable in the dim light.
“Morning.” Knox’s voice was rough with fatigue, deeper than usual. “Sleep okay?”
“Better than I should have, considering.” I perched on the edge of the bed, close without touching him. “Did you get any rest at all?”
“Enough. I’m good.” Knox scrubbed a hand over his face, stubble rasping against his palm. “Nash texted an hour ago. Deputies are maintaining patrols in the area.”
“Did the sheriff say anything about the boot prints?” I asked.
“They’re analyzing them. No new details since last night.” Knox’s jaw tightened. “But the same prints were found near the power line junction box.”
An icy chill coursed over my skin. “What? Why? Did he plan to cut the power?”
“Possibly.”
“Can he do that?”
Knox shook his head. “It won’t matter here. Your home’s equipped with backup generators and the cameras don’t rely solely on the home’s electric grid.”
I slumped. “He probably figured that out and decided to terrorize me with the kite instead. What if he’d tried to get in? What if the new locks hadn’t held?”
“They would have.” Knox pulled me close. “And if they hadn’t, he might’ve been surprised to find Colton and Archer waiting for him.”
I smiled, thankful again for the Marines who’d come the moment Knox called.
Was this what it was like to have a big family?
“We should make them breakfast.”
“Nah. They’re gone. Headed back to my place to get ready for today. I have a good feeling,” he promised. “We’re going to find where he’s hiding. Then the FBI is going to end this.”
“You really think we’ll find him at the ranger station? Even knowing the sheriff has checked there?”
“I think it’s our best lead. And I get the impression this guy is watching everything, especially local law enforcement.
It makes sense that he’d avoid the places on their radar.
Nash says they haven’t been out there in a while, which means he could see it as a safe place now.
Even if it’s just a place to park his van out of sight. ”
Knox pushed a lock of hair behind my ear and caressed my cheek with his palm. “I think he’s getting too bold. Thinking he’s untouchable. That’s when we catch him.”
I turned my face to kiss his palm. “Thank you for sleeping here with me last night. I don’t think I would’ve fallen asleep otherwise.”
Knox laced together our fingers. “I liked holding you.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
Familiar electricity thrummed between us. It lingered in the rumpled sheets, and the memory of his heartbeat beneath my ear. But the daylight had me questioning what was real.
The chemistry was undeniably present, but I wanted more. So, what was I doing? Where was this going? How could it go anywhere if he planned to leave the island when my attacker was found? He’d never said he wouldn’t reenlist or just leave Carolina Bay all together.
Would he stay if I asked him?
Was it wrong that I wanted to ask?
I shook the thought away. The answer didn’t matter, because I wouldn’t do that to him. Whatever Knox did next, it had to be for himself.
And we had bigger problems.
Like the killer currently taunting me.
His phone rang, and I gasped, startled by the sudden sound. I missed the days when normal things like cell phones and dropped frying pan lids didn’t send me into the atmosphere.
Was this my new normal? Would it last forever? I hated the possibility intensely.
Knox grabbed the device from the nightstand.
“It’s Nash,” he said, before raising the phone to his ear. “Hawthorne.” He listened for a moment. “Yeah, we’re both here. Perfect. Bring Maggie if she’s available.”
He ended the call and met my curious gaze. “Nash’s coming here to plan the approach.”
“Then, I’d better get dressed.”
Twenty minutes later, Nash’s patrol car pulled into the driveway, Maggie’s truck right behind it. I let them in and offered coffee.
Nash shook my hand and gave Knox a one-armed man hug. “The FBI made contact again. They’re sending two members of their team our way. Should be here by this afternoon.”
“What’s their plan?” Knox asked, ushering the Sullivans to the kitchen table.
“They want to interview Sloane about the attack. Get her description of her assailant, his methods, anything she remembers.” Nash looked at me. “They also want to know about the shell. When you found it, whether you touched it, how it was positioned.”
My stomach tightened. “I already gave all that information to you.”
“They want it firsthand. And they want to coordinate the search. If we find evidence at the ranger station, it becomes their crime scene, their investigation.”
“So we’re working on borrowed time,” Knox said.
“Exactly. We do this recon today, report what we find, then step back and let the feds handle it.”
Knox and I exchanged a look. We both knew that wasn’t going to be as simple as the sheriff made it sound.
Sheriff Sullivan spread a topographical map of the island across the kitchen table, the old ranger station marked with a red X. “The station’s here, two miles from the nearest access road. Three main trails lead in, plus several unmarked paths commonly used by locals.”
“I know those trails,” Maggie said, leaning over the map. “I used to hike them with Claire. This one’s the easiest approach.” She traced a blue line. “But it’s also the most exposed. Anyone watching would spot you coming from half a mile away.”
I smiled at the pretty blonde. This explained why Knox wanted her here. She knew the trails well.
“What about this route?” Knox pointed to a narrower path coming in from the east. “That one used to have plenty of cover.”
“Harder terrain. Lots of coastal erosion. But you’d have tree cover almost the whole way.” Maggie’s finger followed the path. “There’s a point here where you could observe the station without being seen.”
“What’s the plan?” Knox asked, his tactical mind clearly engaged.
“I want to do reconnaissance first. I’d like you and your team on this,” Sheriff Sullivan said. “Archer at the access road as lookout. You and Colton approach from the east trail, observe from the ridge. If we confirm activity, we can call in state police for the actual raid.”
“When?” I asked.
“Soon.” Nash’s gaze moved between Knox and me. “We’ll post a fresh deputy outside the house to protect Sloane.”
Knox nodded. “Maggie, you can stay here with her. They’ll be safe and Sloane won’t have to be alone.”
“Actually,” I said flatly, flashing a warning look at my protector. “We’ve talked about this, and I’d like to go.”
“That was before last night’s escalation,” Knox argued.
The sheriff met my eyes. “No.”
I stood and motioned to the map. “Three giant Marines hiking to this ridge is going to be suspicious if he’s watching. But a couple out for a morning hike is normal. It makes more sense for me to go. He knows I’m a hiker. It’s what I do.”
“She has a point,” Maggie said. “Folks hike those trails every day.”
Knox shook his head. “Too dangerous. Something could go wrong.”
“I’ll be with you the entire time,” I said. “And this guy has already targeted me. If he sees me hiking with my boyfriend, acting normal, not hiding, it won’t raise alarms.”
Knox and the sheriff exchanged looks.
“It might make even more sense for Maggie and Colton to join us,” I said.
Maggie perked. Her brother scowled.
“I’m in,” Maggie said. “Don’t tell me no, because you know I won’t listen. Little sister trumps sheriff.”
Her brother rubbed his forehead, and Knox looked as if he wanted to laugh, but refused.
I nodded triumphantly at Maggie. She and I were going to make great friends.
We squabbled for a while, until voices were raised and we took a break.
In the end, Maggie and I won.
“Rules,” the sheriff said, his authoritative voice firm.
“You both remain in sight, and preferably within arm’s reach of Colton and Knox at all times.
If Archer or I give reason to abort, you turn and walk away.
And heaven forbid y’all walk up on this guy and he’s armed, the two of you,” he pointed to me, then his sister, “are to run. Leave the men behind and run. Period.”
Knox nodded. “Absolutely that.”
“Understood,” I said.
“Same. What about equipment?” Maggie asked. “If we’re supposed to look like couples out hiking, we need the right gear.”
“I’ve got all of that,” I said. “In droves.”
We spent the next hour reviewing the plan in detail. Radio frequencies and call signs. Contingency protocols if something went wrong. Escape routes. Nash walked us through hand signals and showed us exactly where Archer would be positioned.
When they left, Knox turned to me. “Let’s pack some gear.”
I found everything except a decent light source, and I suspected we could use that inside an out-of-commission ranger station. “Do we have time to run out for a flashlight and batteries? I know I have a dozen, but I have no idea where they all went.”
Knox frowned. “Do you want me to check with Maggie? She might have one. Or we can grab something from Island Adventures.”
I chewed my lip, unsure. “Island Adventures sounds good.”
“All right.” Knox’s lips curved on one side. “Let’s grab a box from Mom’s shop.”
We pulled into the small empty lot in front of Island Adventures a short time later, and Knox jumped out. “Two minutes.” He crossed to the porch in quick strides, then entered the building a moment later.
I dragged out my phone and texted my mom to let her know I was alive and well.
A shadow fell across me, and I started when Walter Lehman approached from my side.
“Ms. Mercer.” He held up his hands immediately. “Sorry, didn’t mean to frighten you. A lifetime in the woods has made me light on my feet, I guess.”
“It’s fine.” I glanced toward the building, but I didn’t see Knox through the window.
“I saw the Jeep and thought I’d say hello.”
I glanced around but didn’t see a vehicle anywhere. Was he out hiking? Watching the store? “Hi.”
“I wanted to apologize for the other day at the store,” he said. “I think I came on a little strong with the offer to help however I could.” His smile was probably meant to be disarming but didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I know Knox is capable, but I like to be helpful, and I know the area.”
Walter shifted his weight, and I became acutely aware we were alone. “Claire and I had our differences, but she was a good woman. The work she was doing, looking for those missing girls? That was admirable.”
“She cared about people.”
“She did.” Walter’s gaze held mine a beat too long before traveling over my face and shoulders. “You care too, I can tell. Going out there with Knox, trying to finish what Claire started. That’s brave.” He scanned my face. “You strike me as someone who’s careful. Aware of her surroundings.”
The phrasing sent ice down my spine. As if he’d been testing whether I noticed him watching me.
“I try to be,” I said, keeping my voice steady.
“That’s good.” He nodded, never breaking eye contact.
I opened my mouth, but words failed, and my hands began to shake.
He glanced at the building, then the backpacks on the back seat. “Well, I should let you get back to whatever you’re up to today. Better tell that Marine to keep you a little closer. This island isn’t as safe as it used to be.”
Walter moved down the nearby trail toward the sound behind Island Adventures, swallowed quickly by bushy grasses and the limbs of ancient trees.
Knox appeared in the next second, exactly two minutes had passed on the dashboard clock. He locked the door and headed my way, his features bunching into a frown. “What’s wrong?”
“Walter was here. He was waiting for us,” I said. “No vehicle. He just appeared. Like he knew we’d come.”
Knox’s expression went cold and dangerous. His eyes lifted to the world beyond the Jeep. “I was gone like ninety seconds. Did he touch you?”
“No. But Knox, he saw the backpacks, he knows we’re going hiking.”
Knox pulled out his phone. “Let’s make sure we aren’t walking into a trap.”