27. Chapter Twenty-seven
Katie awoke in the Harts’ guestroom just like the mornings after the funeral. O’Malley was curled up near her shoulder. She rolled to her side to pet him, earning the cute little noise he made whenever he wasn’t expecting it. She thanked God he was all right, but the memory of last night left her cold. It was all so disturbing. Ethan had suggested she sleep here until they could investigate further.
Evelyn and Tom had no problem with her bringing O’Malley with her. If Christopher was hanging around the cottage, the last thing she wanted was to leave O’Malley there alone again. She shuddered to think of how Christopher had come into possession of the poor, deceased cat and wouldn’t put anything past him.
Uncertainty twisted a tight knot in her middle. It had to have been her brother who left the cat, but now what? He was trying to scare her into giving up her claim to Grandma’s estate, but what would happen if she refused? The last thing she’d ever wanted was to get on his bad side.
With a heavy sigh, she slid out of bed and dressed. When she left the room, she closed the door to keep O’Malley in with his food and litter box. Downstairs, she didn’t find anyone in the living room or kitchen and realized she hadn’t even looked at the clock to see how early it was. She thought everyone might still be asleep at first but then caught the quiet hum of voices from the porch. Letting herself out, she found Ethan and his dad sitting with mugs of coffee.
Their morning greetings were subdued, and they both looked at her as if gauging how she felt. Tom then pushed to his feet.
“I’m going to top off my coffee. You can sit here.”
Katie thanked him and sank into the chair as he disappeared into the house. She looked over at Ethan, who was studying her.
“How did you sleep?”
“All right, I guess.” She wrapped her arms around herself despite the warm air. “I just feel really unsettled. You’re sure there’s no way that cat could have gotten there without someone deliberately putting it there?”
He gave her a regretful look. “I’m sure.”
It had to be Christopher, then. No one else would have a reason except for her mom and Grant, and they wouldn’t do something that deranged and morbid.
“I think you should report it to the authorities.”
Katie rubbed the goosebumps that rippled up her arms at his suggestion. Getting the police involved made it all feel too real and dangerous. “I’m not sure what good it will do. We can’t prove it was Christopher.”
“I know, but I think it would be good to report it and the text to establish Christopher as a potential threat. It will help if he continues to harass you and you need a restraining order.”
She sighed, weariness sinking deep into her soul. “I suppose you’re right.”
“I’ll give Eric a call after breakfast. I don’t think you’ve met him yet. He works most Sundays, so he’s not at church often, but he’s a friend and a deputy. I know he’ll take the situation seriously. I think you should tell him everything, even about Grant. That way, he’ll have the whole picture.”
The goosebumps intensified. Throughout her childhood, thoughts of telling the police about Grant had tiptoed through her mind, but she had always been too terrified to go through with it. What if they hadn’t believed her? What if Grant had talked his way out of any charges? What would he have done to her then? Those fears had paralyzed her, and she knew her hesitation now stemmed from that fear still being rooted deep inside despite being an adult. But maybe Ethan was right. Maybe it was finally time for the truth to come out.
Katie’s stomach cramped at the sight of the police cruiser pulling up in front of the cottage. After breakfast, she and Ethan had brought O’Malley back home and looked around for evidence or clues that someone had been here last night. Other than the cat, they’d found nothing amiss.
Drawing a deep breath, Katie rose from one of the wicker chairs, where she and Ethan were waiting on the porch. Ethan led the way to the squad car, and a man stepped out. Katie recalled seeing him once at church. He reminded her a bit of a Puerto Rican youth pastor she’d known back in California, and that helped settle her nerves, along with his calming smile.
Ethan welcomed him first with a handshake and friendly exchange before introducing him to Katie. He greeted her with the same friendliness.
“Ethan said you’re having trouble with your brother.”
Katie dragged in another deep breath. Now that it was time to share, she hardly knew where to begin. “Yeah, I think he’s trying to intimidate me into giving up the cottage and money our grandma left me.”
She launched into an explanation, starting with the day at the attorney’s office and then here at the cottage when Christopher had tried to punch Ethan.
“My mom and stepfather have been pretty aggressive about it since then, but I hadn’t heard from Christopher again until he texted me out of the blue five days ago. He didn’t make any direct threats, but the text was awful. Then, this cat showed up last night. I have an orange tabby inside, so I thought it was him when we first drove up, which I’m sure was intentional.”
“Is there any reason why he might suddenly be escalating matters?”
Katie exchanged a look with Ethan. Chances were it was because Grant’s attempt had failed, and they were now facing the fact that they wouldn’t get what they wanted. “There’s a lot more to this than just my inheritance.” She gathered her resolve, though to speak the words took effort. “My stepfather, Grant, abused me as a child. I’m sure that’s where Christopher gets his tendencies from.”
Now that the truth was out, she relayed the confrontation with Grant and how it might have triggered Christopher to act. By the time she had finished, Eric was shaking his head.
“I know I’m here about your brother, but if you want to press charges against your stepfather, it sounds like trespassing and at least assault. Probably battery since he grabbed you and took your phone.”
Katie breathed hard against the weight of that decision. She wanted to believe everything would turn out in her favor, but pressing charges would be going to war against Grant. All things considered, she wasn’t sure it was a war she’d win in the end.
“Honestly, I just want nothing more to do with him. I want him out of my life. If I go after him, I’m afraid he’ll find a way to drag me into a legal mess. I still believe he’ll stay away now, but if he ever shows up again, then I’ll press charges. Christopher is the one I’m worried about. Grant knows he’s on thin ice, but Christopher is a loose cannon. I don’t know what he’s capable of.”
Eric nodded as if he understood the complications. “Can I see his text?”
Katie opened it and handed him her phone.
“Do you know what kind of vehicle he drives?”
“No. I barely know anything about him. The funeral was the first time I’ve seen or talked to him in ten years.”
Eric glanced over at the dead cat, seeming to think it over before focusing back on her. “Can you give me your brother’s phone number?”
“Sure.”
She opened the contact and let him put it into his phone. He also asked for her mom’s.
“Give me a few minutes. I’m going to check into some things.”
He turned and walked back to his squad car. Katie looked at Ethan, nervous energy buzzing inside her.
He gestured toward the cottage. “Why don’t we go sit down?”
She nodded and followed him to the bench nestled up against the porch. Taking a seat, she rubbed her arms. Despite the warm air, a chill covered her skin.
“I don’t like how real and ominous this makes everything feel.”
Ethan put his hand on her shoulder and rubbed it gently with his thumb. “I know, but I think it’s important you report it, just in case things escalate further.”
A little while later, Eric exited his car and approached them again. Katie and Ethan stood to meet him.
“Well, I tried calling Christopher to see what he had to say about his whereabouts last night, but he didn’t answer—big surprise. So I called your mom. She insists he’s in Lake Geneva with friends. Of course, she has no way to confirm this. I got the make and model of his car, though. It’s a green Toyota Camry, so you can be on the lookout for that. After some digging, it turns out he already has an active restraining order against him. Looks like it was issued on behalf of an ex he got too aggressive with. He also has various drug possession charges, but it looks like he got off easy on them, no doubt because of his father.”
“So what does that mean?”
Eric looked at her regretfully. “Unfortunately, it doesn’t mean anything other than to confirm he is someone you should watch out for. I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do at this point without a direct threat. I hate having to tell you that. I wish I could do more.”
It was just as she expected. “I understand. I figured as much.”
“I’ll keep him on my radar. If he sends any more texts, let me know. In the meantime, I suggest getting one of those doorbell cams or another security camera to monitor who drives in.”
Katie nodded. She’d already been thinking that would be a good idea.
Katie spent another night with the Harts, but when Ethan installed her security camera, she returned to the cottage. She remained on edge at first, especially at night, and she hated keeping her doors locked all the time again, but the paranoia slowly wore off as the days passed.
They celebrated Father’s Day with an entire afternoon out on the lake that involved swimming, tubing, fishing, and everything she’d always loved about summer. Ethan started on her shelves on Monday and had come over every afternoon for an hour or so to work on them. Now, by Friday afternoon, he was over half finished. Katie loved how they were taking shape and how she could sort out all her fabrics and supplies.
While he worked, she sat at her sewing table, putting the finishing touches on her dress for the wedding. The pleated bodice and handkerchief-style skirt had come together even better than she imagined, and she couldn’t wait to wear it tomorrow.
During their conversation, they discussed Joel’s kids and how they compared to when they were young.
Katie raised a brow at him as they talked about how Marshall had nearly shoved Charlie off the pontoon and how siblings could be to each other. “You know, you weren’t always nice to me either.”
Ethan gave her an exaggerated frown. “What?”
“Don’t play dumb. You and Joel got into your ‘no girls allowed’ moods and tried to exclude me, Becca, and Megan. And you said I had cooties.”
This drew a smirk from him. “Girls do have cooties.”
Katie snorted. “If anyone has anything, it’s boys. Boys are gross.”
“Yeah, okay.” There was laughter in his voice. “I better not kiss you then.”
Silence followed that statement. They both froze until Ethan shook his head as if brushing it off.
“Because, you know, that would be weird.”
He went back to work, but Katie was still trying to wrap her mind around what he’d said. It was such an odd concept…except why was she looking at him now and wondering what it would be like if he did kiss her? If he came over and put his hand on her cheek like he had at the attorney’s office when she was having a panic attack…
She jerked her eyes away from him, flames bursting to life across her face. What on earth was she thinking? Ethan was her best friend, and she already had a boyfriend. She’d clearly taken leave of her senses. Ethan had focused on his work, but what if he saw her blushing? How would she explain such a reaction to his joke? She drew a shallow breath, trying to focus on something other than her complete and utter lapse in sound thinking. She cleared her throat as discreetly as possible and prayed her voice didn’t betray her.
“So, what time is the wedding tomorrow?” Of course, she already knew the answer…at least she did when her brain was functioning correctly, but she needed something to redirect her thoughts. She focused on the fabric in front of her in case Ethan looked at her and found any lingering blush on her face.
“The ceremony starts at four. It’s about a half an hour drive, so I think we’re all planning to leave at three.”
Thankfully, she didn’t pick up anything odd in his voice and breathed a little easier. She had no idea how she would have explained what had just happened if he’d asked. She didn’t even know how to explain it to herself.