Chapter 16
Hailey felt the blood drain from her face.
She could have died in that trunk. True, during the ordeal, she’d known the men could kill her at any moment.
Up till now, however, she’d been too concerned about Jenna’s safety to consider how close she herself had probably come to heatstroke.
Thank you, God, for sending Peter when you did.
“Earlier, you said they threatened you. Do you remember their exact words?”
She squeezed her eyes shut. “When I was pinned against my SUV, the guy with the knife said, ‘You’re not wanted here. Get out of Kincaid, or you will regret it.’”
“‘Get out of Kincaid,’” he repeated. “And you have no idea why?”
“Nothing that makes sense.” Should she mention the possibility that someone had a grudge against her because of Wesley?
That was the best theory she had, but such dramatic escalation felt off.
Slashing her tires or vandalizing her house was one thing.
Even the office break-in could perhaps be a ploy to ruin what reputation she had left—though that felt like a stretch.
Being willing to risk her death to make sure they wouldn’t have to see her around town?
It just didn’t ring true. This was Kincaid, for crying out loud.
Before she could decide, another vehicle rounded the bend from the direction of town, interrupting her line of thought.
Though it was unmarked and the driver’s identity was obscured by the late-afternoon sun glinting off the windshield, she could see flashing lights inside.
That had to be Eric. Still, Hailey’s and Peter’s eyes remained riveted to the mirrors as the car eased into the spot Randi had vacated.
When her cousin’s fiancé stepped from the vehicle a moment later, she breathed a sigh of relief.
Jenna had fallen asleep in her arms, and Hailey couldn’t bear to let her go yet. Instead, she pushed the door open but remained seated as Eric approached. Peter, however, exited the car and circled to join them on her side of the vehicle.
“Thanks for coming, Eric,” she said when he reached them.
“Of course.” He looked her up and down, and his expression darkened. “That’s going to be a wicked-looking bruise. You hurt anywhere else? Is Jenna?”
“No, Jenna’s fine. I have a few other bumps and bruises from where they grabbed me and tossed me in the trunk, but nothing serious.”
“The trunk? Of this car?” His eyes flashed with outrage, and he snapped his gaze to Peter.
“No. That one.” She pointed to the sedan in front of them.
Still looking at Peter, he said, “And where were you?”
“Home.” Peter kept his voice measured. “Hailey called me right after the accident occurred, and when we lost contact, I headed this way and called it in. I didn’t know what was happening, but I’d heard sounds of a scuffle before the call dropped, and I knew something was wrong.”
“I dropped my phone when I got out of the Explorer. I’m not sure what happened to it,” she explained.
Again, Eric’s gaze shifted between the two of them, and she could see the gears turning as he realized she’d called Peter first, rather than the police or a family member.
She hoped he didn’t ask why. She wasn’t sure she even knew why she’d done it—only that in her post-collision confusion, it had seemed easier to call the first number that came up than to try to figure out who she was supposed to call.
All she knew for sure was that she didn’t regret the decision.
She was really glad Peter was here with her.
Thankfully, Eric didn’t sidetrack them to that topic. After calling for two tow trucks to take the wrecked vehicles back to the police station for analysis, he pulled out his notebook and pen, then focused his attention on her once more. “What happened? Randi didn’t tell me much.”
She launched into her story again. Now that she’d had more time to calm down and get her thoughts straight, she was able to relate the account more coherently and with better detail than she’d been able to give Peter.
She finished with what she’d been about to tell him when Eric’s arrival had interrupted her.
“Right before they closed the trunk, one of them told me this was my last warning.”
A moment of silence fell between them at that revelation. But it wasn’t a comfortable silence. Both men looked like they were barely holding on to their tempers.
She could relate. Until Peter had rescued her, she’d been too terrified to be angry, but now she was furious.
Those men had traumatized her daughter and endangered both their lives.
If she hadn’t already called Peter, who knew how long it would have taken before they’d been discovered?
Even with the windows down, Jenna could have become dangerously dehydrated, or someone could have come along and snatched her while Hailey was powerless to do anything.
Or an unsuspecting driver could have come by and plowed into their vehicles at full speed.
Peter was the first to speak. “I don’t know what’s going on here, but I don’t like it.” If she hadn’t been so angry, she might have laughed at the understatement.
But his comment served to get them going again, and Eric started in with his questions: Had she recognized the men? Could she describe them or the other vehicle? Had they said anything else? Did she get the license plate of the hatchback? When had she noticed it behind her?
Unfortunately, she had little of that sort of information to pass on.
She’d been slightly discombobulated in the first few minutes after the crash, and once the men appeared, everything else had happened quickly.
She hadn’t even thought to look for a license plate number as they were dragging her away.
And despite the heat, the men had worn masks and gloves, long sleeves too.
The one who’d held a knife to her had been about half a head taller than she was and had blue eyes, but those were the only distinguishing features she’d been able to see. Except—
“Oh, I almost forgot! The other guy’s sleeve must have ridden up when they put me in the trunk. I caught a glimpse of an expensive-looking watch and part of a tattoo.”
“That could be really helpful,” Eric said. “Which arm? And where exactly was the tattoo located?”
“It was just above his left wrist. I think it was some sort of cat—made me think of a puma, but I couldn’t see enough of it to be sure.”
“Just the head or the entire animal?”
“I’m assuming the whole thing. The part I saw had the feet and a tail. It looked like it was perched on a rock.”
Eric jotted the information down, then clicked his pen a couple of times. “You said they claimed you hadn’t been listening to their warnings. Do you think they were talking about the messages left on your car and garage, or could this be in reference to something else?”
“I can only assume that’s what they’re talking about.” It made the most sense.
“What about the man who accosted you two days ago?” Peter asked.
Eric’s eyes narrowed. “You neglected to mention that yesterday.”
With everything else going on, she’d almost forgotten about the parking lot incident.
She considered the question, then shrugged.
“I have no idea if that’s related or not.
He was probably just blowing hot air.” She met Eric’s gaze.
“It was Oscar Redmond. Apparently, he blames me as much as Wesley for what happened last fall. He cornered me in the grocery store parking lot and went on a tirade about how I should have left town when Wesley died.” She swallowed hard.
She knew her reputation had suffered as a result of her husband’s actions, but Oscar had been the only one to accuse her outright.
But why now? The harm Wesley had done had been over with for months, and as far as she knew, his actions hadn’t directly impacted Oscar in any way even back then. If anyone had a reason to still be angry over her late husband’s actions, it would be Eric and Allye.
“What Wesley did isn’t your fault,” Eric said, as if sensing the direction her thoughts had gone.
She nodded, appreciating the reminder, though she still felt guilty for not seeing the signs before everything came to a head. She glanced at Peter, curious about his thoughts on the matter, but she only saw compassion in his eyes.
“Any chance Oscar could have been one of the guys who ambushed you?” Eric continued.
“No. Neither of them were even close to his size.” That she was sure of.
“But he does drive a truck that looks an awful lot like the one that cut you off yesterday,” Peter said.
She blinked. She’d chalked that incident up to a reckless driver and hadn’t given it another thought. Could it have been on purpose?
Eric clicked his pen once more before slipping it back into his shirt pocket. “I think I’ll pay him a visit. See if he knows anything.” From his tone, she suspected he’d probably give the man a lecture about harassing people too.
Jenna shifted in her arms, and Hailey glanced down at her. The sleeping girl still looked flushed, with sweat matting her strawberry blond hair to her forehead. Anger rushed through her again. Coming after Hailey was one thing, but these people never should have endangered her daughter.
“What are you going to do about the threats?”
Frown deepening, she returned her attention to Eric. “I don’t know what they expect me to do. Pack up and move? Just flee for my life and never come back?”
“That sounds like exactly what they want.”
She blew out a frustrated breath. “Moving isn’t that simple.”
Eric’s tone softened. “I know. You could leave temporarily though. Just until we figure out what’s going on.”
“And how long will that take? I can’t afford to stay in a hotel.
I guess I could stay with my parents, but I don’t know if whoever this is would be satisfied with that scenario.
And what about my job? I have a little vacation time accrued, but once that’s gone, it’s gone.
I can’t afford to take a leave of absence. ” She paused for a breath.
“I understand,” Eric said. “But if this threat is credible—and it seems like it is—”
“You can’t afford to ignore it,” Peter finished. “Everything you said is valid, but your life is more important than anything else.”
Some of her anger faded. Slightly. “I realize that.” But that didn’t mean she had any idea how she’d manage without her income, particularly if the people after her didn’t consider her parents’ home to be far enough removed from Kincaid.
It wasn’t like she could afford a trip out west or overseas to stay with one of her siblings—even ignoring the strain a long trip would put on her job situation, traveling that far with a toddler was neither cheap nor easy.
She fixed her eyes on Peter. “You used to be a bodyguard, right? How would you handle this if I were a client?” A flash of—what? Pain? Or panic maybe?—crossed his face. But as quickly as it appeared, it was gone. Had she imagined it?
He rubbed his chin. “It’s complicated and really depends on the situation.
If you were coming in for a consult, I’d advise you to carefully weigh your options and the risks.
We don’t know why these people want you gone, only that they do.
They’ve given no indication that they truly want you dead, which leads me to believe that if you comply, they’re not going to follow you.
” He glanced at Eric, who nodded in agreement.
“So leaving, at least for long enough to let the police investigate, would be safest.”
She didn’t like that answer, and she didn’t bother to hide it. “I still don’t know how complying with their demand for more than a couple days is feasible.”
“Avoiding dangerous scenarios is the first line of defense. Take the few days you can manage first. See how far the investigation can get. If staying away longer than that isn’t possible, you could hire personal protection at that point.
That way you’ll have someone to accompany you when you go out and keep watch when you’re at home, someone trained to watch for dangerous situations and get you out of them before they happen or protect you if they do.
But even the best of the best can’t offer a one hundred percent guarantee. ”
She huffed. “That’s a moot point anyway. I can’t afford a bodyguard at all—much less the best of the best.”
He nodded slowly. “The next best thing would be to take the same sort of precautions a bodyguard would employ. Not going anywhere alone, changing up your schedule and normal routes, staying inside as much as possible, keeping your doors and windows locked, using an alarm system. But honestly, I don’t know if that will be enough. ”
Eric grunted agreement. “Whoever this is has escalated quickly. Based on what happened today and what they told you, they’re not going to bother with a warning next time. They’re going to get rid of you themselves.”
Though she’d already come to that conclusion, she winced.
Eric’s voice softened. “After all Allye went through—Corina too—I’d strongly advise getting out of town for a while.
I know it’s inconvenient.” He lifted a hand when she started to interrupt him.
“More than inconvenient, I get it. It’ll put you under a lot of stress and financial strain.
But your life is still more important. Jenna’s too.
Today illustrated just how easy it would be for her to get caught in the crossfire. ”
“And she needs you,” Peter said. “Even if they never touch a hair on her head, if she loses you, her life will be forever altered.”
Hailey lowered her eyes and blinked back tears. She knew they were right. Doing nothing would be akin to dancing around a bonfire with a gas can. No matter what it cost her, it wasn’t worth the risk.
Jenna had already lost her daddy. She needed Hailey more than ever.