Military Heroes Bundle: A Soldier's Homecoming / A Soldier's Redemption / Danger in the Desert / Strangers When We Meet / Grayson's Surrender / Taking Cover. Merline Lovelace
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okay?”
“She’s okay, Connie. My God, she’s okay. She’s right here with the other girls, eating popcorn and watching The Little Mermaid. Are you sure it was the guy?”
At that, Connie collapsed onto the edge of her bed and began sobbing. “He talked about Sophie. He said she was beautiful.”
“Oh, sweetie,” Enid said, her voice taut with concern and an echo of Connie’s fear. “I won’t let her out of my sight. John’s here, too, and he’s keeping an eye on them. And between you and me, he’s loaded for bear. But...would you feel better if you took her home?”
“No!” Somehow the idea of bringing Sophie here right after that man had called was even more terrifying. “No. She’s probably safer there. I’ll call Gage and let him know what happened. Don’t be surprised if you see a deputy out front.”
“Good. That was my next suggestion. Now, you’re sure you’re okay if she stays here?”
Connie forced herself to breathe. “I’m okay with it. He called here. Maybe he doesn’t know she’s there.”
“No reason he should, unless he has a better intelligence network than the CIA. Which probably isn’t saying much. We’re not letting the girls out of the house, and John has already said he’s staying up all night to keep an eye on them. Not that I expect either of us will sleep, anyway. The girls are having too much fun.”
“Okay,” Connie said shakily. “Okay. I just had to be sure.”
“Of course you did,” Enid said comfortingly. “My God, I’ve been scared to death ever since the guy talked to the girls. I just sound like I’m calm. Look, I’ll call you again in an hour or so if you want. I can keep you posted all night.”
“Oh, Enid, that’s too much!”
“No, it isn’t,” Enid said firmly. “I know how I’d be feeling in your shoes. I’ll give you updates. But don’t get worried if I’m a little late, because these girls are keeping me busy. Now they want brownies. Good thing I like to bake.”
Connie managed a choked little laugh. “You’re a good woman, Enid. An angel.”
“Nah. I’m just a mom. You hang in there. John and I are on guard.”
“Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“You’d do the same for me. Now relax and try not to climb the walls.”
Connie’s hand shook as she replaced the receiver. Ethan stood not a foot away, waiting. “Everything’s okay,” she said.
“Good.” He squatted to her eye level, an exotic, mysterious-looking man with eyes nearly as dark as midnight, yet strangely comforting. “Tell me everything he said.”
“That was all. He said Sophie was a beautiful child.”
“Okay, then let’s think about why he would call.”
She realized he was trying to get her to think like a police officer, instead of a mother. And he was right. She needed all her wits about her. “To scare me. To let me know the threat is still there.”
“That would be my guess. So what does that mean? It sure won’t make it any easier for him to get to Sophie, will it?”
Her eyes felt full of glue, hot and burning, as she met his gaze. “No,” she whispered. “It’ll make it harder.”
“So maybe we need to think about what that means.”
She nodded slowly. “I’ve got to call Gage.”
He waited while she did, and Gage promised to dispatch some officers to Enid and John’s house to keep an eye out. He also wanted to place one at Connie’s, but she told him no. “Just watch the kids, Gage. I’m a deputy, too, remember. I’ll take care of myself.”
When she hung up, Ethan still stood there. Then he asked, “Want to come downstairs for coffee or something? Or are you better here?”
“I need to move.”
“Let’s go, then.”
He led the way downstairs. She carried a robe with her, but it was too warm to put on. Nor did she care in the least that she was in a nightshirt. Trivialities no longer existed for her.
Surprisingly, the homey scent of coffee brewing helped pull her back from the precipice of a breakdown. Rationality began to reassert itself. Gradually her breathing slowed and her heart calmed. Ethan sat beside her, close enough to reach for her if she needed comforting, but far enough not to crowd her. No reason that should surprise her. He’d probably dealt with more terror and horror in a few years than most people did in a lifetime.
“He’s after me,” she said presently.
“In what way?” The question, however, seemed to suggest that he had an idea.
“He wants me scared. He’s trying to get to me.”
“I agree. Right now it seems that way. Can you handle it?”
“Him scaring me? Only if Sophie isn’t at risk.”
Ethan nodded “You’re a strong woman. If we could be certain he intends Sophie no harm, that would be the end of it.”
“But there’s no way to know!”
“That’s the devil of it. I won’t kid you, Connie. This is the worst-possible kind of threat.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, in Afghanistan, we might meet a group of village chieftains who claimed to be all gung-ho for getting rid of al Qaeda and the Taliban, then the next day we’d drive into their village to provide medical care or help rebuild a school, and get attacked. When you don’t know where the threat is coming from, or exactly what it’s going to be, your options are a mess.”
“Yeah.” She stared down at the oilcloth-covered table, her hands knotting together until they hurt. “I don’t know how to handle this.”
“That’s what I meant. Is Sophie the target? Are you the target? Are you both the target? What do we most need to guard against?”
“I wish I knew.”
“What did this guy sound like?”
“Distant, almost. But there was something else in his tone. I can’t put my finger on it.”
“Anything familiar? Any recognition?”
“Maybe. Maybe so.” But every ounce of her being recoiled at the thought that she might know this creep. She didn’t want to believe it possible that someone like that could have crawled into the most distant periphery of her life.
“Okay.” He rose and went to get them both coffee.
Connie cradled her mug, but made no attempt to drink. She felt cold, so very cold. The kind of cold no amount of heat could dissipate.
As if he sensed it, Ethan reached for the robe she’d thrown over the back of a chair and draped it over her shoulders. It actually helped a little.
“Connie, who might want to get at you both?”
Everything inside her turned glacial: cold, hard and ready to crack. She whispered, “Leo.”
He remained silent, waiting.
Slowly she turned her head to look at him. “Ethan, he got out of jail several months back. But I’ve changed my name. There’s no reason he should have found me.”
“Did he know about your uncle living here?”
“God...” She tipped her head back, closing her eyes, loosing a long, despairing sigh. “I didn’t think so. I mean, Uncle Nate and I were never that close until I moved here. Leo knew I had family in Wyoming, but I’m pretty sure I never mentioned Nate or Conard County.