Colton's Lethal Reunion (Coltons of Mustang Valley)

Haley nodded slowly. “I’m pretty sure of that.”

The image summoned to Roger’s mind made his stomach knot tightly. Some sleaze staring in the window with Haley sound asleep and fully illuminated by the moonlight.

The picture might have been magical except for the circumstances. Instead it was creepy.

“How long was he there?” Kelly asked.

“I’m not certain. I mean, to me, it was as if he popped up, looked in, and then when I started to sit up, he just vanished. If he was there earlier, I don’t know.”

Roger’s jaw tightened, his teeth clenched. “In other words, he might have been observing you for some time. No way to know.”

Haley frowned faintly. “But then why would he just suddenly pop up?”

Kelly spoke. “Good question. Let me go outside and survey the scene.” She looked at Roger. “Want to show me?”

She thanked Haley for the coffee and Roger followed Kelly and the dog out the front door. “Why,” Kelly asked quietly, “would she think it was silly to call us about a Peeping Tom?”

“I’m not sure,” Roger answered, although the truth felt as if it were sitting in his gut like a lead weight. He was convinced this had something to do with her kidnapping, but it wasn’t his place to speculate. He trusted Kelly, so that wasn’t the issue. The issue was that he didn’t know for sure. To figure it out, he’d need more than a few old memories. And it still wouldn’t be his place to say. “You’ll have to ask her.”

“Maybe I will.”

They reached the spot beneath the window and Kelly studied the scuffed dirt. It was easy to tell that someone had stood there, but no print was really clear, Roger thought now.

“Well, that’s not helpful,” Kelly remarked. “Okay, you go back inside with Haley. Bugle and I are about to take a walk and see what we can learn. Bugle, seek.”

That dog, Roger had thought more than once, understood a great deal. Without further direction, Bugle sniffed around the scuffed area then headed toward the alley behind the house. Kelly followed.

“I’ll let you both know if I find anything.”

“Thanks.”

Back inside, he found Haley still sitting at the table with cooling coffee in front of her. Except now she looked frozen, her gaze almost hollow, haunted.

He was a man who liked to fix things, but this was something that didn’t appear to be easily fixable. Whatever was going on inside that woman was clearly above his pay grade. He sat again so that he’d be at her eye level, even though his whole body wanted action right now.

“Kelly and Bugle are following a scent. She’ll let us know if she finds anything.”

Haley gave

a brief, jerky nod.

“Haley? Are you feeling ill? Do you want to go see a doctor?”

In an instant her eyes lost the hollow look and began to spark blue fire. “I’m fine,” she said. “I’m not sick. But some jerk woke me up last night and opened a box of memories I’d safely put away under lock and key for almost twenty-five years.”

He hesitated, waiting, giving her a chance to continue. Then, wondering if he was prying, he asked the question boldly. “Your kidnapping?”

“Yes.” She snapped the word.

He nodded and leaned back, half deciding to just shut his mouth. She doubtless didn’t want to be poked and pried at. Remembering was probably bad enough. But people didn’t really forget things, no matter how deeply they buried them. What if she needed an ear right now?

“I never heard much about it,” he said “I was too young, nobody said anything to me, and I just picked up that it had happened. But it was over quickly, right?”

Something in her posture eased. Her face and tone quieted a bit. “That didn’t make it much better.”

“I don’t imagine it would. I can’t conceive of anything more terrifying, no matter how long it lasted.”

“It wasn’t just the terror,” she said slowly. Then she seemed to shake herself. “It’s in the past,” she said as if reminding herself.