[23]

Wade stepped into the den and stopped. Turned and found Martha coming from the kitchen.

He glanced behind her. “Where did Olivia go?” Immediately her pretty face came to mind, the way she’d worked to find a way out of the radio station, her determination to save them. Her expression as she put him firmly in his place.

Martha’s frown deepened. “She’s outside.” She glanced at the clock on the mantel. “Has been for the past fifteen minutes or so.”

He stiffened. “What? Why?”

“She thought she heard or saw something at the window and went to look.”

“Fifteen minutes ago? Saw something at the window? Why didn’t you come get me?”

“I didn’t want you to worry. You’ve had to deal with so much . . . I was just trying to protect you. And besides, I was standing right there and didn’t see anything but a shadow. It could have been anything and is probably nothing.”

“I don’t need that kind of protecting.” He changed direction and headed for the front door.

“Wait a minute, Wade. You can’t go out there. What if it’s your stalker?”

He paused. “What if it is and she’s found a way to slit Olivia’s throat too, Martha? I can’t hide out in here when Olivia might need help.” He opened the door and stepped onto the front porch.

Olivia could hear Katie through the Bluetooth device inserted into her ear. She stood at the edge of the trees that had been strategically planted to offer a semblance of privacy in the backyard. The black fence that she knew was on the other side of the trees blended with the night.

Automatic lights had come on when she’d walked in front of the sensors, which made her believe no one was in the back. And yet she’d seen someone staring at her through the kitchen window. Or had she just imagined it? Granted it had been a blink-of-an-eye moment, but she had to check it out.

“Katie? Where are you?” she asked, her voice low, almost nonexistent.

“Pulling up to the front,” Katie said. “So far all is clear from where I am.”

“All clear in the back as well. The officer watching the front didn’t see anything either. He’s looking too.”

Olivia moved along the edge of the perimeter. She was now out of range of the sensor for the floodlights and they’d clicked off. She paused and turned her back to the side of the house, backing up until she felt the brick. She paused and considered the lights again while she waited for her eyes to adjust to the sudden darkness.

Had the lights clicked on when she was in the house and she hadn’t noticed? Had the person at the kitchen window just done what she had? Waited for the lights to go off, then moved to the window?

With her back against the side of the house, the area in front of her was bathed in darkness.

She stayed still, ears tuned to the area.

“Liv?”

“Just a second,” she whispered.

“Wade’s coming down the front porch.”

“What?” Olivia froze.

“He just disappeared around the north side of the house, probably coming your way. I’ve parked and am going to follow him.”

“What is he thinking?” she hissed. She moved quickly yet silently, hoping to intercept him before whatever possible danger that was outside got him.

She heard footsteps coming her way. She pulled her weapon as a precaution. It could be Wade. It could be Katie. It could be someone else. She took a deep breath. “I’ve called for backup!”

She moved fast, away from her current location, expecting to hear the blast of a gun and feel the air broken by the whine of a bullet. She heard nothing except retreating footsteps. Her statement about backup seemed to send the person running. She kept her Bluetooth on. “Katie?” she whispered. “Location?”

“Eyes on the client.”

“Stay with him. Call for backup, I’m going after her.”

“He’s headed your way. I am too.”

Olivia bit her tongue on a few choice words that wanted to escape. She held them back with surprising effort. Ever since her foster mother had gently told her real ladies didn’t cuss, she’d done her best to make the woman happy. Wade was the first client who tempted her to renege on her promise to keep her language clean.

The figure slipped down the sloping hill toward the lake. She was in the open for a brief minute and then disappeared behind the boathouse. Olivia kept going, not liking the exposure at all, but she wasn’t sure the person knew she was following her. And she wasn’t sure where the person thought she was going. The boathouse ended at the water. Olivia used the concrete walkway instead of the grass.

She picked up the pace and came to where the intruder disappeared. She kept her weapon ready, aimed toward the sky, as she moved to the edge of the building. She peeked around the corner and could see pretty much nothing, even though she could hear the water lapping against the sides of the structure. No lights came on. Her nerves danced. Had someone disabled the sensors she’d just had installed on the boathouse? Her heart pounded in her throat, but the calm, clearheaded coolness she always felt on the job was there.

Olivia made her way down the wooden dock attached to the boathouse. Mentally, she pictured the layout. At the end of the dock was the water. The rest of the structure housed three boat slots. There was nowhere to go at the end of the dock. If she turned right, there was a bit more dock, then the power doors that would open for the boats to glide in. But there was no way to cross to the other side of the dock without getting in the water.

Which she had no intention of doing. She shuddered and focused on developing a plan. So unless the person took a swim, Olivia should have her trapped just ahead and hiding around the corner of the building with the water in front of her, the water to the right and left of her. Cornered.

Or was she? There was no way to know if someone waited in the darkness beyond. The moon tossed shadows in a haphazard manner. She took a deep breath and planted her back against the building. She listened and could hear faint commotion up near the house.

But no more sounds from the person she’d been chasing. Olivia had no choice. She moved on silent feet to the end of the dock, brought her weapon down to eye level, and rounded the corner.

Only to find it empty. Her breath whooshed out. The woman had gone into the water.

But had she attempted to swim cross the lake? Or had she ducked under the boathouse door and come up on the other side? Was she now inside the boathouse?

Olivia swallowed hard. Only one way to find out. She retraced her steps back down the dock to the grassy area and slipped across to the front door. She placed her hand on the knob. It was wet.

Movement to her left. She ducked.

A quiet swish near her ear and then a heavy thunk next to her. She swiveled in time to see the person disappear into the treeline at the edge of the property.

She gripped her weapon, but didn’t fire it. She had no identifiable target and she wanted to know without a doubt who or what she would hit when she pulled the trigger.

“Katie?” Olivia whispered.

“I’m here. Told Wade to get back inside but he ignored me. He’s coming down the hill now. Stay alert and don’t shoot him. I’m near the trees on the west side of the property. I think I saw some movement.”

“You did. She’s closer to you now. See if you can grab her. I’ll take care of Wade.”

“Copy that.”

She stopped talking and just listened while she tried to look for any movement, any shadow that shouldn’t be a shadow.

A noise beside her made her spin and drop to the ground even as she lifted her weapon.

“Olivia? Are you all right?”

Wade stood next to the corner of the boathouse. He raised his hands, the flashlight he gripped now pointed toward the sky. She lowered the muzzle of the gun at the ground. Fury rose hot and swift, churning the acid in her stomach. She swallowed once. Twice. Filtered her words as she rose to her feet. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“No. Are you?”

“What?”

He nodded to the ground and aimed the flashlight on the object at their feet. “Someone just threw a knife at you.”