The Christmas Rescue

“Go on then, we can clean up here,” she said. “I have some sewing that needs to get finished tonight, anyway.”

“I thought you gave up doing alterations?” Ellen asked over her shoulder.

“No, why would I? Helps pay the bills in the gap between guests.”

He stared at her for a moment, hating the thought of Kayla struggling to make ends meet. Doing alterations couldn’t possibly pay much. She’d mentioned her bed-and-breakfast business was slow, but he hadn’t realized just how serious she’d been.

Was she in danger of losing her business? He hoped not.

“Good night, then. Don’t forget to lock your doors. And keep your cell phones close at hand.” He was glad Kayla’s private living space was tucked in the back of the house, far from the guest rooms.

He wished there was something he could do to minimize the danger.

“We will. Good night, Rafe.”

He spent several hours working on his laptop, still not coming up with much on Greg Landrum, although he did find that the guy owned a computer software business in a small suburb outside Chicago.

The information was somewhat reassuring. Greg Landrum did exist, but without a picture, he couldn’t be sure that he’d found the right guy. He wanted proof that the man who’d rented a room from Kayla was really Greg Landrum.

When his eyes blurred from the strain of reading his computer, he stretched out on the bed, lightly dozing. The minutes ticked by agonizingly slow.

A soft thud woke him. He levered upward, wide awake. Someone had landed on the wraparound balcony outside. Each of Kayla’s guest rooms had access to the balcony, but he’d figured the intruder would come to the same door he’d pried open before. And he’d guessed right.

Sliding from the bed, he slipped soundlessly over to the door, pressing himself against the wall. He hoped and prayed the guy would come in.

God answered his prayers. Slowly, the patio door eased open. There was no shrill alarm, as he’d purposefully kept the security system off. Rafe held his breath, trying to peer through the darkness.

A figure dressed in black stepped into the room. Rafe waited another beat for the intruder to come in farther so he could grab him. But the figure instantly spun away and Rafe suddenly understood why.

The intruder was wearing night vision goggles and saw that Rafe was in the room.

No! He couldn’t let him get away! Rafe followed after him, barreling through the doorway and across the deck.

Rafe took the same path as the intruder. He leaped up onto the edge of the deck railing and then grabbed the low-hanging tree branch. The bark was rough against his palms as he swung to the ground. He ran after the suspect dodging through the trees. The way the branches slapped him in the face had him wishing for the benefit of night-vision goggles.

With only a sliver of the moon for light to guide him, he ignored the stinging pain as he tore through the darkness. Rafe couldn’t see the intruder but he could hear him as they both wove a zigzag path through the woods. He thought he was only a few feet behind the guy but suddenly, he heard a rumble of a car engine.

No! Rafe burst through a line of trees at the end of Kayla’s property just moments too late. Bright red taillights were disappearing down the highway.

He’d lost him.

Bending over at the waist, he rested his hands on his knees and took a moment to catch his breath. So close. He’d been so close.

But then he stood, his expression grim. One thing was for certain, the average burglar didn’t wear night-vision goggles to break into a house.

And he’d left Kayla and Ellen alone.

He turned and jogged back through the woods, retracing his steps to the bed-and-breakfast. The guy had to be looking for something. But what? Something Kayla had or something someone else had planted? Someone like Schroeder, who’d been there just ten days ago?

Rafe quickened his pace, suddenly anxious to get back.

Whatever the intruder was looking for, he and Kayla needed to find it.

FOUR

Footsteps on the deck had woken Kayla from her light doze. She jumped out of bed and quickly pulled on her robe. She took a moment to peek in on Ellen, who was sleeping, before hurrying out to the great room. Through the large picture window, she saw Rafe disappear into the woods.

Had someone tried to break in? Rafe was obviously chasing someone. The intruder? Fear gripped her by the throat as she stood, uncertain as to what she should do. Call the police? Or just set the security system and wait for Rafe to return?

And what if Rafe didn’t return?

The last thought spurred her into action. She grabbed her phone and quickly dialed 911. Thank heavens she’d let Brianna stay at a friend’s house for the night.

After notifying the police, she paced the length of the great room, feeling helpless and somewhat vulnerable. It was late, four o’clock in the morning, almost the exact same time frame as the last time the burglar had tried to break in. A coincidence? Or was the intruder the same man? She wrapped her arms across her chest, shivering in the cold.

Rafe burst into the clearing just seconds before sirens split the air.

She ran over to open the door for him. “What happened?”

“I lost him.”

She caught a glimpse of his face in the porch light. “You’re bleeding!”

“I’m fine.” He swiped his arm across his forehead. The blood smeared over his brow. “Scratched by tree branches, that’s all.”

She couldn’t be too disappointed that Rafe had lost the intruder. Not when Rafe had made it back safe and sound. As the sirens grew louder, she confessed, “I wasn’t sure what you wanted, but I did call the police.”

He shrugged and nodded. “It’s fine. We should report the attempted break-in, although I don’t think it’s going to help. This isn’t a simple burglary attempt.”

“It’s not?”

“No.” Rafe glanced outside and she turned to follow his gaze, noting that the sheriff’s deputy was already pulling up to the house. “I’ll explain more later.”

She went over to greet the deputy, a different one than the guy who’d responded to the break-in two nights ago. She tried to smile. “Good morning, Deputy.”

The sheriff’s deputy did not return her smile. He looked a little annoyed, as if he had better things to do than to respond to her calls. “You reported another break-in attempt?”

“Yes, I did.” Kayla glanced at Rafe for help.

Rafe stepped forward, introducing himself and using his coast guard ranking. “I’m staying up in one of the guest rooms, and saw a man trying to break in. I took off after him, but I lost him. There was a car on the road waiting for him. I didn’t get the license plate number.”