In The Dead Of Night

“What are you saying?”

“Some people have short memories and small minds. If you run into any hostility, give me a call.”

“I hope I don’t.” But Sara knew she probably would. Emotions had run high and hot in Cape Darkwood after her father had allegedly shot and killed his pretty young wife and her lover, then himself, leaving two little girls without parents, a little boy without a father.

She looked at Nick. “It seems like if anyone in this town has a right to be angry with the Douglas family, it’s you.”

“I wasn’t the only one hurt that night.”

The statement made Sara think of Nick’s mother. Laurel Tyson had been widowed at the age of thirty and left with a mountain of bills and a young boy to raise. Sara had been too distraught to remember much about her parents’ funeral, but she would never forget the look of hatred in Laurel Tyson’s eyes.

“How’s your mother, Nick?”

“She’s doing fine. Owns an antique shop and a couple of bed-and-breakfasts in town.” His expression darkened. “But then, you knew about the B&Bs, didn’t you?”

Sara nodded.

“Then you’ve already realized it might be a good idea for you to steer clear of her.”

His meaning was not lost on Sara. She’d often wondered if Laurel Tyson had recovered from the grief and scandal surrounding her husband’s murder.

“Thanks for the warning.”

He studied her a moment longer, then touched the brim of his cap. “Welcome back, Sara.”

At that he started for the door, leaving in his wake the smell of pine and rain and the undeniable feeling that she would see him again.

THE MEMORY of her sultry perfume still danced in his head when Nick climbed into his cruiser. Sara Douglas was a far cry from the freckle-faced little girl he’d played hide and seek with some twenty years ago. She’d grown into a gypsy-eyed beauty with a throaty laugh and a body any Hollywood actress would give her right hand to possess.

As a man, he’d enjoyed seeing her, talking to her. Touching her, an annoying little voice chimed in. But as a cop, he knew her return to Cape Darkwood spelled trouble. He couldn’t help but wonder why she’d really come back. He didn’t buy the family-business bit. Why would she fly all the way from San Diego to Cape Darkwood and spend a week in a dilapidated mansion when most business matters could be handled via phone? The mansion was barely habitable. Especially taking into consideration what had happened there twenty years ago.

But Nick knew why she hadn’t stayed at one of the bed-and-breakfasts in town. His mother owned both of them. Sara must have done her homework and realized it would have been an uncomfortable situation to say the least.

Thoughts of his mother elicited a sigh. He’d lied to her when he’d said his mother was doing okay. Laurel Tyson had never recovered from the events of that summer night twenty years ago. Nick had never been sure if her bitterness stemmed from the fact that her husband had been having an affair or that he’d been gunned down for it. Whatever the case, her happiness had ended that night right along with Nick’s childhood. Neither of them needed the past dredged up.

As he started the engine and pulled out of the driveway, he decided Sara Douglas bore watching. He was the chief of police, after all. It was his job to keep an eye on people.

He didn’t want to admit that his interest went a tad beyond professional concern. Twenty years ago he’d had a crush on her the size of California. In a kid-sister kind of way. He knew it was crazy, but the old attraction was still there, as clear and sharp as the dawn sky after a storm. Only now, there wasn’t anything kid-sister about it. Nick wasn’t happy about it. He had a sixth sense when it came to trouble. Sara Douglas had trouble written all over that shapely body of hers in big, bold letters.

As he pulled onto Wind River Road and started for town, he decided it would be best for everyone involved if she let the ghosts of the past rest in peace. The citizens of Cape Darkwood—including him—would rest a hell of a lot easier when she went back to San Diego where she belonged.

Chapter Three

She saw blood, stark and red against pale flesh. The metallic smell surrounded her, sickened her. Horror punched through layers of shock. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t scream.

“Mommy,” she whimpered. “Wake up. I’m scared. Wake up!”

Sara shook her, but her mother didn’t stir. Feeling something warm and sticky between her fingers, Sara looked down at her hands.

Blood.

Her child’s mind rebelled against what she saw. Against what she knew in her heart. Against the terror of knowing her mommy wasn’t ever going to open her eyes again.

Ten feet away her daddy lay on the floor, his head surrounded by a slick of red. Next to him, Uncle Nicholas lay sprawled on his back. His eyes were open, but when she called out to him he didn’tanswer. Why wouldn’t he answer her? Why wouldn’t he wake up and tell her everything was going to be okay? That they were just playing? Making a movie?

Thunder cracked like a thousand gunshots. Sara screamed and crawled to her mother’s side, curled against her. “Mommy,” she choked out the name and began to cry. “Please wake up. I’m so scared.”

Outside the French doors lightning flashed, turning night to day. Beyond, a man in a long, black coat stood in the driving rain, staring at her. He held something dark in his hand. A gun, she realized. It had a shiny white grip, like the ones cowboys used in movies. But he was no Lone Ranger; he was a bad man.

Her heart beat out of control when he raised the gun and pointed it at her. For an interminable moment, the storm went silent. All she could hear was the freight-train hammer of her pulse. Somewhere deep inside she knew he was going to hurt her, the same way he’d hurt her mommy and daddy. She didn’t want to go to sleep and never wake up. Closing her eyes, Sara buried her face in her mother’s shirt.

Another crack of thunder rattled the windows.

When she opened her eyes and raised her head, the bad man was gone.

And she began to scream.

Sara sat bolt upright, her heart pounding, her body slicked with sweat. The old fear thrashed inside her like the reemergence of a long-dormant illness.

Blowing out a shaky breath, she lay back in the pillows and willed her heart to slow. It had been a long time since she’d had the nightmare. After the deaths of her parents, it had taken more than six years of therapy before she could sleep through the night. But as she’d entered her teens, Sara had finally begun to heal. Slowly but surely, her mind had shoved the horrors of that night into a small, dark corner where they had remained.

Until now.

This particular dream had been incredibly vivid, conjuring all of her senses and a barrage of emotions. In the past, the nightmare had evolved around her finding the bodies of her parents and Nicholas Tyson. She’d never dreamed of the man with the gun.

Twenty years ago, a detective by the name of Henry James had investigated the case. He gave her a cherry lollipop every time he questioned her. As days spun into weeks and Sara began to understand what happened, she’d realized Detective James believed she’d witnessed the murders.

It had been a heavy burden for an eight-year-old. Sara spent years trying to remember. She’d even undergone hypnosis. But the memory—if there was one—refused to emerge. She never understood how she could forget something so vitally important, especially if the real murderer got away scot-free.

Eventually, the police pieced together the events of that night, ruled the crimes a murder-suicide and the case was closed. Now, Sara was left to wonder if they’d been wrong.

Was the man in the long black coat a figment of her imagination? Perhaps it was her mind’s way of redeeming her father? Or was he part of a blocked memory resurfacing?

Troubled by the notion of a killer getting away with the murders of three good people, Sara slipped into her robe, crossed to the French doors and flung them open. Beyond, the Pacific churned in a kaleidoscope of blue and green capped with white. The beach sang to her with the crashing notes of a well-remembered and much-loved ballad. She breathed in deeply, clearing her head and savoring the scent of last night’s rain.

She craved coffee as she descended the staircase and was glad she’d had the foresight to tuck a few single servings into her bag. After brewing coffee, she carried a steaming mug to the redwood deck.

The Adirondack furniture that had belonged to her parents had long since been sold. But the view was the same and so stunning that for a moment she could do nothing but stare. Whitecaps rode a violent sea of midnight blue. Leaning against the rail, she looked out over the rocky cliff at the battered rocks below. Mesmerized, she watched the fog bank retreat into the sea like the spirits of long-lost sailors.

She wasn’t sure why the scene reminded her of Nick Tyson. Something about his eyes and the ocean. Sara wasn’t given to noticing inconsequential details about men. But even in last night’s darkness, she’d discerned the reckless male beauty lurking beneath a mild facade that would be dangerous to an unwary woman. Sara was glad she didn’t fall into that category.

The ringing of the phone in the kitchen drew her from her reverie. Surprised, taking her mug with her, she went through the French doors. Expecting her sister, she picked up on the third ring. “Checking up on me?”

“You came.”

Shock rippled through her at the familiar, electronically-altered voice. “How did you get this number?”

“I have resources, but that doesn’t matter.”