Die Before Nightfall

“Better than good. They’re amazing, loving and tough. I might have pushed the limits, but it felt good to know there were some.”

“I’m glad, Ben. Glad you found a family, people who love you.” And she was, despite her own wish that she’d been there with him. Maybe if she’d had limits and love she wouldn’t have made so many mistakes.

“I am, too. But that doesn’t mean I don’t need you in my life. You’re the best of what I remember from childhood. Remembering you, imagining finding you again—that’s what kept me from getting involved in the kind of crime that would have put me in jail.”

“Good. I’d hate to be visiting you in prison.”

“There’s that. So, why don’t you come with me? Mike and Andrea would be thrilled to meet you. And I’d love to spend more time getting to know you.”

“Not this time. I really do have to get settled in and look for a job. But tell them I’m looking forward to meeting them. And thank them for doing such a good job with you.”

“I will. And now I’d better get going.” He stood and walked to the door, then turned back to Raven as he stepped outside. “If I didn’t think you needed space, if I wasn’t sure I’d smother you with attention and drive you away from Lakeview before you had a chance to settle in, I wouldn’t go. I’d camp out in this house and ask you the million questions that are buzzing through my mind. But you’d run—leave here for someplace where you could think. So I’m giving you the time, Rae. And I’m praying for you.”

He was gone before his words could register, before Raven could realize how right he was, and wonder how it was possible he could know her so well after so many years apart.

She waved as he drove away, refusing to acknowledge the sadness she knew she shouldn’t feel. She’d found her brother, reunited with him after years apart; her heart should be overflowing with joy. Instead she felt hollow.

It was a feeling she was all too familiar with. Luckily she had a cure—running. It was something she’d been doing both literally and figuratively for years. She could see no reason to change the pattern now. Especially not with the sun bright overhead and a cool spring breeze wafting across the yard.

Ten minutes later she began a slow jog up her driveway and onto the road, increasing her pace as she followed the curves and bends of the country lane. Birds chirped and called to one another, the sounds mixing with the pounding of her feet and the soft gasp of her breath. She lost herself in the rhythm of the run, racing across the pavement until there was nothing in her mind but the pulsing of blood. Then, when she couldn’t run another step, she turned and began walking home.

She hadn’t gone far when a police cruiser passed and stopped several yards ahead of her. An officer stepped out. “You all right, ma’am?”

“I’m fine. Just out for a stroll.”

“Not much around here but trees and grass. You must have walked quite a ways.”

He spoke as Raven approached, and she could see the suspicion in his dark blue eyes.

She stopped a few feet from the cruiser, trying hard not to look guilty of something. “I’m renting the Freedman property. It—”

“I know where it is. Like I said, you’ve walked a long way.”

“Not so far. I run marathons. Five or six miles isn’t much.”

He studied her for a moment longer, as if trying to ascertain the truth of what she was saying. Then he nodded, extending a hand. “I’m Jake Reed. County Sheriff.”

“Raven Stevenson.”

His eyes flashed recognition, then surprise. “Ben Avery’s sister?”

“That’s right.”

“He know you’re in town?”

“Yes.”

“Good. You need a lift home?”

The conversational tangents were making Raven’s head spin. Or maybe it was fatigue and too much emotion. “No. I’m fine. It’s a nice day for a walk.”

“It is. But remember, even out here in the country bad things happen.”

“It can’t be any more dangerous than other places I’ve lived.”

“You’re probably right, but it’s always best to err on the side of caution.”

“And walking along a country road isn’t being cautious?”

Sheriff Reed gestured toward an open field to the left of the road. “See that field? Thirty-five years ago a woman went to pick wildflowers on the far hill. She never returned.”

“She was murdered?”

“No one knows. Could be she ran away. Could be she was abducted. Could be she was killed. All anyone knows for sure is that she was here one day—the next she was gone.”

“Isn’t that old news?”

“Stories like that one get told over and over, the plots twisted and changed until the facts are layered with so much embellishment it’s hard to tell where one begins and the other ends.”

“You must have an opinion about what happened or you wouldn’t be warning me to be careful.”

“Actually, I would. I’m the cautious type—just ask my wife.” He smiled, his face softening.

“I am, too, Sheriff. So don’t worry, I’ll be careful.”

“Call me Jake. Everyone else does. And make sure you’re as careful as you say you’ll be. Ben would never forgive me if I let something happen to you.”

“You and Ben are friends?”

“Friends and fishing buddies.”

“I wouldn’t want to ruin that.”

“Me, neither.” He smiled again. “I’d better get back to work. Nice meeting you.”

“You, too.” Raven took a step away, then turned back. “Jake?”

He stopped, half in, half out of the cruiser. “Yeah?”

“Who was the woman? The one that disappeared, I mean.”

“Theadora Trebain. Use to live in the cottage you’re renting.”

A sudden chill raced up Raven’s spine, and the fine hair on her arms stood on end. She didn’t realize she’d swayed until Jake strode toward her and put a steadying hand on her arm.

“You okay? You’ve gone pale.”

Raven straightened, stepped away from his touch. “I’m fine. I just wondered if the woman was related to my landlady, Nora Freedman.”