“Satisfied?” The stranger sounded amused. Faith got to her feet and put some distance between them, an impossible habit to break no matter how hard she tried. Another gift from him.
Although she couldn’t remember a single thing about the actual attack that had taken place in Austin, she knew it had been brutal. When the EMTs brought her to the hospital, the doctor who treated her told her it had been so violent her mind had simply wiped away all traces of the incident as a coping mechanism. In spite of all her doctor’s reassurances, her memory of the attack and what her life had been like before it remained locked away in her head.
She knew her attacker had murdered two people that night. Her friend Rachel Jennings and Rachel’s father, Carl, had paid the ultimate price with their lives. Faith had given up a lot to this nightmare as well. She had nothing left to give except for her life and he seemed determined to take that from her as well.
She brushed off her jeans while Ollie wriggled in her arms and licked her nose. She could only imagine what this man must be thinking after their hot-pursuit chase. “Yes. I’m sorry. I thought...” She stopped, realizing she couldn’t possibly tell him the truth. Most normal people would probably think she was the crazy one, and at this point, she was beginning to wonder if she was. She shook her head. “Never mind. Where did you find him?”
“Sitting on my back deck barking at the door and demanding to be let in. I guess he mistook my house for yours. He doesn’t appear to see too well at night. I stopped by earlier, but no one was home. I took the dog for a walk on the beach and saw your car lights.”
She smiled at his description of Ollie. At almost fourteen years old, a lot of things didn’t quite work the way they used to. Ollie’s poor eyesight was one of his latest ailments.
“Well, thank you for bringing him back. I don’t know how he got out.” Faith headed back toward her house with Ollie’s rescuer falling into step beside her, careful to keep some space between them. He’d caught the way she reacted when he got too close.
“I’ll help you find your keys. My name is JT Wyatt, by the way.” He held out his hand and she hesitated only a second before accepting it.
“Faith McKenzie.”
JT stepped up onto the porch and retrieved his flashlight from where he’d dropped it.
It took only a second to locate the keys beneath the porch swing. “Can you hold this for a second?” He handed her the light and got down on his knees to recover the keys. She caught a glimpse of faded jeans and a dark, long-sleeved turtleneck. The casual way he dressed didn’t quite fit with her first impression of him. She hadn’t pegged him as a local. More the corporate vacation type.
The light illuminated golden highlights scattered throughout his chestnut hair, which he wore swept back away from his face. A single strand fell across his forehead, dispelling the notion that he might have walked off the cover of some slick magazine.
“Here you go,” JT said as he got to his feet. She realized her first assessment of him had been correct. He was tall—well over six feet. She had to tip her head back just to look him in the eyes. They were a magnificent shade of blue that reminded her of the sky on a summer day.
Faith tamped down her wayward thoughts. “Thank you.”
He grinned at her. “No problem. I’m just glad I was home when Ollie showed up. I’d hate to think of him roaming around the beach on his own. October nights here can get pretty cold.”
When JT handed her the keys, his fingers brushed against hers, sending an unwelcome jolt of awareness surging through her, and she instinctively took a step back. His gaze narrowed just a fraction as he watched her, no doubt witnessing all her anxiety. Faith turned away and unlocked the door while praying he wouldn’t ask the questions she’d seen in his eyes.
“Looks like you have a secret admirer.”
Immediately her heart leaped to her throat and she turned back to him. “Excuse me?”
JT pointed the flashlight at something just beyond the door. “Someone left you flowers.”
A dozen red roses had been deliberately placed on the porch railing.
Faith struggled not to fall apart. In spite of what she’d hoped, she realized the call earlier hadn’t been an accident. He wanted her to find the roses when she returned, but she had been too scared and intent on escaping her would-be attacker to see them right away.
This was his subtle little reminder he could find her wherever she went. He enjoyed toying with her. The way a cat toyed with a mouse before devouring it.
“I take it you weren’t expecting those.” JT continued to watch her expression carefully.
“No.”
He took the flashlight and went over to examine the flowers. Nothing unusual about the dozen red roses in a cut-glass vase except for their purpose. They were part of his deadly game.
“They were purchased at the local florist here on the island. There’s a card attached.” JT held it out to her.
She closed her eyes and tried to capture the faintest memory. There had once been a time when she’d loved red roses. Something had changed. The memory disappeared before she could grasp it. Had it been real?
When she opened her eyes, she realized JT still held the note. She couldn’t bring herself to take it from him. Read the words aloud. Relive the terror again. When she shook her head, he placed the note back in its holder. “You should probably get them inside anyway. They’ll be ruined by morning.”
She shook off her uneasiness with difficulty. “Yes, you’re right. Thank you.” Faith took the roses from him even though she couldn’t bear the sight of them. She’d throw them in the trash as soon as JT left.
“If you’d like, I could come inside and take a look around. Just to ease your mind.”
Her hand stilled on the door. She hesitated. She didn’t know what to trust anymore, including her own judgment. She should refuse JT’s offer outright. Thank him for his kindness and send him on his way.
“That’s very kind of you, but I don’t think so.”
When he stepped closer, her back hit the door and he stopped. “You’re obviously frightened. I can check things out to make sure nothing’s out of place and then I’ll be on my way. If you want, you can wait out here until I’m finished. I promise I don’t have any ulterior motives,” JT added with a hint of a smile.
She knew she was being ridiculous. He only wanted to help. After all, he’d taken the time to bring Ollie home when the dog had wandered onto his back deck. JT seemed genuinely concerned about her well-being, and at some point in her life she needed to learn to trust someone if she wanted to live long enough to discover her attacker’s identity.
Through every single one of the moves, she’d prayed for God’s help. At times, it seemed as if He wasn’t in the answering mood when it came to her prayers. At one of the church services she’d attended once, she remembered the pastor saying that God didn’t always choose to answer prayers in the way we would like Him to, but He always answered them in the best way for us. Had God sent a total stranger into her life as an answer to her prayer?
Trust Me. The words echoed through her thoughts. Trust was a hard thing for Faith to give freely, but she needed to try.
“Okay,” she said at last. “Thank you. I’d really like that.” She stepped aside and let JT pass through.
Faith flipped on the lights. She set the roses on the table by the door and waited with Ollie while JT searched through each room of her house.
“Here’s your problem,” he called out from the kitchen. When she followed him to the room, he pointed to Ollie’s pet door. “You forgot to lock it in place. The little guy probably figured