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Cold wind moved the trees and a swirl of fall leaves danced across the blacktop. Nerves shredded, Piper pushed on, her hands bunched into fists in her pockets and eyes moving from side to side searching for a stick or something she could use as a weapon. In that moment a wave of panic hit her, as she recalled Zac mentioning that the Casanova Killer resembled Carter. Had it been a joke? She’d only heard a snatch of the conversation as Zac and Rowley walked past the counter earlier in the day. Carter had been at the office and appeared to be his normal self, surely if the killer looked like him, someone would have mentioned it to her? Maybe not. Rio never discussed his work with her, but she’d overheard a conversation about the victims being found in their homes and not out in the forest. She increased her pace and could hardly hear the footsteps behind her for her heavy breathing. What if it is the killer?
She’d listened without too much interest when Zac had lectured her and Cade about the dangers in Black Rock Falls and what to do in a variety of situations. Being followed in the dark wasn’t one of them but she remembered him telling her the first thing to do if being followed is to hide. She drifted from the blacktop as if oblivious to the footsteps and into the shadows of the trees lining Stanton. Tripping over dead vegetation, she stumbled between the rough trunks and crouched down. Pulling up her hood and unbuttoning her coat to shield the light from her phone, she called Rio. “Zac, I’m walking home and I believe someone is following me. He looks like Carter.”
“Where are you?” Rio’s calming voice soothed her nerves.
Piper kept her voice to a whisper. “I’m hiding in the forest. Close to the bend on Stanton before the house. I can’t run that far. It’s pointless calling Cade—his truck is in pieces—and Mrs. Jacobs won’t be home for ages. She’s at the quilting club.”
“He’ll be able to see your phone. Keep in the forest, but once you disconnect move your position. We’ll be coming in Kane’s truck. We’ll go past you, and then once we’ve hit the bend, we’ll drop out and come back.” Rio was informing Jenna, and footsteps thundered over the tiled floor. “We’re on our way. We’ll be there in a few minutes. Keep moving toward the house when you can. If not, hole up somewhere dark. Don’t come out when you see us. Just whisper. We’ll hear you.” A car door slammed shut and an engine roared into life. “Disconnect now and move.”
Terrified, Piper pushed her phone into her pocket and, keeping low to the ground, crawled along an animal track between the trees. The pine needles lay thick over the ground and stuck painfully into the palms of her hands. Pinecones bruised her shins but she kept moving. Where could she hide? She scanned the darkness, finding nothing, but recalled seeing dense vegetation toward the edge of the road. It would give her cover. Trying to be as quiet as possible, she turned and headed in that direction and snuck under a bush. Panting, she searched all around for the man. From here, she could make out the blacktop but any vehicle that came by would likely pick her up in the headlights. Maybe if she pulled her hood over her face, she’d blend into the shadows.
The tap, tap, tap of footsteps sounded loud over the beating of her heart, and then the shadows moved and the cowboy emerged from the night. His head swung back and forth as he searched for her. Piper held her breath as he walked straight toward her, passing close by before heading back toward town. Was he leaving? No, he was retracing his steps to discover where she’d left the highway.
The light of his phone almost blinded her, as he moved it back and forth staring at the ground for her footprints. She ducked down and covered her face and then pushed her knuckles into her mouth to stop the sound of her heavy breathing. The lights of a vehicle coming fast lit up the highway and the man vanished into the forest. One thing she did recognize was the sound of Kane’s truck, affectionately known as the Beast. It roared past and she had the sudden impulse to jump out and wave her arms at it. She swallowed hard. At the speed he was moving, she’d be dead and likely kill everyone in the vehicle. Trembling, she hunkered down and waited. Moving now would give away her hiding place. All she could do was wait and hope he didn’t find her.
FIFTY
Heart in her throat, Jenna gripped the seat as Kane turned off the lights of the Beast and they drifted almost silently off the road and into the bushes. They all slipped from the truck. If this was the Casanova Killer, his threat was unknown. He could be carrying a pistol as well as a stun gun. She’d listened to Kane as they’d driven to the location. He suggested that he and Carter take the side of the road they assumed Piper was hiding and Jenna and Rio spread out along the other side. Kane and Carter could move through a forest like cats. They’d all grabbed night- vision goggles as they left the office and hiding in the dark wouldn’t be a problem. For once, they had the advantage—if they could get to Piper in time.
It surprised Jenna, how calm Rio had been. He’d given details and had the team moving before he disconnected from Piper and now, apart from a determined expression, he was fully in control of the situation as always. Kane had discussed with Carter about taking down the man using hand-to-hand combat. Like her, Kane wanted answers, and if this was their man, they needed to know what made him tick. The problem was, there were so many unusual people in Black Rock Falls. This man might just be walking home or he could be anything from a stalker to a psychopath. Unfortunately, there was no way of telling until they apprehended him.
She moved closer to Rio as Kane gave hand signals to Carter and they vanished into the forest on the opposite side of the road. “We’ll stick to the shadows. Try not to make a sound.”
“Copy that.” Rio followed close behind, scanning the blacktop and the forest as they approached the bend in the road.
A scream pierced the night and it shot through Jenna like a blade. She ran forward, weapon in her hand, and rounded the bend in the road.
“Get away from me, you creep.” Piper burst from the forest and sprinted up the road.
Behind Piper, a man grabbed at her long hair and tugged. “You’re not getting away from me.”
Screaming, Piper turned and raked down the man’s face with both hands and kicked him hard in the shins. She grabbed her hair and dragged it from his grasp and turned to run but hadn’t gotten more than a few yards before she tripped and sprawled across the road.
The cowboy wiped at his streaming eyes and cursed at her.
“It could have been easy but now I’ll make you pay.” He pulled a knife from a sheath at his waist and moved closer.
Watching in horror as Piper tried to crawl away from her attacker, Jenna ran, weapon aimed at the man, but she had no hope of hitting him. The next second, Kane and Carter burst out of the trees. Kane went high and Carter low and they tackled the man to the blacktop, hitting with such force they slid halfway across the road. Terror gripped her as Kane and Carter fought a man fueled with adrenaline and hellbent on murder. It was as if they were trying to tackle a grizzly. The knife in the man’s hand glinted in the moonlight and Jenna stopped running to aim her weapon at the sprawling mass of bodies.
“Don’t shoot.” Rio was beside her. “Give them space.”
Stomach squeezing, Jenna could only stand by and watch as Carter wrapped himself around the man’s kicking legs. Above him, Kane had both hands locked on the hand with the knife. They rolled in a stream of cursing, their captive bucking and trying to headbutt Kane in the face. Kane avoided the attempts, the man’s head hitting Kane’s shoulder as he slammed the man’s hand down hard on the blacktop repeatedly until the knife came loose and spun away landing at Jenna’s feet. The man wasn’t finished yet, even pinned under two bodies he rolled and arched his back, trying to bite Kane. Carter had the man’s legs in a death grip and he wasn’t going anywhere. Running closer and pointing her weapon at the man’s head, Jenna raised her voice. “Enough, you’re done.”
The man roared in anger, head bobbing and teeth flashing like a rabid dog. The next moment Kane reared up, drew back his fist, and punched him hard in the face. The man’s head bounced off the blacktop and he lay still.
“This guy is as strong as a bull and as wild as a bobcat.” Kane sat on the blacktop rubbing his knuckles and shaking his head.
“It’s the killing frenzy. It makes them strong.” Carter released his grip on the man’s legs and stood, offering Kane his hand.
“It’s called hysterical strength. Happens when people’s lives are threatened usually. They receive a huge shot of adrenaline and can perform superhuman acts of strength.” Rio shrugged as if being a human encyclopedia was normal. “Just sayin’.” He wrapped his arms around Piper and whispered to her.
“Somehow, I knew you’d have the answer.” Carter went to pick up his hat from the road and returned grinning. “I wish I had your instant recall.”
The threat neutralized, Jenna turned her attention to Piper. She holstered her weapon and walked to her, removing her night-vision goggles. “Are you hurt, Piper?”
“She’s fine. Just frightened is all.” Rio rubbed his sister’s back and rocked her like a baby.
“That’s him, isn’t it?” Piper lifted her face from Rio’s chest and stepped away. “The Casanova Killer?”
