Alone and Afraid (Rocky Mountain Home Series Book 1) (5 page)

Thanks to Chase’s co
axing, Brooke purchased her plants.  She was home and had sent Chase home after telling him she wanted to be alone for a while.  He wasn’t too happy, but she stood firm.

Now she sat on her sofa and realized she was alone… alone and afraid.  She
had told herself the past few days that she was safe, but after seeing David on the street in town, she doubted she was safe at all.  She was glad that Chase checked all the doors and windows of the cottage before he left.  He also promised to check on her later.

She debated calling the sheriff to let him know about
David.  Surely David wasn’t allowed to leave Utah since he was out on bond.  She made up her mind, and placed the call to the sheriff’s office.  Afterward, she felt some relief from the stress she had felt earlier.  The good sheriff promised to have his men find David and question him.  The sheriff would also call the local police in Utah and let them know the whereabouts of David.

Brooke knew it was time for a pain pill when her foot hurt enough that it brought tears to her eyes.  She got up
, took her pill with a tall glass of water, and went back to lie on the sofa and watch some television, patiently waiting for the pill to do its magic.

S
he must have slept because the next thing she heard was pounding on the front door and Chase hollering her name.

“Geez, can you hold it down?” Brooke said a
s she opened the door.

“Why didn’t you answer your phone?  I’ve been calling you for over ten minutes,” Chase asked with
panic in his voice.  He knew as soon as the words left his lips, that it was the wrong thing to say.

Brooke bristled before she answered, “I’m sorry to inconvenience you, but I was sleeping. Who do you think you are, anyway?  I don’t answer to you or anyone else.”

“I’m sorry, but when you didn’t answer your phone, I got worried.  You did see your ex-boyfriend in town earlier.  And all sorts of thoughts entered my head when I couldn’t reach you,” Chase said.

This calmed Brooke down and she told Chase, “I’m sorry.  Guess this foot
is making me cranky again.  Please, come in and have a seat.  Would you like some lemonade?  I know I would.”

“If it’s alright with you, I’ll get us each a glass,”
Chase cautiously said.

Brooke smiled and nodded her head as she sat down.

Chase sat Brooke’s glass down on the coffee table and sat down next to her.  He was reluctant to tell her the bad news he had.  But he knew he had no choice.  The sheriff would show up at the front door in a few minutes, and Chase wanted Brooke prepared.

“Brooke, something happened this afternoon and it’s not good.  Digger uncovered Mrs. Drake’s body
in the woods behind her house.  She was stabbed,” Chase said as he reached for Brooke’s hand.

Brooke gave Chase a look he had yet to see on her face.  It was a look of horror mixed with terror.  Brooke tried to digest the words Chase just spoke, but she couldn’t.

“Mrs. Drake is dead?  Murdered?” she said aloud.  “When, and who would do such a thing?”

“We won’t know until they do an autopsy, but yes, she was murdered.  Stabbed through the heart it looks like,” Chase said as he tried to comfort Brooke.

They only sat there a short time before they heard the knock that let them know the sheriff had arrived.

Chase got up and let the sheriff in
, asking, “Did you find anything else?”

“No, and we haven’t located Ms. Laine’s old boyfriend, either.  We’re sending Mrs. Drake’s remains to Leadville.  They have the facilities to do an extensive autopsy and a great forensics lab, as you probably know already, Chase
,” he said while watching Brooke’s reaction.  “In my opinion, Mrs. Drake has been dead about four or five days.  Isn’t that around the time you arrived in Red Cliff, Ms. Laine?”

Brooke looked bewildered, but answered, “Yes, I arrived five days ago, unless you count the night I spent in the motel forty
-five miles outside of town.”

“Have you contacted Mrs. Drake’s brother?” Chase asked.

“As a matter of fact, he arrived in town last night.  He said he was worried because he couldn’t reach his sister and some guy from a development company was calling him asking to speak to his sister.  So he and his wife came to town last night,” the sheriff explained. “Speaking of his wife, she’s here now.  Come on up, Mrs. Drake, and meet Chase here.  His dog is the one who found your sister-in-law.”

Brooke stood up and joined Chase on the front porch.  Chase held out his hand to the other Mrs. Drake and said, “We’re sorry for your loss.”

Brooke stared at the newcomer and finally asked, “Do I know you?  You look familiar, but I can’t place where I might have met you.”

This new Mrs. Drake got a
tight look on her face as she narrowed her eyes and answered Brooke’s question, “No, I don’t think we’ve met.  I’m sure I would remember you, if we did.”  Then she turned toward the sheriff and said, “My husband and I have a few more questions, if you could follow me back next door, please.”

“Of
course.  Chase, I’ll talk to you this afternoon, and Ms. Laine, have a good day and I hope your foot is healing nicely.”  The sheriff and the new Mrs. Drake walked out the door.

Brooke was still puzzled.  She knew she saw that woman somewhere not too long ago.  Maybe it was when she was in Vail, or downtown.  Or maybe
she only saw someone who looked like her.

“What’s wrong?  You look so deep in thought,” Chase asked as he put his arm around Brooke.

Brooke didn’t resist.  It felt right having Chase’s arm around her.  “I guess I was wrong.  I thought I had seen that woman recently, but I can’t place where it would’ve been. Oh, well…I’ll remember when I’m not trying so hard.  Would you like to help me water the garden?  I could use some fresh air,” Brooke asked Chase.

They watered Brooke’s garden then sat outside on the back porch for a while, not saying much, just comfortable with the silence.

When the sun started descending, Chase had an idea, “Brooke, I have a couple of steaks.  How would you feel about my bringing them over and I’ll grill them?  We’ll put a couple of potatoes in the oven and slice some fruit for dinner?”

“Yummy, I’m hungry already.  But I’ll slice the fruit.  I can do that sitting down. Help me up and I’ll go inside and wash up
, and make us some lemonade,” Brooke said.

Chase laughed.  This was the Brooke he thought he’d never see.  She actually asked for help, and wasn’t defensive while asking.  He wanted to get to know this woman.  He felt himself falling for all aspects of her personality.  “I’ll be right back.”

Brooke hummed softly while she washed up.  She had gotten used to having Chase around.  She knew they each felt the attraction between them, although neither one wanted it.  She looked forward to this evening and the days to come.  She wanted to see where the attraction led them both.

Brooke was content when she went to bed.  She and Chase had a very pleasant evening
, and she felt she could trust him.  He was so different from David.  Chase was kind and giving, while David was selfish and had a mean streak.  She went to sleep with a smile on her face.

She wasn’t sure what woke her up, but she was scared.  She looked around her room
, but saw nothing that didn’t belong there.  She heard Digger’s bark out back and wondered if that was what woke her.  A minute later, she heard a chair scrape as if someone bumped into it.  She reached for the panic button she always kept by her bed, but it wasn’t there.  She silently cursed herself for forgetting to bring it to her room when she retired earlier that night.

Before she
moved to get up, a shadow filled her bedroom doorway.  Brooke screamed and kept screaming, even as the shadow moved closer and put hands around her neck.  She heard Chase calling her, but he seemed too far away to help her.  She clawed at the hands that tightened around her throat.  She fought hard, but felt herself going under.  She couldn’t catch her breath, and then suddenly the hands were gone.  Brooke gulped in as much air a she could.

T
he lights came on and Chase was there holding her.  She still gulped in air.  Her body shook like a leaf blowing in a hurricane.

“Brooke, did he hurt you?”  Chase finally asked.

Brooke found it too hard to speak.  She sat up clutching her throat.  Chase saw the marks forming on Brooke’s neck and said a few cuss words, before he pulled his cell phone out of his back pocket and dialed the sheriff’s office.

Brooke heard part of Chase’s
conversation and knew Chase saw the man who ran from Brooke’s house.  But since it was dark out, he wouldn’t be able to identify the person.  She also heard Chase ask for paramedics to look Brooke over and determine her injuries.

By now, Brooke’s throat hurt almost as much as her foot.  She had trouble swallowing.  She tried to thank Chase for showing up when he did, but n
o words came out.  She knew she wouldn’t have lasted much longer with those hands squeezing her throat so tightly.  Chase saved her life.

“Shhh, don’t try to talk.  Just try to stay calm and breathe.  Help will be here soon,” Chase told her.

Chase never in his life felt more helpless than he did this minute.  If he were a minute later getting here, Brooke would be dead.  The thought terrified him.

They both heard the sirens as help arrived.  Brooke didn’t want to be left alone.  She clutched at Chase’s arm and held on tight.

“I’ll get your robe and crutches, and you can come with me,” Chase said, understanding Brooke’s fear of being left alone.

They both walked to the living room and Chase motioned for Brooke to sit down, which she did.  He noticed her eyes were so full of
fear; they resembled a deer’s eyes trapped in the headlights of someone’s car.  His gut wrenched as he opened the door to the sheriff and paramedics.

Chase watched as the paramedics looked Brooke over.  He told the sheriff what little he knew and what he saw as he approached Brooke’s house.  He could still hear
Digger barking in the distance.  It sounded like his dog was over by Mrs. Drake’s house.

“A little honey every few hours will help that throat.  It might burn at first, but then it will soothe the throat
,” the paramedic told Brooke. “Do you have some in your kitchen?”

Brooke nodded her head
, yes, and the man went in search of the honey for Brooke.  When he came back with honey and a spoon, he poured some and lifted the spoon to Brooke’s lips.  Her hands shook so badly, the paramedic knew she couldn’t take this first mouthful on her own.  Chase saw Brooke wince and touch her throat, but the medic told her, “It’s ok, just swallow.  It will feel better soon.  You’ll need to refrain from talking for a day or two, but you’ll be fine.  You will also have a lot of bruising on your neck, but that will go away in a couple of weeks.”

He packed his case and walked over to where the sheriff and Chase stood.  After
exchanging a few words with them, the medic left.

The sheriff needed to ask Brooke some questions, but Chase knew it would be impossible for Brooke to answer.  Chase looked around the room and saw a writing tablet on her desk, which he picked up, along with a pencil and placed them in front of Brooke.

As the sheriff asked the questions, Brooke wrote down her answers.  She couldn’t tell him much since it was dark and she couldn’t see the person.  She knew she scratched the man’s hands though, and remembered that they were man hands. So her attacker was a man, a man with scratched and bloody hands.

“Brooke if you don’t mind, I’d like to scrap
e under your nails.  We maybe can get some DNA from the person who attacked you.  We can send it along with the sheriff to turn over to forensics,” Chase said.

Brooke nodded her head and Chase went to the bathroom in search of nail clippers
with a small metal file attached. He found the right kind in Brooke’s bathroom, as well as a bottle of peroxide, which he used to sterilize the file.  Next, he went to the kitchen and found some waxed paper.  When he returned, he knelt on the floor in front of Brooke, and started scraping under her nails.

The sheriff watched and
was amazed that Chase thought so quickly and improvised to get evidence.  When Chase finished, he wrapped the clippings up and placed them in a zip locked bag, taping it shut with the tape he found on Brooke’s desk.  He even signed the tape with his name, date and time to make it official.

“
Sheriff, you witnessed this, so you can lawfully turn it over to the forensics lab,” Chase told the sheriff as he handed the bag to him.

“Amazing, I don’t understand why you left forensics
.  With your quick thinking and professionalism, I’m sure they miss you, Chase,” the sheriff said before he left to deliver the bag to the lab.

When Chase closed the door and sat by Brooke, she was writing something to him.  Chase read it and gave a little laugh, “No, honey,
Digger will head home when he’s ready.  I don’t have to get him.  I do wonder why he was at Mrs. Drake’s house.  I heard him barking from there, but it must be because the paramedic’s van and police cars where all over here and all the people walking around.”

Brooke wrote some more and Chase answered, “The sheriff said the person somehow jimmied the lock on the guest room window.  He said it’s old and must not have locked tight.  I’m
so sorry, sweetheart, I checked all the windows and they all looked to be locked to me.  This is my fault.”

Brooke quickly placed her hand on Chase’s leg and shook her head.
  Then she wrote more on the writing tablet.

“Yes, if your attacker couldn’t get in one way and was determined enough, he would’ve found another way.  I’m going to nail the windows shut and I will be staying here with you until they catch whoever it is that’s after you. Please don’t argue with me on this.  You almost died tonight, Brooke
,” Chase said with such emotion it touched deep inside Brooke’s heart.

She reached over and hugged Chase tightly, then wrote again.  The words she wrote were,
I’m not arguing.  I need you and want you to stay here with me.