Avalanche (14 page)

“When you’re right, you’re right. Best. Salsa. Ever.” Kendra
rinsed the plate before dropping it into the dishwasher.

“Thank you,” Red covered the leftovers and slid them into
the fridge.

“Don’t you think his head is big enough?” Pamela asked,
coming into the kitchen with the rest of the dishes.

“Maybe, but I believe in giving credit where it’s due.”
Kendra tossed them both a smile. “How about a game of Scrabble? I saw some
board games in the cabinet. We also have Monopoly, if you’d rather.”

“No way,” Red jumped in, shaking his head. “Have you ever
played Monopoly with Pam? Believe me, it’s war. The last time we played, was
the last time we will ever play.”

“You’re just sore because I had sense enough to buy the good
properties. And to put hotels on each and every one of them. You could have
done the same.” Pamela didn’t even try to hide her grin.

“How could I? You kept sending me to jail, every other roll.
You are ruthless, lady. Kendra, consider yourself warned. If you play with Pam,
she plays to win, come hell or high water.”

“I’ll remember that,” Kendra laughed with them.

Pamela felt a shiver run along her spine, which was totally
at odds with the mood in the room. Dinner had been fun, and lighthearted, not
to mention the stalker had been quiet since the text Red wouldn’t let her see.
As far as she knew. There was no reason for the sudden chill in her bones, but
she felt it, nevertheless.

“Do you mind if I check the camera feeds?” Pamela asked, her
voice signaling to Red that something wasn’t right.

“What is it?” he asked, dropping the dish towel instantly.

“I don’t know, probably nothing. I just feel weird. I want
to check the feeds.”

“Let’s do it.” Red didn’t need another reason. He believed
in intuition.

“Do you still have my phone?” Pamela led the way to the
computer. Kendra opted to finish the dishes. She couldn’t help them, not
really. But she could stay out of the way.

“Yes,” Red pulled it from his pocket, checking for messages.
“Nothing.” He’d turned it to vibrate, after the last text, but so far, the
stalker had left them alone.

Pulling up the feeds, Red checked each camera, slowly
rewinding the past half hour, just in case the stalker had paid them an unknown
visit. There was nothing.

“Nothing looks disturbed, I don’t think he’s been here since
yesterday.” Red looked over at Pam, saw that she was white as a sheet. “What is
it, Pammie? What’s got you so spooked, all of a sudden?”

“I don’t know, it just feels like someone walked over my
grave, you know? I can’t explain it any better than that.”

“You don’t have to, I get it. But there’s no one out there,
and he hasn’t made contact again. Maybe it’s just everything catching up to
you.”

“Maybe,” Pamela acquiesced with a sigh. “I do feel better
now.”

The words no sooner left her, than the phone buzzed. Red
picked it up quickly, before Pamela could see.

“Is it him? What does it say?” she asked, stretching up to
get a look.

“Yes. It’s just more of the same,” Red said, deleting the
text quickly. “Nothing new.”

“Red Starling, why did you do that? I have a right to see
what he’s saying!”

“I know, but it doesn’t matter. We both know he’s just
trying to scare you.” Red never told Pamela about his conversation with the
FBI. She would only worry more, be more afraid, and it wasn’t necessary. He was
worried enough for the both of them.

“What did it say?” Pamela demanded.

“It said to sleep well, and that he’d see you in your
nightmares,” Red grudgingly told her a partial truth. “Are you satisfied now?”

“Yes, thank you.” Pamela sat back, sighing. “How does he
know that I have nightmares?” she asked softly.

“Who wouldn’t, after what he’s put you through?” Red ran his
hand through his hair, thinking of the rest of the message. “You never told me
that.”

“What? About the nightmares? They haven’t been as bad, now
that I’m here.” Pamela didn’t share that he was the reason her nightmares had
lessened. She felt safer now, than she had since Red walked out of their home,
over a year ago.

“That’s good. If you have another one, you can wake me. I
won’t mind.”

“Thanks.”

“That’s it for the dishes, anything new on our friend?”
Kendra asked, coming into the room.

“Not really. He sent another message, but it wasn’t anything
special,” Pamela explained, not wanting to tell Kendra about her bad dreams.
There was no reason to discuss them.

“Nope, same ole, same ole,” Red said, standing. “I think
I’ll do a walk around the perimeter. Lock the door behind me.”

“Sure,” Kendra followed him to the door. “I’ll set up for
Scrabble, if you like.”

“Sure, why not?” Red smiled, and left, waiting to hear the
telltale signal that she’d reset the alarm. He needed space to go over the
latest message, the one he refused to show Pamela. The stalker
had
told
Pam that he’d see her in her nightmares, but he hadn’t stopped there. This text
was not the short, cryptic message that he’d sent that afternoon.

This message was primarily for Red. A total departure from
the previous threats. This one was deliberate, and specific.

“
Tell her that I’ll haunt her nightmares, even as I slit
your throat. Sweet dreams, Sheriff Starling. Make this night a good one. It’s
your last.”

The crisp days of late autumn gave way to colder nights,
making Red wish he’d thought to grab a jacket before heading out into the
darkness. The threatening words of the text did not frighten him, as much as
they made him think.

“Why would he telegraph his plan so clearly?” Red asked
aloud, rubbing his hands together to keep warm. “He loses the element of
surprise if I’m prepared for him. Unless he has no intention of trying to make
good on the threats, he’s just trying to rattle both of us.”

The warmth of his breath turned to white as it hit the
nearly frigid air, but Red barely noticed. The stalker was drawing him into his
game, now, using him as a means to strike fear more deeply into Pamela’s heart.

“But he doesn’t know that Pam hasn’t seen the texts. He
doesn’t know that his plan isn’t working. How can I use that to my advantage?”

A rustle in the leaves to Red’s left startled him into
silence. The flashlight’s beam found the end of a furry tail as it scampered
out of sight. Continuing his inspection, Red scoured the woods with the light,
before moving on. Nothing.

Picking up the pace, he finished the rounds, finding no more
than he anticipated. The stalker was not here. Not now, anyway.

The next issue he faced was dealing with Pam. She would
demand to know what was in the text, he knew her well enough to know that he
would not be able to stall her for long. But increasing her worry would help
neither of them, so he would keep her phone for as long as possible.

~~~

“Okay, we’re all set,” Kendra turned over the last letter in
the box face down, before joining Pamela at the window. “He’s fine, Pamela. As
long as he doesn’t freeze to death. It sure is getting cold out there.”

“Yes, and the stupid man left his coat. What was he
thinking?” Pamela couldn’t see Red, but she knew he was out there, somewhere.
“I’ll make tea. He’ll need something hot when he comes inside.”

“Good idea. I’d like to call my mom, if you don’t mind. I
told her I’d check in tonight. I won’t be long.” Kendra headed for the stairs,
and the privacy of her bedroom.

“Sure, of course. Take your time.” Pamela smiled at her
wanly, her mind on Red. “We’ll be here.”

“Thanks. Back soon.”

Filling the kettle, Pamela searched the darkness through the
kitchen window, but she still could not see Red.

“He’s fine,” she reminded herself, placing the kettle on the
stove, just as the house phone rang.

“Red!” she exclaimed, racing to pick up the phone. Maybe he
needed her, needed help. At least he hadn’t walked out without a phone.

“Yes?” she answered, a little out of breath.

“Hello, bitch. I guess you don’t mind putting your friends’
lives in danger.”

The voice was not what she expected. Gravelly and slightly
muffled, the harsh whisper chilled her to the bone.

“What do you want? Why are you doing this?” Pamela shouted
into the phone.

“I thought I’d made that clear, Pamela dear. I want you. And
I will have you, no matter who I have to go through to do it. Remember that.
I’ll see you soon.”

The line went dead as Pamela dropped the receiver. Whirling
into action, she ran for the door, determined to find Red, make sure that he
was okay.

Two sharp knocks stopped her cold, freezing her in place.
For a split second, she thought the stalker had come to claim her as he
promised, having already disposed of Red.

“Pamela, it’s me,” Red’s voice shouted through the thick
wooden door. “Open up, it’s freezing out here.”

Kendra came down the stairs, just as Pamela threw open the
door. She stopped, watching as Pamela flung herself at Red, the moment he
stepped inside the house.

“What is it? What?” Red asked, wrapping his arms around her.
“What happened?”

“He called,” Pamela spoke into his shoulder, feeling how
cold he was, through the thin flannel shirt.

“When?” Red demanded, feeling her tremble against him.

“Just now, on the land line. He threatened you and Kendra.”
Pamela stepped away, but still held onto Red’s arm.

“What did he say?” Red growled, quickly reaching over to
punch in the alarm code.

“He said that I’m putting my friends’ lives in danger, that
he would go through them to get to me, and that he would see me soon,” Pamela summarized.
“What should we do, Red? I can’t have Kendra, and you, be in danger because of
me. What should we do?”

“First, we’ll sit, get warm.” Red put his arm around Pamela,
guiding her into the living room. He noticed Kendra, still on the stairs.
“Kendra will get us some tea,” he nodded at the young woman, who quickly
descended and headed for the kitchen. “Then we’ll decide what to do.”

“I can’t have you both living here,” Pamela kept talking.
“He’s threatening all of us, now. What does that mean? I thought stalkers only
targeted one person at a time. Why is he doing this?”

“He’s doing it because he can,” Red told her, settling her
on the sofa. “And because he knows that it will scare you.” Draping a warm
throw over her legs, he dropped down beside her. “As for us living here, I
can’t speak for Kendra, but I’m not going anywhere.”

“That makes two of us,” Kendra stated, walking in with a
steaming mug in each hand. “Red’s right, Pamela. He’s probably just trying to scare
you enough to make us leave. Don’t let him win.”

“But aren’t you frightened?” Pamela asked Kendra. “I
understand that Red knows how to react, how to handle the psycho if he breaks
in, but you are just as vulnerable as I am.”

“Vulnerable? Look around, Pamela. We’ve got twenty-four hour
protection and surveillance, as well as a state-of-the-art alarm system. I
wouldn’t call that vulnerable.”

“Kendra’s right, Pam. The guy knows he can’t breach your
security without setting off major alarms, so he’s taking another tactic. If
anything, this latest threat should tell you how frustrated
he
is.”

“If he’s frustrated, maybe he’ll screw up,” Pamela looked at
Red hopefully.

“That’s right. Or maybe he’ll lose interest, and move on.”
Red hoped he sounded more confident than he felt. He knew the stalker would not
lose interest. He’d already proven how obsessed he was, focus like that did not
dissipate easily.

“I feel terrible that I’ve dragged both of you into this.”
Pamela looked between Red and Kendra. “And before you say it, I know it’s your
job,” she told Red. “But you didn’t sign up for this, Kendra. I really want you
to think about leaving. I can hire a bodyguard to stay with me during the day.
You don’t have to put yourself in danger.”

“But I don’t feel like I’m in danger,” Kendra argued. “I
feel very safe here, especially with Red. And there’s a cop right outside when
he’s not here, so we’re good. Don’t waste your money, Pamela. Let me stay.
We’ve still got so much to do with the business, and it’s easier when we’re
together. Just because he has the guts to threaten to do something to us,
doesn’t mean he has the guts to go through with it.”

“The woman has a point, Pam,” Red told her, even though the
FBI profiler’s words ran on a loop in his brain. The danger was very real, if
the psycho was so determined to get at Pamela that he followed her to
Starsdale, then he would not let Red, Kendra, or anyone else stand in his way.
“Don’t let tonight’s phone call push you into anything rash, or you might be
playing into his hands.”

“A big part of me wishes he would make his move already, get
it over with. We shouldn’t have to live this way.”

“I understand,” Red sympathized. “You’re not going to like
this, but I need you to stay put, in the house, unless I’m with you. I don’t want
you girls going off on your own again.”

“That basically makes us prisoners, Red! While he’s out
there, moving around, free and clear. That’s crazy, and it’s wrong!” Pamela
threw off the blanket and stood, ready to argue. Then she looked at Kendra. Pamela
had to consider her safety as well as her own. Red was only doing what he felt
was right.

Sitting back down, her anger subsiding as quickly as it had
risen, Pamela nodded.

“Okay, we won’t go anywhere without you. Or the deputy
you’ve assigned to watch the house.” She added, hoping that Red would agree. If
Red considered the officer competent enough to guard them, then he would surely
have no objection to the man escorting them around town.

“Fine,” Red agreed. “But I want to know when you leave, and
where you’re going. You’ll call me every step of the way, okay?”