LEAP OF FAITH (18 page)

“Are you sure Lou Lou’s is the only place in town to eat?” she said, still embarrassed by her behavior the last time she’d been there. 

“Unless you care to grab some lunch meat and a loaf of bread from the grocery store and sit on the curb to eat, then Lou Lou’s is it.”

“Not much of an option,” she mumbled.

“Honey, I’ve told you before that no one except me, you, and Julia know about that…uh… unfortunate misunderstanding. Trust me, if anyone had caught even a scrap of our conversation outside, I would have heard about it.”

“I know that should make me feel better, and it does in a way.”

“But…?”

“But that’s not the only thing bothering me,” Abby admitted. “You’ve lived here a long time and it’s only natural that you would have dated a lot of women from town, but I’m not sure how comfortable I am eating at Lou Lou’s when I know there’s bound to be a few ex-girlfriends watching.”

“Well, Miss Travis, you can cross that off your list of things to worry about because I’ve never gone out with any of the local women.”

“Why not?”

“What?"

“Why didn’t you ever ask any of the local women out? It would have been convenient to have a bed partner just down the hill.”

Jack blinked. “A bed…? Geezus, Abby, I wasn’t interested in having a
convenient
bed partner. I wasn’t looking for a relationship either, and it would have been damn uncomfortable coming into town if I’d slept with any of the women who live here.”

“So what did you do when you needed sex?”

“Why the hell are you asking questions like that?”

Abby shrugged. “You’re extremely sexual, Jack. I just can’t imagine you going very long without needing to do something about it.”

“First of all, it’s
you
that makes me want to have sex marathons.” He reached out and pulled her into him. “I only have to look at you to get hard as a rock. Secondly, I hadn’t slept with a woman for almost two years before you, so there goes your theory that it’s something I couldn’t do without. Before that, I was pretty cold about it. I used women to satisfy the need and never gave them a second thought afterwards. Does that answer all your questions?”

She put her hands on his chest. “So…why me, Jack?”

“I don’t know,” he said with a wicked grin. “There’s just something about having an axe heaved at my head that I find sexually arousing.”

“You’re a strange man, Jack Burton,” she laughed.

“But you love me, don’t you, baby?”

Abby stood on her toes and kissed him. “Very much.”

“Let’s get over to Lou Lou’s. If we don’t get there before one o’clock, the fries start to congeal.”

“Well, that sounds appetizing,” she quipped, not the least bit concerned about that state of the fries now that she knew none of Jack’s old girlfriends would be there.

It wasn’t surprising to find the place was packed, given that it was the only bar and restaurant in town, but Abby was astonished by the number of friendly greetings Jack received when they entered. She’d gotten the impression he was somewhat of a recluse, but it was apparent he was well known and liked by the locals. She also noted with a smile that he kept his arm firmly around her waist until they were seated so there was no mistake that they were a couple. Abby loved that possessive side of Jack, and she also loved the fact he made it abundantly clear to all the single females who eyed him appreciatively as they walked by that he was taken.   

“Sherri, this is Abby Travis,” Jack introduced her to the waitress.

“We’ve heard a lot about you, Miss Travis,” Sherri said with a warm smile.

 Abby arched a brow at Jack. “You have?”

Sherri’s smile broadened. “He hasn’t stopped talking about you since the day you moved in. Has he asked you to marry him yet?”

Jack shifted uncomfortably. “Good God, Sherri, is nothing sacred with you?”

Abby couldn’t help herself, shamelessly taking advantage of the situation by asking, “What makes you think he would propose to me?”

“Because Jack Burton hasn’t brought a woman here in the ten plus years he’s lived here. When he started bragging on you, we organized a betting pool on how long it would take him to pop the question.” She turned her eyes to Jack. “Come on, Jack, who’s the big money winner?”

“Two weeks ago,” he confessed with a grin.

“Damn,” Sherri pulled out her pad. “I was so sure you would ask her sooner than that.”

“If it makes you feel any better,” Jack proffered, “I thought about it for a solid week before I asked.”

“That doesn’t make me any richer,” she grumbled. “So what will it be, Miss Travis?”

“You can call me Abby. I think I’ll let Jack order for me since he knows the menu.”

“You know what I want,” he told Sherri. “Bring Abby one of those tenderloin sandwiches you’re so famous for with a glass of iced tea. She can share my fries.”

Sherri eyed Abby’s lithe form. “Seems to me she could do with an order of her own. Chet’s cooking would pack a few pounds on those bones in no time.”

He frowned disapprovingly but Abby laughed when Sherri walked away. “Oh, stop scowling,” she scolded. “I have a feeling that woman doesn’t pull any punches for anyone.”

“You’re right about that.  Serves her right, not winning the betting pool,” he muttered as he thumbed through his mail. “Do you mind if I open these while we wait for our order?”

“Not at all, I’m curious to see who’s sending me letters anyway.” 

There was something from her editor but she already knew what it was; the proposal for three more novels over the next five years and a contract she wasn’t altogether certain she wanted to sign. There was also mail from Julia Metzger, which Abby opened with a touch of apprehension. She’d grown complacent with her own editor because it was pretty much a given that they would publish her books. Having a new editor assess her work gave Abby a case of the jitters. She scanned through the letter and then stared at it in stunned silence for a few minutes before carefully reading it again.

“Is everything okay, sweetheart?”

Abby glanced up to see a worried frown on his face. “Fine,” she said, a little dazed. “Julia is offering me a book deal.”

“I thought that’s what you wanted. Why do you look so upset?”

“I’m not upset. Dumbfounded, flummoxed, blown away maybe, but I’m definitely not upset. Julie is offering to double the percentage of royalties my current publisher pays, but she wants three manuscripts in four years. She also wants to know if I could persuade you to co-author a novel with me.”

“Really?” He took the letter from her shaky hands and read it. “I think it would be great to team up. We would knock their socks off.” Jack gave her a rakish grin. “Of course, I may have to do some very heavy research for those love scenes, but I think it would be fun and
very
educational.”

Abby held out her hand, already anticipating the hours and hours of extensive research involved. “Well then, Mr. Burton, I guess we have a deal.”

Abby stared at her empty plate. Had she really eaten the whole tenderloin? “That was marvelous,” she said, rubbing her stomach, “but I’ll probably gain ten pounds.”

“Good, you need it.” Sherri appeared from behind Abby to refill her glass of tea. “Another beer, Jack?”

“I’m good, thanks. Tell Chet the steak was fabulous, as usual.”

Sherri started to leave then turned back to Jack. “Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. Another girl has gone missing.”

“I was just at the post office,” he told her. “I didn’t see a poster.”

“That’s because they thought she was a runaway at first, but now they believe she’s another victim of the Mountain Man.”

“The Mountain Man?” Abby asked.

“That’s what the locals call him. They think it’s someone who lives in one of the cabins up on the mountain somewhere,” Sherri explained, shooting an anxious glance at Jack. “I wanted to give you the heads up so you wouldn’t be surprised when the Sheriff came around to question you again.”

An icy chill sliced through Abby as her gaze turned to Jack. “Again? You’ve been questioned before?”

He opened his mouth to speak, but Sherri jumped in first. “I didn’t mean to upset you, honey. They question all the men in the area when this happens. It just takes longer to get to the men up on the mountain. They’ll be up searching the woods around your cabins too, but try not to let it bother you. They never find anything.”

“I’m not sure that’s very comforting,” Abby said, chilled to the bone by what Sherri had told them. It was terrifying to imagine women were being murdered and then buried in the woods surrounding her cabin.

“Maybe they’ll find her,” Jack’s tone was hopeful. “If they thought she was a runaway at first, it’s possible she could still show up.”

Sherri shook her head. “They found her backpack by the side of the road about five miles down the highway. But this time, the Sheriff says they may have a few pieces of evidence to go on.”

Jack looked surprised. “They found something?”

“In a manner of speaking. Tire tracks.”  

“What good are tire tracks? They could have been made by anyone.”

“Not these tracks. They were made by a motorcycle. Narrows it down quite a bit, if it’s a local like they suspect.”

“Ah, hell,” Jack scowled. “Now they’ll be all over my place. Great timing on my part,” he explained to Sherri. “I haven’t taken the bike out for a spin in a year and today I haul it out to bring Abby into town.”

“The Sheriff said they were out there with some fancy new plaster or something making impressions of the tracks. He says it’s almost as good as a finger print if they can find the bike it belongs to.”

Jack was very familiar with the procedure, having used it in one of his novels. “It is,” he told her. “I hope it puts an end to all of this. How old was this one, Sherri?”

“It was Anya Sawyer, Les and Natalie’s oldest girl. I think she turned nineteen this year.”

Jack grimaced. “So young. He’s not very particular about their age, is he?”

“No,” she replied solemnly. “Willa Jenkins was forty-six.”

“We’ve got to run,” he said, abruptly shoving his chair back from the table. “You be careful coming and going to work, okay? I’d miss all that sweet talk of yours.”

Sherri shooed him off with a remark about smart ass customers. 

“I’m sorry if she scared you with all that talk about the mysterious Mountain Man,” Jack said as they left Lou Lou’s.

“How have they kept this from being on the national news? I should think a serial killer that has been in action for almost ten years would make more than the local media.”

“It was national about seven years ago,” Jack told her, “but when one of the girls they thought was another victim showed up in the next county with her boyfriend, it put a damper on the media’s interest. Personally, I think the locals don’t want it to make national news again because they intend to administer their own kind of justice when he’s caught.”

“And no one has a clue who it might be?”

He shook his head and ushered her across the street. “The reason they’re pretty sure it’s a local man is because there’s never any evidence of a struggle. Whoever is doing it knows the women he abducts. It’s really rough on Sherri whenever a new one comes up missing. Willa Jenkins was her best friend. She worked at Lou Lou’s too. They found her car in the parking lot and think she was taken one night after her shift ended.”

“That’s awful, Jack. How frightening for Sherri, and the other women for that matter. It must make it difficult to trust any of the men in town unless they’re related.”

Jack stopped in front of Grant’s Auto. “Apparently, that doesn’t mean much. A few years ago, one of the women accused her husband of being the Mountain Man because she said he was sneaking out late at night. Turns out he was having an affair and had nothing to do with the missing women.”

Walter Grant spotted them and stepped outside. “Got her all ready for you, Jack.”

“Do I owe you anything, Walt?”

The elderly man shook his head. “As a matter of fact, I think I owe you about ten bucks change.”

Jack waved his hand dismissively. “Keep it for doing the job so fast.” He retrieved his bike from the service area and helped Abby with her new helmet before strapping on his own helmet. “Give me your mail, honey, there’s a small storage compartment under the seat.” 

Lifting the seat, he dropped the mail inside. They waved good-bye to Walter as they pulled away and were back on the highway within a few minutes. Abby was glad to have a helmet that wasn’t constantly slipping over her eyes so she could relax and simply enjoy the ride. Though most of her strength had returned, she still wore out easily and was eager to get back to the cabin. 

Since that first day when Jack had brought her to his cabin, they had spent their days and nights there. He’d gone down to her place, emptied out all the drawers and the closet and carried her clothes up to his cabin. Then he’d put everything away himself, smiling with satisfaction when he told her it made him happy to see her clothes hanging next to his. Abby tightened her arms around him. She couldn’t wait for the day when she could call herself Jack’s wife.

***

Abby forgot about the mail she’d tossed onto the coffee table until after they had eaten dinner that night. Jack wanted to get in a few more hours of writing so she decided to spend a little time researching something for her book when she spotted the small stack of letters. Gage had sent her a card that simply said
Thanks
on the outside. He’d cut little round bullet holes on the front of the card and on the inside he’d written,
Thanks for the blood
. 

She tried not to laugh so she wouldn’t disturb Jack but he looked up curiously when a small giggle escaped. She showed him the card and he laughed with her. When she apologized for interrupting him, he pulled her onto his lap and insisted he didn’t mind.

“It gives me an excuse to do this.” He kissed her with such loving tenderness, it made her eyes misty with happy tears. “I’m going to love having you for my wife,” he said softly.

“And co-author,” she reminded him.

“That too,” he grinned. “Interrupt me in about an hour.”

She climbed off his lap and picked up her mail again, checking the time so she wouldn’t miss her next kiss break. The last envelope in the stack was from her mother. Abby opened it and read the short note. It was a reminder about the annual charity ball her mother always coordinated to raise money for people who had lost their homes to fires. 

When her parents first met, Anne Travis was being stalked by a man who spent five years in prison because of her mother. She owned a corporate investigation company at the time and uncovered proof the man was embezzling from his brother’s business.  Prison hadn’t rehabilitated him; it had only given him endless hours to map out a path of revenge. He’d burned down her beach house and then planted a bomb in her building, destroying her company. After he was caught and safely behind bars again, Abby’s mother started a fund for families who had lost their homes to fires. Every year, all the Travis children attended to help pan for donations. There were two tickets enclosed in case Abby wanted to bring a
date
. 

“Very subtle, Mom,” she muttered. 

She’d forgotten all about the ball and was surprised when she pulled up the calendar on her computer and realized it was only one week away. Stealing a glance at Jack, she tried to picture him in a dark suit and tie. 
God, he would be breathtaking.
 The ball was on a Saturday night so they would have to spend Friday night at her parent’s house. Abby wondered how her Dad would react to having Jack spend the night in her bedroom. Not well, she decided. 

Jack would just have to take one of the guest bedrooms. Of course, that didn’t mean she couldn’t sneak down the hall after everyone had gone to sleep and then get up early in the morning before anyone discovered she wasn’t in her room. Somehow, the idea of tiptoeing through her parent’s house to her lover’s bed excited Abby. The thrill of doing something so bold brought a light blush to her cheeks. 

Better concentrate on something else, she thought, as she set the tickets aside and pulled her laptop onto her knees. Abby brought up a search engine, but instead of jumping into research pertaining to her novel as planned, she keyed in the words
Mountain Man
. She stared at the screen in disappointment. There was a movie by that title and several books, but nothing about a serial killer. After several failed attempts to uncover information about the abductions and presumed murders, Abby was about to give up when her eyes lit on the town’s weekly paper laying on the coffee table;
Parkersville Gazette
. 

The chances were slim that the small town newspaper was on-line but she did a search on it anyhow. To her amazement, she discovered the on-line local paper archives were maintained by the high school History department for their Current Events projects.

She scanned the archives to see how far back they went. According to Sherri, the police had questioned Jack, and since she knew he’d lived there for ten years, it seemed a logical starting point. After scrolling through fourteen months of mundane news, she finally hit pay dirt with front page headlines that proclaimed
Local Woman Still Missing.
The first abduction occurred over nine years ago and was eventually attributed to the Mountain Man. A young woman had been taken from her ranch house just outside town. There were no leads and no tangible evidence to prove it was an actual abduction; apparently, it was only because of her influential father that the police had treated it as such. 

She scrolled to the next weekly edition but the newspaper offered nothing new as far as the investigation went. The article merely stated that the local Sheriff and his deputies had combed the woods surrounding the ranch, accompanied by Bloodhounds, and were aggressively pursuing all potential leads. Abby expected to find pretty much the same information on the subsequent edition since she knew the killer was still on the loose. Instead, what she saw made the blood drain from her face. 

Abby stared at the picture of Jack, handcuffed and being shuffled into the police station, his expression so heartbreakingly bleak it was difficult to look at.

Suspect Arrested in Local Woman’s Disappearance
, she read. Abby’s head was reeling. Jack had been arrested as a prime suspect in the first woman’s disappearance nine years ago! The article stated he moved into the area less than a year before the woman was abducted and that evidence was circumstantial at best. The reporter, Everett Mizzerach, was obviously biased in Jack’s favor because there was a commentary which basically accused the police department of grasping at straws and making an arrest solely to appease the justifiably uneasy community.

Abby cast a nervous glance at Jack but he was too deeply engrossed with his work to notice how distraught she was. Returning to the bold headline that screamed,
Jack Burton Released, s
he’d barely started reading the article declaring his innocence when Jack suddenly snapped his laptop shut, causing her heart to leap half way up her throat. She let out a startled squeak and quickly brought the lid down on her laptop so he wouldn’t see what she had been reading.

“I’m sorry, honey,” he laughed. “I didn’t mean to scare you. You must have been pretty enthralled with that research. What were you looking up?”

“Oh, uh, just some information about the town I’ve set the novel in. Are you finished for the night?” 

He stood up and stretched. “I think I’ve done all I’m going to do for right now. What about you?”

“It’s just research, I can do it anytime.”

“Let me grab a beer and we can sit out on the balcony for a while. Can I get you something?”

“I still have tea left.” 

She watched him disappear into the kitchen, anxiety tying her stomach into knots. She wanted to ask him about what happened, but how could she do that without letting him know she’d seen the newspaper article? Abby opened her laptop and logged off the internet. She didn’t think Jack would have any reason to open her computer, but didn’t want to take the chance. She set it on the table just as he came back into the room.