Page 17 of Deadly Past

This was going to be a long stay if they were both this nervous with each other. He cleared his throat. “Wait here. I’ll bring Simone out to you.” Declan went below deck and picked up the cat’s carrier. Simone was on edge and a nervous traveler. “It’s okay, girl. We’re about to carry you into a warm house.” Declan selected a couple of the grocery bags and returned to the dock.

With Wynona carrying the cat, they went up to the small one-bedroom cabin. He was grateful for the comfortable sofa to sleep on.

Declan unlocked the cabin and went inside. “There’s a generator for the lights and such in the basement. He faced Wynona and could see her unease. Until the generator was working, it was difficult to see much, and the cabin smelled musty. It had been months since he’d come here. He retrieved one of the flashlights he kept near the door and handed it to her. “Use this.” Declan took a second light with him to fire up the generator.

Soon, the lights were working. He returned upstairs and switched on several. The cabin was small—only four rooms in all, but it was his place to come to separate himself from the world and his own troubled thoughts and get close to God. “I’ll start a fire,” he told Wynona, who was looking around the cabin. Did she like it? Declan shook his head. As soon as they’d solved this case and the stalker was in custody, she’d be gone from his life again.

The thought struck with all the ferocity of a blow to the heart.

Chapter Five

“I’ll be right back.” Declan’s husky voice reached past the painful memories flooding her heart.

She fought back tears. The place was almost identical to the one in the mountains of Colorado where they’d spent their honeymoon. Wynona gathered herself and turned to him. “Let me come with you. There’s a lot to carry.”

He waved off her concern. “I’ve got it. You and Simone enjoy the fire.”

She waited until he’d closed the door before she let go of the breath she was holding onto for dear life. Wynona opened Simone’s carrier and lifted the cat out before she sat down in one of the two easy chairs near the fire. The cat eventually settled into Wynona’s lap, happy to be petted. The quiet of the cabin was interrupted by the purring of Simone and the sound of the waves against the shore. Yet over the noise of the waves outside, another sound caught her attention. An engine.

Wynona jumped to her feet. A second later the door opened, and Declan came inside loaded down with bags. He dropped them when he saw her face.

“What’s wrong?”

“Did you hear that? There’s someone else here.”

Declan listened. “You’re right. I didn’t hear it outside. The storm’s really raging, though and the wind is howling.”

“What do we do?” Her frightened eyes found his. “What if it’s. . .” she couldn’t finish.

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. There are two other residents on the island. An older man who lives here year-round. It could be him, or it could be the second family who owns a cabin north of here. I’ll check with each of them.” Declan took out his phone and tried to call before shaking his head. “There’s no answer at Amos’s house. I’ll try the Petersons. The last time I spoke to them, they didn’t have any plans to visit over the holidays.” He called the number. This time someone picked up. “Hi, Robert, it’s Declan.” He put the call on speaker for Wynona to hear the conversation.

“Declan, good to hear from you. Was that you arriving on the island earlier?”

Relief swept through Wynona’s limbs. Someone else was here.

“Yes, it was. I just heard an engine near the island. Are you moving your boat further inland for safety?”

Robert chuckled. “Guilty. I was worried about the storm. Have you heard from Amos? We arrived here yesterday, and I stopped by, but he wasn’t answering.”

“He could have gone to Hope Island for supplies. I’ll stop by and check on him tomorrow.”

“Sounds good. If you need anything, come on by.”

Declan assured him that he would and ended the call. “Just the neighbor.” He smiled encouragingly at Wynona.

“I guess I’m just on edge after everything.”

“That’s understandable.” He turned to the bags near the door. “This is the last of everything. I’ll take your bag into the bedroom if you want to settle in.”

She wasn’t about to put him out of his bed. “Please, I can take the sofa. I’ll be more comfortable there than you.”

He immediately lifted his palm. “You take the room. I rarely sleep more than a few hours here and there. I wouldn’t want to disturb you making coffee in the morning.”

When he’d come home from the war shortly after serving a second tour of duty, Declan had been a different man than the one she’d left in Afghanistan. He was on edge, jumping at the slightest noise, refusing to talk about what was bothering him. Since she’d found him on Hope Island, he seemed better—more content with life. Perhaps he’d found someone to talk to after all. Maybe he just couldn’t talk to her about what he’d gone through.

“Wynona?” The question in his voice pulled her back from the misery.

“Yes, sorry.”

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