Page 57 of In Her Fears
“Just...keep a close eye on the house.Call me immediately if there’s any change.”
“Will do,” Maria affirmed.
Jenna ended the call and released a shaky breath.If Delgado was right and no one had entered or left, then Elias was still alone in his house—still safe, at least for now.But for how long?
She dialed Jake’s number next, still unsteady as she punched in the familiar sequence.He answered on the first ring, as if he’d been waiting for her call.
“Jenna?Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she said automatically, then corrected herself.“No, actually, I’m not.But I’m back in the game now.”She hesitated before plunging into the revelations from her dream.“Have there been any developments with Ashworth?”
“None,” Jake replied.“Spelling’s officers report he’s been home since returning from Gildner.No suspicious activity.I also paid a visit to Claire, managed to smooth things over somewhat.”
“Jake,” she blurted, “I think I know who the killer is.”
A beat of silence.“Tell me.”
"There was more trouble than we knew between Elias Harrow and Eric Edwards.Eric was having an affair with Lina Harrow before she died.Elias found out and confronted them both during a picnic in the woods, the very night she committed suicide.That night is what started it all."
“Whatever happened, that was seven years ago.”
“But it changed both men’s lives permanently.I think that pain festered in their minds until it had to find a means of expression.And since Elias isn’t actually capable of carrying out these murders … “
“Slow down,” Jake said.“What brought you to this conclusion?”
Jenna sank onto the edge of the bed, suddenly aware of how her revelation must sound.“I had another dream, Jake.A lucid dream.Lina was there, and she said that she and Eric were lovers, but she was breaking it off.”
To his credit, Jake didn’t dismiss her.She described the moonlit clearing with its abandoned picnic, Lina’s words about the confrontation between Elias and Eric.
“You’re saying Eric killed those people because...what?Some twisted revenge against Elias for driving Lina to suicide?”Jake asked when she finished.
“I think it’s more complicated than that,” Jenna replied.“Maybe guilt, maybe rage that’s festered for seven years.But whatever his exact motive, I’m also convinced that Elias is his next target.”
“And the paintings?The other deaths?”
"I don't understand it yet.The images are a product of Elias' tormented mind.But Eric has his demons, too.Maybe the murders are some kind of strategy to make Elias look guilty, even to convict him of murder.All I know is that the night of Lina's suicide changed them both.And I think it finally turned Eric into a murderer."
“If you’re right,” Jake said, his voice tight with concern, “at least Elias is safe for now.Delgado and Donovan would have seen if Eric returned to the house.”
A cold weight settled in Jenna’s stomach.“That’s assuming there’s only one way in and out.”
“What do you mean?”
"Remember what Eric told us about Elias's house?Was it once a station on the Underground Railroad?Does it have hidden rooms and passages?Well, in my dream, Lina was in some kind of tunnel.She said that it 'once led to freedom, but now leads to death.'"
The silence on the other end of the line stretched for several heartbeats.
“Jake, what if Eric knows about some old escape passage?What if he’s already inside the house?Or what if Elias has left through one of them?”
“Where would he go?”Jake asked.
“The clearing,” Jenna said immediately.“The picnic site where everything went wrong seven years ago.Eric mentioned it earlier.That’s where they had their final confrontation before Lina died.”
“We need to find out if Elias is still inside that house,” Jake said.
“That’s right,” Jenna said.“I’ll call Delgado again right now.I’ll get back to you after.”
She ended the call and immediately dialed Delgado, her thumb slipping on the screen in her haste.
