Page 64 of In Her Fears
She paused, the horror of Eric’s confession still fresh in her mind.“When she refused, he killed her.Slashed her wrists while she was already intoxicated with pills and alcohol, making it look like suicide.”
“My God,” Jake whispered.“All these years, Elias believed he drove her to it.”
“Exactly.And that guilt triggered his Chronic Traumatic Insomnia.But Eric didn’t go unmarked by what he had done.Over the years, he descended into madness, less visible than Elias’ obvious trauma and deadly rather than debilitating.”
A small, surprised smile touched Jenna’s lips.“But now that Elias knows he wasn’t responsible for Lina’s death, it’s like a weight has been lifted.He’s already talking about returning to the world, maybe even painting again—landscapes this time, not death scenes.”
“Amazing what the truth can do,” Jake murmured.
“The truth.”Jenna repeated, looking down at their still-joined hands, his larger one enclosing hers.
“I was scared, Jake,” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.“When I saw you wounded...I couldn’t breathe.”
His expression softened.“I’m still here, Jenna.”
“I know.But it made me realize something.”She hesitated, twisting a loose thread on her sleeve.“I don’t know what I’d do without you.Not just as my deputy, but...as you.”
Jake’s eyes held hers, warm and steady.“I’ve felt that way about you for a long time.”After a moment he added, “So what does this mean?For us?”
“I don’t know.What we have professionally works so well.I’d hate to jeopardize that.”
“But pretending these feelings don’t exist isn’t working either.”
“Maybe we don’t need to figure it all out right now,” she suggested.“We just need to be honest about everything we feel and go with whatever follows.”
“I can live with that,” Jake said, his thumb tracing small circles on the back of her hand.
Jenna stood, reluctant to leave but aware that he needed rest.She leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead, lingering for just a moment.
“Get some sleep,” she whispered.“I’ll be back tomorrow.”
***
Sleep claimed Jenna with unusual ease that night, her body surrendering to her exhaustion.As consciousness slipped away, she felt the familiar shift—that moment when the dream world crystallized around her and she knew herself to be both asleep and aware.Colors deepened, edges sharpened, and suddenly she stood in the strange wilderness of blank canvases that had formed the backdrop of her previous encounter with Lina Harrow.This time the canvases were pristine and unmarked, as if awaiting a fresh start.
“You came back.”The voice floated to her, soft but distinct.
Jenna turned to find Lina standing a few feet away, her form more substantial than before.In the moonlight, she looked almost alive, her dark hair framing a face no longer etched with sadness.She wore the same summer dress as in the previous dreams, but it seemed to glow now, luminous against the shadows surrounding them.
“I didn’t exactly plan it,” Jenna replied.
Lina smiled, the expression transforming her face.“Some connections transcend intention, Sheriff.I needed to see you one last time.”
“Last time?”Jenna asked, stepping closer.
“My purpose here is fulfilled.”Lina gestured to the blank canvases around them.“Thanks to you, Elias knows the truth now.He’s free of the guilt that’s been poisoning him for so long.”
“It must have been terrible for you, watching Elias suffer all this time, believing he’d driven you to suicide.”
“Death isn’t what people think,” Lina replied, her voice distant yet intimate.“We don’t simply vanish.But we can’t always communicate what we need to.That’s why your gift is so precious, Jenna.You bridge worlds.”
A canvas nearby began to fill with color—a peaceful landscape of rolling hills beneath a clear blue sky.Another followed, then another, scenes of beauty replacing the emptiness.
“Elias will paint like this again,” Lina said, watching the images form.“Not scenes of horror, but beauty.He’ll sleep again, too—perhaps not perfectly at first, but the inability to sleep will loosen its grip now that the truth has been revealed.”
“And what about you?Where will you go now?”
“Where all spirits eventually go,” Lina replied cryptically.“But I came to tell you something else.”She moved closer, her presence bringing a gentle warmth to the dream-cold air.“Your insomnia is over too, Jenna.You’ll sleep deeply, comfortably now.”
