Twilight at Blueberry Barrens (Sunset Cove #3)(77)

*

Kate sat on a flat rock at the top of the hillside. She had no idea where she was. The woods were dark with approaching storm clouds blocking out the light. She hadn’t been in this area in quite a while. The trees had gotten bigger, but she recognized the rocky hilltop she’d managed to climb. It wasn’t the best place to hide. He might be able to see her from the bottom, but her muscles trembled with fatigue from the arduous climb, and she was having trouble thinking of a plan. She’d escaped him, but for how long?

She still couldn’t absorb the fact that Jonas was the stalker. She’d befriended him in high school and had encouraged him as much as she knew how. Why would he want to hurt her?

If only she had her purse with her phone. She’d call the sheriff and someone would be here to rescue her. She pressed her hand to her head and willed herself to think past the “whys” and the “what ifs” and figure out how to save herself. No one would know where she was. They might think the stalker had taken her in his vehicle and may not even look for her in the forest. And they certainly wouldn’t be looking for Jonas. He’d likely fed them wrong information all day.

What must he have felt when he realized the letter she’d left was a trap? Probably after he’d gotten into work and heard the plan from the sheriff. No wonder she’d felt the rage shimmering off him in waves. It was ridiculous to feel pity for a man who stalked her now like a hunter, but would he have listened to her if she tried to talk to him? Probably not.

She put her hands over her face and tried to pray, but all she could whisper was, “Please, God, please.” Her breath was harsh in her ears, and she longingly remembered the bottle of water in her purse.

The muscles in her legs protested as she rose and looked around. If she remembered correctly, the east side down ended with a sharp cliff overlooking the water. No escape there. She’d come up the west flank. The north and south sides were both extremely sharp inclines, and she’d likely fall before she reached the bottom. Her best bet might be to find a place to hide up here and wait for him to be gone, but where?

Crouching over, she roamed the top of the rocky hillside. She almost gave up when she found a small indentation in the hillside, just the right size to crawl into. While not a cave, if she moved some rocks around the side of it, he might miss her if she huddled into a ball. It was worth a try.

She picked up a rock and put it into place, then another and another. By the time she was finished, her fingertips throbbed and she’d ripped her right thumbnail, but her chances might be good for escaping detection.

Shaking with exhaustion, she crawled into her hidey-hole and leaned her head against the rock to rest. Did everyone think she was dead? She prayed again for deliverance, and the tension seeped out of her body. She relaxed and began to drift to sleep when the snap of a twig brought her out of her twilight state.

She clenched her hand around the bottle of bear spray she still held. Her only weapon would be useless if he kept his distance and shot her, but she clung to the can like her last hope.

Barely daring to breathe, she waited and prayed he wouldn’t find her. Footsteps crunched on rocks, and she heard heavy breathing. He was close, so close. Her heart pounded in her ears. He was going to find her.

She shrank into the smallest ball she could manage and waited. If only she’d had better cover of some kind. Her pitiful efforts weren’t enough.

Then the footsteps trudged off. She lifted her head and waited. Was he leaving?

“I know where you are, Kate. That puny little hole can’t hide you. I’m far enough away you can’t hit me with your bear spray this time. That wasn’t very nice, by the way. My eyes still hurt, but they aren’t so bleary I can’t shoot you. Come out of there.”

What if she just stayed where she was? He’d have to get closer to haul her out, and she could hit him with another dose of her bear spray. Maybe it was all a ploy to flush her out. He might not really know where she was.

Then a sharp retort of gunfire rang out, and a bullet zipped by her head. She gulped and tried to press harder against the rock at her back.

“All I have to do is stand over you and shoot inside. This can be your coffin if you’d like.” His voice was hard, and a thin layer of rage vibrated through his words.

Did that mean he didn’t intend to kill her? Where there was life there was hope.

She rose on shaky legs and exited her small haven. She held out her hand toward him in a plea. “I’ve always liked you, Jonas. I’m really upset that you want to hurt me.”

The skin around his eyes was a lurid red where she’d hit him with the bear spray. “You’re the one who hurt me, Kate, in so many ways. Hitting me with the hoe should have told me what you were really like.” He held the gun pointed at her chest. “You chose this way. I thought you were different. I read that letter and thought you understood me like no one else. I wanted us to spend the rest of our lives together.”

“I didn’t know it was you, Jonas. If you’d just given me the gifts from yourself, I wouldn’t have been afraid.” She wet her lips and attempted a smile. “Can we start over? I remember how nice you were to me after Claire was rescued. Then after my stem-cell transplant, you brought me flowers. I saw your kindness, but I never knew you were interested in more.”

His scowl faltered, and he lowered the gun a few inches. “How could you not know it was me?”