Sweet Liar (Candy #2)(43)

“How was dinner?”

I screamed as I whipped around in the direction the voice had come from. There was Victor, sitting on a chair in my living room with his legs crossed casually.

“What are you doing here?” I asked breathlessly, placing my hand on my chest as if that could slow my heart down.

“I came to hear about the dinner you had at your friend Drew’s house. Or didn’t you intend to tell me about it?”

I looked around the room, hoping Jonah was here too somewhere.

“It’s just us,” Victor said with a hint of a smile.

My adrenaline surged at the thought of being alone here with him. He was dangerous; every cell in my body felt it. How did he know about the dinner? Had he been watching me?

“I’m tired,” I said, hoping he couldn’t hear the tremor in my voice. “I was going to call Jonah in the morning and tell him.”

“Then I saved you the trouble.” Victor stood up. He was a giant, and he obviously intended to use his stature to intimidate me.

When he walked in my direction, the instinct to flee was intense. I doubted I could outrun him, but I couldn’t just stand here and wait for whatever he intended. My body begged me to move. My legs itched to run.

Panic shot through me as I reached toward the door. My fingers curled around the brass knob before I yanked the door open and raced outside.

After leaping down the front steps, I didn’t turn to see if Victor was following me. I just ran as fast as I could across the street, my boots slipping on the ice and my purse banging against my hip. Once I reached the neighbor’s front yard, I heard heavy footfalls behind me and knew Victor was chasing me. Blood raced through my veins as I pushed myself harder.

It was still early in the evening and most houses had some lights on, making it easy for Victor to see me. I needed to get into the shadows, and when I reached the next house, I climbed over a tall snow pile, jumped down the other side, and ran across the yard toward the dark house next door.

The muscles in my legs were screaming along with my frantic thoughts as my feet sank deep into the snow and I yanked them back out again, but I couldn’t slow down. I kept pushing, and I didn’t stop running until I finally reached the shadowed darkness of a backyard.

Crouching behind a trash can, I listened for Victor, but other than my own heavy breathing and the whistle of wind moving through the trees, the night was quiet. Every now and then I heard the voices of the people inside the house I was hiding behind. But I didn’t hear anyone approaching, and wondered if Victor had followed me at all or if I’d been paranoid. If he had run after me, he surely would have caught me.

There was no sign of danger, but I stayed behind the trash can until the adrenaline drained from my body and the lights on my right glove started to flash, indicating the battery was wearing down. Thank goodness I’d still had them on when I ran. I also had my cell phone in my purse, not that I had anyone to call.

I wished Theo or Lorraine lived closer. Either of them would have dropped everything to come get me. If I called Lea, she would ask me so many questions it wouldn’t be worth it. Drew wasn’t an option. That left only one person. Jonah.

I wondered if Jonah knew that his father had come to my house tonight to talk to me. That Victor broke inside, waited in the dark, and then scared me half to death.

I had to take off my glove to pull my phone from my bag and make the call. Stepping away from the house, I moved toward some bushes in the back so the owners couldn’t hear me, but the phone just rang. Jonah didn’t pick up.

Muttering in frustration, I tried to tap out a text instead, but my fingers were already so cold, it wouldn’t work. Just as I was going to give up and call Lea, the phone vibrated in my hand. It was Jonah calling me back.

“Everything okay?” he asked when I answered. I could hear the shock in his voice at receiving a call from me. Since I’d learned the truth about him, I hadn’t called or texted him at all.

“No. Not really. There was a surprise waiting for me when I got home tonight. Your father.”

There was silence at first. “What did he want?” Jonah asked warily.

I hesitated, but I had to tell him. His father would anyway. “I had dinner with the Hoyts. He said he came to hear all about it.”

There was nothing but breathing from his end.

“He scared me, Jonah. I ran. Now I can’t go home because he might still be there. Even if he isn’t, he could come back anytime he wants.”

“Where are you?”

I didn’t reply at first because I wasn’t sure how many houses down from my own I was.

“Candy, I can’t help you if I don’t know where you are.”

I closed my eyes as the cold penetrated my body, making me shiver. “I’ll meet you at the Quick Mart. I need some coffee.” I hung up quickly so I could get my glove back on my hand.

Now that I knew Jonah was on his way, I gradually made my way toward the street. I cut across another neighbor’s backyard first, and watched the road for a long time before I stepped out onto the sidewalk. I didn’t see anyone around as I walked swiftly through the neighborhood all the way to the Quick Mart.

There was one other customer inside, and a short, stout guy behind the counter who nodded and smiled at me as I walked into the brightly lit convenience store. Still jittery, I looked up at the round mirror mounted near the ceiling that provided a view of the entire space. To my relief, the only other customer didn’t look anything like Victor, but he did look a lot like Bruce Willis. He was tall and wore a wool cap. His face was hunched down beneath his flipped-up collar as if he didn’t want to be seen.