leave her cell phone on, but this house needed one night of silence. Peace. Sleep. She left it off the hook.
Erin turned off the light and looked out the window over the kitchen sink. Who are you? Her eyes scanned the shadows in the yard. Why are you doing this? What do you want?
The lightheartedness of a few moments ago vanished. She pictured the violet circles under Carol’s eyes and heard the edginess in her voice. She pictured the fear in her aunt’s eyes. She thought about the withered black rose left on her windshield and a chill raced up her spine.
I don’t know who you are, you creep. But I refuse to let you frighten me. She stared out into the darkness. Yeah, right.
SEVEN
Tony shuffled through the folders on his desk, pulling one out. Flipping it open, he stared at the photo inside. Okay, Leigh, tell me how you met this guy? Help me find him.
He was missing something. He could feel it. But he’d gone over the material a hundred times. Still, something nagged at his subconscious. Something he heard. Something someone said. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to concentrate. What was it?
He stretched in his chair, cupping his hands behind his neck. Every muscle in his body protested from bending over these files for hours and neglecting his daily workout. He needed to get out of here. Stretch his legs. Maybe jog a little. Get the cobwebs out of his mind.
Eyeing the phone, he thought about someone else he’d neglected lately. He knew he shouldn’t have accepted Erin’s invitation to Amy’s birthday dinner. She needed to start spending time with someone she could build a future with, not someone who was married to his job.
His mind conjured up a picture of Erin with another man and an uncomfortable sensation twisted his gut. He reached for the phone and dialed her number before he could change his mind. Saved by a busy signal. He shifted in his chair. Okay, buddy. Repeat after me. Erin hates cops. I am a cop. Erin needs commitment. I am commitment-phobic. Should be a no-brainer. So why couldn’t he get her out of his mind?
Tony thought about the telephone calls, the dead rose, the poem and found the whole situation unsettling. At least one of the victims had received harassing calls and the possibility, no matter how remote, of Erin being in danger was unacceptable. He had to find the killer. He leaned forward and reopened a file.
Erin lathered herself with lilac body wash. The hot shower spray’s pulsating massage hit the back of her neck, rolled across her shoulders and flowed down her spine. She could feel the tension of the day disappear.
She knew she had to tell Tony everything. No more half truths. No more trying to handle things alone. The Lord reminded her of the foolishness of pride when she opened her Bible earlier and read 1 Corinthians 8:2, “If anyone thinks he knows all the answers, he is just showing his ignorance.”
Reality hit her hard. Depending on others made her uncomfortable. She particularly didn’t want to have to depend on a man. Even if the man in question had proven a dozen times he could be depended upon.
Carol often cautioned her about trying to run her own life. Encouraged her to turn the reins over to the Lord, pray daily, listen for His wisdom and direction. Let Him put people in her path to assist when needed. Tony definitely stood right in the middle of her path, didn’t he?
Erin stepped from the shower, toweled off and slipped into her pajamas. What was the matter with her? Whenever Tony was around she became a stereotype of a love-sick teenager, flirty, silly, giggling. Why couldn’t she just be friends with the man?
Her eyes locked with her mirror’s reflection and she knew the answer. Because he was the kind of man she had dreamed about her entire life. She pictured him leaning in the kitchen doorway, his hair tousled, his jacket thrown carelessly over his shoulder, with that crooked, come-hither smile on his face.
She thought about how right it felt to see him sitting across the table at dinner. Drying dishes with Tess. Playing video games with Jack. He proved himself over and over to be dependable, capable and self-assured.
And he liked her, too. He didn’t want to. She chuckled to herself. Over the past month, she’d seen him war with his feelings. He’d be laughing or talking or just