My Deadly Valentine - By Valerie Hansen & Lynette Eason Page 0,46
his own words and Eli smiled. Nothing ever changed much in this town. A fact he found himself more and more grateful for each day.
He shook his head. A year ago, if someone had told him he’d be standing in this very spot, or living on his father’s ranch, he’d have laughed himself silly.
“Let go of me!”
His head shot up and he spun on his heel to see Holly arguing with a man in front of the police station.
Eli’s temperature shot up as he watched the stranger manhandle her. “Hey!”
His shout went unheard as Holly continued her struggle to get away from the hand that held her upper arm. Her foot kicked out and caught a shin. Eli heard the man swear then Holly was free and running for her car.
Eli raced after her. “Holly!” She either didn’t hear him or ignored his shout as she jumped into her car and squealed away from the sheriff’s office.
The man looked up and pinned Eli with a malevolent glare that made his skin crawl. But he’d dealt with scum like this before.
Eli came up beside him. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“It’s business and none of yours. Back off, Brodie, or you might find yourself in a heap of trouble.”
Eli narrowed his eyes. “Who are you and how do you know my name?”
A finger in his chest pushed him back and made him reach for the weapon he hadn’t put on this morning. Dropping his hand, he held on to his temper.
“Keep your nose where it belongs. Put it in my business again and you’ll be behind bars.”
Seething, Eli grasped every ounce of self-control he could find and kept his hands—and words—to himself. But he’d be doing a little digging. Like finding out this guy’s name and anything else that might be important.
It didn’t take a genius to realize that Holly might need to be a little more concerned about the strange things happening to her.
Silently he promised to keep tabs on the strangers in town and a protective eye on Holly. Watching the stranger leave, Eli loped back to his car, climbed in and went to find Holly.
Holly thought her brain might rupture through her skull. Never had she been so furious with someone as she was with the man who’d grabbed her.
Or so scared.
When he’d grabbed her arm outside the police station…
Fingers rubbed the bruised area and she vowed to keep her eyes open, including the ones she intended to grow in the back of her head.
Shaking, unsure of the right thing to do, she stared at the wall. The man’s words rang in her ears. “I have a message for you, Holly. Good offers only come along every so often. Wise up and take advantage of the chance to sell your land before someone gets hurt. You never know who might be a victim, especially little old ladies recovering from cancer. Tell anyone about my visit and you’ll regret it.”
After a quick call to her mother to reassure herself that the woman was fine, she bit her lip and pondered her options. Go to Alex and report the assault? It was her word against the man’s and she didn’t even know who he was. She couldn’t ever remember seeing him around before.
God? What’s going on? Why does someone want my property so badly? Sure, it’s worth money, but not that much, is it?
Popping two ibuprofen tablets chased with a swallow of water, she read the document spread out on her desk. Jessica manned the front counter while Holly worked to get herself under control.
Transcross Realty had gone too far this time. Threatening her and her mother was more than just simple harassment. But what should she do? Go to Alex? After their confrontation just a little while ago, she dreaded the thought, but knew she might have to break down and do it.
Transcross had upped their offer another five thousand dollars. She picked up the phone and dialed the number listed at the top of the paper.
“This is Patrick Zimmerman.”
“Mr. Zimmerman, this is Holly Maddox. I’ve got in front of me…”
“Oh, yes, Ms. Maddox. You’re the young lady with the mountain property I’m trying to talk you into selling.”
“That would be me.”
“So, have you called to tell me that I’m being more than generous?”
“No, actually, I’m calling to tell you to stop harassing me about this. Tell your goons I’m not selling my home, my land or anything at any price. You need to tell them I don’t scare