Christy Barritt - Race Against Time

But if he didn’t help her pick up in the aftermath of the attack, who would? The woman seemed so busy that he rarely saw her take time for social visits at her home. Not that he was paying attention to who came and went.

He glanced over at her house, unusually silent and dark without Madison and Lincoln inside. Okay, maybe sometimes he did pay attention to what went on at his neighbor’s. He couldn’t help it. Anyone coming or going did have to pass his home first since the street dead ended past her house.

Keep your distance, he warned himself again.

He let himself into his quiet home, one so very different from his apartment in Brooklyn. He’d never dreamed he’d be in a place like Seaford or that he’d enjoy the small town as he did. Still, he didn’t plan on being here forever. It was better if he didn’t get to know his neighbor—or anybody else, for that matter—too well.

The last thing he wanted to do was to ruin someone else’s life. He already had a long enough of list of people whose lives he’d messed up. Especially Lindsey…

Just the thought of her made a heaviness settle over him. It happened every time she crossed his mind. He’d never forgive himself for his past mistakes. Never. Yet here he was thinking about his pretty neighbor.

That settled it. Tomorrow he would do as he’d promised and fix her door. But after that he’d do his job and nothing more.

* * *

Madison shook off her chills as she stood on the front porch of Kayla’s house the next morning. The August heat felt stifling, yet still she shivered. Her gaze traveled from side to side again, searching the shrubs decorating Kayla’s flower beds. It would be a while before she stopped looking around every corner for an intruder. Experiences—traumas—like yesterday would take months, maybe years, to get past. Or would she ever get past it? She shook her head. Of course she would. With a little bit of trust in God she could overcome anything, even this enormous mountain before her.

Kayla had left thirty minutes ago for work at the preschool and had taken Lincoln with her. Brody had told Madison he’d pick her up this morning and go with her into her home. She was incredibly grateful for his support. The idea of facing her home alone made her stomach roil. Even if it was just Brody and if he was just doing his job, having him there would ease her apprehension some. She’d take whatever she could get.

She swatted away a gnat and glanced at her watch again. She still had five minutes until he arrived. Five long minutes. She looked around the porch once more, making sure she hadn’t missed any creepy indications that she should be on guard. Nothing. She should feel relieved. Why didn’t she?

Madison had stayed inside Kayla’s home for the first twenty minutes after her gracious hostess had left for work. But every creak and groan of the house had made her practically jump out of her skin. She’d decided that being out here on the wide, open porch would allow her to feel safer.

But would she ever feel safe again? Why did that question continually come back to her? Why couldn’t her logic and emotions work hand in hand? Instead, they often seemed at odds with each other.

She shook her head, which started to ache. She had to put those thoughts out of her mind. Life was going on and for Lincoln’s sake she had to keep up. There was no time to feel sorry for herself.

A truck coming down the road caught her attention. She straightened, held her breath a moment. Brody? Why did the thought of seeing him cause a tingle of excitement to race up her spine? She scolded herself for even feeling anything. She had so much to worry about already. She had no room in her life for romance.

Brody’s broad frame filled the government-issued vehicle. In a few minutes, that same imposing frame would help her to feel protected when she ventured back through the scene of her attack.

The truck pulled to a stop at the end of Kayla’s driveway, and Brody stepped out. A tense smile greeted her. She didn’t wait for Brody to reach the porch. She started toward him, ready to get this over with.

“Morning,” he mumbled.

She only glanced at him long enough to nod her hello. “Good morning, Brody.”

He opened the passenger-side door for her and waited for her to slide in. Once seated and buckled in, Madison scrutinized the interior of the vehicle. It was everything she’d expected from Brody—orderly, neat and without any bells or whistles.

He slid in beside her a moment later and the scent of spearmint filled the vehicle. He wore a golf shirt and jeans. Not the typical attire she expected from a detective, but Madison knew he planned on helping at her home today.

“How are you feeling today?”

“Achy, tired, grateful. Everything you’d expect, I suppose.” She rubbed her neck, still remembering the feeling of the rope there. Her skin was still raw and bruised, and wouldn’t let her forget.

“It will get easier with time.”

“I know.” She sighed and pulled her arms across her chest as they cruised down the road. “Any leads?”

“Not yet. But we’re looking at what happened from every angle.”

“I can’t believe that monster is still out there.” She shivered again. “When he finds out I survived, do you think he’ll…?” The rest of the words wouldn’t leave her lips. She didn’t want to say them aloud. Couldn’t bear to.

Brody glanced over at her and something flickered in his eyes. What was it? Fear for her safety? The realization that Madison couldn’t avoid the truth? The thought that she was simply paranoid, perhaps in shock after yesterday’s events?

“He’d be foolish to come back,” Brody finally said.

Madison noticed he didn’t say that her would-be killer wouldn’t come back, though. Her head throbbed.

“You okay?”

She nodded and stared out the window. The thought of her attacker coming back to finish what he’d started made panic churn in her gut and rip apart every shred of peace she tried to hold on to. Her hands began to shake, tears welled in her eyes and images from yesterday began playing rapid fire in her head.

A hand clamped down on her knee. “Hey.”

Madison swung her head toward the voice. Brody. Just Brody.

“I’m going to keep an eye on you, make sure you stay safe. It’s going to be okay.”

“I wish I felt so certain.” What about Lincoln? What if the man came back and tried to harm her son? She couldn’t bear the thought of it. Perhaps she should simply take Lincoln and go somewhere, anywhere. Maybe down to see her parents in Florida? On that vacation to the Bahamas that she’d been dreaming about?

Vacation was out. She barely had money to pay her bills. Not to mention she’d be getting another bill—a hospital bill—soon. Though her insurance would pay for most of it, how much would her portion be? How would she ever pay for that?

She could stay with her parents, but her dad had a heart condition. If he found out what had happened, his blood pressure might rise and trigger more problems with his heart. She could never live with herself if she caused something to happen to her dad.

“We’ll catch him, Madison.” Brody’s voice sounded confident, reassuring. It was as if he could read her mind.

Just then they pulled up to her house.

With each step she took toward her backdoor, nausea rumbled in her gut. Could she face this nightmare again? She swallowed as they stepped inside, trying to stay strong. Brody led her to the foyer.

Madison grabbed the wall as the room began to sway. Or was that her swaying? She couldn’t be sure. Perhaps she should have asked a friend to be here with her, to help her walk through this.

Instead, Brody stood at her side, and he looked as if he’d rather be waiting in line at the DMV than walking through her emotions with her.