Jenna Ryan - Raven's Hollow

“Yes—no.” She willed the dizziness away. “I’m fine, I’m good. Go.”

Cold metal brushed her wrist as he pulled a gun from the back of his jeans and vanished into the night.

Before she could turn, something swished across her calf. Swallowing a scream, she grabbed the discarded lamp and raised it like a bat.

A tiny meow floated upward from the floor.

“Cocoa...” Her breath rushed out in relief. “God.”

She closed her eyes for a long moment, then, rubbing her head with the heel of her hand, retrieved the flashlight she’d dropped and pushed the door closed. When she touched the switch, a powerful beam of light bounced off the hall mirror and straight into her eyes.

“Oh, that was smart.”

She needed another moment, she decided, to slow her spinning mind and regroup.

Three feathers on a door foreshadowed death in Raven’s Cove. That was a matter of legend. She couldn’t recall any mention of dead ravens on doorsteps in Raven’s Hollow.

There had to be a crazy person on the loose.

But this didn’t feel crazy, or not entirely. This was twisted and cruel and, when added to the email she’d received earlier, personal. It was...

The thought dissolved as she spied a slash of red on the wall opposite the mirror. The wall on which she was leaning!

Pushing off, she whirled in a half circle. And took three unbelieving steps back.

A single slashed word covered the plaster from end to end. It appeared to have been written by a giant claw. And said simply:

FOREVER!

Chapter Six

“Slow down. Let me get this straight.” Sadie’s former fiancé, Tyler Blume, gave her a light shake and sent Eli, several feet behind her, a fulminating look. “Someone broke into Bellam Manor, placed a dead raven on your doorstep and wrote a message in red on the wall. This person, who was still inside when you arrived, then proceeded to knock you down and fled the scene on foot with Eli in pursuit.”

Sadie eased free of his increasingly tight grip. “Something like that, yes.”

Ty’s ice-blue eyes met the shadowed green of his cousin’s. “I gather you lost him.”

Eli’s expression gave nothing away. “Unfortunately.”

“So he was faster than you.”

“Apparently.”

“And smarter.”

“If by that you mean he had a head start and a vehicle hidden in the woods, then yes, he was smarter.”

“Were you able to obtain the license plate number of this hidden vehicle?”

“No.”

“So all in all, your presence at the manor wasn’t overly helpful.”

Sadie drew her iPhone from her shoulder bag. “I didn’t come into town so you and your cousin could have a pissing contest, Ty.”

“You shouldn’t have come into town at all,” he fired back. “Why didn’t you call me from the manor?”

She wagged her phone. “I did, three times. There was no signal, and by the time I got one, we were in the Hollow.” She made a frustrated gesture. “I heard the vehicle Eli mentioned roar off.”

“Direction?”

“East,” Eli told him. “Toward Raven’s Hollow.”

A four-year stint in the army had taught Ty how to control his facial muscles, if not his entire expression.

“I’ll need to inspect the site, gather more facts. You took pictures of the bird and the wall. Kudos for that. But Eli can’t provide me with a license plate number, and neither of you can describe the intruder, leaving me with nothing except a dead raven, an eastbound vehicle and a single painted word to go on.”

“It was a truck.” Eli kept his tone conversational.

Ty’s dark blond eyebrows came together. “What was?”

“The eastbound vehicle. I’d guess a Dodge Ram, twenty, maybe thirty years old. I’d also go with stolen since the guy was smart enough to send the raven-card email Sadie told you about from a toss-away phone.” He shrugged at his cousin’s glare. “Police computer. I linked to Sadie’s office line. There’s no owner registered on her last incoming. Sender’s got a plan, and it doesn’t involve being identified.”

She’d known that, Sadie thought, of course she had. She’d been a journalist far too long to delude herself. “I don’t suppose you have any idea, beyond terrifying me, what that plan might entail?”

She felt Eli’s gaze on her face. “Working on it.”

Across the cramped room, Ty drummed a pen on his blotter. “Tell me, cousin, how do you determine twenty or thirty years old in a truck?”

“Three back-breaking summers spent on my grandfather’s farm in Idaho. Why are you wet?”

Ty frowned down at his soaked shirt and pants. “I—was hungry, stepped out. Figured the diner might be serving on emergency power.”

“It’s after eleven,” Sadie remarked. “Johnny’s closes at ten.”

“The time thing didn’t occur until I was halfway there. I was heading back when I spotted a couple kids outside Dorothy Leamer’s antique store and made a detour.”

Eli grinned. “Does she still keep her cash float in a cigar box under the counter?”

“It’s her lucky box. She’s been robbed a dozen or more times, but she always gets the money and the box back. Neither thing made it out of the store tonight. Unfortunately, the kids ran off before I could identify them.”

“Making you and Eli even in the ‘oops’ department.” Sadie indicated the curb outside. “The lamp the intruder used is in my Land Rover. I picked it up after he took off, but you could still check it for fingerprints.”

A muscle in Ty’s jaw ticked. “You figure there’ll be any to find?” he asked Eli.

“Doubt it. You might get a clue from the bird. It was shot through the head.”

“Did he use blood or paint for the wall message?”

“Paint. There wouldn’t have been enough blood in a single raven to write a message that large.”

“I assume you secured the scene.”

“Do I really need to answer that?”

The tick in Ty’s jaw deepened. “I think you should stay in town tonight, Sadie.”

“And leave Molly alone out on the point? Answer’s no.”

“Fine.” He yanked out his smartphone. “Is she at the manor?”

“Not when we were there. Save your battery, Ty. I’ve left five unanswered messages. All I can think of is that she went somewhere after work, turned her phone off and hasn’t turned it back on yet.”

“Right, then I’ll just drive you home myself and spend the night.... Crap!” He scowled at his beeping cell, then breathed out and punched Talk. “Raven’s Hollow Police Station. Chief Blume.”

Leaving him to the call, Sadie joined Eli at the rain-streaked station window and studied his face. “Even in shadow, I can see the wheels turning. Talk to me, Lieutenant. Why would someone want to torment me with words that read like threats, and a raven with a bullet in its head?”

“Mine forever. Says it all, don’t you think?”

She did, actually, or would have if she’d been willing to take it that far.

Ty’s voice cut in. “Stay calm, Liz. I’ll be right there.” Frustration etched itself into his handsome features. “A six-year-old girl ran off in pursuit of her new puppy after it wiggled through a window. Now puppy and child are both lost. Mother’s hysterical. Are you sure you secured the scene?” he demanded of Eli.

“I didn’t ditch my badge and training at the state line. Everything you need to see will be there in the morning.”

His cousin’s response came in the form of a snarl. “See that it is.” Giving Sadie’s arm an awkward pat, he said, “Watch your back.” Then he shot an accusing look in Eli’s direction. “Unless you want a knife in it.”

As soon as he was out the door, Sadie plastered a serene smile on her lips. “Well, that was horrible.”