Tempting the Light: Legends and Myths Police Squad (L.A.M.P.S. Book 1) (16 page)

Literally.

Stupid curse.

She needed that journal right now more than she needed to breathe.

The veterinarian was good on his word and showed up with his doctor bag within the hour. “Thank God, the Vet’s finally here.” Pepper left River and her standing there while she showed the man to the barn. He stitched the gouge in the horse’s neck with only three stitches. Pepper seemed relieved about her horse, and that River would guard them during the night.

Abby paced outside the barn, and rationalized that the only reason River would stay over tonight was because he thought the Gnome might return. How committed was he to this particular weird and bizarre hunting job?

She glanced across the barn and watched Pepper run her expert fingers along the Arabian horse’s neck and back. The strong animal nuzzled his head in Pepper’s armpit. The bond her best friend shared with animals constantly amazed her. “It’s been an eventful night tonight,” Pepper said, still dressed in her silly ducky pajamas. She rested her head on top of the horse’s long nose. She patted his gray furry head.

“Yeah. Definitely on my list of top ten interesting nights.” The sting of fatigue smacked her broadside. “When are you coming to bed? It’s almost one in the morning.” Her words labored and slowed, almost as if she could fall asleep before finishing her sentence.

“You go on ahead. I wouldn’t be able to sleep right now anyways.” Pepper stroked her horse, and murmured gentle soothing words in his flickering ear. “River will make sure nothing happens to me.”

He confirmed with a nod.

Abby didn’t want to leave Pepper. Her friend had suffered because of her, and she was still clearly shaken. Pepper’s animals meant everything to her. Anything that hurt one of her animals was the same as attacking her family. Pepper protected them at any cost. Even if it meant her life.

“I can wait up with you.” She couldn’t contain her smile. Happy that Pepper considered her part of her family and would also protect her if she’d been attacked, Abby was prepared to do the same.

“No. Really. Go inside and get some sleep. I’m going to need you to stand guard tomorrow during the day. I’m not going to leave the horses alone until they catch that damn thing and I doubt you want them walking around in the house.” She said it like a joke, but Abby knew Pepper might do just that if they were threatened again.

“Okay. Goodnight.” She hugged Pepper tight.

River traipsed over to them. “Good, I’m glad you’re going inside to get some sleep.” He pulled his hat off and held it to his chest.

“Yeah, I have guard duty tomorrow during the day.”

He smiled but didn’t reveal his teeth, shifting his weight back and forth on his feet.

“Can you make sure Pepper gets some sleep? I’m afraid she’s going to worry herself sick over her animals.” Abby pictured Pepper staying up all week armed with her shovel, like a warrior princess, protecting them all from attack.

“I’ll see that she goes inside in a while.” River placed his hat on his head and adjusted it three times.

“Thank you.” Abby didn’t want to leave those two alone. She knew what they would talk about. She hated to be the subject of discussion, and she prayed Pepper wouldn’t leak her awful secret.

Chapter 23

River wished Abby would have stayed outside with him and Pepper, but she could barely keep her eyes open and looked exhausted. He couldn’t get over how the girls defended the horses against that vicious Gnome. They sure showed courage and spunk, but neither of them listened worth a damn.

Ottar told him he’d warned the ladies how dangerous going outside after dark could be. What if they hadn’t been so lucky?

He stepped inside Pepper’s small barn. “I need to have a word with you.”

Pepper lifted her head up from the horse’s neck. Blond strands of hair sprouted from her ponytail in disarray. “What is it?”

“I know Ottar told you two that it was dangerous to go outside at night. Why would you even risk it and go after that Gnome?”

“I couldn’t let it kill my horses.” Her tone held truth and determination.

“Yeah. Well, if it ever shows up again. I want both of you to run the other way.”

She rested her elbows on the horse’s back and cracked her knuckles. “I’m going to defend my animals and property against any threat, whether it’s a Gnome or a human.

“Don’t you at least own a gun, living way out here?” River braced himself for her answer.

Her shoulders relaxed, and her face muscles eased. “I don’t need one. We have a sheriff that rides in on his horse of steel to save the day.” She raised her hand and gestured to him with her palm up.

He shook his head. These women were going to get themselves killed. “What if we get you one in the morning?”

“Come on, Sheriff. When are you going to catch that thing? How come
you
didn’t shoot it? I know Abby asked you, but you didn’t answer. Don’t lie. I saw that net. I know bullshit when I hear it.” Her blue eyes flashed a lethal glare at him, and she let out a long exhale through her nose.

River squared up, raising his chin. “I have my orders to capture it alive.”

Pepper’s nostrils flared and her back straightened. “Really? And what are they going to do with it? Dissect it? Torture it? Interrogate it?” Her head bobbed up and down, punctuating her words.

He couldn’t believe she would actually defend the Gnome. “It’s a killer. You shouldn’t worry about how it’s treated. He killed a homeless man and we think it killed the sheriff before I got here.”

“That mini-monster killed homeless Joe?”

Grim-faced, he nodded.

Pepper’s rigid posture relaxed. “I liked Joe.” Her voice sounded soft and woven with sorrow. “I bought him a new jacket last Christmas. I also gave him a gift card every month so he could eat at the deli down the street from the pet store. He used to visit me while I worked. He loved to play with the puppies.”

River swallowed. The noise crunched like a tin can in his ears. “See. The creature has no mercy. I’m sorry we didn’t catch it before we lost Joe.”

Pepper hands jerked to her sides and fisted. She pinched her lips together. “I know that damn Gnome is ruthless. Look what he did to my horse. How about you just shoot it next time so I won’t worry anymore.”

“That’s my last resort.”

“Right. What about the Jersey Devil?”

“We were ordered to kill it.”

Pepper’s mouth dropped. “B-but the Jersey Devil hasn’t killed anyone.”

“Yeah, I don’t understand that one. Look I’ve told you too much already.” L.A.M.P.S. would probably want to erase their memories as protocol. He would try to prevent that at all costs. Their scientists haven’t exacted the procedure. One out of ten witnesses suffered from some sort of mental illness because of it.

“Not to change the subject, but what about Abby? She was really hurt when we caught you spying on us.”

“I wasn’t spying. I put surveillance cameras up so I could keep watch, so you two wouldn’t get in trouble. Which clearly you both are incapable of avoiding.” Okay, that wasn’t the only reason but they didn’t need to know that.

“Abby took it as a breach of trust.” Pepper pointed at him. “You need to talk to her if you really care about her.”

River cared about her. He cared a little too much. The past week had been hell not being able to talk to her. “She doesn’t want to talk to me. She’s made that clear.”

“Yeah. Abby can act all stubborn when she wants to, but she’s a sweet person. I think you two would be good together. She has some other issues she’s trying to work through, but if you hang in there I think you guys could start something special.” Pepper’s smile gleamed.

His attention zeroed in like a sniper when Pepper mentioned Abby had other issues. How come she wouldn’t ask for his help? Even though they’d only been on a few
almost
dates, he’d rationalized they had been getting closer. Hell. He’d almost had sex with her.

“What kind of issues?”

Pepper’s smile went peanut butter sticky. “That’s something you need to discuss with her.”

“It’s not serious is it?” Was she terminally ill or something? Abby looked pretty darn healthy to him. Or maybe in trouble with the law? “Does it have something to do with her ex?”

“No.”

“I want her to confide in me. To trust me.” He didn’t want Abby to have any worries. He hadn’t been very truthful with her though. “She won’t hardly speak to me much less ask me to help her.”

“I doubt you can help.”

“Don’t underestimate me.” River always figured out a way to help those in need.

Except his brother. He scraped his hand down his face. His chest felt as if a fist reached in and squeezed his heart. Now was not the time to think about him.

He cracked his jaw to relieve some of the tension. “You should get some sleep. I’ll stand guard and look after your horses.”

Pepper vigorously shook her blond ponytail in disagreement. “Thanks, but no thanks. I’ll sleep out here with them.” She lifted an old, red, white, and blue wool blanket off a hook on the wall, then spread out some of the straw from an empty stall, curling up on the ground. A big white dog bounded over and snuggled up beside her. She looked up from her makeshift bed and eyed River with an accusation in her big blue eyes. “When’s Ottar going to fix my dinosaur?”

“Soon.”

Chapter 24

Abby looked at the calendar on the wall in the barn. Four days had passed since the Gnome attacked Pepper’s Arabian gray horse. Every night River showed up and slept in the barn watching them, protecting them. Abby moved a cot outside for him so he wouldn’t have to sleep on the ground. The summer evening temperatures were mild and pleasant for sleeping.

Pepper’s yellow pick-up truck pulled up the driveway and she popped out of the door to greet Abby. “Howdy, stranger. How was your day?”

Abby pointed with her chin to the wheelbarrow piled full with horse manure and held up the pitchfork, a horse’s road-apple skewed on one of the prongs. “Just keeping busy. These horses are pooping machines.” She kept watch on the farm all day long. To make the day go by faster, she busied herself cleaning the barn and playing with the animals, keeping a careful eye not to let them wander out of her sight.

“Thanks so much. I think all the animals are going to miss you when you come back to work.” Pepper smiled one of those smiles she used to conjure up when they were younger and she was up to mischief.

“I’m going to miss them, too.”

“River called. He’s sending Ottar over tonight.” Pepper’s lip curled and twitched when she said Ottar’s name and quickly changed subjects. “Any word from your mom’s neighbor?”

“He hasn’t located the journal yet. I’ve called him every day and he assures me he’s still looking.” The thread of what little hope she clung to slowly slipped away from her grasp. In a few more days her cycle would start, and if she couldn’t remove the curse, the horse pies would hit the fan.

“Hey, do you want to go out and grab something to eat for a change in scenery?”

A change would be nice. “Okay.”

“Great. River wanted to go out with us tonight. He asked Ottar to guard the horses.”

“Uh . . . Pass then.”

Pepper put on her pouty face, and her bottom lip protruded outward. “Oh come on, Abby, he really cares about you. Every time I see him, he asks about you.”

Too bad. “You’re forgetting a couple things. He’s going to kill me.” And the last thing she wanted to do tonight was to entertain all his questions.

“No, he wouldn’t kill you. I think you should tell him. Maybe he could help?”

“Oh great. That’s exactly what I want. I can see the headlines now. Local woman captured, taken away, forced to be an experiment. You know he would turn me in. This police and hunting career means everything to him.” Her worst nightmare had come true. She played the scenario out in her mind. Her lying in shackles on a stainless steel table, naked, and a bunch of doctors poking and probing her with cold—hopefully sterile—metal utensils. Her right eye twitched at the thought.

Pepper hugged Abby’s shoulders. “I’ll make sure they won’t catch you. Speaking of that, when is your next period?”

“When I get stressed it comes more often. And right now, I’m majorly stressed out. So it could be anytime. Maybe I should take a trip for a few days.”

“Don’t even think about it. I want you here, with me. I’ll keep an eye on you, and if I need to distract the guys, so be it.”

“I don’t want to risk your safety.”

“I’m not worried about it. I guess the huge tether I bought won’t work this month.”

Tether?

Pepper zeroed in on her confusion. “It’s a long steel corkscrew thing. You screw it in the ground with a chain to hook onto your collar. Though, I think you’ll be strong enough to pull it out.” She shrugged. “I can return it to the distributer. I don’t want to endorse tethering any animal. It’s just cruel.”

“Oh, so it’s cruel to torture an animal like that, but not me?” Abby liked to tease Pepper. She didn’t blame her one bit.

“Na, you know—I’m just trying to help. So what do you say? Want to go out to eat?” She bounced from one foot to the other.

Yes, she did want to go out. Even though she enjoyed the horseback riding, restlessness from staying at the farm all week settled in around her. But she didn’t want to eat with River. “Not really.”

“You’re going. Go inside and shower. I’ll let him know.” Pepper gave her a nudge toward the back door. “You’ll have fun. Wear something sexy.”

They arrived at the Russian Tea House restaurant and were seated before River arrived. Hand painted blue, yellow, and orange ceramic tiles adorned the restaurant’s stepped tray ceiling. Gilded pillars separated different eating areas. Several bronze statues of Gods and Goddesses scattered around a flowing water fountain. Abby especially loved the soft chiming music piped through the speakers.

“You should try some of their salads. They are to die for.” Pepper opened her menu when they sat at a colorful painted table.

Abby studied her menu
. To die for
were the last three words she needed to hear at this moment. “Okay,” she said, covering her dread with pleasantries. She’d decided in the shower that she would enjoy this meal. River or no River, she looked forward to getting out and about.

It might have been her imagination but it seemed everything in the place suddenly went quiet. She looked up.

River sauntered in. Saunter fit the man’s confident stride. He wore his navy blue button down shirt with the top three buttons undone, enough for Abby to see a peek of his tanned muscular chest. Dark blond curls swirled loosely around perfectly chiseled high cheekbones.

He pulled the chair out and sat across from them. “Abby.” His smile showcased his dimples, and he nodded to her. “Pepper,” he acknowledged. “This place looks great. Thanks for suggesting it.”

“Try the peach mimosas.” Pepper pointed to a picture of a tall glass filled with bubbly water and green mint leaves on Abby’s menu. “They’re my favorite.”

When a cute twenty-something waitress with short spunky blond hair came up to their table, she gave River a look-over. Her eyes traced every contour of his magnificent body. The waitress’s smile was a jump-my-bones invitation addressed to River. “Hi. Are you ready to order?” Her gaze didn’t stray from the sheriff’s handsome face.

Abby clenched her teeth so hard a pain flared deep in her jaw. A jealously parasite gnawed at her hardened stomach. She swallowed and ignored the twinge, realizing she had no right to claim River.

They ordered their meals. Abby and Pepper both chose a green papaya salad with chili lime dressing. River picked a lamb shish kabob with peppers, onions, and a cucumber yogurt. The waitress left the table to place their order in the kitchen. River never looked twice at the woman.

Abby’s shoulders relaxed.

“So, any word on the Gnome?” Pepper asked.
Nothing like diving right in
. She knew Pepper was still concerned about the safety of her animals.

“We’re still looking.” River laid his forearms on the table and folded his hands, interlacing his fingers.

“Well, what’s taking so long?” Pepper sounded like a child in the backseat of a car during a cross-country road trip.

“We’re doing everything possible. It won’t be long.” Even though his words had come out positive, a small amount of defeat hid deep in his tone.

Pepper leaned toward Abby. “I was thinking of taking the day off tomorrow. Could you watch the store for me?”

A flutter of excitement twittered in her stomach. “Yes, I’d love to.” Even though she thoroughly enjoyed keeping watch on Pepper’s animals, she loved working in the pet store and talking to the different people that came in to shop.

“Done.” Pepper patted Abby’s hand on the table.

Her cell phone vibrated. She looked down to see her mother’s neighbor’s number and answered. “Can you hold on a minute?” She placed her hand over the receiver and jumped up from her seat. “I’ll take this outside.”

The man had found the journal.

River enjoyed the conversation with the girls, and after Abby’s mysterious phone call, her mood turned more positive. It was great to see her smile.

“Good news?” Pepper asked, her right eyebrow arched above her curious expression. He leaned over the table to hear more.

“Yes,” Abby said, not giving him any clues to what her business was about.

“Well, let’s celebrate. Drinks all around.” Pepper’s enthusiastic smile spread to everyone at the table.

“The vet came today and took out the Arabian’s stitches. He said the wound was healing with no complications. He doesn’t think it will leave a scar,” Abby said to Pepper.

“Poor Fred. I’m glad he’s recovering. I was worried about infection. The way that Gnome smelled, he must be covered in all kinds of germs.”

River knew that smell too well. The creature’s stench still lingered on his clothes even after he had washed them a few times.

“Remember, if you see the damn thing, run away. Don’t try to fight it again.” He didn’t want that thing anywhere near Abby. He pictured the ladies batting at the little bastard like a piñata. The courage the girls had shown impressed him.

These two could take care of themselves, sure, he just didn’t want to put it to the test again. That’s why he spent his nights in the barn. He needed to protect them from protecting the animals.

Hercules didn’t seem to mind. He loved playing with the other dogs when he brought him with him. He was the perfect guard dog, and would bark whenever he heard something outside the barn.

They finished their dinner and a young busboy cleared their dishes from the table.

“Abby, can we go out again sometime?” He hoped after the good news she’d received she might reconsider a date.

Abby’s eyes opened wide and her lips snapped together as if she had been caught off guard. She paused and composed herself.

“Not right now.” Her voice lost all its power and her words held regret.

“We could make it just coffee and a donut.” When he said the word donut, Abby licked her lips. Ah ha! She liked donuts.

Her gaze dropped to the table. “Maybe in a few days. I have something I’m working on.”

His heart rate increased and shot tingles through his limbs. At least she didn’t say no. Tomorrow he planned to stop by the pet store with breakfast.

They exited the restaurant into the peaceful warm night air. The girls slid into Pepper’s yellow truck and pulled out of the parking lot. Since it was dark, Ottar would already be stationed at their house. Relieved that the big Aussie would watch over them when they got home, River drove back to the office.

Later, he intended to scout the forest and hunt that brain-sucking Gnome. A never ending cycle of dead-ends. If only they could find the Gnome’s hideout, they could ambush the little bastard. Gnomes were crafty and smart but River prepared to out-maneuver the gross bugger. He just needed a break.

One big, huge, humongous break. His intuition niggled him in believing that break would come soon.