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“Ah, yes, because I am the scourge of all humanity, aren’t I?” I withheld the urge to roll my eyes. Just what had my cousins told him about me? I shouldn’t care as much as I did, and yet, at this moment, it was all I could think about.
With hovering thoughts like contemplating my near-death and someone threatening me, and Hunter’s opinion of me was all I was concerned with? I needed help.
You need a man.
Any other distraction at this point would be welcome. Though how many could a girl have?
We finally arrived at Hummingbird Hollow. In the dark, the moss tendrils descending over the tree branches looked more like cobwebs and floating phantoms. I’d left two lights on. The one on the front porch and the light in the living room. I hated coming home to an empty house. Especially one as big as my grandmother’s estate. There were too many places for people to hide, too many nooks and crannies left uncovered.
It was why I spent so much time out of the house and why I chose to eat at the cafe at night, rather than dine in at home.
We walked toward the door. With each step forward, my feet sank deeper into the earth. I was literally digging in my heels by the time we reached the entrance. If it hadn’t been for Hunter’s arm around my shoulder, guiding me toward the house, I would have never even made it to the front mat.
“Home, sweet home,” he said. A light chuckle breezed past his lips as I tossed him a teasing scowl. This was not home. Not now. Nor would it ever be again.
I dug into my pockets and extracted the keys. I hadn’t even finished unlocking the door when we heard it.
Breaking glass. Or maybe ceramic.
Either way, someone was already in the house.
Chapter Eleven
Hunter
So, maybe she hadn’t been so crazy after all.
She claimed from the beginning that someone was out to get her, that someone other than her had started the fire. It sounded like nothing more than the ravings of a distraught young woman witnessing her whole world change in an instant.
And then, the letter arrived.
Nothing said creepy quite like a mysterious letter from someone threatening to harm you if you didn’t leave town. What did that even mean? Was she supposed to just physically leave and abandon all ideas of settling down here? Or did that mean selling the house, cutting all ties with everyone she loved, and never returning again?
And who would even care about that?
Other than my sister.
I didn’t want to believe she’d be capable of anything like this. She was ruthless, ambitious, and relentless in her feud against a family she’d only married into. There should have been no reason at all for her to join in on the madness that was Kyle’s family, and yet, the couple suited one another well.
She didn’t learn it from our father and mother. Both were pillars of the community, simple people who loved a simple life. Perhaps that’s what made her so ambitious. She always wanted more, always felt she deserved more. And strove to attain all she deserved by whatever means necessary.
But this? Was she really capable of breaking into someone’s house? Setting it on fire? Threatening others?
I took one step across the threshold, but Lyndsey tugged me back.
“What are you doing?” she asked. “We don’t know if whoever’s in there is dangerous or not. If they have a gun, you can’t just walk in there.”
“It’s fine,” I said. “What else are we going to do?”
“Call the cops.”
I didn’t want to do that either. If it was my sister, I wanted to give her the opportunity to explain herself first. If the cops came, there would be no going back from this.
“Just wait here. It’s fine,” I said, but she yanked back on my arm even tighter.
“No. I’m coming with you.” Her arm looped tighter around my arm. Her body hugged my side, warm and trembling, despite her sudden burst of bravery.
We stepped inside, flicking on another light as we passed from room to room. The obvious signs of someone arriving home did little to frighten the intruder. Clattering and clangs of pots, plates, and pans continued from inside the kitchen, located on the opposite end of the house. Whoever broke into the house cared very little about being caught, which generated more cause for concern than the break-in itself.
