Nick saw the resolve in her eyes and knew he had to give in. She was as stubborn as a mule, when she believed in something. “Okay, but only if you tell Dylan about your visions.” He muttered softly, so only she could hear him.
Kris looked at Dylan, then back at Nick. “Okay, but not now. Later.” He nodded.
Dylan could hear them whispering, but couldn’t make out what they were saying. He moved farther away, trying to respect their privacy.
“How would this work?” Nick asked. “How would you keep her safe without him knowing about it.”
“I have an idea, but I need to discuss it with Nate. Can you stay with her today? We can talk more tonight. In every other case, the woman was taken when she was alone. The key is to never leave Kris alone, but to make him think that she is. All past abductions happened in the middle of the night, so I’m comfortable leaving you with her today.” Dylan turned to Kris. “Is that okay with you?”
“Yes, I feel very safe with Nick. Come back about six, we’ll have dinner and discuss it.
~~~~~
Damien, ignorant of the morning’s activity at Kris’s house, was intent on finding a secure, private place to stash Nick. He was both surprised and angry to find Nick still there, when he checked in on Kris later that afternoon. The couple appeared to be completely comfortable with each other. Nick was lounging on the sofa, watching television like he owned the place with his head on a pillow in his Beauty’s lap. Beauty had her head in a book. At least the animal had the decency to wear a shirt today, Damien thought. With no luck finding a location for Nick, Damien began to consider alternative plans. He would continue to search for a hideout, but his impatience to get on with the courtship would not let him look for long.
After watching the couple for an hour, it was obvious that his time would be better spent elsewhere. They appeared to be settled in for the day, and it was hard for Damien to watch his Beauty with another man without expressing his anger.
“I’ll see you later tonight, my love.” He blew a kiss at Kris, scowled at Nick and closed the laptop.
~~~~~
“So what’s on the menu tonight, Chef Nicholas?” Kris closed her book and looked down at Nick, the frown lines still creasing his forehead. He hadn’t let her get more than a few inches away from him since Dylan left. Even though he pretended to watch the game, she knew he was still thinking about her predicament.
Predicament. What a stupid word for the danger she was in, she thought. ‘Predicament’ sounded like a mix up with tee times or what could happen if you were running late for an important appointment. It certainly didn’t apply to being stalked by a serial killer. Like Nick, she had been pretending to read, but her mind was on a solution, any solution. She had opted not to invite Cassie to dinner; the last thing she wanted was her friend anywhere near this mess. But she was already in it, to a degree. If Damien had been following her for weeks, then he knew about Cassie. Maybe the safest place Cassie could be was here with Kris and Nick. At least she would be protected. Something else to discuss with Dylan.
Nick still hadn’t responded, so she tried again. “Hellooo, earth to Nick. Shouldn’t we be getting ready for our guest?” She ran her fingers through his hair, just to shake him out of his reverie. And because she liked it.
“Sure,” he smiled up at her. “What time is it?”
“After four, should we go to the market?”
“Not necessary, unless you want something besides pasta. I’ve got the ingredients for a ‘slap-your-mama’ alfredo sauce next door. We’ll add a few things to the leftover salad from last night, pop in some garlic bread, and viola, dinner. Does that suit?”
“Sounds good to me. I can’t wait to find out what ‘slap-your-mama’ sauce tastes like.” Kris grinned down at him. “How’s your back? Need some more lotion?” Nick was actually wearing a shirt over what was left of the sunburn and lying on his back, so she knew he was feeling better.
“Sure, I’ll let you rub on me anytime, sweetheart.” He waggled his eyebrows.
“Just for that you can rub on yourself.” She laughed.
They had successfully avoided talking about anything heavier than ‘do you want mayo or mustard’ since Dylan left. They each needed time to absorb all of the disturbing facts. Each had taken a turn at the computer, reading news stories about past victims, but neither had mentioned it by an unspoken rule.
Nick noticed that Kris had not called Cassie, and felt that he understood her reasoning. The last thing either of them were thinking about was playing matchmaker.
Dylan arrived on time, braced for frantic ‘what are we going to do?’ behavior. What he found was a calm, almost serene, couple going about the business of preparing dinner. An open bottle of wine breathed on the counter and sinfully good aromas wafted from the kitchen. Nick appeared to have dinner at the simmer stage and Kris had just finished setting the table. Maybe they were in denial, he thought, ignore it and it will go away. Too bad he came with a dose of reality. He’d left his duffle in the car, not wanting to spring the fact that he was Kris’s new houseguest/bodyguard until they had a chance to talk.
“Come on in, Dylan. Can I get you something to drink? We have tea, wine beer or something stronger.” Kris led him into the living room.
“No thanks, Kris, maybe later. How’s it going, Nick?” He sat in a chair that was directly across from Nick’s spot on the sofa. Kris joined Nick and they both looked at Dylan expectantly.
“Fine, nothing new.” Nick wanted to hear what Dylan had to say, before sharing his own plans for Kris’s safety. He had decided to hire a team of bodyguards so that one would always be at her side. Nick would be there as well, as often as possible. He knew Kris wouldn’t stand for him to follow her around at work, but she would have to accept a bodyguard. Professionals knew how to stay out of sight, so they wouldn’t spook Damien. The only reason he hadn’t hired a team already was so he could ask Dylan for a recommendation.
Dylan cleared his throat and jumped in. “Nate agrees that having an FBI team on site would be too visible, and we would risk losing Damien,” he began. “He agrees that Kris needs round the clock protection, which will be provided by the feds. Specifically, by me and one other agent who will meet Kris at work tomorrow morning.” Dylan took a breath and waited for a reaction.
“I thought you worked for the Mount Pleasant police? Are you an agent?” Kris asked.
“Yes and no. I was an agent for 13 years, prior to joining the Mount Pleasant force. I resigned to find a more peaceful way of life. Since that doesn’t seem to be in the cards at the moment, I agreed to work as your protective detail for the duration. I’ll stay out of sight, inside the house, so that Damien thinks you’re alone at night. Agent Jerry Forbes will become a coworker and your new daytime shadow. She’s great, you’ll like her. She also one of the most competent agents that I know.” He looked at Nick, trying to stave off any objections. “Damien will not get by her.”
“So that means you will be staying here with Kris at night?” Nick was determined not to let jealousy be a factor. Since he planned to be here too, he was sure that it wouldn’t be.
“Yes, but I’ll need your cooperation to make this work. Damien has to believe that Kris is alone at night. You can visit in the evening, but you can’t sleep here.” He knew Nick was about to argue. “Think about it, we all want this over with as soon as possible. To do that, Damien has to believe that he has control. Nothing in his past behavior indicates that he would attempt to take Kris if you are here. I’ll leave in the morning, well after Kris and get here before she gets home at night. If Damien is following her, and we have every reason to b
elieve that he is, he won’t see me come and go.” Dylan turned to Kris. “I’m sorry to inconvenience you so much, but it’s for the best. Your protection is paramount, but capturing that monster is also at the top of the list.
The only other option that we have is to replace Kris with an agent, someone who looks enough like her to fool him. Unfortunately, that option rarely works for more than a day. In cases like this where the stalker already knows her mannerisms, a double is a real longshot. The best chance we have of catching this guy is to shadow you.” Dylan looked straight into Kris’s eyes. “Can you handle it?”
Kris looked deep into Dylan’s eyes and knew that he was someone she could trust. After a time, she replied, “Yes. But I need to ask you the same thing. I’ve told you everything that I know about Damien, but I left out something about me that could help us.” She took a deep breath. “I am precognitive. I have psychic visions and I had one about Damien. Can you handle that?”
Dylan’s surprise was evident. Of all the things Kris could have told him, the fact that she was precognitive didn’t even make the list. It was his turn to take a deep breath and look deeply into her eyes.
“Why don’t you tell me about it,” he finally said. Dylan was no stranger to the paranormal, but that was a topic for another day. Unlike most people in law enforcement, he knew that true psychics could aid an investigation, just as quacks could really screw one up. Before he classified Kris into either category, he wanted to hear her story.
Kris was looking for any signs that Dylan was humoring her or thought she had lost her mind. The only thing she saw was a man interested in what she had to say. Okay, she thought, first hurdle over. She told him about her vision.
“I’ve had visions about other people since I was a little girl. They always come true. I’ve never had one about myself. Two nights ago, I had a vision where I believe I was holding a gun, in this house in the middle of the night. I didn’t hear the shot, but I felt myself fall. I don’t know if I shot someone, or if someone shot me. I couldn’t even say if whoever was in here was a man or a woman, but the energy felt like a man.” She waited for Dylan to respond.
“There’s no need for you to be armed as long as I’m here with you. In fact, it’s a rule that you can’t be. Have your visions ever been altered by extraneous events?
“Oh, yes. In the past, I’ve treated them as warnings. By altering actions related to the visions, the outcome always changes. Nick can tell you that first hand.” She nodded at Nick, silently giving him the floor. So far, Dylan seemed to be accepting of her gift. A little corroboration wouldn’t hurt.
“When we were in college, Kris had a vision of me being trampled while walking down a staircase in a building where I had most of my classes. I always took the stairs, it was faster than waiting on the elevator, plus it was better exercise. A few others did the same, but as a rule, the stairs were never very crowded. Even though it made no sense at the time, I began taking the elevator exclusively, based on her vision. A few days after her warning, one of the labs had a minor explosion and released a chemical that scared the daylights out of everyone in the room. The lab was next to the stairs, and everyone bolted down them to get away from the fumes. There was one guy in my class who always took the stairs at the same time I did. He was seriously injured by the mass exodus and is in a wheelchair to this day. I was riding the elevator at the time of the stampede, or else it could easily have been me.” Nick was still haunted by the event and grateful that he’d had the good sense to listen to Kris. Dylan could see the emotions on Nick’s face and hear the awe in his voice.
“And there’ve been a lot of instances where your visions have coincided with reality?” Dylan asked.
“Yes, too many to list. It’s a fact of my life that I accepted a long time ago. It’s not something that I like to talk about, it just is. If I see something that can help someone, I’ll tell them. They can choose to believe me or not.” Kris looked at him questioningly, but she didn’t ask.
“I know that precognition is real,” Dylan hedged, “and I can see that you and Nick are sincere. I hope you understand that until I have proof, I’ll remain skeptical. No offense.”
It was more than Kris hoped for, at least he had an open mind. “None taken. But it’s not a dog and pony show, I can’t see things on demand. I may never be able to offer you proof, and that’s okay. But I am asking you to believe that what I saw is a distinct possibility. Can you do that?”
“Yes, but let’s change the outcome by locking away your gun. If anyone is doing any shooting around here, it’s gonna be me.” Dylan smiled.
“Fair enough.” Kris smiled back at him.
Nick was also happy that Dylan didn’t blow Kris off; he was beginning to like the man. “Let’s eat, shall we? Self-serve in the kitchen.”
The sun was just beginning to set as they finished their meal. Kris was missing her evening walks on the beach. Dylan had said to change her routine, but did that mean she had to eliminate things that she enjoyed? Just how much was she going to let this Damien character affect her life? Now she had a roommate for God knows how long. Though she was grateful for the protection, she knew that sharing her home and having someone follow her around all day at work would be a major distraction. She had also postponed inviting Cassie to dinner, and to meet Dylan. And what about Cassie? Could she visit her in Charleston, was Cassie safe?
“Dylan, I have a very close friend living in Charleston that I’ve visited twice in the last week. Do you think that Damien followed me there? Is she now a part of his obsession? She lives alone, should she move out here so you can protect her too?”
Dylan considered the dilemma. “As far as we know, no one in the other victim’s lives were targets. He focuses solely on one woman at a time. That’s not to say that Cassie shouldn’t be careful and aware of her surroundings, but I doubt that she is in danger.” Dylan saw that Kris was not too relieved. “Yes, he probably followed you there, which means he is aware of her. While I definitely don’t think that her moving out here would make her safer, I do think that we should keep an eye on her.”
Kris let out the breath she was holding. “Thank you. I’ll call her now.”
“Wait. Don’t tell her too much; the fewer people who know about this, the better. Does she know about the roses and the phone calls?”
“Yes and no. She was here the weekend that the strange activity started at Nick’s, and I told her about meeting Damien and about getting one rose. She doesn’t know about the phone calls, the dozen roses or the vision.” Kris frowned. “I wanted to invite her here tonight, but couldn’t after learning about who we were up against. Do you think that would have mattered?”
“It’s probably best if she not visit until we catch him. As far as what to tell her, let her know that you think you have a stalker. Tell her that the police are on it and that she should keep her doors locked and be particularly aware of her surroundings. I’ll talk to Nate to get his take on it, but for the moment, let’s keep it low key.”
“But you’ll have someone watching her?” Kris asked.
“I’ll see to it.”
Nick and Dylan cleared the dishes and cleaned the kitchen while Kris went upstairs to call Cassie.
“How exactly is this going to work tonight?” Nick asked.
“I’ll have to leave, or at least make him think I left, assuming he’s watching. That’s an assumption that we can’t afford not to make. We have to act based on the belief that he’s watching at all times. Anyway, I’ll park the car a few streets over and hike back here by the beach access. We can time it so that Kris and you are saying goodnight on the front porch or in the driveway. Give him a reason to be in the front of the house so he has a better look. In
the meantime, I’ll slip in through the back porch.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Nick mumbled. “I don’t like anything about this. I should be here with her.” Based on the FBI’s involvement, Nick abandoned his idea for private guards, for the moment. He wanted this guy caught, but he could see the logic in Dylan’s plan.
“I understand how you feel, but if you’re here, he won’t show. The quickest way to get me out of your hair and get your lives back to normal is to catch this guy.”
“I get that. But I don’t have to like it.” Nick threw the kitchen towel down onto the counter. “If anything happens to her, it’s on you.” He looked hard at Dylan.
“Understood.” Dylan knew how helpless Nick must be feeling; he would probably be feeling the same in his shoes. “But nothing’s going to happen to Kris.” He leaned back against the counter and crossed his arms. “Do you work close by?”
The change in topic caught Nick by surprise. “No, I’m between careers at the moment.” He wasn’t inclined to explain his situation to Dylan.
“So you’re home during the day?”
“Mostly, I’m still getting the house in order. I just moved in. Why?”
“Well, it would help if you were to keep an eye out for any strange goings on over here. Also, if you could possibly keep your car in the garage, Damien might feel more comfortable about getting inside the house. We don’t have any indication that he is here when Kris is not, except for the flowers, but let’s make it as easy for him as possible to access the house.
I’ll also be installing cameras around the outside of the property so we can monitor any activity. Once we have a picture of this guy or a license plate, he’ll be much easier to track. In that regard, I’d like to attach a couple of cameras to the side of your house, one facing Kris’s kitchen door and one facing the back deck. Any objections?”
“None, but how do you plan to set all of this up without him seeing it? We never know when he’s watching the place.