Page 13 of Guarded By the Lumberjack
There's no indication he's military himself, or has ever tried to be, so I'm guessing he falls into that fringe of guys who think they're something more. He's got a deep sense of patriotism-- even if it's a twisted version from the one I learned from the Constitution-- he believes what he believes and he's serious about it.
Why he's targeted an innocent widow is beyond me.
Harlan would likely say it's rooted in misogyny, but I don't have Harlan's profiling skills. I understand radio waves and algorithms better than I understand people. Especially unhinged ones like this guy.
Reaching into the case I brought with my laptop and other gadgets. Opening the app I need, I trace the activity on Penny's phone to get a read on how close this guy is really going to try to get to us. Sure enough, he's made it to my house.
I haven't heard from my brother or Cypress McAllister-- men who stayed there to intercept the guy. So I'm guessing he didn't bother trying to get past the front door.
Moonshine Ridge is full of ex-military. Most of 'em Marines, like my brother. Cypress is the only other spec ops I know of-- even if he is just a green beret.
I hate having him helping out on this, he's got a family of his own to protect, he sure as hell doesn't need to be sticking his neck out, risking bringing my trouble back to his own life. But I'm grateful he was willing to step up.
God knows I'd do the same for him.
Our madman's trail goes cold back in Moonshine Ridge. No indication that he's following the trail of breadcrumbs I so carefully laid out for him.
Hopefully he decided it wasn't worth the trouble trying to get past me or any other the other men willing to stand beside me. That would mean Penny and I would get to spend a few days enjoying Frost's hospitality, while we fuck on every surface of the place without having to keep our guard up.
Or...
I smell smoke that isn't coming from the fireplace.
He could be smarter than I give him credit for.
Chapter Seven
Penny
Calvin pulls me out of the bathroom before I have the door completely open.
"Down these stairs." He guides me, not entirely gently, to a set of steps hidden under a trap door that's concealed in the bedroom floor.
"You go through the door at the bottom and you hit the red button on the other side. Hear me?"
My brain spins to process what's happening. We went from making love and planning dinner to Calvin barking orders at me like I'm one of his men on a mission.
He must see the fear in my features because he softens, but only a bit.
"It's a panic room. It's got everything you need to stay safe-- and hidden. I want you to hit that lock and don't move until I come for you. Understand?"
I'm hesitantly making my way down the stair case into a dim green glow coming from the bottom that's somehow scarier than walking into pure darkness.
"Is that smoke?"
The smell hits my nostrils. It's not the comforting smell of wood fire burning in the fireplace, or the smokiness of campfire, it's laced with something acrid and it just smells-- wrong.
"It's okay, it's already out, but I have to take care of this and I can't do that until I know you're safe. Go. Lock the door. Don't come out."
He leans to kiss me and uses the distraction to extract my death grip from his arm.
"I love you, Penny. I'm coming back, I promise."
Numbly, I nod, desperate for him to come with me and understanding why he can't. This is why I came to him, after all.
Cal waits till he sees me get through the thick door frame at the bottom of the stairs, he motions to the wall just inside the space I've walked into and I find a large button glowing a dull orangish-red in the gloom.
I press it while I'm still staring up at Calvin's hardened expression and jump back in surprise as a heavy, metal door closes between us.
