N. Walters - By the Book

“I want the journal.” He dragged her backward toward her shop. She barely kept from tripping. The knife went from her face to her neck. She swallowed hard, but kept moving as he towed her into the shop.

“What journal? I keep all the journals on this shelf.” She pointed to one of the shelves just to the side of her desk. He pulled her alongside it.

Keeping the knife pressed to her neck, he released his grip on her hair and began to yank out book after book, tossing it angrily aside. When he got to the last one, he pushed her up against the bookcase. “What game are you playing? It’s not here.”

How much time had passed since he’d grabbed her? It felt like an eternity, but it was probably less than five minutes. “Those are all the journals I have.” Even as she said it, she remembered the book upstairs in her nightstand.

Seizing her by the hair again, he yanked her head back. “Where is the journal Elizabeth Brown gave you?”

Everything clicked into place and she suddenly knew who he was. She had to stay calm and not let on that she knew his identity or he might kill her now and be done with it. “Upstairs. It’s upstairs.”

“Let’s go.” He marched her toward the door. “And if you’re playing games with me, I’ll slit your pretty little throat. Do you understand?”

“Yes.” She didn’t dare nod with the knife pressed so tightly to her throat.

As they entered the hallway, she felt a stirring in the air. Danger seemed to fill the space around them. Without seeing him, she knew Jonah had arrived.

“Brown!”

Her captor spun both of them around to face the end of the hallway near the kitchen.

But it wasn’t Jonah who stood there. This man was massive. About six-foot-six, he was as wide as a mountain. Where Jonah was lithe and lean, this man was wide and solid. His hair was black and his eyes were a piercing golden-brown.

Amanda had no idea who he was.

“I’ll cut her.” As if to prove his point, he pressed the blade against her throat and she felt the warm trickle of her blood yet again as it glided down her neck.

The massive stranger held his hands out at his sides as if to show them he wasn’t armed. Amanda almost snorted. The man didn’t need to have a weapon to be a threat.

Even she could see that. And it wasn’t just his size. It was the confident way he held himself. He reminded her of Jonah.

“Now you don’t want to hurt the pretty lady.” The stranger kept his voice low, his tone conversational.

“I will if I have to.” She could feel her captor start to shake. With fear or anger, she wasn’t sure, but either way it didn’t bode well for her. The blade rested at the edge of her flesh, ready to slice deep at any second.

She tensed her muscles, waiting for an opportunity. If her captor got distracted even for one second, she was going to make a break for it.

The stranger leaned negligently against the wall, as if he didn’t have a care in the world. “Now if you do that Jonah’s going to have to kill you.”

Her captor jerked back at the threat. Amanda felt the blade drop slightly. Striking as fast as she could, she shoved her hands upward with all her might, knocking her captor’s arms aside.

The world exploded around her, yet it all seemed to happen in slow motion.

The stranger reached out and grabbed her, pulling her away from her captor. She felt the warmth of his hand around hers as he jerked her to safety. At the same moment, her captor yelled in agony as his hand was ruthlessly yanked away. Amanda heard the sharp snap of a bone breaking.

The world sped up again, returning to normal. Amanda gasped as strong arms wrapped around her. The stranger was talking to her, but she wasn’t listening. She couldn’t take her eyes off the scene in front of her.

Jonah had appeared from out of nowhere and had her captor facedown on the floor.

He must have been waiting in the living room for his chance to pounce, although she hadn’t seen or heard him. Jonah fastened some sort of plastic restraints around her attacker’s wrists, ignoring the man’s scream as he pulled them tight.

It was obvious to her that her attacker’s hand was broken. The knife he’d held on her was on the floor a few feet from her. She shivered at the sight of her blood on the weapon. Jonah had his knee in the other man’s back and had his head pulled back at an awkward angle. “I should just kill you now and be done with it,” he growled. “But that would be too easy.” Jonah slammed the man’s head down onto the floor and then ripped off the mask he was wearing.

Although she’d guessed who her attacker was, seeing Jim Brown lying on her floor was still somewhat of a shock.

“Jonah.” She’d meant to speak louder, but his name barely came out as a whisper.

Jonah’s head snapped around and their eyes met. He was beside her before she could blink, pulling her into his arms. “Let me see how badly you’re hurt.” He tilted her head back and examined the cut on her neck and the one on her cheek. “It might leave a scar, but I don’t think either of them will need stitches.”

She started to shiver from the shock. Jonah sat down on the stairs and pulled her into his arms. The stranger took off his jacket and laid it over her. “I’m Levi Mann, ma’am.

It’s a pleasure to meet you.” His touch was gentle as he tucked it around her.

“Amanda Barrington.” She slipped her hand out from beneath his coat and offered it to him. “Thank you for helping to save me.”

He nodded solemnly. “My pleasure, ma’am.” He gave her hand a light squeeze before tucking it back beneath the coat.

“I don’t understand.” Amanda was still confused. “Why are you here?”

A brief grin flashed on his face. “Jonah’s had me out in the woods this past week watching your house.” Sirens blared in the distance. “Here come the cops.”

Jonah tightened his hold on her and she snuggled closer. Once again, Jonah had saved her life. “I’ve got you,” he promised.

She closed her eyes and nodded, wishing he’d never let her go.

Amanda sat on the side of her bed and stared at the small journal in her hands. Who knew that such a small thing could cause such huge problems?

The emergency crew that arrived on the scene had dealt with the cuts on her neck and cheek. She’d refused to go to the hospital even though Jonah had wanted her to. If the cuts didn’t need stitches, she didn’t need the hospital. She wanted to be home, not stuck in the same hospital as Jim Brown. Jonah had broken his hand and they had taken him to get it treated before transferring him to the county lockup.

Her fingers stroked over the leather binding. “You had no idea when you started this journal all those years ago that it would cause such problems, did you, Cecilia?”

She could feel the men staring at her and shrugged. “I kept meaning to tell you about the journal, Jonah, but I kept forgetting. I didn’t think there was any harm in reading it.

I’m about halfway through and it’s mostly just news and recipes. She talks about her daily life.”

Patrick held out his hand and she handed the journal over. “You’re sure that’s what he was looking for?”

“As far as I can tell.” She cringed when he casually flipped open the front cover.

“Please be careful with it, it’s irreplaceable.”

The sheriff nodded as he gingerly turned the first page.

Jonah stood off to the side watching her. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking. All of them had talked to the sheriff, but still had to give formal statements.

Amanda was still amazed that Jonah had had an ex-military buddy skulking in the woods behind her house for a week. Levi Mann had been watching her house whenever Jonah was away.

It was Levi who’d seen Jim Brown break out a basement window in her house and slip inside. He’d called Jonah, who was already on his way home. The two of them had entered the house the same way as her attacker. Jonah had taken the time to call the cops before he and Levi had moved into position and rescued her.

Patrick flipped through several pages of the journal before placing it carefully into an evidence bag. “We’ll be going through this with a fine tooth comb.” He handed it off to one of his deputies. “Put this with the rest of the evidence and don’t let it out of your sight.”

When the deputy was gone, Patrick turned back to her. “You sure you don’t want to go to the hospital?”

She tried to smile, but knew it fell flat. “I’m sure.” She tugged her sweater tighter around her and tried not to shiver. “I’d rather be home than at the hospital being poked and prodded by a doctor.”

Patrick chuckled. “I hear you. We won’t be much longer downstairs. I’ll let you know when we’re leaving.” He nodded at Jonah and left.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” Jonah’s eyes went over her body from top to bottom, his gaze clinical.

She was getting tired of people asking her that question. “I’m fine.” And physically she was fine, but she knew it would be a while before she stopped seeing the sharp blade flash in front of her face. Her hand automatically went to her neck, touching the white bandage that covered the cut.

Jonah moved then, coming to crouch down beside her. “Brown used Elizabeth to draw me away from you.”

“I guessed as much.” She shrugged and picked at the fabric of her jeans, frowning at the bloodstain on the front of her thigh. Her top was probably ruined.

“It was a smart move on his part. If he’d found the journal, he could have shown up to see Elizabeth and had a perfect alibi.” Jonah placed his hand over hers, stopping her nervous movements. “I left after I got off the phone with you. I knew something was wrong, could feel it in my gut. I was just turning onto the street when Levi called. There was no time to wait for the cops.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “I’m sorry he hurt you. I’m sorry I let you down.”

She frowned. “You didn’t let me down. No one could have predicted my attacker would try something this desperate in the middle of the day. Good Lord, the man is a respected businessman.”

Jonah jumped to his feet and started pacing. “I should have seen through his ploy.

You could have been killed.”

“But I wasn’t.” Rising from the bed, she stepped in front of him. His eyes were hooded as he looked down at her. She could feel the heat emanating from his body, but he didn’t touch her. She wanted his arms around her, but he seemed distant from her.

Maybe it was time to put all her cards on the table. Facing death for the second time had a way of putting a person’s priorities straight.

“Look, I know all you wanted when this started was a simple affair. Instead, you’ve been drawn into this mess. I’m sorry for that, but I’m glad it’s over.” She tried to smile, but it quickly slid away. She’d never felt less like smiling in her life. “Thank you is totally inadequate for what you’ve done for me. You’ve saved my life twice.”

Jonah was as still as a statue. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

Taking a deep breath, she forged onward. “I understand totally if you want to leave.

You didn’t bargain for having your life so disrupted when we started this affair.”

“You understand.” He cocked his head to one side and stared down at her. “I’m glad one of us does.”

“We’re leaving now!” Patrick yelled up from downstairs. “I expect to see you both first thing tomorrow to give statements.”

“We’ll be there!” Jonah called back as he left the room and started down the stairs.

Noise drifted upstairs as all the members of the sheriff’s office gathered their belongings and left. Would Jonah leave with them? She didn’t think so. He was an honorable man, and she knew that in his mind, she was still his responsibility. She hated that thought. She didn’t want to be anyone’s responsibility. She wanted him to stay because he wanted to, because he loved her, not because his sense of honor dictated that he should.

Amanda scrubbed her hands over her face, wincing when she accidentally struck the bandage on her face. Shivering, she kicked off her shoes and crawled under the comforter, pulling it around her for warmth.

The house was quiet now and a sense of calm settled over her. No matter what happened, she couldn’t regret the time she’d spent with Jonah. She loved him more than she’d thought it possible to love someone. She wanted to be with him but she didn’t want to be just another one of his responsibilities. It was time he knew that.