Deciding a cup of tea was what she needed, she filled the kettle and plugged it in.
She had a supply of herbal teas thanks to Cyndi and was quickly becoming addicted to them. Grabbing her favorite mug and a teabag, she waited patiently for the kettle to boil.
While she waited, she made a mental list of everything she had to accomplish today.
It was Saturday, but her business was a seven-day-a-week operation. The nice thing was that she could also take time off whenever she wanted. By the Book provided her with a good living, but more than that, she loved what she did. Yesterday had been a good day for her online store. She’d sold three of her more valuable books to a collector in California. She planned to box up the books and send them out by courier later today.
The kettle began to whistle and Amanda poured hot water over her tea bag. Not bothering to wait until the tea steeped, she picked up her mug and decided to check her email. There had been several inquiries about two of Elizabeth’s more collectible books yesterday, plus she’d had an email regarding an estate collection.
Wandering down the hallway, she sighed with satisfaction. The house was beginning to feel like home. By the Book was ready for her to open to the general public any time she wanted. The rest of the downstairs was now a cozy living space, and the last of the empty moving boxes were ready to be carried to the basement. Every room had been painted, paintings and artwork were hung and furniture was arranged. Best of all, her electrical system worked like a charm.
She went into the shop, pausing just inside the doorway to admire how good all the books looked on the shelves. Pleased, she walked to her desk, placing her mug on the corner. She was about to turn on her computer when she thought she heard a noise.
“Jonah?” Amanda went to the window and checked the driveway, but there was no sign of his truck. “This is an old house and it makes odd noises. It’s part of its charm,”
she assured herself. “Nothing to worry about.” Her nerves were on edge since the phone call yesterday.
As she turned away from the window, the phone rang. Amanda jumped and gave a nervous laugh as she reached into her pocket and withdrew her cell phone. Her heart was pounding as she answered. “Hello.”
“Hey, sugar. You okay? You sound like you’re out of breath?” Jonah’s voice washed over her, calming her racing heart.
“I’m fine. How is everything with Elizabeth?” She thought it was prudent to change the subject before Jonah pushed it. There was no way she’d admit that she was nervous being alone.
Jonah snorted. “Still no sign of Brown yet. I’m beginning to think he changed his mind. Either that or he’s just messing with Elizabeth.”
“I’m sure he’ll be there soon.”
She heard someone calling his name in the background.
“I’ve got to go, but I’ll be home soon. Elizabeth has to take Susie to dance lessons in ten minutes, regardless if Brown makes it here by then or not.” He paused and his voice lowered to what Amanda thought of as his bedroom voice. “I just wanted to hear your voice.”
Amanda smiled as warmth suffused her. “I’ll see you in a bit.” She ended the call and shoved her phone back into her pocket. A whisper of a sound caught her ear, but she dismissed it. “Got to be the wind,” she muttered, feeling more alone now than she had before Jonah called.
She went back to her desk and started to sit, but changed her mind. There was no way she’d be able to settle down and work until she’d checked the house from top to bottom. Closing her eyes, she listened, but all she heard were the normal creaks and groans of her one-hundred-year-old house. The wind gusted up and the trees outside the house shivered. It was the middle of the day, for heaven’s sake. She was completely safe.
Still, she was no fool. Grabbing her cell phone, she opened it and held her finger poised over the buttons. One press would put her through to the sheriff’s office. She’d programmed it in right after the attack.
Feeling stupid and paranoid, she crept from the shop and headed toward the living room. There was no one there. She continued on through the other entrance on the far end of the room and checked out the dining room. From there, she went to the kitchen. Steam still wafted from the kettle, but the house was quiet.
Something wasn’t right. She knew it, but couldn’t exactly put her finger on what it was. “You’re losing it, you know that.” She took a deep breath to settle her jumpy stomach. Her nerves were jittery and she could feel a bead of sweat on her forehead.
“This is ridiculous.”
But ridiculous or not, she knew she had to get out of here. Tucking her cell phone into her back pocket, she grabbed her purse and keys from the counter. She’d go to Jessie’s and buy herself some lunch. Maybe she’d even call Jonah and see if he could meet her there.
Making herself walk at a sedate pace, she made her way toward the front door. She’d probably end up feeling really foolish later, but that was fine by her. She couldn’t stay here a second longer.
Amanda smelled it then, the slightest whiff of cologne. Jonah didn’t wear cologne.
She knew that scent from somewhere, but where? Her mind jumped back in time to the night of the break-in. Her attacker had been wearing that scent.
Throwing caution aside, she raced for the door, her fingers scrabbling at the lock.
Footsteps thudded behind her, but she didn’t dare look back. All her focus was on opening the door and getting out. The lock turned. She grabbed the handle.
Her heart pounded, creating a roaring sound in her ears as she yanked the door open.
A heavy male body struck hers, knocking the door closed. Amanda’s head hit the heavy panel with a hard smack. Her knees buckled, but she remained upright, reaching for the handle. She had to escape.
A hand grabbed her hair, yanking her head back. “This could have been avoided if you’d only left the damn book somewhere I could find it.”
The voice was muffled, but it was vaguely familiar. Amanda tried to place it as she struggled with her attacker. A sharp knife flashed in front of her face.
“Don’t move or I’ll cut you.” He said it so matter-of-factly that she had no doubt he’d do it.
He was taller than her and had one hand wrapped around her hair, while the other held the knife. With her back to him, she couldn’t even see what he was wearing beyond the black gloves on his hands and the black sleeves of his coat.
She stopped struggling and started to think. Jonah would be home soon. All she had to do was stall him until that happened. Or maybe she could distract her attacker long enough to make a break for it. “What do you want?”
“The book.” He said it as if she should know what he was talking about.
She licked her dry lips and tried to focus. “I have a lot of books.”
He tightened his grip on her hair and pressed the edge of the blade against her cheek.
Amanda felt the sharp bite of the knife as it sank into her flesh. She tried to jerk her head away, but it was impossible. Pain made her cry out. Blood trickled down her cheek.
“Don’t make me hurt you.” She sensed his growing excitement and knew he was enjoying her fear.
That made her angry. Taking a slow breath, she released it. “You need to tell me what book you want. You can have it. I just want you gone.”
He dragged the flat of the blade over her face. “We don’t always get what we want, Amanda.”
She shivered with revulsion as he said her name and knew he wasn’t going to leave here without hurting her. She no longer questioned her instincts. He was going to kill her when he got what he wanted. She had to watch for her chance to escape.