My thoughts were slightly hysterical and I was reeling from the actual number. And in so little time? How many people had he killed overall? And still the question: Why?
“Take it easy. Just breathe.”
Kade was crouching next to me again, and I realized I was breathing in choked gasps.
Ten people.
“Why?” I managed, looking up at him. “Why would you do that?”
“It’s who I am,” he said.
I shook my head, adamant. “No, it’s not. That is not who you are. You’re a good man—”
“Will you stop?” he cried, jumping to his feet and pacing away from me. “I am not a ‘good man’! I never have been and I never will be, Kathleen!”
I got to my feet, angry now. “That’s not true! I know you believe it, but you’re wrong. What, did you kill those people just to prove to me how horrible you are?”
His eyes flashed blue fire as he glared at me. “I’m not explaining myself to anyone. Not even you.”
“You don’t have to,” I shot back. “You think I don’t know you? That I don’t know that all of this”—I waved my hand to indicate me and him—“and shoving me away and pushing me at Blane, that all of it is because you think you’re some kind of horrible person who doesn’t deserve to be happy?” I used quotey fingers for “deserve.” “Because you’re wrong—”
“I killed those people so I wouldn’t have to feel anymore!”
Kade’s shouting interrupted my tirade. His hands were in fists, his jaw clenched as he stared at me.
“I don’t understand—”
“I couldn’t handle the pain of giving you up,” he said, his voice much quieter. “And I didn’t want to be the person that I am without you. So I came back to Indy to say goodbye. That’s when Blane told me you’d disappeared.”
There was a lot of information in those few sentences and I struggled to process it.
Kade turned away, using the roller to cover the last few inches of the wall that needed paint, then he turned again and picked up the pan.
“I’m going to wash these out,” he said, brushing past me and out the door.
“Giving you up.”
Those words gave me hope. So he had wanted me. Kade hadn’t been lying when he’d said we’d go away together. Now just to figure out a way to convince him we could be together. He didn’t have to say goodbye to anyone, least of all me.
That thought snapped me out of my shock-induced stupor, and I hurried down the stairs, the steps creaking like crazy beneath me.
Rounding the corner, I glimpsed Kade through the window, using the hose out back to clean the brushes. I took a step forward, then was yanked backward.
I spun around in surprise, only to see a strange man in my house. He smiled.
“Oy there, lovey,” he said. “Be still now and this’ll be quick.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
I screamed. His hand went to my throat, grabbing me and lifting me to my toes. I didn’t bother trying to pull his arm away—I knew I wouldn’t be able to. His hand squeezed.
My hands were free, so I cupped both my palms and slammed them over his ears. I got him good and he howled in pain, releasing me. I dropped back down to my feet and stumbled. I scrambled, turning to run, but he grabbed the neck of my shirt and yanked me off my feet. I landed hard on my back on the floor and the force of it knocked the wind out of me.
He must’ve decided he didn’t care about the noise a gunshot would make, because that’s when he pulled out a gun. He pointed it right at me and I froze, terror icing my veins. There was nowhere I could go, nothing I could do—
Kade came out of nowhere, hurtling into the guy, and they both crashed to the floor. I watched in horror as they grappled. The gun went skittering across the floor and I crawled to it, then picked it up. I pointed it but couldn’t fire. I wasn’t a good enough shot that I was sure I wouldn’t hit Kade.
They fought dirty and I saw up close and personal how deadly Kade could be. His face was terrifying, cold fury blazing in his eyes. The guy didn’t have a chance, something that became immediately apparent. I heard the crack of breaking bone and the guy cried out, then Kade’s knife was in his hand. A split second later, Kade had slit his throat.
I was still on my ass on the floor, my eyes wide as I tried to breathe. Kade was straddling the now motionless body and he glanced my way, getting to his feet and moving toward me.
The gun I held shook like a leaf in my hands, my eyes glued to the blood seeping from the man’s sliced throat onto my wooden floor.
“Hey,” Kade said softly, crouching down. He reached out and slowly wrapped his hand around the barrel of the gun. “It’s okay now. Give me the gun, sweetheart.” But my fingers wouldn’t move, as though they’d been dipped in ice. Kade gently pried my hand loose and took the gun from me, tucking it in the back of his jeans.
“He’s . . . dead,” I croaked.
“Yes, and you aren’t,” Kade said.
I broke my stare and turned to Kade. He pulled me into his arms, holding me tight against his chest. My fingers clutched at his shirt, but my eyes were dry. It seemed I had no tears to shed for people who tried to kill me and ended up dead instead.
If Kade hadn’t been there, I’d be dead now and so would our baby. A shudder went through me.
“It’s all right. I’ve got you,” he murmured soothingly in my ear.
After a few minutes, I felt strong enough to pull away and stand. I looked at the dead man on the floor.
“Now what?” I asked.
“Now you find me an old sheet that you don’t want to see again, and a trash bag.”
I left, returning quickly with the items he’d requested. Kade wrapped the head and throat in the sheet, then tied the trash bag around that. Pulling the dead man by the arms, he hoisted the body in a fireman’s carry.
“Grab a shovel and follow me,” he said.
I ran to the garage and found an old shovel, then followed Kade as he trekked into the woods. We went some distance, then Kade dropped the body and held a hand out for the shovel.
“At least there’s a bright side to you living in the middle of fucking nowhere,” he said. “Plenty of places to bury a body.”
It took a while for Kade to dig a hole deep enough, but finally the body was buried and the dirt replaced. Kade was drenched in sweat and had discarded his shirt some time ago, but hadn’t shown any sign of fatigue until he was through. He leaned on the shovel for a few minutes. I stayed quiet and watched him.
After we got back to the house, he had me get a bottle of bleach and we cleaned the blood off the floor. Well, Kade did. I started dry heaving, so he ordered me into the kitchen to wait until he was done.
I had time to think while I waited, which probably wasn’t a good thing. Keaston had sent someone after me, just like Kade had said he would. What was I going to do? Just wait for the next killer? I’d be a sitting duck.
Kade came back into the kitchen carrying another garbage bag. “We’ll burn this one,” he said, heading to the sink. “No one’s going to come looking for that guy anyway. It’s the nature of the business.”
As he washed the dirt and blood from his hands, sweat still shone on his skin from the hard work he’d done digging in the warm sunshine. I’d need to wash his jeans. They were dirty from the digging.
“Thank you,” I said. “For being here. If you hadn’t—”
“Let’s not discuss what might’ve happened,” Kade interrupted, drying his hands on a dish towel. “I’m going to take a shower.”
I nodded, glancing at the clock. “Okay. My shift starts soon.”
“You’re going into work?” Kade asked.
I looked at him strangely. “Yeah. Why wouldn’t I?”