Snuffed Out (Book 2 in the Candlemaking Mysteries) (25 page)

‘
Take it easy, I believe
you.”

After she hesitated a
second, she added, “It’s getting worse.” I could see her shiver
slightly as she continued. ‘“Today when I got back to my car from
grocery shopping, there was a note on my windshield that
said,
i need to see more of
you
, printed out in big block
letters.”

“
What did you
do?”

“
I panicked,” she said.
“Normally I’m not afraid of anything or anybody, but this is really
creeping me out.”

I tore the note up and drove straight here.
He must have followed me.”

“
You came to me?” I couldn’t
believe Becka was willing to admit she needed me for
anything.

“
Harrison, we may have had
our problems in the past, but you’re the one person in the world I
know I can always count on.”

Becka prided herself on her independence, so
I knew what that statement must have cost her. “The first thing we
need to do is call the sheriff.”

“
Do you honestly think he’ll
be able to help me?”

‘
Truthfully, I’m not sure
what he can do at this point, but we still need to let him know
what’s going on.”

She snapped, “What’s it going to take, an
all-out attack from the man? I can’t stand feeling this way, but I
won’t let the police think I’m a fool, either. Forget it.”

I stood and leaned against the wall. “I just
don’t know what else I can do. I’m here if you need me, you know
that.”

She stood and put a hand on my shoulder.
“Believe me, I know that, Harrison. Honestly, I feel better just
telling you about it.”

“
Are you sure you don’t want
to phone the police? I’d be glad to make the call for
you.”

She shook her head. “No, not until I’ve got
something to show them. It was foolish of me to tear up that note,
I realize that now.” She hesitated a moment, then added, “Do you
know what I’m going to do? The next time I see him, I’m going to
turn around and confront him.”

It was a lousy idea, but I couldn’t say it
that openly. “Do you honestly think that’s the best course of
action to take?”

“
Don’t worry about me,
Harrison, I’ll be fine. I’m betting once he knows I’m not afraid of
him anymore, he’ll run away like a scared little boy.” She opened
her purse and pulled out a red cylinder. “Besides, I’ve got this
Mace for protection if he tries anything.”

“
At least let me walk you to
your car.”

She nodded. “I’d appreciate that.”

Eve was trying her best not to let on that
she’d been eavesdropping when Becka and I walked toward the front
door. “I’ll just be a minute,” I told her.

“
Take your time,” Eve said,
though her gaze never left my ex-girlfriend.

I walked Becka to her car, all the while
searching the parking lot and shops for her stalker. No one
matching her vague description was in sight, but that didn’t mean
he wasn’t lurking somewhere nearby. Becka unlocked her car and got
in, but not before she searched the backseat. She started the
engine, locked the doors, then rolled down her window. “Thanks,
Harrison.”

“
I didn’t do anything,” I
said with a grin.

“
You were here for me when I
needed you,” she said simply.

Before she drove off, I said, “Be careful.
Becka, I’m not happy about leaving it like this. You really should
let the police know what’s going on.”

“
If he does anything else, I
will. I promise.”

I had an uneasy feeling as I watched Becka
drive off. If anything happened to her now, I’d feel partially
responsible. I decided to call the sheriff when I got back inside
despite her objections.

Eve asked, “What was that all about?”

“
Becka believes somebody’s
after her. Why don’t you listen while I call the sheriff? It’ll be
easier to get the details that way.” I got Sheriff Morton on the
telephone and told him everything Becka had told me. Eve’s eyes
grew wide at the description of the stalking, but it had little
effect on the sheriff. A man named Coburn had been the sheriff when
I’d first inherited River’s Edge, but he’d been voted out of office
just after I’d discovered who had murdered Belle. Morton was a
little better, but not by much.

When I was finished, he said, “It could be
stalking, or it could be that your girlfriend’s got an overactive
imagination.”

“
She’s not my girlfriend,” I
said automatically. “I admit that Becka’s had a flair for the
dramatic in the past, but I’d still feel better if you talked to
her. You didn’t see her face when she came into the
shop.”

Morton hesitated, then said, “Give me her
name and address.” After I did, he said, “Tell you what, I’ll have
a black-and-white unit check on her later. That’s the best I can
do.”

“
I’ll take it. Thanks,
Sheriff.”

“
No problem.”

After I hung up, Eve said, “Well, she
certainly had every reason to be upset, didn’t she?”

“
I can’t imagine her coming
to me for protection,” I said. While I was an inch shy of six feet
tall, I was a good fifteen pounds overweight. Besides, I hadn’t
been in a real fight since the fifth grade. I couldn’t imagine
being anyone’s guardian.

“
Come now, Harrison, it’s
obvious the woman has faith in your ability to protect
her.”

“
I don’t know why she’d
think that.”

“
Perhaps you’re all she
has,” Eve said simply.

“
If that’s true, then she’s
got more problems than someone stalking her.” I was worried about
Becka, but there was nothing I could do about her situation. She’d
call if she needed me—there was no doubt in my mind about that—so I
tried to put her out of my mind and get back to the business of
running my candleshop. Still, I was uneasy every time I heard the
telephone ring, wondering if it might be her, in some kind of
trouble I might not be able to fix.