Page 13 of One Little Memory (Cherry Valley Novella)

Jo tried to watch TV, but she was so sleepy focusing was difficult and the heavy thudding in her head didn’t help either.

She checked the time on the clock on the cable box.

Just after eight-thirty. Early still, at least she thought it was, but the pounding in her head and frequent yawns told her it was time to call it a night.

She flicked off the TV, stood and folded the blanket she’d wrapped around her, then went into the bathroom. There were towels in a linen closet next to the shower. Checking behind the mirror, she found a bottle of ibuprofen. She took out two and swallowed them by drinking from the bathroom tap.

She hadn’t looked too closely at the clothing Hazel had brought.

Were there pajamas in the bag? She hoped so.

Checking the bag, she discovered no PJs included.

There was a chest of drawers in the corner.

She pulled open the drawers, and in the second one down, found a black T-shirt with the name of the local high school on it.

It was probably Falcon’s since this place was supposed to be his.

She hoped he didn’t mind her borrowing it.

After grabbing the T-shirt, she went back into the bathroom and got into the shower.

Twenty minutes later, she got out, toweled dry her hair, and climbed into the bed.

It had been a long day. Her body hurt more than she’d anticipated, and her head was still aching.

She must’ve been running on adrenaline all day because she could only really feel the pain now that she was lying down.

Hopefully it wouldn’t keep her awake, but moments later, closing her eyes, she drifted off.

An unnatural sound woke her. She tried to clear the fog in her brain.

Where was she? What was going on? Phoenix.

Maybe it was him coming in. She listened.

The sound came again. It wasn’t a key in the lock like she’d assumed.

It was a thump, and it came from outside.

She glanced at the clock. Nine twenty-nine.

Sliding out of bed, she quietly walked to the front of the converted garage.

Looking through the front window, there was a shadow at the back steps of Phoenix’s house.

The shadow seemed to be looking around. Then it moved down a step to open the back door, and the whole steps seem to move out from the house and then drop back into place with a thump.

She blinked. They were one piece, made of wood and they weren’t attached to the house so when he hit the bottom step, they moved and then thudded against the foundation. That had been the sound she heard.

Jo stayed back from the window, not that the intruder could see her. It was dark inside the garage apartment. The moon was almost full, though, and outside was almost as bright as daylight.

The intruder was dressed in dark colors.

It was a man, or at least she thought it was.

Something about the way the shadow moved that made her think male.

His head was covered by a black ball cap so she couldn’t see his hair, and he was wearing gloves.

He was hunched over slightly working on the lock.

Her heart thudded against her rib cage. What did the intruder want?

Stupid time to break in, during a full moon.

It wasn’t even late. How did they know Phoenix wasn’t home?

Questions ran through her brain as the person fiddled with the back door lock.

She had no phone. Should she make noise to scare them off?

But what if they were after her? And why would they be after her?

A sudden memory flooded back to her. A man hunched over slightly. Looking in through her broken windscreen. Taking her purse. She blinked, and the image was gone.

A low curse reached her ears. The intruder was struggling with the lock, it seemed.

Had that really happened? Had someone stolen her purse? Yes. She knew it in her bones. That was a memory.

The sound of a vehicle reached her ears.

The intruder jerked upright. Lights filled the driveway, and the shadow took off down the steps and lumbered across the yard as if he was stiff or in pain.

He disappeared from view. The vehicle parked, and after her eyes adjusted to the darkness again, she recognized Phoenix right away.

She unlocked the door and wrenched it open.

“Phoenix, there was a man trying to break into your house.”

“What?” Phoenix jogged over and was beside her in seconds.

“He went that way”—she pointed—“when you turned into your driveway.”

“Stay here,” he commanded as he ran back to his truck.

He pulled out a flashlight and then took off in the direction she’d pointed.

Jo stood in the doorway, helpless. She shivered.

Finally, she shut the door and locked it again.

Her whole body started to shake. She’d been through so much over the last twenty-four hours, and even if her mind couldn’t consciously remember it all right now, she knew now that it was all in there.

The trauma was definitely taking its toll.

Quiet pounding rattled the door, and she let out a small scream.

“Jo, it’s me, Phoenix.”

She unlocked the door and pulled it open again. Their gazes locked, and she threw herself into his arms.

He circled his arms around her. “Hey, it’s okay. You’re shaking like a leaf.” He moved them farther into the room and then closed the door behind them with one hand. He pulled her back into his arms again. “You’re fine. I promise. You’re safe. He’s gone.”

“I-I-I’m s-sorry.” Her teeth were chattering, making it hard to speak. “I-I j-just got so scared.”

“I get it. It must have been terrifying for you. Stuck in here with no phone. Shit. The phone. I bought one for you. It’s in my truck. Let me get it.”

He started to pull away, but she held fast. She couldn’t seem to make her arms let go.

He pulled back and put his knuckle under her chin, forcing her gaze up to meet his. “You’re okay. I promise. I’m just going to my truck. The guy is gone.”

She nodded, but it still took a moment for her to be able to drop her arms from around his waist. She stepped back, and he went out the door.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

What was she doing being so clingy? That wasn’t like her.

Or was it? No. She wasn’t that kind of woman.

This whole thing had just thrown her for a loop.

She needed to get a grip and behave like a normal human.

Turning, she hit the light switch and then filled the kettle. If she kept busy, it would be better. She got down two mugs. A few minutes later, Phoenix was back.

“I saw you making tea, so I figured it was okay to check the back door.”

She nodded. “I was being silly before. Thanks for humoring me. I think…the last few days have been a lot for me. Even though I don’t remember much. I think on some level I’m aware of what happened to me, and it’s taking its toll.”

“Makes sense,” Phoenix said as he leaned against the back of the sofa. “Can you talk about it?”

She nodded and then started speaking as she poured the boiling water into the teapot.

“There was a thump that woke me. I got up and looked out the front window. A man was hunched over on your back steps. I didn’t see his face, but I’m sure by the way he moved, it was a man.

When he stepped onto the last step, the stairs moved and then fell back into place.

That was the sound that woke me.” She handed him a mug of tea.

Phoenix nodded. “The house used to be a three-season cottage, and I fixed it up. I haven’t gotten around to fixing the back stairs yet. If that’s what woke you, maybe I won’t.” He blew over the rim of the mug and then took a small sip before he continued. “What else can you tell me about the guy?”

She shrugged. “It was dark. No. That’s not true.

The moon made it bright, but there were lots of shadows.

She closed her eyes and tried to bring up an image of the intruder.

“He was about average height, not as tall as you but taller than me. He was of medium build. I couldn’t tell skin color. He moved like…maybe he was in pain.”

Phoenix frowned. “It seems an odd time of night for someone to try and break in.” It’s not that late.”

“That’s what I thought. It seems to me that someone would only break in at this hour if they knew for sure you weren’t home.”

He nodded. “Yeah, I think you’re right, which, to be honest, wouldn’t be hard to find out. This is a small town. People know everything about everyone.”

She added milk to her Earl Gray. “That’s what Hazel said earlier.” She paused. “Do you think they were looking for me?” Her hand shook as she stirred her tea, rattling the spoon rattle against the mug.

“Nah. To be honest, it was probably some kind of teenage prank. I caught them at something last night, and they’re probably getting back at me. Again, it’s a small town. Not much happens here.”

“But now there’s a murder.”

“Yeah, but it’s my understanding that it could be part of something much bigger.” His gaze met hers. “I can’t explain, but I’m not sure you need to worry about it.”

She searched his expression. Her gut said there was a hell of a lot more to it, but his face didn’t reveal anything.

Very cop-like, or at least she assumed it was cop-like.

Whatever it was, she had the distinct impression he wasn’t telling her the whole truth.

Could she blame him? No. Then again, she wasn’t telling him the whole truth either.

She hadn’t mentioned the memory that had come to her either, but there was something about it, like it wasn’t complete.

She wanted to think about it more before she mentioned it to Phoenix.

She had no idea what it meant, but she was definitely feeling like she was on thin ice, and she needed to be extra careful so she didn’t fall through.