Page 2 of Unexpected Danger (Mountain Justice #2)

It had been a wearisome day. First, a trip to the police department to report the texts and the suspicious man, then a full day of work.

Londyn hung her jacket on the hook just inside the door when her phone rang.

Because the number came up as unavailable, she allowed it to go to voicemail.

A few seconds later, her notifications dinged, indicating a message.

Likely someone telling her she owed money on her student loans, although she’d never attended college.

Or a spam call about a car warranty, which she’d never purchased since her car was over ten years old.

She scrolled to the voicemail icon and clicked it.

Only silence.

Londyn disconnected. It could be just someone with the wrong number. Or someone who had butt-dialed her. Or it could be related to the texts she’d received. Or it could be nothing at all.

Strange.

Could it be related to the man she’d seen outside the apartment yesterday? Or to the texts she’d received?

Perhaps she could call and see if Mom was available to talk. A stretch, but they hadn’t spoken since Mom’s most recent wedding. Perhaps a call would alleviate some stress, and maybe Mom would have some advice regarding the texts. Of course, the chances were slim. But still…

Londyn scrolled through her contacts and pressed the number beside Mom’s image.

Mom answered on the fifth ring just as Londyn was about to hang up.

“Hello?” Mom was laughing as she said the single word, and there was a male voice in the background. Likely Jason, Mom’s newest husband, although Londyn couldn’t be positive because she’d only met him twice.

“Hi, Mom.”

“Londyn, how are you?” Mom sounded distracted.

“Fine, except for some scary…”

“Londyn, you should see this place. Jason and I are having such a fantastic time. Amelia Island is just gorgeous, and there’s so much to do here.

Yesterday, we visited Fernandina Beach, and let’s just say I may have done a little too much shopping!

” Mom giggled, and Londyn heard Jason in the background mentioning that she had, in fact, done a lot of shopping.

“I was hoping…”

“And here in a few,” Mom continued, “we’re headed to Amelia Island State Park for some horseback riding. Definitely going to be different horseback riding than what we did in Pronghorn Falls. This will be along the beach, just like in the movies.”

“That sounds like a lot of fun. Look, Mom…”

“Oh, it will be. We’ll be going birding too. At this rate, we may just pack up all our stuff in Phoenix and move to the beach.”

Jason’s voice boomed across the line. “I’m all for that.”

They’d just moved to Arizona from Pronghorn Falls, and now they wanted to move again?

Londyn was about to attempt to get a word in edgewise again when Mom spoke. “Have you heard from Logan?”

Londyn couldn’t remember the last time she’d heard from her younger brother. “No, I haven’t.”

“Me either. Look, Londyn, I gotta go. Thanks for calling, and we’ll chat soon, okay?”

Mom didn’t wait for Londyn to respond before clicking off.

Londyn held the phone in front of her, discouraged once again that she’d heard all about Mom’s life, but Mom hadn’t taken the time to even ask about hers.

Nothing new there. No wonder Mom had been married five times.

There was room in her life only for herself.

She sighed. It wasn’t like she could call Dad either.

Londyn hadn’t seen or heard from him since the divorce.

His decision to all but disown her and Logan hurt in a way Londyn wasn’t sure she could ever truly overcome.

He’d married his much-younger secretary, the one who’d been the catalyst that caused his and Mom’s divorce.

In short, there was no room in his life for his previous family.

When he replaced Mom, he’d also replaced Londyn and Logan as well.

She pushed aside the rejection she’d experienced from both parents.

That was another thing she missed about Pronghorn Falls—Aileen Brenneman.

Brodie’s mom was like the mother she’d always wanted but never had.

Brodie and Roarke had no idea how blessed they were to have Aileen for their mom—someone who actually cared.

Someone who loved them. Someone who was always there.

Shouldn’t a mother be concerned about her daughter? Maybe ask how things were going? Be there when her daughter was struggling with something?

A feeling of loss and homesickness enveloped her. If only she could go back in time.

As she always did, Londyn checked the front door before settling into bed. Since receiving the texts and seeing the person across the street last night, she found herself checking the locks several times.

She turned out all of the lights except for the one in the hall, and crept to the front door. The apartment’s front yard and adjoining street were empty. Calm, save for the gentle rustling of the oak tree in the front yard. The streetlight flickered, its yellow hue casting an eerie glow.

Dread twisted in her gut. Were last night's events a one-time occurrence, or…

Londyn reminded herself that no one and nothing was out there. That she was safe inside her apartment. Safe behind a locked door.

She inched closer, double-checking that the door was fully locked. Then she checked again.

Londyn pressed on the door, reassuring herself it was completely closed as well, even though such affirmation wasn’t necessary. The door wouldn’t lock if it wasn’t closed.

A car traveled down the street, its lights illuminating the road ahead, and she jumped. When it continued on its route, she pressed a hand to her chest, praying God would calm her erratic pulse.

One final time, Londyn checked the door, then the window, leaning forward and pressing her nose against the glass to peer outside. All was quiet.

She turned around and retreated, satisfied that she’d be safe from whoever lurked outside.

Until she heard it.

The clicking of a door handle. The turning of the doorknob. Was it her imagination? Something else? Or…

She whipped her head around to look out the front door’s peephole.

Someone stood there wearing a dark-colored hoodie and a face mask, staring at the door.

She screamed, backed up, and tripped over the leg of a small table.

Londyn tumbled backward and hit the carpeted floor hard.

It jarred her, wrenched her neck, and sent a jolt of pain through her elbow.

She grasped the edge of the couch to stabilize herself.

The clicking again caused her heart to stall in her throat.

He was trying to get in.

Whoever it was pounded on the door loudly, as if indicating it was an emergency to get inside.

Begging her limbs to cooperate, she crawled away from the living room and once she reached the hall, stood, and ran on shaky legs to her bedroom. She shut the door, locked it, and shoved the side table against it before snagging her cell phone from the dresser and calling 911.

“911, what is your emergency?”

“Someone is trying to get into my apartment.” Her voice sounded breathless and barely audible.

“Someone is trying to get into your apartment?”

“Yes.” She put the phone on speaker, tossed it on the bed, opened the nightstand drawer, and retrieved her gun. She may need it.

“What is your address?”

Londyn rattled off the address.

“Police are en route. Where are you at?”

“I’m in my bedroom.”

“Is that in the back of the apartment?”

“Yes, to the west side of it.”

The operator told her to stay away from the window and to hide in the closet if she could. She did as the operator said, wedging herself among her clothes and shoes.

The pounding on the front door continued.

The operator was keeping tabs, but Londyn barely heard a word she said.

Finally, she noticed lights again coming down the street. She cautiously edged near the window and quickly peeked out before retreating. A police car was parked in front of the apartments. Londyn released the breath she’d been holding and returned her gun to the drawer.

“Officers have arrived,” said the operator. “They’ll do a perimeter check outside, then come to your door to ask you some questions.”

“Thank you.” Londyn disconnected, unlocked the bedroom door, and waited until the officers knocked on the front door.

She peeked through the peephole, then opened it, and the officers introduced themselves.

“We’d like to get some information,” said the burly bald one, who introduced himself as Officer Gann.

He asked her some generic questions about her name, age, and the length of time she’d resided in the apartment.

“Can you tell us what happened?” This, from the shorter, squattier officer named Nelson.

Londyn reiterated her story of how she’d seen the man across the street last night, the texts she’d received, and how she’d reported that to the police station earlier that day. Her words tumbling from her mouth as though she were an auctioneer, Londyn told the officers what had just happened.

“Can you give us a physical description?”

“It was dark, but I did notice he or she was wearing a black sweatshirt with a hood and a black mask. Or maybe the hoodie was navy.” She clasped her hands so tightly her knuckles turned white. Her stomach clenched. What if the person had gotten in? “He was wearing dark colored clothing and a mask.”

“You mentioned it was a he.”

“I guess I was just assuming. I think, yes, I think it was a man.”

“What about his build?”

“Slim from what I could see. He was taller than me. Maybe six feet?” How could she not have done a better job gathering such critical information?

Officer Gann jotted down notes. “We didn’t see anyone outside, so he must have retreated when he heard us coming. Do you know of anyone who would do this?”

“No.”

“Any enemies?”

“I haven’t lived here very long. Probably not long enough to make enemies. Unless…” The thought hit her suddenly.

“Yes?”

“I work for a company that handles the billing for several doctors and clinics. Maybe someone was unhappy with me because I was attempting to collect payment. Or maybe it’s someone who was already turned over to collections.”

Officer Nelson tilted his head. “Anyone in particular lately who might be unhappy with you?”

“There is one who comes to mind. He has refused to pay his outstanding debt, although we’ve done all we can to work with him.”

“Do you have a name for us?”

“Yes. BJ Nuss.”

“Has Mr. Nuss threatened you in any way?”

Londyn attempted to recall the most recent conversation she had with Mr. Nuss last week.

It hadn’t been a pleasant one. “We’ve talked several times, beginning with a plan for him to make payments toward his sizable bill.

He has failed to remit any payments since our agreement.

After a lengthy discussion where I informed him that we unfortunately had to turn him over to collections, he yelled some obscenities before ending the call by telling me that if I did not find a way to get the bill back from collections, I would pay a steep price.

” As she said the words, she realized how much of a motive Mr. Nuss, whom she’d never met, had.

“Have you ever seen this Mr. Nuss?”

“I have not.”

“Is it common for you or your coworkers to receive threats if you turn someone over to collections?”

Had she ever heard of such an occurrence before?

She hadn’t, at least not from Jasmine or Dustin, although her boss, Sonja, mentioned some problematic people.

“Not that I’m aware of, but I’m sure it does happen.

There’s probably a reason why this isn’t the most coveted job out there.

We do our best to work with people and give them several chances, especially since we know times are hard and medical expenses can be steep, but even though my supervisor gives us some leeway, at some point, our hands are tied. ”

“Have you had any other issues lately with someone trying to break in?”

“No, but I have been receiving some questionable texts. I reported those to the police department this morning.”

"Did Mr. Nuss threaten you during other times you spoke to him?”

Londyn bit her lip. That had been over the course of a few months. She talked to numerous people daily. But she would remember if he’d threatened her. “No, he didn’t. He wasn’t happy, but I don’t remember any threats, not like this most recent time.”

“Did you inform your supervisor?”

“After I spoke with him, I did tell her about the incident and filled out a form. I didn’t think too much about it as far as danger goes, because some people are just so angry and say things in the heat of the moment.

While it rattled me, I attempted to brush it aside the best I could, hoping that would be the end of it. ”

“Does Mr. Nuss live in Rowland?”

“Yes, I believe he does.” Londyn attempted to visualize Mr. Nuss’s address, but with the constant flow of accounts she dealt with each day, it was nearly impossible.

“We may need more information if we can’t locate Mr. Nuss via the resources we have available to us.

” Both Officers Gann and Nelson stood. “We will do another perimeter check before we go, as well as patrol the neighborhood for the rest of the evening. In the meantime, if you see the man again, please call 911 immediately.” Officer Gann offered his hand, and Londyn shook it.

“Thank you.”

They exited into the shadowy night. Londyn locked the door and stood, her back to it for a few brief seconds. Lord, please allow me to sleep in peace for You alone make me dwell in safety. She quoted one of her favorite Psalms, calling upon the One who could protect her better than anyone could.