Storm of Doubt Read online

  “You chose wisely.” Cassidy shook her head, and her gaze darkened as she looked up from her notes. “I don’t like this, Jack.”

  “You think it was a domestic dispute?” Wasn’t that how these things usually worked? Crimes were often perpetrated by someone the victim knew. Had that man been a husband? A boyfriend?

  Cassidy sucked on her bottom lip a moment before shrugging. “It’s hard to say without more information. As soon as Juliette is out of recovery, maybe she can fill in some blanks for us. It’s a good thing you showed up when you did.”

  Jack clamped his jaw as he remembered the scene he’d come upon. He winced at the memory of the man raising a knife above Juliette’s helpless figure. “If we don’t care for the fatherless and the widows, then who will?”

  That was the question Jack had asked during his last sermon. And the parameters to that question weren’t confined to those two demographics. No, he believed Christians were called to bring hope to the hopeless and help to the helpless. Juliette fit that definition.

  Cassidy pointed at his shirt. “You should probably get changed. We’ll need to keep your clothes as evidence.”

  Jack glanced down and saw the red blood stains that blotched his T-shirt. Seeing the splotches only made his heart pound harder.

  Juliette had lost a lot of blood. Too much.

  “I’d feel better if I knew she was okay first.” Jack shrugged. “It might sound ridiculous, but I promised her I wouldn’t leave her. She seemed . . . desperate and alone.”

  But Jack knew there was more to it than that. Something about their time together—however brief—had made him feel like he knew the woman. He needed a conclusion to her story before his mind would be at ease.

  Cassidy only nodded in thought. “Maybe someone here at the clinic has some scrubs you could change into.”

  “Maybe.” A new wave of exhaustion washed over him.

  He recognized the feeling. His adrenaline had worn off, and now he felt like he’d come from the battlefield and needed to decompress.

  He crossed his arms, not ready to jump into action yet. Yes, the blood looked bad. But it was the least of his concerns right now. “I’m surprised they’re trying to do the surgery here.”

  “Doc Clemson knows what he’s doing,” Cassidy assured him. “And there was no time to take her anywhere else. She lost a lot of blood. But I did hear the nurse saying that the knife missed any major organs. Really, they just had to clean her up and close the wound. It could have been worse.”

  “I understand. It’s not that I doubt Doc Clemson. It’s just that her wound . . .”

  Cassidy, one of his faithful church members, placed a light hand on his wrist. “I know, Jack. I know. It looked like a lot of blood.”

  Jack sucked in a deep breath and pulled himself together. He was the pastor here, the one who was supposed to have all the answers and who knew how to handle every situation.

  But he wrestled to balance being authentic and showing his human side—his weaknesses and fears—with being a strong leader who set a godly example. And that was just one more reason why people in his profession felt so alone.

  Juliette jerked her eyes open and glanced around the unfamiliar room. Had the man grabbed her? Had he taken her somewhere? Was he keeping her as prisoner?

  She clutched her clothes closer to her as fear pounded through her pulse.

  How had she gotten here?

  Where was the man who’d done this to her?

  What had he done to her?

  Slowly, her surroundings came into focus. The dim lights. The sterile scent. The monotone decorations.

  A hospital room, she realized. She was in a hospital room.

  Her shoulders relaxed for a moment.

  She was safe . . . most likely.

  She glanced down. She wore a hospital gown. Her side was sore, an IV stretched from her wrist, and a steady beep sounded beside her. A heart monitor?

  As she sensed movement, she jerked her head to the left.

  Was it him? Her stalker?

  Had he weaseled his way into her hospital room?

  A cry escaped from her lips before she could stop it.

  Juliette blinked, her bleary gaze clearing. No, the man wasn’t her attacker.

  But a man was there, leaning over in his corner seat, almost like he was praying.

  With a worried expression across his face, he stood, bypassed her, and stuck his head out the door. He wore a blue scrub top. With jeans. Not a doctor. Not a nurse.

  He had tousled blond hair, and she’d guess him to be close to thirty years old.

  For some reason, he seemed familiar. Why?

  He called to someone before pacing to her bedside. His worried expression turned apologetic.

  “Juliette, the doctor will be here in a moment.” His voice sounded soothing and warm, like a counselor’s might. “How are you feeling?”

  That was a great question. Juliette didn’t know. There was so much she didn’t know right now.

  “I’m . . . I’m okay. Confused. I . . . I’m not sure how I got here.” She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to recall what had happened. It was no use. Her eyes popped open again.

  The man studied her face, his blue-green eyes reminding her of the ocean. “You don’t remember anything?”

  She rubbed her head, the IV in her arm tugging against the skin at her wrist. She should remember. Her bruised body made it clear that something traumatic had happened. “Not yet. Not really.”

  As soon as the words left her lips, a flashback hit her. At least, Juliette thought it was a flashback. It was some memory of a man. Chasing her. Down a dark road.

  Another cry escaped.

  He had a knife and . . . its blade had plunged into her skin.

  Juliette touched her side, feeling a bandage there. That had really happened. It wasn’t a nightmare.

  “The doctor will explain more,” the man beside her said. “He’s coming now. You just came out of surgery about an hour ago.”

  “Surgery?” Juliette had a vague recollection of bright lights. An oxygen mask over her face. Being awakened by a nurse.

  “You had a wound in your side,” he explained.

  Her gaze clouded as more memories filled her mind, and she flinched. Maybe she didn’t want them to come back . . . because they were horrible. Full of pain and fear. Desperation. Hopelessness.

  “He stabbed me,” she muttered, needing to hear more confirmation that this wasn’t a horrible nightmare.

  “That’s right.”

  Juliette studied the man beside her. That was why he was familiar. He’d shown up at just the right time, and her attacker had fled. If this guy hadn’t come when he did . . .

  “You saved me.” Her voice cracked. “It was like God sent you at just the right time.”

  He shrugged. “God does have a way of working things out sometimes.”

  She closed her eyes, recalling how she’d pleaded with him to stay. Juliette should be embarrassed. She knew she should. Yet she couldn’t apologize for her actions. No, this man had helped her keep her sanity.

  It was like she’d said—he’d been a gift from God.

  Juliette licked her dry lips. “You stayed with me, just like you said you would.”

  The man only shrugged again. “My mom always taught me to be a man of my word. I’m Jack, by the way. Jack Wilson.”

  Before they could talk any more, the door to her room burst open. A heavyset man with ginger hair and wide grin introduced himself as Doc Clemson. As the doctor spoke, Jack disappeared into the background. But, thankfully, he didn’t leave. No, Juliette didn’t want him to leave. Not yet.

  Everything the doctor said was a blur. Nine stitches. Missed any major organs. Would need to rest and recover for the next few days. Could leave in the morning if she promised to take it easy.

  As soon as the doctor left, a blonde stepped inside and introduced herself as the police chief, Cassidy Chambers.

  “Do you have any i
dea who did this to you?” Chief Chambers came to stand by Juliette’s bed with a pen and paper in hand.

  Juliette’s gaze wandered behind the police chief, toward Jack.

  Almost hesitantly, he nodded toward the door. “I can go.”

  “No!” Juliette said. Why had she said that? Why did she want this man to stay? She really had no idea. Except . . . “Yours is the only recognizable face I know on this island. Stay. If you don’t mind. I know I’m asking a lot.”

  She’d just learned the man’s name. Yet Juliette had asked him to stay? Had she lost her mind? Every ounce of her pride?

  Maybe.

  But she was desperate for something familiar to hold onto. She had almost died earlier tonight. Anyone in her shoes would be off balance right now, and her absolute isolation made her feel like she couldn’t breathe.

  “I can stay,” Jack said. “Whatever you’re comfortable with.”

  She nodded affirmatively and looked back at Chief Chambers.

  “The man who did this followed me here,” Juliette started. “From Atlanta. I thought I’d lost him. That’s part of the reason I picked Lantern Beach. But I guess I didn’t escape him.”

  Chief Chambers shifted and frowned. “Can we rewind some? Do you know who this man is?”

  Juliette shook her head. “No, I have no idea what his name is. But he’s been stalking me for the past three months. If he catches me again, he’ll kill me.”

  Chapter Three

  “You have no idea or even a guess as to who this man is?” Chief Chambers repeated. There was no judgment in her voice, just a matter-of-fact tone that indicated she was level-headed and competent.

  Juliette shook her head, fighting overwhelming feelings of helplessness and frustration. “No, he’s like a ghost. He’s there, but he’s not. He leaves nothing behind—not even his image. I’ve seen him from a distance, but he’s always wearing a baseball cap, sunglasses, and a jacket. I can’t make out any details.”

  “Could you start at the beginning? With the first time you noticed this guy?”

  Juliette sucked in a shaky breath as the events flooded back to her. “He started with notes. Emails. Social media chats and messages. He was always faceless, nameless. He would sign his messages ‘your one true love,’ and his social media tag was John Doting.”

  “Clever.”

  “Then, while I was at a fundraiser for our local library, I got a text from him, saying he was there.”

  “You have no idea where he got your number?” Chief Chambers asked.

  “No idea. That was the first time he told me he wanted to meet. I said I didn’t think it was a good idea.”

  “Did you see him?”

  “No, but I saw a man at the back of the room. He wore a baseball hat and sunglasses. White guy. Average height and build. Probably in his thirties. I couldn’t tell much more. In my gut, I knew it was him. But police usually don’t give much credence to gut feelings.”

  “By law, we need evidence, proof.”

  “I know.” Juliette glanced at her hands. “Then I got some packages at my house, and that’s when I knew he had my home address somehow. The next week, someone broke in while I was at church. My drawers had been gone through—that was the only thing I noticed. I like everything organized and straight. My clothes had been messed up.”

  “That had to be unnerving.”

  “It was. But his messages got more sinister from there. More aggressive. Talking about how I was the only one for him. And he knew too much about my personal life. Things he shouldn’t know. Things I didn’t put out there. Police couldn’t figure out who he was or trace his messages. Like I said, I don’t think they took me very seriously.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that, Juliette.”

  “Then he showed up in my house again. But, just like tonight, he was wearing all black from head to toe. He told me I was all he ever thought about. That God had told him we were meant to be together.”

  “Did he hurt you?”

  “No, he didn’t touch me or even fight me when I grabbed my phone to call the police. By the time they arrived, he’d fled,” Juliette continued as Chief Chambers took notes. “They’ve never been able to ID him.”

  A tremble rushed through her. After that encounter Juliette had known she had to get away from Atlanta. She couldn’t live like that anymore.

  So she hadn’t told anyone where she was headed. She’d just left. Watched her back. And come here to Lantern Beach, North Carolina. The island was only accessible by ferry. In fact, it took two ferries to get here.

  Coming here had seemed foolproof. Juliette hadn’t seen anyone resembling John Doting on the boats in transport. And she’d looked.

  But he must have been there.

  Because, somehow, he’d still found her.

  And he was growing more dangerous with every encounter.

  “Can you tell me about tonight?” Chief Chambers’ voice sounded prodding and gentle, and Juliette decided she’d want to be her friend if circumstances were different. “What happened—that you can remember? No detail is too small.”

  Images of this evening began replaying in Juliette’s head, each one feeling like a punch in the gut.

  “I rented a house here, one down on Mirlo’s Landing. It’s a secluded place, but I thought it would be better that way. Besides, I wasn’t followed. I thought I wasn’t, at least. I made myself dinner, and afterward I went outside and stood by the water. It’s the first time I’d felt that peaceful in long time.”

  Sadness pressed in on Juliette. The moment had been so blissful. She’d felt serenity, something she’d nearly forgotten in recent months. Yet that instant had been so short-lived, she felt foolish now.

  First, there was Logan. Then the stalker. Her professional life might be soaring, but her personal life had come crashing down.

  “What happened next?” Chief Chambers asked.

  Juliette glanced at Jack. His expression held an edge of chivalry, as if the idea of a woman being mistreated made him angry. He caught her gaze and nodded, seeming to sense that she needed affirmation.

  She dragged in another deep breath. She didn’t want to relive the moment—but it was necessary if she had any hope the police would catch this guy. “I came back inside, ready to turn in for the evening. But when I stepped inside, I saw him. I knew it was him. He wore all black. He was sitting on my couch.”

  The chief’s lips pulled in a tight line. “That had to be terrifying.”

  “To say the least.”

  “Do you know how he got inside?”

  “He said he told the woman at the management company that he was my husband, and she gave him a key.” Juliette shook her head. The man was clever and manipulative—and that made him even more dangerous. Being manipulative was the only way he could have gotten some of that information about her.

  The chief frowned, as if the thought disgusted her. “Did he say anything else?”

  “That Lantern Beach was the perfect place for us to get away to together.” Juliette shivered as she remembered the smoothness of his words. They showed that he saw nothing wrong with his actions. The man was delusional. He honestly thought he and Juliette were meant to be together. “And so I ran. Down the lane. As fast as I could.”

  “But he caught you?” Chief Chambers lowered her voice with compassion.

  Tears rimmed Juliette’s eyes, rising up unexpectedly and uncontrollably. “That’s right. He caught me and told me that I belonged to him and only him. He said if he couldn’t have me that no one could. Then he shoved me to the ground, and stabbed me, and . . . and that’s when Jack showed up.”

  She liked the name Jack, Juliette decided. It fit the man with his curly, messy hair. But who was he? Why had he been out at that hour? And why had he decided to wait around to check on her? Any normal person would flee from this situation at the first opportunity.

  “Jack is a hero, in more than one way.” Chambers glanced over at him now, admiration in her gaze.
/>   “A godsend.”

  Cassidy smiled. “I agree. Listen, Juliette. I’m sorry this happened to you. We have two officers out looking for this man now.”

  “I hope you find him. The doctor said he’d release me in the morning.”

  “We’ll have someone here watching your room, if that’s your concern.”

  “It did cross my mind.”

  “Is there anyone we can call for you?”

  She shook her head. “No, there’s no one.”

  Chambers placed a card on Juliette’s nightstand, signaling an end to the conversation. “I’m going to run now, but call me if you need anything or remember anything.”

  “I will. Thank you.”

  A nurse came in to check her bandages, and Jack stepped toward the door along with Chief Chambers.

  “I’m going to wait out here,” Jack said. “But no one else will get in. I promise.”

  Juliette nodded, thankful for his presence.

  The man didn’t know her, yet he’d gone above and beyond. And that was a fact she would be eternally grateful for.

  “What do you think?” Jack whispered to Cassidy after the door to Juliette’s room closed.

  “I think she’s in a lot of trouble.” Cassidy turned to him, not mincing words. “This guy sounds off his rocker.”

  “Anyone who tries to kill someone else is.”

  “I agree.”

  Jack shifted, the pastoring side of him disappearing for a moment in favor of his protective nature. “So, what do we do now?”

  Cassidy raised her eyebrows. “We?”

  Jack shrugged, realizing he’d spoken too soon. “The woman has no one. We can’t leave her alone at a time like this.”

  “No, I’m sure she needs all the support she can get. But you heard her. She doesn’t want us to call anyone. I’ll leave someone stationed outside her room at all times. Meanwhile, Mac and Officer Leggott are out looking for this guy. The trouble is, with all the empty houses we have on the island at this time of year, he could be anywhere.”

  “I know.”

  Her phone buzzed. “Speaking of which . . . this is Mac calling. Excuse me a minute. I want to see if he has an update.”