DEADLY TERRAIN

Two murdered men are the last thing wildlife trooper McKenna Clark expected to find in the stark Alaskan wilderness. As the only law enforcement in the area, the responsibility for the case rests on her shoulders—along with the danger. Hunting guide and pilot Will Harrison wants to ease the load, but McKenna balks at the thought of letting him close enough to break her heart again. When McKenna’s investigations put her in harm’s way, Will must race against the clock to save his second chance at love from becoming the killer’s final victim.

The wilderness was as treacherous as it was beautiful.

Will scanned their surroundings for possible threats, human or animal, as he followed McKenna.

She stopped by an unmistakable red stain on the brown earth where the bodies had once lain.

Knowing the blood had come from someone churned his stomach. But not as much as the thought that it could have been McKenna’s.

The thought of little McKenna Clark all grown up and mixed up in a job like this played havoc with his mind. She was too young and inexperienced for an isolated post like this.

“Be careful.” An uneasy feeling crept over him.

He heard the bang a split second before the bullet whizzed past.

“Get down!” he yelled to McKenna, taking her to the ground with him. He’d promised her he wouldn’t let her get hurt and she’d almost been killed.

Last night’s note had been a warning. Today, full understanding hit him with all the force of a charging male grizzly. Someone was trying to kill McKenna.

SARAH VARLAND

lives in the woods in Georgia with her husband, John, their two boys and their dogs. Her passion for books comes from her mom; her love for suspense comes from her dad, who has spent a career in law enforcement. Her love for romance comes from the relationship she has with her husband and from watching too many chick flicks. When she’s not writing, she’s often found reading, baking, kayaking or hiking.

Tundra Threat
Sarah Varland

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

—1 John 4:18

To my family—I love and appreciate all of you.

Thank you to my family. John, Mom, Dad, and Alison—you do everything from critique and brainstorm, to babysit, to answer odd questions about crime scenes. Josh and Timothy—thanks for providing a welcome break from writing now and then with your cuteness.

Thank you to Major Dennis Casanovus for answering research questions relating to this book and the Alaska State Troopers. Your help was invaluable and any mistakes or stretches are mine. Thanks also to Lindsay Moore for helping one of my characters stop the bleeding of a gunshot victim.

Thanks to my writing friends who have encouraged me with your friendship.

Thanks, Alice, for being a fabulous agent.

Thank you, Elizabeth, my editor, who has a special skill for making stories shine.

And thank you, Lord, again, for letting me live this dream.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

About the Author

Title Page

Bible Verse

Dedication

Acknowledgments

ONE

TWO

THREE

FOUR

FIVE

SIX

SEVEN

EIGHT

NINE

TEN

ELEVEN

TWELVE

THIRTEEN

FOURTEEN

FIFTEEN

SIXTEEN

SEVENTEEN

Dear Reader

Questions for Discussion

Extract

Copyright

ONE

A soft wind blew across the tundra, whispered through the grass and sent shivers up McKenna Clark’s spine. The two bodies that lay in front of her were not the caribou or moose the wildlife trooper expected to find when she received a tip that someone might be poaching on the tundra south of Barrow. No, these bodies were definitely human. And they’d definitely been murdered.

Her stomach churned and swirled but she took a deep breath as she edged closer, closed her eyes most of the way and felt each person’s wrist for a pulse, just in case.

Nothing.

She dropped the arm she’d last held, took several steps back and averted her eyes. She’d seen her share of senseless killing in her work, but this was the first time she’d seen a dead person outside of a funeral home. This wasn’t what she’d expected when she’d signed up to be a wildlife trooper. She’d been through the trooper academy like every other Alaska state trooper, and knew her job was dangerous in a unique way. The wild animals she worked to protect were unpredictable and could pose a serious threat to her safety on their own. And anyone breaking hunting regulations had the potential to be dangerous to her. Those were all risks she understood and accepted willingly when she took the job. But this? She’d never anticipated dealing with murder.

She forced herself to glance back down at the bodies, knowing she’d be asked more than a few questions once she called this in. Especially about whether cause of death was obvious. It was—in the form of a gunshot wound on each.

“Everything okay?”

McKenna bristled at the voice of Chris, the pilot, who was too close behind her for comfort. She whipped around, wondering when he’d gotten out of the plane. “No. It’s not.” He may be a contract-based employee of the troopers, but his narrow eyes were full of something she couldn’t identify, and the way he held himself made it seem as though he had something to hide. She didn’t trust him.

He held up his hands in mock surrender at her tone and let out a low whistle when he caught sight of the scene in front of them. “That’s gonna need to be called in.”

As though she didn’t know that.

McKenna started toward the plane and the communications equipment, but paused when she realized the pilot wasn’t following her.

“Aren’t you coming?” She pierced him with a gaze that she hoped conveyed the fact that it wasn’t really a question.

He took one more long look at the bodies, shook his head and followed her. McKenna climbed into the plane, relaxing slightly when the pilot climbed in next to her and began preparing them for the flight. She wasn’t sure what it was about him that made her uneasy, but after a few years on the job, she’d learned to trust her gut instincts. She called headquarters and left a message to report what she’d found, then leaned back against the seat, taking deep breaths to calm her nerves. She wouldn’t be able to fully let her guard down until she was back in Barrow and away from this pilot and his too-watchful eyes.

The scene she’d just observed flashed before her and she wasn’t able to suppress a shudder.

Though she had no logical reason to fear for her own safety, McKenna had a feeling that, back in Barrow or not, she wouldn’t feel like letting her guard down any time soon.

* * *

“I got your message. You think you found a murder scene?” Captain Wilkins’s voice was skeptical. McKenna squeezed her phone tighter. She could almost picture him frowning, bushy eyebrows pressed together, even though she’d only met him once—last week after she’d accepted the transfer and flown up here to the middle-of-nowhere.

“Yes, sir,” McKenna said more calmly than she felt, knowing she’d stumbled over her words when she’d left her message and had likely confused an already abnormal situation even more. “I received a tip that someone had been poaching south of Barrow and had Chris fly me down to investigate. That’s when I found the bodies.”

McKenna exhaled, feeling a weight lift from her shoulders. This was almost over. She’d fill out a little paperwork, get that sent off before she left the office and be done with this case. Her heart ached for the dead men, for their families. For the lack of justice. But she’d done what she could. It wasn’t her case. Other law enforcement agencies would look into it from here.

She wasn’t sure she’d ever been so relieved. She sipped a long drink of coffee as she waited for the captain to tell her how he wanted her to handle her report. The coffee was cold and left over from that morning. But it was better than nothing.

“Thanks for letting me know. Keep looking into it and update me when you know more.”

She almost choked on the coffee.

“Excuse me?” McKenna’s voice pinched in her throat. “It’s...it’s not a wildlife issue, sir. I assumed I’d notify you and you’d pass it on to another trooper nearby. Or another agency.”

“There are no regular troopers near there. Didn’t they show you the map with currently filled trooper posts? You’re it up there, Officer Clark. You were put in command of the Barrow post. That means someone had confidence in your abilities. Do the best you can and resolve this.”

“But...”

“Work with the North Slope Bureau Police Department if you need to, but this is a state trooper investigation. And you have the lead.”

McKenna knew she shouldn’t argue, but when had that ever helped her keep quiet? “But I’m a wildlife trooper.” She stated what should have been obvious, her mind flashing images from earlier in the afternoon that she’d prefer to forget. She couldn’t handle deliberate crimes against people. That was her brother’s expertise—he was an Anchorage police officer and loved every minute of his job. McKenna didn’t know how he dealt with the hate. Hadn’t she just told him yesterday when they’d talked on the phone about his latest case that she’d be terrible at that sort of work?

But the extra layer of steel in Captain Wilkins’s voice made it clear he didn’t care.

“You are. You’ve also been promoted to a position of authority. Poaching is often a motive for other crimes, like murder. It’s not the first time we’ve had a wildlife trooper investigating a homicide. As I said, you have the lead, Officer Clark. I wish it hadn’t happened your first week up here, but it did. Like it or not. Now, solve it or go back to the city.”

McKenna heard a click. “Hello?” She pressed the phone harder to her ear. “Hello?” He’d hung up on her.

Solve it or go back to the city.

She hated herself for it, but for an instant she considered the second option. She loved the city of Anchorage. She’d hoped to make a difference doing a job she was passionate about while living her dream life in the city. That’s what she had been doing until this “promotion” moved her out here into the bush. She was alone in this small town, with no colleagues to consult with, no superiors to go to for advice or mentorship. Nothing. It was just her. And Chris, the contracted pilot, if she counted him. Since the thought of him made the hair on the back of her neck stand up and she still couldn’t erase the look in his eyes that had unsettled her at the crime scene, she wasn’t inclined to think of him as someone on her side.

Should she go back to the city and admit that she wasn’t ready for this opportunity, after all? No. She’d never been a quitter and she wouldn’t start now.

McKenna hung up the phone and stared around at the tiny building designated as her “office.” It was little more than a single-wide trailer, about fifteen feet long. But it had a coffeemaker, a desk and a space heater, and that really covered all the essentials. If she needed more she’d have to ask the police department for help or fly to another village or city where there was a regular trooper post.

She shook her head. This wasn’t where she was supposed to be. Since early in high school, she’d started creating a list of goals for the year every January first. They weren’t just resolutions, they were more specific than that. Like when she’d set a goal to graduate as valedictorian, which she’d eventually accomplished with a perfect GPA and quite a few advanced-placement classes. After she had her yearly goal list, she’d rework her five-year plan to include the current year and write out specific steps she’d need to take to keep herself on track.

This promotion taking her to the middle of nowhere was most definitely not on her five-year plan. Neither was pretending to be some kind of detective when she’d become a trooper, a wildlife trooper to help make sure wildlife in Alaska was managed and treated properly.

McKenna shoved the chair back and stood, frustration building in her. She hated when things didn’t go according to plan.

Knowing there was nothing else she could do today, she shut off the light and let herself outside. Sunset wouldn’t come for several more hours, since even September liked to remind the world that Alaska was the “Land of the Midnight Sun.” McKenna kept herself alert as she walked to her car. She was new in town, with no idea who she should trust. And though the site of the murders had been miles away, Barrow was the closest town to the crime scene. Chances were good either the murderer or the victims had started out in Barrow. Questions terrorized her mind as she thought through the case again. Would the culprit kill again? Who might be the next victim? She had only a theoretical idea of how crimes like this worked. She’d been through regular training at the trooper academy but lacked the experience to back up what she’d learned. Maybe she’d call her brother later. He’d know what to do.

She dismissed the idea as soon as it came to mind. She loved Luke, but he already saw her as his baby sister. Calling him for help would just reinforce the perception that she needed him to take over and decide what was best for her. She’d been trying to break him of that habit since she was about ten years old, begging Luke and his best friend, Will, to take her with them on their adventures, and hearing time and time again that she was too young. No, she’d have to handle this herself. She was an adult.

McKenna climbed in her car, slamming the door shut behind her and jamming her thumb against the lock button with more force than necessary. Hopefully she could solve this case fast and wrap everything up before anyone else ended up hurt.

Or worse.

Chills started at the back of her neck and chased each other down her spine. She was as sure as she’d ever been about anything—someone was watching her. Not just watching. Observing. Studying.

Stalking.

She studied her surroundings. There were too many places someone could be hiding. Under the trailer that made up her office. Or farther away, in another car, behind a building.

It was impossible to know.

But she knew for sure she wasn’t imagining it. Someone had her in his sights. And since she’d never felt this way before, it seemed safe to assume it had something to do with the case today. Someone knew she’d found the bodies. Now they were following her.... Why? To see what she did with that information?

McKenna didn’t know. And she didn’t know what to do about it. Her mind tried to form a coherent prayer, but part of her resisted. She wasn’t in over her head yet. No need to bother God about it now when she could still handle it herself.

She drove away, the uneasiness dissipating with the distance she traveled, confirming further to her that it hadn’t been nerves, but that someone had been very nearby, watching.

Maybe she was closer to over her head than she’d thought.

* * *

Will Harrison shut his locker and blew out a deep breath.

“Rough day, Harrison?” His friend Matt Dixon entered the staff room and gave him a slap on the back as he walked by him.

“You could say that.” The tourists he’d taken out today were hardly competent to hunt wildlife, as they’d paid to do through his employer, Truman Hunting Expeditions. He’d spent the day on edge, cringing every time someone picked up a gun. If it had been up to Will, he would have refunded their money and sent them home, but Rick, his boss, had made it clear that he’d accept whatever clients came their way, take them on a successful hunt and keep them safe.

Some days that seemed like a lot to ask for.

“Want to come over tonight? Lexi’s cooking caribou stew.”

Lexi’s food was some of the best Will had ever tasted. But he shook his head anyway. “Thanks, man, but not tonight. Think I’m just gonna go home and crash.” Maybe look at his bank statements again and see if he had enough yet to open his own guide service. One where sure, he’d have the stress of running his own business, but he wouldn’t have the hassle of taking people he didn’t feel comfortable giving guns to on dangerous hunting trips.

The door opened. “Good day, guys?” Rick Truman asked as he walked in. Matt nodded his answer, Will said nothing. There were some things he and Rick didn’t see eye to eye on, and the clients were one of them. But overall he was a good boss, and besides, Will needed this job. Just until he finished saving money. Then he’d have his own agency, do business his way.

“I have a little bit of bad news. Those raises I promised you guys?” He shook his head. “They won’t kick in quite yet. It may be a few more months.”

Will raised his eyebrows, waiting for more of an explanation.

“Seriously?” Matt shook his head. “Man. I was counting on that so Lexi could stay home when the baby comes.”

Rick’s expression was pinched. “Sorry. You’ve earned it. Both of you. But things are tight. Tighter than I thought they would be.”

Will took in Rick’s camos, which looked as if they’d never been worn, in contrast to his and Matt’s, which had seen more than a few hunting and guiding trips. Maybe Rick had a different definition of “tight” than they did.

Rick sighed. “It’s the economy right now. It’s tough on everyone. But we’ll push through it, take some more trips, come back out on top.” He sounded as if he was reassuring himself as much as them, which made it easier for Will not to hold the lack of raise against him. “You’ll see, guys.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Will finally spoke up. “It’s just money.”

Matt nodded along with him, as did Rick, who cleared his throat and added, “Just money indeed.”

“Listen, I’ve got to head out. I’ll see you both tomorrow.” Will waved on his way out the door.

Barrow Dry Goods was crowded when Will ran in to pick up dinner. Maybe he should have accepted Matt’s invitation. Anything would have been better than eating alone at a two-person table in his kitchen, listening to the silence in the house that screamed of how alone he was.

Nights like this made him miss what he’d had—before the accident had taken Rachael from him.

He fought to push those thoughts away as he headed down the aisle toward the frozen foods. The past was long gone and he knew—he’d heard it often enough—that it was time to move on.

Still, as he surveyed his options and weighed them—frozen pizza versus frozen Chinese food—he couldn’t seem to stop the memories from coming. Marrying right out of college had probably been half-crazy, but they’d been kids in love and unwilling to listen to anyone who thought they knew better. And they had several happy years. At least they were happy for Will. He’d always felt a little like he was holding Rachael back. She’d wanted to explore all of Alaska, take every adventure life had to offer, and he’d just wanted to live life with her. He wasn’t afraid of taking chances, but he didn’t seek them out the way Rachael did. The avalanche that had claimed her life on a wilderness skiing trip had been only two years after they married. Seven years ago in January.

He grabbed the frozen pizza and shut the freezer door, spinning around and running right into another customer. As his pizza and whatever she was holding crashed to the ground, Will berated himself for not paying better attention. He had to get out of his head. Stop living in years long past.

He brushed himself off, located his pizza and stood, offering a hand to the woman he’d run into. She took it and he helped her up.

And then the past was standing right in front of him again in the form of his childhood best friend’s little sister. All grown up.

“Will?” McKenna’s green eyes blinked their disbelief.

“What are you doing here?” The words came out harsher than he meant them to. He knew it as soon as her eyes narrowed and he saw in them a flicker of her Irish temper.

“Is this another one of those places that’s too dangerous for a girl?” she retorted.

“You’re seriously still mad that Luke and I wouldn’t let you tag along when we were kids?”

“No,” she said with a frown that clearly said yes.

“We were young. I didn’t want you to get hurt.” Not to mention the fact that Will had always thought she was kind of cute. Staying away from her as much as possible had always seemed like the best option—it broke about a hundred guy rules to have a crush on your friend’s little sister.

“I could take care of myself just fine back then.” She straightened even taller and lifted her chin, which stretched her height to an unintimidating five foot three. “And I can take care of myself even better now.”

Will nodded slowly and lifted his hands in surrender. “Okay. It was just a question.” He let out a breath slowly, willing his heart rate to return to a normal speed. He could still vaguely remember the day when, as a five-year-old, he’d gone over to see his best friend’s new baby sister. He was the youngest in his family and hadn’t been around babies much, so he’d expected her to be cute and quiet like babies on TV. Instead, her newborn face had been scrunched into a scowl and she’d screamed like she was being pinched.

She’d been a spitfire since day one, and nothing had changed.

“I’m here,” McKenna began, “because I got a...” She stumbled over her words. “I got a promotion.”

“And what is it you’re doing now?” Will couldn’t remember if Luke had said what McKenna was up to last time they’d talked. And though Will had wondered, he never felt comfortable asking.

Her gaze darted around them. “I’m a wildlife trooper,” she said softly.

“Why are we whispering?”

She looked around again. Uneasiness crawled over Will as he felt his muscles tighten. “What’s wrong?”

McKenna licked her lips, swallowed hard and then shrugged with forced casualness. “Don’t worry about it.”

“McKenna, just tell me.”

It had been the wrong thing to say. She glared in his direction and tilted her chin in the air the way she’d always done when she was trying to look taller. “It was nice seeing you, Will. But I’ve got to turn in early tonight, so I’d better be going.”

He wasn’t done talking about whatever was making her act weird. Not even close. But the firm set of her lips made it clear she was finished with that discussion. At least for now.

“I’ll be seeing you around, I guess,” he offered. “Let me know if you want to get together sometime.”

Her half smile was less than convincing. “I’ll do that.”

Without a backward glance she whirled around and strode off, dark red hair bouncing on her shoulders as she walked. He was alone. Again.

Will looked down at the pizza he held and shoved it back into the freezer. He wasn’t so hungry after all.

TWO

McKenna’s plan to get home early and get some sleep was a complete failure.

How was she supposed to sleep knowing she was once again living in the same town as Will Harrison? She’d had a crush on her brother’s best friend since elementary school. There’d been a time when she had thought maybe he was interested in her, too—but she’d done nothing but embarrass herself that summer when she let a little of her interest be known. He’d only seen her then as a kid. Almost like his own little sister.

McKenna wished there was a way to douse cold water on the warm feelings seeing him caused to bloom in her heart. Maybe it would be easier if his eyes weren’t the same electric blue of glacier ice and just as mysterious. Or maybe if his black hair didn’t curl around his ears in such a perfect combination of messy and adorable.

Not that his looks mattered to her. She pulled the covers up tighter and rolled over, willing herself to fall asleep. Anything to get him out of her mind.

She tossed and turned for hours, looked at the clock more than once, hoping against hope it was morning. Beside her, her German shepherd, Mollie, raised her head, ears perking as she looked around. Apparently she couldn’t sleep either.

McKenna listened but heard nothing. The entire day, so out of her comfort zone, had her on edge. She must be passing that uneasiness on to the dog.

The red lights on her digital clock blinked 1:02 a.m. McKenna tensed as she heard something that sounded like a door creaking. This time Mollie let out a low growl and McKenna motioned with her hand for the dog to stay put. It was probably nothing, after all. No sense in either one of them getting up.

More creaks followed, these sounding like someone walking on the old, probably rotting, floor. Most likely the intruder was a large man. McKenna knew someone her size wasn’t heavy enough to cause the creaking. She eased herself out of bed, reaching into her nightstand drawer for her duty weapon, just in case. The dingy brown shag carpeting in the trailer that served as her house would muffle her footsteps. If there was someone there, she should be able to sneak out and confront him undetected.

Despite being told to stay, Mollie followed her to the edge of the room and at the next slight sound from the main living area let out a warning bark.

McKenna heard someone mutter something, then a clatter. She hurried down the hallway, but made it to the living room just as the door slammed and whoever had been in the house ran outside, concealed by the darkness that had finally fallen over the Alaskan sky. She watched out the window for a minute, hoping to see a car or something that would help her identify the person later, but she saw nothing. Defeat threatened to overwhelm her. Finally McKenna moved away from the window, making sure the dingy miniblinds were shut tight before she turned on the lights. The last thing she needed was uncovered windows with the lights on, making her shape an easy target.

After taking a few seconds to try to calm herself down, she moved her weapon from a low-ready position pointing at the floor to directly in front of her, and prepared to check the rest of the house. First she glanced into the kitchen, which she could see from her tiny living room. It was clear, she could see that from where she stood, so she didn’t bother to investigate closely yet. It only took a few minutes to clear all the rooms, Mollie at her heels. McKenna appreciated the canine company, but in truth, Mollie was even less qualified for this than McKenna was. At least McKenna’d had the training. Though the dog was a German shepherd, a favorite of police departments everywhere, her dog had no training and was more at home napping on the couch or trying to climb into McKenna’s lap than sniffing out criminals.

Heart still pounding, McKenna walked back to the living room, took a quick glance out of the corner of the blinds. Still nothing there. She tried to relax some of the tightness in her shoulders since the crisis seemed to be over for now, but her body refused to cooperate. It looked as if sleep wasn’t happening tonight. Instead, she walked to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee.

McKenna breathed a quick prayer that God would keep her safe, deciding it wouldn’t hurt to ask for a little help at this point. She’d been in town less than a week. How she’d managed to get caught up in a mess like this already was beyond her. But she would handle it. She had to.

McKenna sat down at the kitchen table as she listened to the comforting noise of brewing coffee, trying to take deep, even breaths and work through what had happened. She was assuming the intruder was the person responsible for the bodies she’d seen on the tundra, but why had he come to her home? Surely he wouldn’t kill her just for seeing his crime scene. Would he?

She stood up to retrieve her coffee then moved back to the table, setting her mug down as she reached to replace the chair that the intruder had knocked over in his hurry to escape. She bent to lift it and noticed a small index card on the floor next to it, blank side up. Hesitantly, she reached to pick it up, just by the corner in case there were prints, and flipped it over on the table.

When she read the words, she dropped into her chair immediately, reaching out to pet Mollie to try to calm her racing-again pulse.

A shiver ran down her bare arms and she read the words again, this time aloud. “‘Go back to where you came from and forget what you saw today, or the next body found on the tundra will be yours.ʼ”

Glancing at the phone next to her, she let out a sigh. She had to text Luke for help. She was now officially in over her head.

* * *

Somehow sleep must’ve finally found McKenna, because when she woke up from her cramped position on her living room couch, the clock said it was past six.

Still alarmed from the previous night’s events, she glanced around the room to see what could have woken her. Was she just done sleeping, or was it something else?

Something or someone banged against her door with increasing force. McKenna jumped. Mollie lifted her head in alarm, then looked to McKenna to gauge her reaction. McKenna took a deep breath. Her assailant, back to shut her up forever? Reason stepped in. No, if he’d wanted to kill her, he’d have done so already. He must have meant to warn her.

For now.

Besides, criminals didn’t knock. Usually. Still, she crept toward the door, stealing a glance out of one of the front windows to see...Will?

She opened the door to him, noting that he looked half-asleep himself. “What are you doing here?”

“Good morning to you, too. That seems like a common question for us, doesn’t it? How about you let me in and pour me some coffee and I’ll answer you.”

She hesitated, looking down at her yoga pants and old T-shirt from a 5K she’d run several years back. Even if there could be nothing between them, her pride would rather he not see her like this.

Will nudged the door. “Come on, McKenna. I’ve seen you look worse. Just let me in.” He pushed the door open farther and stepped in, shutting it behind him and turning the lock.

He looked around the room and shook his head. “Nice place you’ve got here.”

“I recognize sarcasm when I hear it. Even if I am barely awake.” She tossed the words at him as she walked to the kitchen. She’d rather not comply with his request—no, demand—to make coffee, but she could use more herself and she wasn’t about to do without just to spite him.

“Seriously. Did you look for the house that looked most likely to have been the site of a murder?”

“Yeah. That was totally what I was going for.” So maybe the trailer was on the shabby side, but it meant she could save her money. That way, when she finally ended up in Anchorage, she could afford someplace nice. She glared in his direction. “Again, why are you here? Did you have a purpose, or are you just supposed to be a little ray of sunshine on this cloudy morning?”

The smile fell from his face. “Your brother texted me.” His tone was heavy. Serious.

“Oh.” McKenna looked away, went back to fixing the coffee. Great. She’d texted Luke to ask for advice because she was independent not stupid. Luke had said he’d get back to her with some suggestions for keeping herself safe and solving this and that was what she needed. Not Will Harrison showing up and seeing her all damsel-in-distress.

That was the last way she wanted him to see her. Maybe second to last. Right up there behind “like a sister.”

“I don’t know what he told you,” she began as she set a mug in front of him filled with the hot, black liquid. “I just needed to talk to him about a few things last night. I’m fine right now. There was no need for you to rush over here before sunrise looking like you haven’t slept in a week.” She surveyed his sleepy eyes, the stubble on his well-defined jawline. “Did you sleep?”

“I slept fine. Until I got his text.”

“Which was when?”

“Two.”

“So you haven’t slept since two?”

“Couldn’t.” He shook his head. “I came over here as soon as it seemed late enough to not be rude.” Some of the seriousness left his face as his mouth stretched into his trademark charming smile, the one that had made all the girls in high school swoon. “No need to welcome you to town by taking away your beauty sleep.”

“Yeah, because clearly I need every bit, right?” she muttered as she poured her own coffee.

“I didn’t say that. Besides, I figured if I came over here at a decent hour I could talk you into fixing me some coffee. And maybe breakfast? I think there’s a jar of pickles in my fridge. And maybe some sour cream from a few months ago. But nothing that seems edible.”

“Fine. I’ll make pancakes. You’ll tell me what my meddling brother told you. Then you can go back home and go to sleep or do...” She realized she had no idea what he did for work these days. She’d lost track—intentionally. Keeping up with him had hurt too much. She pulled her attention back to the present. “Or do whatever it is you do. I have to get to work. I have a lot to do today. Things are crazy.”

Will leaned back in his chair. “Sounds good. And it’s that part about work being crazy that I wanted to talk to you about.”

* * *

Will watched McKenna’s eyes narrow, knew he was dancing dangerously close to the line where she was concerned, between her teasing him back and giving in to her temper. She was annoyed he was here, that much was clear, but he couldn’t tell if it was because she really didn’t believe she needed help, or because he was the one offering.

He’d always thought they had a pretty good relationship. No one had ever understood him the way McKenna had always seemed to. In fact, if she’d been anyone else, he’d have claimed the first dance at the Seward High School Homecoming her freshman year of high school when he was a senior and seen where their attraction and connection could take them.

But she was his best friend’s little sister. So he’d done what he should and stayed away, keeping their friendship to teasing and the occasional long conversation down by Resurrection Bay, when he’d escaped the house to get away from his drinking father and she’d be down by the water, just watching the waves.

Then he’d gone to one year of college in Anchorage, fallen in love with Rachael, and that was the end of that.

Or so he’d thought.

“Whatever Luke told you is probably not true.”

“Because your brother is so known for not telling the truth.”

McKenna laughed and Will joined her. Luke was one of the most brutally honest people he knew.

“Obviously that’s not it. But anything I told him certainly didn’t include ‘hey, and could you send Will over here before the sun is up to demand pancakes and talk to me about my job?’” She stirred the batter and looked back up at him. “So I can only assume he exaggerated something. Either that or you really are starving.”

“He told me you texted him last night asking for advice because someone broke into your house, possibly connected to a double murder you stumbled upon on the tundra yesterday.”

Her face fell. Apparently she’d wondered if Luke had told him all of that and he had confirmed it. But why did it matter to her if he knew? Didn’t she know he’d want to be there for her as soon as he heard she was in trouble? Was she that determined for them to stay out of each other’s lives?

“So here I am, wanting more details and to see how I can help.”

“That’s the thing, Will. I’m a big girl now. I don’t need your help.” She sighed and softened her tone. “It’s nice of you to care.”

“Of course I care. You and Luke have always been like family to me.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw her flinch.

“At least tell me about it. Luke didn’t give details.”

She kept pouring pancakes onto the griddle, not acknowledging him for a minute, then finally nodded, then exhaled. “Okay. I got here less than a week ago. Yesterday was my first day working and I received an anonymous tip about illegal hunting going on south of here. I had Chris—he’s the pilot who’s supposed to fly me around when I need it—take me to where the caller had described. We hiked quite a bit, searching for signs that people had been there. We eventually found some, followed the trail, and...”

Will watched her swallow hard, saw the way her face paled to an unnatural shade of green. She was tough, but crimes like these weren’t supposed to be part of her job description.

“And then last night someone broke into your house? Do you think the two incidents are connected?”

She set a plate full of pancakes down on the table in front of him and laughed, a laugh that was entirely without humor. “I’m sure they’re connected.”

“How?”

She slid a piece of paper across the table to him, and as he read the overtly threatening words, his stomach clenched.

No question, McKenna needed his help. And she was going to get it. Like it or not.

* * *

“You’re thinking something.” McKenna pointed out the painfully obvious after several minutes of watching Will’s thoughts work out in the expressions on his face.

“I am,” he admitted between bites of pancake.

“So... Out with it.”

“You’re going to hate it.”

“You don’t know what I’ll hate and won’t.” McKenna folded her arms across her chest.

“No, I’m pretty sure you’re going to hate this.”

“Are you going to let me figure that out for myself or not?”

He paused. “Let me fly you around.”

“Fly...me...around... Wait, wait, on a plane?”

Will laughed and it lit up his face. She tried to ignore that and focus on the fact that he was plotting to take the little independence she’d gained by stepping into her life and taking over. He could call it “caring” or whatever else he wanted to, but she knew what he was doing. Exactly the same thing Luke would be doing if he was there. Would the two of them never let her be in charge of her own life?

“Yeah, on a plane. I’m a pilot. Luke didn’t tell you?”

“We don’t really talk about you.” McKenna shrugged, unwilling to admit the various reasons she didn’t ask her brother for updates on him. As a brother, Luke was as good as they came, but she’d rather crawl under a rock and never come out than have him find out about the crush she’d had on his best friend.

“I’ll try not to be too hurt.” There he went with the teasing again. “Piloting is what I do up here. I work for a guide service, shuttling people around on big-game hunts.”

She raised her eyebrows. “So I’m here to save the wildlife and you’re up here to shoot it?”

He bristled. “You know me better than that. I care about protecting the wildlife, too. But as long as the laws are followed, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with hunting, especially for someone who’s planning to eat what he gets.”

And Will did that, too. McKenna respected that about him.

“Fine,” she conceded. “And about your offer, thanks, but no. I have a pilot assigned to shuttle me around. I don’t need the help.” Although she did feel a sinking in the pit of her stomach, something like a large block of glacier ice, when she thought about being alone with Chris again. Something about the way he studied her every move...She shivered.

“I’m not talking about just being your pilot. Officially, sure. But I can be an extra set of eyes for you. You can fill me in about the other details of the case as you learn about them and I can help you solve this thing so you can move on with your life and get out of this town.”

She jerked her gaze up to meet his. “Get out of this town?” Had Luke told him how much she’d dreaded this “promotion” and all it meant? She was going to have to rethink her choice of confidant pretty soon.

“You always planned to get out of Seward and to the city as quick as you could. I’m guessing that hasn’t changed?”

Was it her imagination, or was that hope in his voice? McKenna shrugged. “I do prefer Anchorage to small towns.” Prefer was an understatement. Kind of like saying a polar bear was large.

“What do you think?”

“About you flying me around? I already told you no.”

He raked a hand through his curls and shook his head. “You’re too stubborn for your own good, do you know that? You have to learn when something is too much for you and let people help.”

“What if I don’t think it’s too much for me?”

“People are dead, McKenna. And there’s a good chance the guy who killed them, shot them in cold blood, was in your house last night. You’re on your own out here. You have no backup. Let me help.”

Several beats of silence passed as the truth of his words sunk in. She felt her shoulders sag slightly. “You can’t just go around demanding things of people. I have a right to make my choices.”

“So you want me to offer you something and then say please?”

She sighed. “No, but you know what I mean.”

And then Will’s hand was covering hers, setting her pulse racing twice as fast as it had during the scare the night before and making her hand tingle as though a thousand tiny fireworks had exploded inside. She gulped and tried to remind herself that they were just friends. And that they’d never be anything more.

“So. How about it. Let me help?”

He had the decency to phrase the last bit as a question, though she suspected he was just humoring her. Still, a look at his eyes showed that as he’d said, he did care.

“And how much are you charging?”

He looked insulted that she would ask. “I won’t charge you anything to fly you around. I’d like to be reimbursed for gas, if the troopers have the budget for that, which I’m assuming they do. But for the flying time? There’s no need.”

“Don’t you need your boss’s permission to use the plane?”

Will smiled. “It’s mine.”

“Okay, but this can’t be full-time for you—you need to work.”

“Yes,” he agreed quickly, and she thought she might have found her way out of this situation until he spoke up again. “But the next few weeks are pretty easy for me. I can fly for you around the schedule I already have set up at work. There’s plenty of time.”

McKenna was running out of logical arguments.

His offer made sense. But she wanted to refuse him. Had to.

Then she thought about the man who’d broken into her house, the quick glimpse she’d caught of the back of him. He was tall; she knew that. So was the pilot she’d been using to fly her around the North Slope Bureau. If she turned Will down, she’d have no choice but to continue using Chris for transportation and that was just about the last thing she wanted to do.

While Chris had been working on a contract basis with the troopers, he was paid by assignment. McKenna didn’t think there would be a problem calling Captain Wilkins and requesting permission to give the contract job to Will instead. He’d have to pass a basic background check of course, but since he wouldn’t be doing any on-the-books investigating, just serving as a chauffeur, that was all that would be necessary.

She felt chilled through when she thought about boarding a plane with Chris again. Hadn’t she felt uneasy around him yesterday, felt as if he was watching her reactions more than he needed to? One thing she was sure of—law enforcement officers of any kind were supposed to trust their gut instincts. And hers said that there was more to that pilot than met the eye.

That could spell disaster for her.

On the other hand, the extra time with Will might be difficult. The last thing she wanted was to fall into some childish attraction to him again and embarrass herself. Surely she was past all that, though. As adults, their personalities were far from compatible. Will’s being comfortable with changing plans last minute and flying her around proved that. He’d always been easygoing, ready to take life as it came. And McKenna liked to have a plan. A relationship between them wouldn’t work, so surely she could remember that and keep from humiliating herself in front of him. And if nothing else, accepting his offer would give her a chance to prove to him once and for all that she was a strong woman, capable of taking care of herself. If he got the message, he might even convince her brother to knock off the overprotectiveness. Okay, that wasn’t very likely—but she could still hope. There was a lot she didn’t like about this promotion, but maybe it would give her that longed-for chance to show the people in her life what she was capable of. It was worth a shot.

McKenna took a deep breath. Nodded. “Okay. Let’s do it.”

And as another brilliant grin split Will’s face, her stomach simultaneously danced and churned as she wondered what she’d gotten herself into.

THREE

McKenna eyed the plane in front of her and then looked back at Will. “You seriously know how to fly this thing?”

He just laughed and continued his preflight checklist. “Would I have offered to help if I didn’t?”

She shrugged.

Will brushed off his hands and stood from where he’d been bent looking under the plane. “All set, I think.”

“You think?”

He laughed again. “We’re all set. I’m sure of it. I always check everything before I go.” His face sobered. “Better to be safe than sorry and all that. I’m extra careful because a buddy I took lessons with crashed his plane a year or so ago and didn’t make it. Neither did his passenger.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.... Especially right before I climb into that thing with you.”

“I’m always careful, that’s what I’m telling you. Besides, I’d never let anything hurt you, McKenna.”

Years ago, in the throes of her ridiculous crush, she’d have seen those words as some sweeping romantic promise. Now she knew better—it was just more evidence that he saw her as someone to be protected. She bit back the urge to remind him that she was the one with training and an actual mandate to serve and protect and she didn’t need him to treat her like a fragile, sheltered princess. But there was no need to start the day with an argument, no matter how frustrated his attitude made her.

They climbed into the plane and Will taxied down the runway, easing the nose of the small aircraft into the air seamlessly. McKenna let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.

“All right. So we’re headed south.”

“Yeah, southeast.” She gave him the coordinates for where they’d found the bodies.

“And all that’s your territory? That’s a pretty far range for one person to cover.”

McKenna nodded. “Yeah. I guess that’s why this was technically a promotion, because it’s more responsibility.”

“Where’s the closest trooper besides you?”

“Kotzebue.” She named a town on the western coast of Alaska, hundreds of miles away and not connected to Barrow by anything resembling a road.

“Not exactly close.”

She shook her head. “Not at all.”

“What if this situation escalates?”

McKenna shrugged. “I work harder, I guess.”

“So you’re on your own then.”

“I can handle it.”

“I never meant to say you couldn’t.”

Conversation lulled then. Not a comfortable pause, but an awkward silence where McKenna could feel Will weighing his words and deciding what was safe to say. So maybe she’d overreacted, but it had seemed as if he was implying she couldn’t handle things on her own.

The bodies she’d seen the day before flashed before her eyes, and terror rose for a brief moment in her throat, but she shoved it down. She could handle this. She could.

“What are we looking for when we get there?” Will had apparently decided to go with a change of subject, which McKenna thought was smart of him. He’d apparently learned something about women in the years he’d been married.

“I...I don’t know,” she admitted. “I talked to Captain Wilkins yesterday and he told me he’d sent in paramedics to handle the scene. There’s no medical examiner in Barrow, so paramedics take care of it.”

“You didn’t have to stay until they got there or anything? Make sure the crime scene wasn’t tampered with or corrupted?”

Wilkins had asked the same thing of her yesterday—why she didn’t stay. She’d stuttered out an explanation for him, telling him how shocked she’d been and how she hadn’t known what to do, but it had only sort of satisfied him.

“You were supposed to,” Will said with understanding after reading her silence. How could he do that? Was she that transparent, or could he still read her thoughts well after all those years? They’d been close the summer after his senior year, had spent long hours talking by the water as the midnight sun shone down on them. Then he’d left, taking McKenna’s heart with him. No, scratch that. She’d tried to offer him her heart, attempted to awkwardly confess her crush to him, but either he hadn’t understood what she’d been trying to say or he hadn’t felt the same. When he left, he left her, her bruised ego and her heart behind.

“Yeah.” She exhaled. “I was supposed to.”

“It’s not normal for your job, though, having to deal with all this.”

She didn’t like the fact that he was now privy to one of her failures. “It doesn’t matter. I should have known. I’ve had the training.”

He said nothing in reply, just kept piloting them across the vast wilderness. It was beautiful out there, down below their tiny airplane. Braided rivers rushed across the green and gold of the tall tundra grass, and the fireweed, which had bloomed almost all the way up, indicating that summer was over and winter would arrive soon, provided a stunning dark pink contrast. Taking her cue from Will, McKenna sat in silence, enjoying the view and sorting through case details in her head.

“Is this it?”

McKenna confirmed the coordinates with him and noticed details of the landscape that looked familiar from yesterday.

Will landed the plane smoothly, allaying her fears about his flying abilities, at least for today. After he’d finished his post-flight duties, McKenna led the way. “It’s about...probably half a mile this way,” she told him as they started to walk.

“Why didn’t we land there?”

She stopped in her tracks. “You know what? I don’t know why I didn’t think of that.”

“This really isn’t what you’re used to, is it, city girl?”

Maybe it was the “city girl” comment. Or maybe it was the compassion in his tone. McKenna wasn’t sure. All she knew was that she’d messed up again, in front of one of the people she’d most like to prove her competency to. “I can handle it fine, Will,” she ground out between clenched teeth. “I messed up a couple of times. But I won’t again.” She prayed it would be true and silently begged Will not to contact any of the people he must know to tell them she wasn’t up to this job. People’s recommendations went a long way up here in the middle of nowhere.

Her job was on the line if she didn’t get it together. And even if the location was less than ideal, this job was the only one she’d ever really wanted.

“I can handle it fine,” she repeated again with more firmness, not sure who she was convincing.

Will threw up his hands in surrender. “What is with you? It was just a comment—I didn’t mean anything by it. Do you want me to take you back to Barrow and forget my offer ever existed?”

Yeah. That was exactly what she wanted. Except when the wind crept across the tundra, whispering through the grass and taunting her with the fact that it knew and had seen what had happened here yesterday, chills invaded her entire body. She couldn’t come back here with Chris.

She might not relish giving Will a front-row seat to her fumbling attempts to handle the case, but she trusted him. With her life, if necessary.

And for now that would have to be enough.

* * *

What was it she thought she had to prove? Will wondered as he walked behind her, scanning their surroundings for possible threats, human or animal. He’d spent enough time in this wilderness to know it was as treacherous as it was beautiful. But even as he tried to remain alert to his surroundings, his eyes kept returning to the woman beside him.

McKenna hiked along without another word to him, which left him time alone with his thoughts. More time with them than he wanted, if he were honest.

Thankfully, she stopped soon, pointing to an unmistakable red stain on the brown earth that he couldn’t have missed even if he’d tried.

“The paramedics took the bodies to Anchorage this morning.”

Will didn’t consider himself to have a weak stomach—look at what he did for a living. But something about knowing the blood had come from someone instead of something, like the animal blood he was accustomed to seeing, churned his stomach.

But not as much as the thought that it could have been McKenna’s. What were the chances that whoever had committed the crimes had still been around yesterday, watching the investigation of his crime scene? Was it just arson where people did that, or was it all crimes?

The thought of little McKenna Clark mixed up in a case like this that could end up getting her killed played havoc with his mind. What had her superiors been thinking, putting someone as young and inexperienced as she was in an isolated post like this, where she’d be facing any danger alone?

“Be careful,” he said as he looked around again, not liking the uneasy feeling that had crept over him.

“I am.”

He moved closer to her.

“Really, Will. I’m fine.”

He watched as she bent low toward the ground to snap pictures of the scene with a digital SLR camera.

“Is everything like it was when you left? Minus the bodies?”

She considered his question and nodded slowly. “As far as I can tell.” She moved the camera around, surveying the area through the viewfinder as though looking through the apparatus helped her focus her mind on the scene. She snapped pictures of the surrounding area. Finally her gaze rested on a patch of grass about ten feet from the crime scene itself.

“Something else was dead.”

“What?”

She moved closer to whatever she’d noticed and Will followed. The grass there was stained red, too, though the stain wasn’t as large. In fact, this puddle of dried blood much more resembled what he saw on hunting trips.

“Another body?” Will asked. “Or do you think...”

“They were hunting,” McKenna said aloud, finishing the thought. “But someone moved whatever they killed.”

He nodded. “I think you’re right. Caribou, maybe? That’s what’s usually hunted in this part of the tundra. And the flat spot in the grass looks like the right size.”

She nodded. “I think so.” She leaned forward, snapped a picture, and then snapped pictures of the entire surrounding area.

Will heard the bang a split second before the first bullet whizzed past his head.

Rifle fire. Aimed right at them.

“Get down!” he yelled to McKenna, reaching his arm out to take her down to the ground with him. To his surprise, she didn’t protest but lay still where he’d tackled her onto the ground. Several more bullets flew overhead and Will fought panic when he realized how close the shooter had been to hitting them. He’d promised McKenna he wouldn’t let her get hurt, and she’d almost been killed.

Whoever was doing this meant business.

Will felt McKenna fumble for the weapon at her holster as he went for his own, usually used to protect him and his clients from animal predators. “Can you tell where the shots are coming from?” she asked.

“No. You?”

“Behind us somewhere. That’s all I can tell.”

It was a wonder she could tell that. The wide-open tundra was a sniper’s paradise. The killer had probably waited out here, expecting McKenna to come back and investigate, and completely concealed himself in the tall grass while his target was open.

In fact, once he thought about it, it wasn’t surprising at all that someone had fired on them. It was surprising that he or she had missed.

“I don’t want to fire until I know his position.” McKenna’s words were tense. “I don’t think there are any more people out here, and the gunfire would have scared off the animals, but...”

“But you never fire until you’re sure what you’re aiming for,” he finished for her, knowing the firearms safety rule well from trying to drill it into irresponsible clients with more money than sense.

They lay side by side, each with weapon out and ready, but the shots had stopped.

“What now?” Will asked in a whisper after a minute, when it became clear that the shooter had given up for the moment.

“We’re half a mile from the plane.”

“Assuming he didn’t find the plane and do anything to it.”

The panic in her eyes made him wish he hadn’t voiced the dark thought. “I’m sure it’s fine,” he said with more assurance than he felt. “I think we just wait here for a while, until we’re sure he’s gone.”

“Then just stand up and hope we don’t get shot?”

“Yeah, that’s all I’ve got. You?”

“Nothing better.”

By what felt like a mutual unspoken agreement, they lay there without speaking, each of them keeping their eyes fixed on places a threat could approach from. Will wasn’t sure how much time had passed before McKenna finally whispered that they should try to make it to the plane.

“I think you’re right,” he agreed, knowing that the longer they stayed out, the greater the danger they’d face from animals out here as well as whoever was trying to kill McKenna.

Full understanding hit him with all the force of a charging male grizzly. Someone was trying to kill McKenna. Last night’s note had been a warning. Now the danger was real.

“Ready?”

He pushed the troubling thoughts from his mind, knowing distraction could get you killed out here. “As I’ll ever be, I guess.”

They stood slowly. Will still couldn’t shake the feeling they were being watched. And this time, when the next bullet cracked through the air, before he could take McKenna down, she yelled, “Run!” and took off in the direction of the plane.

Will ran after her, both of them sprinting fast enough to have made their high school track coach proud. The uneven ground of the tundra seemed to be working against them—spraining an ankle or worse would be too easy out here.

The shots continued, but McKenna showed no sign of slowing. “Get down!” he yelled, believing it was their best chance of surviving but knowing he’d never take cover if she wasn’t going to.

“We can’t!”

Stubborn woman. Panic clawed at him again, as it had when they’d walked up on the scene and he’d realized how much danger it could put McKenna in. She was too inexperienced for this.

He’d like to sit down and tell her so, but if she was going to run, so was he. She sprinted on and he followed until the plane was finally in sight. It looked fine.

“Get in and fly this thing!” she yelled as she climbed up.

He mentally ran down the list to see if there was anything in the preflight checklist that couldn’t wait.

Another shot fired.

No. Everything could wait.

He climbed in and did as she said, taking off more roughly than he had since he’d first started flying.

But they were up and in minutes would be out of range.

For now.

Will focused on the instrument panel, clenching and unclenching his fists on the wheel to try to calm his nerves. When he was sure they were safe, he turned to McKenna. “What were you thinking? You should have gotten down!”

“I knew what I was doing.”

“You almost got us killed. You’re new at this, McKenna.” He let the frustration of the past however many hours loose in his tone.

“I’m new to the area not to the job. I’ve been doing this for years, and I really do know what I’m doing. It’s my job, Will. Not yours.”

“I have experience, life experience you don’t have.”

“Five years more, Will. That’s it. I’m not a kid.”

“I still wish you’d listened to me.”

“This is my job, Will. I have to make split-second judgments and not look back. But I am trained to do it. And if we’re going to be working together, you’re going to have to trust me to know the right course instead of second-guessing me.”

Will took a deep breath, powering down emotions that had gone wild at the thought of her being hurt or killed. Yeah, this was her job. Theoretically she had the necessary training for it. But that stupid running-to-the-plane stunt while they were taking fire...

“Okay.” He could think of nothing else to say.

“Couldn’t you hear that the shots were fired from closer range the second time?”

He hadn’t noticed that. “You’re sure?”

She nodded, face more serious than he’d ever seen it. “I’m sure.”

So the shooter had been creeping closer the whole time they’d been waiting him out, hoping he’d leave. That made sense since his first couple shots hadn’t hit his mark.

“I guess I owe you an apology then.”

“No need. You saved my life the first time by taking me down with you.”

He nodded, knowing she was right. But she’d saved his life, too, by insisting that they run for the plane. This time, their shared skills and experience had been enough to keep them safe. But the shooter wasn’t someone to underestimate, and he’d almost certainly strike again. Will just hoped his own abilities and McKenna’s would be enough to protect them through the next skirmish, too.

* * *

Will hadn’t said another word until they’d reached Barrow, landed the plane and were unloading.

“Be careful, McKenna,” he finally said. His eyes met hers and the intensity in them made it impossible for her to look away.

“I will be. I can take care—”

“Of yourself. You’ve made that clear.”

She couldn’t read what emotion was in his eyes. Couldn’t come close to naming it. But whatever it was stirred something inside of her, and maybe it was that, or the stress of the day, but she couldn’t picture going home with no human company. Not yet.

“Want to come over for coffee?”

He glanced at his watch. “It’s five-thirty and you’re more worried about coffee than dinner?”

McKenna shrugged, feeling herself blush. She hadn’t even thought about what time it was, had just come up with any reason she could to spend a little more time with Will.

“How about I fix dinner for us and then we’ll have coffee, maybe watch a movie,” he offered.

She searched his face for any indication that he was doing this out of pity for her, or that he knew she was scared, but saw none.

He must have misinterpreted her silence, because he hurried to clarify. “Not as a date or anything. Just two old friends, hanging out, if that’s what you’re worried about.” His easy smile, meant to reassure her, made a blush creep to the edges of her cheeks.

For a split second, she squeezed her eyes shut. Imagined what it would be like to actually be on a date with Will Harrison. Then just as quickly she shoved the thought back where it had come from. The last thing she needed was to get caught thinking such embarrassing things about someone who was only her friend.

“I thought you couldn’t cook?” she said as soon as she remembered.

The corners of his eyes crinkled as he laughed. “By fix dinner I meant bring pizza.”

“Is there a pizza place in this town?” She didn’t remember seeing one. But she hadn’t been everywhere yet.

“Bear’s Tooth Pub and Pizzeria is as good or better than anything you’ll find in the city. They have a deluxe pizza that’s unbelievably good. I’ll swing by your house as soon as I pick it up. Sound good?”

“Works for me. But don’t pile up the pizza under loads of stuff. I want to be able to taste the cheese.”

“Trust me, will you? I promise you’ll like it.”

His words still rang in her ears as she climbed into her car and drove toward her house. She did trust him. With her life. She just knew better than to ever again trust him with her heart.

She parked her car on the gravel pad beside her house and climbed the stairs to the front door with caution, looking around to make sure nothing had been disturbed while she was gone. She eased the door open and Mollie came barreling toward her, tongue hanging out of her mouth.

“I’m guessing you missed me?” McKenna laughed as she petted the dog and pulled the door shut behind her. “I would have brought you if I hadn’t been afraid you’d attract wild animals I would rather not run into.”

The dog just wagged her tail and continued to dance around excitedly.

“Will’s coming over tonight,” she found herself telling the dog. “To hang out with me.” In case that part needed clarification. It was strange to her to think that after all these years they’d picked up their friendship practically where they’d left off, ignoring the awkwardness that had started between them just before Will left for college when she’d come close to fully admitting the childish crush she had on him.

Of course, a lot had changed since then. When Will had left Seward, McKenna had wanted to become a marine biologist and work at the Sealife Center in Seward. Now look what she was doing. Will hadn’t been sure what he’d wanted to do when he headed off to college, but he’d gotten married and started on his adult life.

Now, seven years later, here they were.

McKenna shoved her reminiscences aside. It would be better to use the time she had to go over the case.

As she walked by the kitchen table, she glanced at the spot where she’d first spotted the threatening note. It was still there. She kept walking and then stopped in her tracks, walking backward as she blinked quickly, in case her eyes had deceived her. Hadn’t she moved it?

No, a paper was there. But it wasn’t the note that she’d found in the early hours of the morning. This one was new.

He’d been in her house. Again.

You chose not to listen. Suit yourself. I may have missed this time, but next time will be a different story.

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