Catching Her Bear Read Online Free PDF Page B

else.”
    “There is one thing.” His damn hand shook. Stupid meds. While he’d rehearsed what he planned to ask for years, now that he was back in town, he was losing his courage. “I’m just passing through, but I once did business with a Richard Stanley. I believe he said he was from Silver Lake.”
    “He is, but I’ve never met the man. He lives in the big white house on the corner of Langston and Pine.”
    Brian didn’t want to act too knowledgeable about the area. “Where’s that?”
    “If you head west on Maple and hang a left on Pine View, you’ll hit Pine Avenue. Can’t miss the house.”
    “Thanks.” He remembered there were two streets named Pine. While he didn’t have the street number, he’d ask the cab driver to drop him off nearby. He’d find it. Brian tossed back his drink then retrieved all but a few bucks for a tip. As if he had all the time in the world, he slid off his stool and sauntered out.
    Despite all the years of therapy, he wasn’t sure how he wanted to handle meeting the folks . To be honest, he doubted they’d even recognize their son. The last time he’d seen them he was eight. His hair had been lighter and he’d been skinny. Now he could stand to shed a few pounds.
    According to the mental hospital, his parents had called to check on his progress, but they’d never driven the six hours north to actually see him. All they’d wanted to know was if he was still killing animals and setting fires. The answer had been no, though recently, he’d been tempted. His abandonment issues were what had caused him to lash out, but apparently, they hadn’t cared to read the telltale signs.
    Fifteen minutes after calling a cab, his ride arrived. Instead of having the man drive him to the exact corner, he asked to be dropped off about a half mile away. He wasn’t sure why he needed the precaution, but his common sense had clicked in.
    By the time he arrived at the house where he’d grown up, it was too dark to tell the condition of the place, but the trees sure as hell were taller. Tonight, his plan was merely to case the joint. The confrontation would happen later when he was more emotionally prepared for the fallout.
    The road was fairly secluded and the homes were spaced far apart, which made it perfect for surveillance. The lights were on in the house, but it didn’t mean his parents were home. They could be having dinner out. From what he’d been able to tell, they’d been out of the country for some time, but from his mom’s Facebook posts to her friends, they’d recently returned. Wouldn’t she freak out if she knew he’d been pretending to be Harriett Longworth, an old time high school friend, in order to be accepted as her friend? If his mother had really cared about Harriett, she’d have known her old buddy was dead.
    He ducked down the driveway then walked behind the line of trees, not wanting the lights from the house to cast any shadows. Close to the halfway point, headlights turned down the driveway. His heart racing, he plastered his back against a tree. When the car drove by, he dared to check it out. It was light colored and small, but he was unable to be certain of the model. He’d get a closer look once the occupant was inside.
    A rather short woman emerged from the car, her hair pulled back in a ponytail. Certainly wasn’t his mother. She was tall—or at least she had been to an eight year old. At this hour, it wouldn’t be any of the staff. It might be a lawyer or even their accountant, summoned to their home.
    When the woman rang the bell, he deleted his mom from the list. Needing to see and hear better, he crept closer to the house. The leaves had yet to fall, making it relatively easy to move about quietly. As long as his parents didn’t have an outside dog, he’d be safe.
    The woman was ushered inside and he slid to the side of the house where he could peek in the window that was part of the dining room but which opened into the living room. When