Midnight Sacrifice Read Online Free PDF Page A

his ear.
    As Bill went in, Jed Garrett, Mandy’s best friend since first grade, stepped out. Formerly lean and fit from a lifetime of outdoor activity, the hunting guide’s new buzz cut emphasized that his face had thinned to the point of gauntness. Several rounds of surgery had debilitated Jed for months. Though mostly healed from the horrific injury, his body hadn’t recovered 100 percent. Mandy wondered if he’d ever be the same. More guilt piled onto Mandy’s conscience. Jed had suffered a knife wound in her defense.
    “Thanks for taking him.” There were few people who could manage her brother’s anxiety. Jed had been hanging around the family so long, he was like a brother, and he hadn’t put down his own handgun since he’d been released from the hospital.
    “No problem. He never gets upset if Honey goes along.” Jed squinted at the ladder still propped against the house. “What’s with the ladder?”
    “The gutter was clogged.”
    “You didn’t climb up there by yourself?”
    Mandy lifted her chin. “I certainly did. Just because I’m small and female doesn’t mean I’m helpless.”
    “I never said you were. Doesn’t mean you have to do everything yourself.” Jed scraped a hand through the half inch of hair he had left. “Why are you so stubborn?”
    “Why are you so bossy?”
    Jed’s lips thinned. “Think about this. Your family needs you. God forbid something happens to your mother, you’re the only person Bill has in this world.”
    Mandy’s eyes burned. She looked away as pressure built in her chest. He was right. Like it or not, Bill was her responsibility. Forever.
    “You should let Bill do more around this place.” Jed frowned at her. “He’s not helpless either.”
    An engine rumbled. Jed and Mandy turned in unison to watch Danny’s old car turn from the driveway onto the street. The top was up, but the driver was visible.
    “Is that who I think it is?” Jed gaped at the car.
    “Yes.” Mandy turned. “He stopped in a little while ago.”
    “Were you going to tell me?”
    “Of course. Arguing with you distracted me.” Mandy crossed her arms over her chest, clutching the mail closer. “I’m surprised you recognized him.”
    “There are things about that night I’ll never forget.” Still staring down the street, Jed absently rubbed his belly. “Why is he here?”
    “Something is up with the case.”
    “Like what?” Jed’s eyes snapped back. He paled. Since coming home from the hospital, he rarely mentioned the assault or his injury. Did he sleep at night?
    “He didn’t say anything specific.”
    “Didn’t you ask?”
    “I was so shocked to see him, I couldn’t think straight.”
    Jed nodded, as if he understood her reaction. Not prone to excessive conversation, he was quiet in a way that made people underestimate him. But Jed could read people as well as a trail. “Did he say anything?”
    “Not really. He wanted to know what I knew. He’s meeting with the detective tomorrow.”
    “The cop said Nathan was probably long gone, maybe even dead.” Jed looked out into the rain. “But if anybody could survive the winter out there, it’d be Nathan. I worry about him comingback for you, especially now that the snow’s gone and it’s easier to move around in the woods.”
    Mandy worried, too, but Jed didn’t need her paranoia on top of his own. “Why would he do that when he could be hundreds of miles from here?”
    Jed turned to Mandy. His jaw muscles tightened, and resolve replaced the surprise on his face. “I never liked the way he looked at you. I know you worked for him for a couple of years, but he didn’t treat you exactly like an employee. Are you sure you don’t want me to move in here, at least temporarily?”
    Mandy shuddered, and fear clenched her belly as tightly as she gripped the mail. Jed didn’t know, did he? No, Jed would never be able to keep that knowledge to himself. He’d be furious, and she’d never hear the end of it.
    She