feel pain all through her chest. Every muscle in her body had tensed now and she fought the urge to just run blindly into the surrounding woods.
“It used to be a great make-out area, you know?” he continued, taking another step forward even as she walked back. “The kids all came this way and pulled off the side of the road. Sure, it was a shortcut, but it was so dark out here. You could get away with anything and there would be nobody around to hear.”
“I didn’t know that,” she said, still trying to think of what to do.
“No, if you had, you probably wouldn’t have come,” he said. “Because you would have known what happened to them. You must be new to the area, Ms…”
“I’m not going to tell you my name,” she said.
“Pity,” he replied. “I’ll just have to read about it in the paper, then.”
“What?” she asked.
“When they find your body,” he said. “They won’t find it for a while, of course. But when they eventually identify you from your dental records, then I’ll see the name.”
“Oh, dear God,” she said, and was startled to find water running down her face. She was crying. She didn’t know a person could cry from terror.
“He won’t help you, my dear,” he said. “Anyway, I put a stop to kids coming out here. Do you have any kids, Ms. Soon-to-be-very-dead? They could have told you how. Twelve years ago-on this very night-I gutted two of them. I mean, I really went to work. Not the way I will on you. No, I was younger then, and didn’t have enough artistry.”
Mary was sobbing now, unable to help herself.
“Anyway, just one couple. That was all it took. And in 12 years, they never came back. I know because I waited to see. But they were smart enough to stay away. Too bad for you though.”
“Please,” she said. “Please don’t do this.”
She took another step backward.
“If you don’t put up a fight, I’ll make it quick,” he said. “I promise.”
“No, no, no, no,” she stammered out, and she felt another emotion now. She felt a kind of raw anger coming out of her. These men, she thought. For how many years had she put up with Donald? And now she was finally free of him and this guy comes along? It was unfair. It wasn’t right. She wasn’t supposed to die like this. She was supposed to go quietly in her bed, surrounded by grandchildren.
She felt the anger wash over her and was surprised by how good it felt. Anything that broke through the fear.
“If you do fight, well…” he said. “I’m out of practice, but I remember well enough how to inflict pain.”
She heard his words and felt a click in the back of her head. She wasn’t going to give in to the urge to run away. If she did, he would be on her in seconds.
Mary stopped moving back. The fear that had so flooded her had given way. Dim memories of her best friend, Gladys, teaching her a move from a self-defense class, flickered to life. And as she watched this man advance, a plan formed in her mind.
She had stopped crying. She was through crying. Instead, she quickly bent down on the ground and felt along the side of the road.
“Just what the hell do you think you are doing?” he asked, and he was moving, faster than she anticipated.
But not quite fast enough. Grabbing hold of gravel she had felt along the road, she threw it at his face as he approached. He cried out and stumbled back, putting his right hand to his head.
It was a good start, but not enough. Still feeling the anger bubbling inside her, she moved toward him. Remembering what Gladys had told her, she put her hands across him on his shoulder and drove her knee deep into his groin.
He doubled over and fell to the floor, dropping something in his left hand as he did so. She looked to see a long, curved knife-a machete.
“You bitch,” he said.
She stood back, surprised at what she had done. As suddenly as it had come, the anger she felt left her and the fear came running back. She had to get away-get away before he recovered.
Turning on her heels, she ran into the forest, hoping to put distance between them. Sooner than she had anticipated, she heard him cry out.
“I’ll find you, you know that?” he screamed, his words echoing through the forest all around her. “There isn’t anything for miles. I’ll find you. Do you know what I will do then?”
She ran faster, cursing herself for her pumps.
“You won’t get far,” he shouted after her.
She ran for her life. She ran faster than she ever had.
But ultimately, the man was right.
Mary Kilgore did not get far.
Chapter 5
Friday, Oct. 6
The only thing that Quinn could remember was that he had been running for his life. Somewhere the Horseman had been behind him, laughing at him and swinging his almighty sword. Quinn knew it was only a matter of time before he caught up.
He woke drenched in sweat and immediately jumped out of bed. The urgency in his dream was still with him and he fought down the urge to run. Where would he run to?
He paced through his apartment and then got in the shower. As the water poured over him, he attempted to sort through what he felt but it was impossible. He kept hearing noises outside his door and despite telling himself it was nothing, he could not bring himself to believe it.
He’s here. The Horseman is here. And he’s waiting for you.
He felt the bile in his throat rise up and Quinn closed his eyes and leaned into the water stream. The Horseman is not out there. The Horseman is not real. He is not even a myth or a legend. He is a fictional creation of Washington Irving. That is all he ever was or is.
No, a voice in his head said. He’s real and he’s waiting for you.
Quinn looked down at his hands, which were shaking. He clenched his eyes closed as he washed his hair, willing himself not to see the nightmares in his head.
Wasn’t there the sound of someone pacing outside his door? Was that the sound of the door opening? He was sure he could hear it.
But when he opened his eyes and pushed aside the shower curtain, there was nothing.
There is nothing here, Quinn told himself. But why didn’t he believe it?
He sat down on the porcelain edge of the tub and let the water continue to hit him. What is wrong with me? How long am I going to feel the effects of this childish nightmare?
He had to think of something else, but found it hard to do. Every time his mind latched on to something, he could hear the hoof beats again in his ears. He could feel the blade approaching his neck, the branches tearing through his flesh.
“Enough,” he cried, and said it out loud for good measure.
It was then that he thought of her, and from the moment he did, the sound of the chasing horse seemed to recede. Kate. He thought of how she looked the first time he saw her. He remembered the sound of her voice. The memories calmed him, and for the first time since he woke up, the feelings of his dream receded.
He should call her, ask her out. But as soon as that thought appeared in his head, the ridiculousness of it came right after. He didn’t know her number or where she lived. And how dumb would he look asking her out after knowing her for exactly two days?
He stood up and finished soaping himself. As he did, he processed the past two days. He had barely seen Kate on Thursday, since Laurence had her out tracking a story in the far northern part of the county.
