Darren wrapped his arms around her shoulders.
“One of these days, you need to take the training wheels off.”
“She’s not ready.”
“Is that what you really believe, or is it just your fear talking?”
Raven blew out a breath and tapped her cobalt nails against the armrest.
“It’s just that she’s doing so well. I don’t want to risk losing her.”
“I get it. But you shouldn’t have to bear the burden alone. Let LeVar stay with your mother a few nights. Or she can hang out with Naomi Mourning. Aren’t those two thick as thieves these days?”
Raven chuckled.
“Once those two commandeer a kitchen, you might as well get out of the way. They’re like a force of nature when they’re baking.” Raven crossed her legs at the ankles and propped her feet on the opposite arm rest. The fire popped inside the stove. No matter how cold the night became, it couldn’t reach them here. “What are you doing for Halloween?”
Darren paused and tilted his head.
“Haven’t decided yet. Once the hikers vacate the trails, I’m free for the evening. It’s not like any trick-or-treaters come to the state park.”
“True. What are winters like in this cabin?”
“Why? Are you taking me up on my offer to move in?”
“Just curious.”
Darren pondered the question.
“It’s peaceful. We don’t get more than a few cabin rentals per month, and the weather cuts the hiking traffic in half. But the road into the park is the last one the village plows. So once you’re here, plan and staying a few days when there’s a storm.”
“I bet it’s peaceful, all cut off from the village.”
“Yeah, it is. Wake up after a heavy snowfall, and there’s this endless blanket of white leading into the forest. A deer or rabbit will cross through now and then. Otherwise, it’s quiet enough to write a novel. You’d love it.”
“I’m sure I would. What about cabin fever?”
“I don’t have any Jack Torrance in me. Besides, I prefer the quiet. That’s why I left the Syracuse PD and took the ranger position.”
Raven patted his chest.
“Why don’t we order a pizza after work tomorrow, start another fire, and watch movies until we fall asleep.”
“Sounds perfect. What about Mom?”
“I’m taking your advice. LeVar can watch my mother tomorrow night.”
Anticipation flickered in Raven’s chest. She deserved a night alone with Darren. She hadn’t felt this secure in weeks. Three months ago, Damian Ramos and his partner, Mark Benson, kidnapped Raven. Raven had investigated Ramos after his fiance became concerned the boy toy was after her money. While she was at the gym where Ramos exercised, Benson attacked Raven in the locker room and held her captive in a farmhouse outside Wolf Lake. They’d also abducted Ellie Fisher, a woman Ramos flirted with at the gym. Benson and Ramos placed a ransom on Fisher, hoping to make enough money to clear their debts and escape the country. Since the kidnapping, Raven couldn’t stop worrying the prison would release Benson and Ramos on a technicality. For the first time since summer, Raven wasn’t looking over her shoulder or panicking every time she was alone.
But confidence was skin deep. Slice through the epidermis, and you found where the fear hid. Break through the bone—pure terror.
“All right. So we’ll make a night of it.” Darren rubbed his hands together. “I’ve never spent the night with anyone in the cabin.”
“There’s a first for everything.”
She pressed her lips against his before Scout’s voice came over the radio. Raven sighed and rolled out of Darren’s arms.
“You know, I’m starting to question why we gave Scout her own radio,” Darren said, groaning as he rose off the couch.
After Harmon Kings gang members broke into LeVar’s house over the summer, Raven had purchased security cameras to cover Thomas Shepherd’s backyard, and radios so she could stay in touch with LeVar, Darren, and Scout. Raven picked the radio off the counter.
“What’s going on, Scout?”
“This is going to sound crazy. But I’m pretty sure I just listened to a murder on a podcast.”
Raven covered her laugh. Darren rolled his eyes.
“A murder, eh?”
“Don’t laugh. It sounded real.”
“Okay. Why don’t you begin by telling us what you heard?”
Scout recounted Violet Lyon’s horror podcast and its supposedly bloody ending.
Darren winced and mouthed, “War of the Worlds.”
Raven nodded. It seemed Violet Lyon had copied the tried-and-true method of scaring unsuspecting listeners on Halloween weekend.
“It sounds like a prank, Scout. I mean, if you wanted to kill someone, wouldn’t you wait until the person was off the air? No sense alerting the police before you finish the job. This Violet Lyon girl is a horror movie freak. She’s playing out her favorite scenes. That’s all.”
“I don’t know,” Scout said, sighing. “I feel like someone should check on her. Just to be sure.”
“If you’re that worried, shouldn’t you call Thomas?”
Scout groaned.
“That wouldn’t go over well. Chelsey is with Thomas tonight.”
Raven took her thumb off the call button and laughed. She shrugged her shoulders at Darren and said, “But apparently, she’s fine calling us while we’re together.”
Darren drank from a water bottle and snickered.
Raven rubbed her eyes. She didn’t want Scout to think they weren’t taking her seriously. The teenager was a whiz at tracking people online, and she’d helped the sheriff’s department solve two murders since spring. Maybe Scout was right about Violet Lyon.
“On the off chance someone attacked Violet during her podcast, how would you track her? Violet Lyon probably isn’t her real name.”
Scout hesitated before answering.
“She’s difficult to find.”
“So you’ve tried.”
“Not in a creepy way. More as an intellectual pursuit. Unlike most people, Violet sticks to one screen name and spreads her brand on horror movie forums. But she never posts photographs. She’s careful.”
“Do you want me to call Thomas?”
“I don’t want to send him on a wild goose chase,” said Scout, her voice dropping an octave. “Not until I’m sure.”
After
