The Wolven of Hunters Holler Page 2

  “You won’t be responsible for anything,” Jessie said. “I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself.”

  She took a step out from behind the counter, intent on following Adam.

  Rose grabbed her arm. “Are you nuts?” She laughed. “What are you doing? You ought to be locked up in a padded room.”

  Lifting a handful of bills, Jessie said, “He forgot his change.”

  Rose let her arm go. “I wouldn’t bother.”

  Jessie took two steps toward the door, but stopped when she heard the roar of a truck engine and the screech of tires as it pulled into the parking lot.

  It was a jet black, diesel-powered Dodge Ram, modified with lifts and oversized tires.

  Jessie’s stomach twisted when Owen Barnes jump out.

  Chapter Three

  Owen wore a tight muscle shirt and grease-stained jeans. His friends, Bobby Shrader and Liam Tucker, piled out of the truck right after him.

  “It’s not my day,” Jessie said.

  Rose asked, “Want me to call the sheriff?”

  “Don’t bother, I can handle it.” Even still, she retreated behind the counter with Rose, as if that would afford her some protection.

  Sandy-haired, tall, with a chiseled jaw, Owen walked with an air of confidence that only someone born to privilege could have. His father owned one of the few profitable coal mines in the county, and employed nearly a quarter of Woodale.

  As Owen strode toward the front door, he passed Adam, who was loading his groceries in the back of his pickup.

  When Adam turned in his direction, Owen called out, “What are you looking at, hillbilly?”

  Adam didn’t respond. Slowly, he turned back to loading his groceries.

  “That’s what I thought,” Owen growled, then continued toward the store.

  Sneering as he entered, Owen stopped a few paces in and motioned Bobby and Liam away. With a shared look, they ambled over to the magazine rack and started browsing.

  Approaching the counter, Owen locked eyes on Jessie. “I’ve been looking for you.”

  “It doesn’t take a genius to figure out where I am,” she shot back. Though she set her eyes defiantly, inside, she was trembling.

  Owen was obviously not expecting to be challenged. His face flushed briefly, but then he got control of himself.

  “I’m not here to fight,” he said. “I just want to talk.”

  Jessie gave him a scathing look. “I have nothing to say to you.” She folded her arms across her chest.

  He flicked his eyes at Rose, then back to Jessie. It was apparent he was trying to remain calm. “Look,” he said, his voice one of reason, “I’m just thinking ‘bout your best interests.”

  “Oh, really?”

  “Yeah.” Nervously, he licked his lips. “I mean, you can go on telling that story around town, but all that’s going to do is make people think you’re crazy.”

  “Crazy…”

  “Right.” He nodded, as if that was all it took to convince her. “I mean, it was dark. Late at night. You were way far away. There’s no way you could have seen what you thought you saw.”

  “I wasn’t that far away,” Jessie said. “The streetlights were bright enough—”

  “Ain’t no one going to believe you.” His voice rose a notch. Then he took a breath and forced a smile. “It was an accident.”

  “It might have been an accident, but I know why it happened. I know what I saw.”

  His face darkened. “All you saw was that old bat jumping out in front of me. I slammed on the brakes, but I couldn’t stop before I hit her. It wasn’t my fault. It was her stupid fault. What was she thinking, wandering around at night when she shoulda been home sleeping?”

  “Alice Mayfield didn’t walk out in front of you,” Jessie said, straining to keep her voice even. “She had Alzheimer’s and was confused. She’d stopped in the middle of the crosswalk to look around and get her bearings. You didn’t see her until it was too late because you were busy sucking back a beer.”

  The ashen look on Owen’s face was enough proof for Jessie that she was right. He could deny it, but she’d seen Liam grab the beer cans and run off before the ambulance she’d called arrived at the scene.

  Sheriff Fowler had been in Lexington, and his deputy, Rick Tiegs, had either failed to issue a breathalyzer test to Owen out of incompetence, or because he was intimidated by the Barnes family’s influence.

  It was Jessie’s word against Owen’s and Bobby’s. Though the sheriff had told her that he would continue to investigate, the truth was, he didn’t have anything he could use to charge Owen.

  Not bothering to keep his voice level, Owen growled, “Do you know how much her damn family is trying to sue me for? Millions. What for? That old bitch was dying anyway.”

  “That’s no reason to kill her.”

  Owen’s eyes flashed wide. “I didn’t kill nobody. It was an accident.”

  When he realized he wasn’t going to be able to convince her of his innocence, he changed gears. “No matter. You know and I know they ain’t gonna win no lawsuit. All that’ll happen is a lot a time will get wasted in court and a bunch of fat lawyers are going to get rich. I know you been talking to them. All you gotta do is tell them you was mistaken. It was dark. You were way far away…” He lowered his voice for her ears only. “I can make it worth your while—”

  “Seriously?” she barked out. “You’re trying to bribe me?”

  His breathing grew rapid. “You’re asking for an awful lot of trouble for nothing. They ain’t going to win no damned lawsuit, and you’ll have made an enemy. Is that what you want?”

  “You can threaten all you want,” Jessie said. “When they ask me the question, I’m going to tell what I saw. Nothing more; nothing less. Now, please leave.”

  Owen’s hand shot out, and he caught her by the arm. Roughly, he jerked her toward him. Her hip smacked into the corner of the counter, and she had to bite back a cry of pain.

  “My family owns this town. If you want to continue living here, you’d best get to understanding that.”

  She tried to pull her arm away, but he held onto it so tightly it hurt. “Let me go.”

  He didn’t release his grip on her. “I can make you regret it.”

  Glaring at him, she said, “Don’t you get it? You can’t bully me.”

  “I’m not threatening you,” he said. “I’m promising. You shut your fat mouth—”

  “Or what?” She laughed. “You’ll shut it for me?”

  Owen’s face twisted in rage. He pulled back his other arm to backhand her, but before he could strike her, someone grabbed him and spun him around.

  Jessie was surprised to see that it was Adam.

  “I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he said to Owen, his voice level.

  Owen stared at him in disbelief.

  Jessie had to stop herself from giggling at the sight. Owen was easily a foot taller than Adam, and probably outweighed him by fifty pounds, but at the moment, he was at the smaller man’s mercy.

  His mouth opened and closed twice before he managed to ask, “What the hell did you just say?”

  “I said, ‘I wouldn’t do that if I were you.’”

  “Let me go,” Owen said when he tried to pull his wrist out of Adam’s grip. His face turned red with embarrassment as Adam held on for a few more seconds before releasing him.

  Rubbing his arm, Owen glanced over Adam’s shoulder. Bobby and Liam were heading toward them.

  Sneering, Owen puffed out his chest. “Well, if I were you, I would run right now. We don’t take crap from backwoods hillbillies like you.”

  Adam stood where he was, not taking his eyes off Owen.

  “What’s going on here?” Bobby said. “We need to teach this backwoods freak some manners?” Along with Owen, he and Liam surrounded Adam. They each towered over him, but Adam didn’t so much as flinch.

  His voice remained even. “I don’t want to have to hurt you.”

  Owen laughed, then nodded at his friends. “You hear that? The little man doesn’t want to hurt us.” He shifted his eyes back to Adam. “I’m pretty sure that’s not what’s going to happen.”

  All four men seemed to be locked in place, as if frozen into statues.

  A moment later, both Bobby and Liam burst into motion.

  They reached their hands out to grab Adam, but he judged the timing perfectly.

  A split-second before they touched him, he ducked under their arms and slipped behind them. Reaching up and grabbing them by the hair, he slammed their heads together. Both of them dropped to the floor and lay motionless.

  The sight of his friends taken out so easily gave Owen pause. He flashed his fists up, but it was a defensive posture.

  Adam watched him with a bland expression and waited.

  Finally, Owen got up the nerve to throw a punch.

  Adam moved so fast, Jessie saw only a blur. Ducking under Owen’s swinging arm, he smashed the point of his elbow into Owen’s mid-section.

  The wind knocked out of him, Owen doubled over, his hand on his knee to keep himself from falling over.

  Adam took a few steps back and let his hands fall to his sides, as if he no longer felt like Owen was a threat.

  On the floor, Bobby stirred. Liam rolled over and groaned.

  When Owen got his breath back, he helped his friends to their feet.

  As they backed toward the door, Owen pointed at Adam. “You won’t get away with this. I’m going to make you pay.”

  Adam nodded. “It’s sad that you think that.”

  Owen blinked, but he didn’t reply.

  Bobby grabbed his shoulder. “Come on,” he said.

  Without another word, the three of them stumbled out of the store.

  N
ot bothering to look back at Jessie or Rose, Adam headed toward the door several seconds later without hurry, as if nothing of importance had happened.

  Chapter Four

  Jessie was so shocked, she stood behind the counter with her mouth agape.

  Before Adam got to the exit, Jessie regained her senses and took a step to follow him.

  Rose caught her by the arm. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m just going to talk to him.”

  “Oh, no, you don’t.” Rose shook her head. “Did you see what he did? He just beat up three guys twice his size. I told you, he’s dangerous. Stay away from him.”

  Jessie tore her arm out of Rose’s grip. “He was defending me against Owen. I need to thank him, at the very least.”

  “He doesn’t want your thanks,” Rose said. “I mean, he just stalked off like a douche.”

  “Seriously, Rose, I’m not some poor little kid you need to take care of. I can handle this.”

  “Like you handled Owen?” Rose shot back, but then, at Jessie’s scathing look, threw her hands up in surrender. “It’s your funeral.”

  Adam was already out of the store by the time Jessie got to the door. Hurrying to catch up to him before he got in his truck, she broke into a jog.

  Adam turned around and leveled his eyes at her.

  Trying to catch her breath as she reached him, Jessie smiled. “I just wanted to thank you for saving me back there.”

  Adam spoke in a rumble. “Forget it.” He opened the door of his truck.

  Jessie took a step closer. She had no idea where she got the courage to say what she said next. “Look, it’s starting to get dark. It’s probably a long drive home for you. Let me buy you dinner. We can go to Mixie’s; the food’s good there.”

  At that, Adam’s eyes narrowed.

  Tilting her head, trying to keep her smile from wavering, Jessie said, “It’s the least I can do.”

  Several seconds ticked by before he replied. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

  Then he hopped in his truck and started the engine.

  Jessie stood where she was, taken aback by Adam’s brusque manner. Whether he was dangerous or not, he was certainly rude.

  Still, there was something about him that sparked something in her. Maybe it was because he was nothing like any of the other men she’d met in Woodale or Louisville. Maybe it was because he’d rebuffed her, and there was a part of her that wanted to know why.

  She glanced toward the store. Behind the counter, Rose was watching her with concern.

  Jessie had to admit that she was acting differently than usual, but maybe that’s what she needed to break herself out of the rut her life had become.

  Before she could chicken out and change her mind, she walked in front of Adam’s truck.

  Eyes flashing, he turned off the engine and jumped out. He took a few steps toward Jessie, and for a moment, she wondered if she’d crossed a line.

  “Are you crazy?” he growled.

  “Maybe,” she said, “but I can’t let you go without telling you how much I appreciate what you did back there.”

  He took a breath, and then spoke in a controlled voice. “You already thanked me. It was nothing, really.”

  “It was something … to me,” she replied. “I was thinking: if you don’t want to go out to a restaurant, why don’t you come to my place and let me make you something? I’m a good cook. Then you wouldn’t have to worry about anybody seeing you or interrupting us or anything like that. What do you say?”

  It was only after she said it that she had second-thoughts. What was she doing, inviting a stranger to her house? Had she suddenly gone crazy?

  Yet, there was something about him that made her feel perfectly safe, even though, right now, he looked like he was going to go off on her.

  “What’s your problem?” Then he tried to moderate his tone. “I don’t want your thanks, your dinner, or anything else of yours. Just leave me alone, all right?” In a much lower voice, he added, “It’s better that way.”

  For several seconds, she could only stand there, frozen with shock. Then she felt her eyes welling up with tears. His words of rejection hurt just as much as Owen’s fists would have.

  The anger immediately drained from Adam’s face. “Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. Don’t … cry, all right?”

  Jessie wiped a tear away with the back of her hand. Why the hell was she crying, anyway? Maybe it was the rush of emotions from standing up to Owen coming back at her.

  She could understand Adam’s trepidation. Here she was acting like a lunatic. If the roles were reversed, she’d probably call the cops on him.

  What had gotten into her? Was she just overly grateful for the rescue, or was there something else…?

  She said, “It’s just that no one has ever stuck up for me the way you did, except my foster parents. I just thought it would be nice to have a friend, get to know one another.”

  His face began to soften, but a moment later, he set his jaw. “You don’t want to know me,” he told her. “Trust me.”

  “How can you be so sure?” she asked. “Let me decide if I want to know you.”

  He seemed hesitant, and Jessie took that as a positive sign; at least he wasn’t saying no.

  She said, “I’ll ask one more time. Let me make you dinner. After that, you can go and never have to see me again.”

  He stared at her with unblinking eyes, and for a moment, Jessie thought she’d pushed him too hard.

  A rush of adrenaline went through her, and she wondered if she’d made a big mistake. She was on the verge of just turning on her heel and walking away from him, but then he nodded.

  “All right.” He smiled. “I accept. Dinner sounds good.”

  Now that he’d agreed, she suddenly wanted to withdraw the offer. What was she thinking? Was she so desperate for something new and exciting that she had invited a complete stranger back to her place? A stranger with a reputation for violence. How many times had she seen a tragic news story that had started just like this?

  Still, she had made the invitation, and she wasn’t the type of person to back out of it.

  Putting on her best smile, she pointed to the cab of his truck. “My place isn’t far. We can get there in a few minutes.”

  “Right now?”

  Smiling, she said, “No better time. I’m off in a few minutes anyway. I’m sure Rose won’t mind if I leave early.”

  She turned to the store and waved at Rose, then pointed to the truck.

  Rose took a few steps toward the exit, as if she were going to come out and forcibly pull Jessie back, but then she stopped, put her hands on her hips, and gave her a disapproving look.

  Adam quickly moved to the passenger side and opened the door for Jessie to get in. Then he shut the door and walked around to his side.

  * * *

  As they drove toward her house—Jessie giving him directions—Adam rolled down the window. His nostrils flared slightly. If Jessie hadn’t been paying close attention, she wouldn’t have noticed. What was he smelling?

  She rolled down her window and breathed in. At first, she didn’t smell anything out of the ordinary, but then she started to detect the faint scent of barbeque. It was enough to make anyone’s mouth water. It gave her an idea.

  “You’re not a vegetarian or anything, are you?” she said.

  “Vegetarian?” He gave her an odd look, and she wondered if she’d offended him.

  Shaking his head, he said, “No.”

  “I’ve got some steaks in the freezer. We can throw them on the barbeque with some potatoes and corn-on-the-cob. How’s that sound?”

  “I hate to tell you, but I don’t eat vegetables.”

  Jessie’s jaw dropped. “What?”

  “I’m a meatatarian.”

  She stared at him for several seconds, but then he smiled at her.

  “What?” he asked. “I can’t have a sense of humor?”

  She let out a polite laugh. “I guess I just didn’t expect it,” she admitted. “Goes to show, you can’t judge someone by what others say…” She trailed off, aware that he might not take her words the right way. They didn’t know each other well enough.

  “You don’t have to mince words,” he said. “I know what folks say about us.”

  “People are horrible gossips.”

  He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. “Do you believe any of it?”

  “Of course not,” Jessie replied. “I wouldn’t have invited you to my place if I did.” A moment later, she added, “Still, it’s kinda hard to get to know someone when they keep pushing you away.”