Silver Falls - Anne Stuart [51]
She stared at him, trying to ignore the sick feeling inside. “Oh, that’s ridiculous.”
“Ask Maggie Bannister. You’ll notice she’s cut her daughter’s hair. Kirsten’s got brown hair but Maggie wasn’t taking any chances. Maybe you could dye Sophie’s hair black.” He moved closer, and she resisted the temptation to take a nervous step back, away from him. “Your daughter’s waiting for you. Don’t be too hard on her—she didn’t know you think I’m a homicidal maniac.”
“I don’t.”
He made an impatient noise. “Then what’s your problem?”
“There’s a difference between what I think and what I know. And I can’t risk my daughter’s safety based on my instincts.”
For a moment he looked distracted, staring down at her. “Your instincts tell you to trust me. Why won’t you listen? If you won’t leave, then you need to be very, very careful. Don’t leave Sophie alone with anyone unless you’ve given your permission. And don’t give your permission. I don’t want to have her body turn up at the bottom of the falls, with her barrettes missing and her hair floating in the stream like Ophelia, caught in the branches.”
“Stop it!” Rachel cried, horrified. “That’s a hideous image.”
“I was the one who called in the first murder. I saw her like that. I don’t think I could stand it if it was Sophie.” Before she realized what he was doing he reached out and pushed a tangle of her red hair away from her face. “I don’t think I could stand it if it was you.”
For a moment she didn’t move, wanting to rise into the touch of his hand. But an instant later sanity came back, and she stepped away from him. “Nobody else is going to die. It was a transient serial killer and he’s gone. I’ve read enough about sociopath killers—they don’t murder in their own backyards. It’s all about keeping their little hobby a secret. Whoever did these things is long gone. But you’re right, I’m not going to take any chances. And that includes letting you anywhere near Sophie. Understand?”
“I understand,” he said. “Doesn’t mean I’ll do it.”
She turned on her heel and stomped out of the house, slamming the poor, abused door behind her, narrowly missing the damaged step. Sophie was sitting in the passenger seat, looking subdued.
“I didn’t mean to scare you,” Sophie said softly when Rachel got in the car. “I just happen to like him. And no, he’s not some creep who’s into little girls—you’ve taught me to spot them a mile away. I have perfect perv-radar. I figured he’s my uncle, and he’s funny, and I ought to get to know him.”
“How can he be your uncle when you can’t look at David as a father or Stephen Henry as your grandfather?”
“Number one, Stephen Henry is as big a perv as you can find. Oh, I think he’s pretty well behaved, and stuck in a wheelchair there’s not a lot he can do. I could always outrun him, and besides, I think his aide is his boy toy. He just gives me the creeps.”
Rachel had never lied to Sophie in her entire life, and she wasn’t about to start now. “Yeah, he does me, too. But David adores you, and you and I have talked about him adopting you.”
Sophie’s face didn’t change. “I know he adores me, Ma. And he makes you happy, so I like him. But let’s hold off on the adoption stuff, okay?”
“We’ll take as long as you need. And if you never want it then that’s cool, too.” She’d never told Sophie that she was doing all this for her, and she never would. Sophie didn’t need that kind of pressure. Sooner or later she’d settle in, start to see Silver Falls as her home, David as her family. David and Stephen Henry.
And Caleb?
He’d be gone. Stephen Henry said always he came back to cause trouble for his brother and then left again, usually without warning. She just had to be patient, and wait. Once he was gone she wouldn’t be looking at David’s placid good looks and finding them boring. Once he was gone the safety and normalcy of this shadowed town would wrap around her like a soft blanket.
Except what the hell was so safe about murdered students and a serial killer?