Heart of the Hunter (104 page)

All she saw was a man. And if you can see a man, you can also see the little boy that he once was. Every man contains the child he started out as. And that’s what Elle could see now. She could see why Gris was always so mean to everyone. She could see why he was so cruel to her. It didn’t come from a place of strength. It wasn’t because he was more powerful than she was. It was because he was weak.

“What are we doing here, Gris?” she said. “Are you going to let me go?”

“Of course not,” Gris said, letting out a little laugh.

“Why not, Gris? You know you’ll have to eventually. You can’t keep me forever. Not against my will.”

“It won’t be against your will forever, Elle,” he said. “You’ll change your mind. You’ll love me again, like you used to. I know you will.”

“I never loved you, Gris. I thought I did, but it wasn’t love.”

“How can you say that?” he said. There was genuine sadness in his voice and Elle felt a pang of sympathy for him, despite what he was doing to her and what he’d done to Forrester.

“Because I didn’t know who I was, Gris. And if you don’t know who you are, you can’t really love another person. Not properly, anyway.”

“What do you mean, you didn’t know who you were?”

“Think about it, Gris. You know the story of my childhood. You’re the only person I ever told it to.”

“Yeah, I know it. So what? I didn’t exactly have a rosy childhood myself.”

“I know that,” Elle said. “But it meant that when you met me, when you came along, I was still trying to figure out the really basic things about my life. I was trying to figure out who I was, what I wanted, what kind of a person I was going to become. I didn’t know what I wanted, Gris. I didn’t know what I deserved.”

“And now you do?”

“Yes. I do.”

“And you deserve more than me, is that it?”

Elle looked at him compassionately. Despite wanting desperately to leave him, she still found it difficult to tell him this. She wasn’t used to asking for what she wanted, or saying it out loud.

“That is it, Gris. I want more. And I deserve more.”

“What’s so bad about my love?” Gris said, becoming strangely vulnerable all of a sudden.

“Nothing,” Elle said. “It is what it is. And I hope you can continue to grow, and become a more loving person in the future. If you do, you’ll be able to give some girl, some day, the love she deserves.”

“But not you?”

“Not me, Gris. I’ve already found the love I want, back in Stone Peak. And I want to be with him. Forrester claimed my heart. I’m his now, and nothing you can do will be able to change that.”

Gris nodded. He knew that what Elle was saying was true, but it was still hard for him to accept. Perhaps it was too hard. Elle couldn’t tell. All she knew was that she no longer feared Gris. She just hoped, for his own sake, that he wouldn’t cause trouble for himself and get into a fight with Forrester.

Forrester was the exact opposite of Gris. Forrester had real strength. If it came to a fight, Forrester might kill Gris. He would only do it if he had to. Elle knew that. But it would still be a tragedy for Gris. It wasn’t his fault that he came from where he came from. It wasn’t his fault that bad things had happened to him when he was a child. But it was his responsibility now to overcome it, and become a better man than his own father had been. He was responsible for the man he would become, same as everyone else, and he still had a chance to make some woman happy some day. If he only made the right decisions now.

Gris locked the doors.

“We’re going to sleep here for a few hours. I can’t drive in this weather without some rest.”

“We’ll freeze,” Elle said.

“I’ll keep the engine running so that we have heat.”

“What if I’m not here when you wake up?” Elle said.

Gris shrugged. “You’ll be here, Elle. Because we’re still not far from Stone Peak. If you’re not here when I wake up, I’m going back to that jail, and I’m killing that man you think you’re in love with. You’re not in love with him. It’s an infatuation, plain and simple.”

Elle sighed. She’d thought she was getting through to him. She’d thought he might let her go. It was probably too much to hope that someone could change that much in such a short time. Over time, Gris might become a better man, but not today. You can’t expect miracles from people, especially after they’ve had a life like Gris’s.

Chapter 38

Forrester

F
ORRESTER FELT DIZZY BUT HE
forced himself to his feet. Maybe it was a sign of how out of it he was, but he could have sworn he saw Elle’s face at the window in the door at the end of the corridor before he’d lost consciousness.

It couldn’t have been her.

He knew that. But still, the thought of her gave him strength. He didn’t know how much time had passed since Gris had knocked him out but he didn’t care. He couldn’t afford to wait any longer. He had a girl out there, somewhere, waiting for him, and he couldn’t stand not being with her for another second.

The light coming from the window told him it was about dawn. He must have been out cold for the night. He looked toward the door.

Right there,
he thought.
That’s where I saw her.

He wasn’t sure if it had been a dream or not. He could see movement out in the office. The sheriff was out there, with the four boys who’d been helping Gris.

“Sheriff,” Forrester called. “Sheriff, I’m awake.”

The door opened and the sheriff came through to the jail, followed by the boys.

“Jesus, he looks like shit,” Phil said.

Forrester looked at the sheriff. “That your boy?”

The sheriff nodded. “That’s my boy.”

Forrester faced the boy. “What’s your name?”

“Phil,” the boy said.

Forrester remembered beating him up. He remembered beating all four of them up, more than once.

“You were asking for it, the other day at the bar,” Forrester said.

“We know,” Phil said.

“That’s why I had to put you down.”

Phil nodded. Forrester turned to the other three.

“That’s why I had to put all of you down. You were straight up asking for it, hitting on those girls like that. They didn’t want it. Any real man would have done what I did.”

The sheriff spoke up. “You hear that boys? Any
man
would have done what this here
man
did.”

“We hear you,” the boys said.

Forrester nodded. “Then, is one of you going to go get me a doctor? My ribs are broken.”

Phil left with the boys. Forrester sat down on the bed and faced the sheriff.

“You about ready to let me out of this cell?” Forrester said.

The sheriff nodded. He inserted his key in the control panel and hit the electronic lock. The door clanked open. Forrester nodded to the sheriff.

“Thanks,” he said.

“I owe you an apology, son.”

“Yes you do,” Forrester said.

The sheriff cleared his throat. “I misjudged you. The truth is, when I heard who you were, whose son you were, I made up my mind about you straight away.”

“You thought I was trash.”

“I did,” the sheriff said.

Forrester nodded.

The sheriff went on. “And I thought that girl you were running around with was trash too. When Gris told me who she was, her past and all, I figured the best thing would be to separate the two of you.”

“Separate us?”

The sheriff shrugged. “Gris came in, said you were bad news. Said you were stealing his woman. I figured I was doing the right thing locking you up for a little while to give him a chance to get her back.”

“Does he have her now?” Forrester said, getting to his feet.

“Hold on, hold on,” the sheriff said. He came into the cell and helped Forrester back onto the bed. “Let the doctor get a look at you before you rush off. You’re in no state to go out there looking for trouble.”

“Did Gris take her?”

“I don’t know,” the sheriff said. “All I know is that he hasn’t been around here yet this morning.”

Forrester felt a sudden rush of panic. It was a strange sensation. He prided himself on his ability to remain calm in any situation, no matter what was going on, but suddenly, the thought of Elle being taken away by Gris was more than he could handle.

Was this what love felt like?

When the boys came back with the doctor, Forrester could hardly sit still.

“Are you going to let me bandage these ribs, or not?” the doctor protested as Forrester lay on the bed.

“Just do your best, doc. I’ve got to get out of here, and fast.”

“I’d really like to take you in to the hospital.”

“I don’t have time for that. Just wrap them.”

As the doctor bandaged Forrester’s injured torso, the pain was overwhelming.

“I don’t see why you won’t let me give you something for the pain,” the doctor said.

“I can’t,” Forrester said through gritted teeth. “I need to be fully alert.”

As soon as the doctor was done, Forrester got up. He nearly fell and the sheriff and his son had to hold him up.

“I’m all right, I’m all right,” Forrester said. “I need my truck key.”

“Where are you going?” the sheriff said.

“I’ve got to find Elle before Gris does.”

Phil put his hand in his pocket and handed Forrester a motorcycle key. “Take this,” he said. “If you have to chase them, it will be faster.”

Forrester took the key. “Are you sure?”

“It’s the least I can do, after everything we did to you,” Phil said.

Forrester nodded. “Apology accepted,” he said.

“You sure about this?” the doctor said. “It’s freezing out there. The road is covered in snow. You’re already weak. It’s not exactly ideal conditions for riding a motorcycle.”

Forrester didn’t take the time to reply. He took the key and hurried down the corridor out of the jail. He had to find Elle.

Chapter 39

Forrester

F
ORRESTER FOUND PHIL’S MOTORCYCLE OUTSIDE
the police station and started it up. It was a powerful machine. It wouldn’t be safe to drive in those conditions, but it would definitely be the fastest and that’s all he cared about.

He started it with a kick and rode down the street to the diner, flinching in pain at every movement of his muscles. When he got off the bike he limped as quickly as he could through the door.

“Forrester,” Kelly cried when she saw him. Her jaw literally dropped.

“Kelly,” Forrester said.

“Where the hell were you? Where’s Elle? We’ve been worried sick.”

“What do you mean?” Forrester said.

“She didn’t show up for work this morning. We dropped her home last night and we thought she’d be safe there. Her ex, Gris, has been harassing her.”

“She’s not here?” Forrester said.

“No,” Kelly said.

Grace came out from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron. Forrester watched as she approached. She seemed very mad. She walked all the way up to him and stopped when she was just inches from his face.

“Forrester Snow, you’ve got a lot of explaining to do.”

“I know,” Forrester said, but he didn’t offer any explanation. What good would it do now to make excuses? He had to find Elle.

“Your mother would be ashamed of you, standing up that poor girl the other day.”

“I never stood her up,” Forrester said. “I wouldn’t purposefully stand her up in a million years.”

Grace looked him over. She saw the bruises on his face, the way he was holding himself up on the counter, the obvious wounds he’d suffered during the past couple of days.

“Something went wrong,” Grace said. “Someone did something to you.”

Forrester shrugged. “You knew my mother?”

“Of course I did, but this isn’t the time to talk about that. You’ve got to find Elle.”

Forrester looked around the diner. “I don’t know where to start,” he said.

“I’ll tell you where,” Gracie said. “Her apartment.”

Kelly gave Forrester directions to the attic apartment and explained how to get a key to get in. Forrester half limped, half ran down the street toward it.

When he got there he knocked on her door. When there was no answer he started looking for Dennis. He went into the bar that occupied the ground floor of the building.

“Sir, are you Dennis?”

“That depends on who’s asking,” the old man said.

“My name’s Forrester Snow. I’m a friend of Elle’s. Your tenant upstairs.”

“Forrester Snow. I know that name.”

“Yes, sir. I grew up around these parts. You probably knew my father pretty well.”

The old man grimaced. “I knew him. He was no friend of mine, but I knew him.”

“I came home to bury him.”

“So you did,” Dennis said, nodding. “So you did.”

“I’m nothing like him, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Dennis nodded some more. “I’m sure you’re not. You’re the boy who got taken away, aren’t you? The one who was locked up with the pit bulls.”

Forrester nodded. Dennis looked at him closely and then sighed.

“Well, what can I do for you, Forrester Snow? You said you were a friend of Elle’s?”

“Yes, sir. And I need to get into her apartment.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because I need to check if she’s all right. Her ex has been harassing her. He might have taken her away.”

“You know,” Dennis said, “I’m not supposed to let anyone in there.”

“This is a matter of life and death,” Forrester said.

Dennis nodded. “I don’t know about all that, but I can tell you’re trustworthy, son.” He dug into his pocket and came out with a set of keys. “It’s the silver one on the end. Have a look around, but don’t touch anything.”

“Yes, sir,” Forrester said, hurrying back out to the street.

He unlocked the door and called out Elle’s name. There was no answer. He climbed the stairs and took in everything. A bed, made neatly, a hearth with the ashes of a small fire, a coffee pot over the fire. On the desk was a journal, and Forrester looked at the open page. It was a quote from a writer.

*

It is better to be hated for what you are than loved for what you are not.

*

He looked at the words. He didn’t pick up the journal because he assumed it was private, but he read the words on the open page over and over to himself.