Yes, it was a light. And it was moving. Like the occasional lights she’d seen bobbing at night in the past that she’d assumed were evidence of Micah’s nighttime forays.
But Micah was dead.
So who was wandering about at this hour?
A ripple of unease quivered through her, and she pulled the curtain shut. Took a step back.
Should she call Brad and alert him?
No. It was too late.
If he was still working the missing children case, he had other priorities. If he’d made it home and crashed, he didn’t need to be interrupted. This could wait until tomorrow. Whoeverwas out there would disappear into the shadows if law enforcement showed up and began prowling around.
Before alerting Brad, she’d also bring it up to Natalie in case she happened to have an inkling of who might be roaming around her property at night.
Even if she didn’t, it was possible the intruder had no ill intent, nor any connection to Micah’s demise. It could be someone engaged in illegal trapping, or taking a shortcut, or meeting up with a partner for a clandestine tryst. There were all kinds of explanations for the presence of a stranger on the property that didn’t necessarily involve serious criminal activity.
Nevertheless, Cara double-checked the locks on all the windows and the door, set her phone on the nightstand, and put her pepper gel within reach as she climbed into bed.
It never hurt to take precautions.
Especially when her instincts were telling her that whatever activity was taking place on Natalie’s property in the dark of night was far from innocent.
“GOOD MORNING, CARA.Did you sleep well?”
As Natalie greeted her the next morning in the study, Cara closed the door behind her and joined the older woman at their worktable.
“To be honest, no. I tossed and turned a lot.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. Didn’t you enjoy your evening with Brad?”
“Unfortunately, he had to cancel.” She explained the circumstances.
“I had no idea you were here. Steven and I were in the basement for about an hour around dinnertime. He was helping me look for a box of my mother’s personal items that I wanted to go through. Otherwise, I would have realized no car pulled in. You should have joined the two of us for dinner.”
“You weren’t expecting me, and I have food in the cottage.” Sort of. A frozen dinner was nothing like the delicious food Natalie prepared, but it had sufficed for one night.
“I imagine you were disappointed about the dinner. That was probably on your mind.” Natalie gave a sympathetic nod. “But I have no doubt Brad will reschedule.”
“He said he would. The broken date isn’t why I had trouble sleeping, though.” She flipped up the lid of her laptop, keeping her tone conversational to avoid creating undue alarm. “Actually, I saw a light in the woods late last night from the cottage window.”
Natalie’s mug of tea froze halfway to her mouth. “Near the house?”
“No. Deeper into the woods, in the direction of the lake. I thought you might have a clue who it could be.”
Natalie set the mug back down. “No, I don’t. No one should be roaming about on this property.”
“Could it have been a neighbor, by any chance?”
“I doubt it. I don’t see them much, but we do chat on occasion. If one of them had a reason to come onto my land, they’d ask. Are you certain you saw a light?”
“Yes. It was like the ones I saw once in a while when Micah was still here. I always assumed it was him.”
“Late at night?”
“Yes.”
Natalie shook her head. “I doubt that was him. He didn’t like the dark and tried to avoid being outside at night whenever possible.”
