Page 112 of 1001 Dark Nights: Bundle Forty-Two

The woman seemed to bristle and maybe even grow a littlenervous. She shifted her weight but never took her eyes off Donovan.

“What are you doing here?” Sia asked, panic flooding herchest and making it difficult to breathe.

“I said I’d meet you. I know I’m late, but damn.” He looked at the woman and shook his head. “That’salways been my problem with women. I’m very forgettable.”

Holy cow, did he ever have that wrong. “Donovan, you need toleave.”

“What?” he said, disappointment evident on his face. Shedidn’t miss the fact that he was slowly making his way closer to them. “Youtold me I could finally meet the Hendersons.”

“And I told her,” the woman said,“the Hendersons ain’t lived here in five years.”

He nodded and looked around the cabin, stepping onto thefirst stair. “Welp, I’d say that makes you a liar, then.”

Sia sucked in a soft breath. Did he know something shedidn’t?

The woman tsked and lowered the gun a couple of centimetersas he took yet another stair, inching closer to them. She grinned at him and,right before pulling the trigger, said, “I suppose it does.”

Chapter Five

English is a great language.

For example, “take out” can mean food, dating, ormurder.

—True fact

Donovan thought about Sia as he walked. The doclacked basic social skills as if she didn’t know how to behave in certainsituations. Not that there was anything wrong with that, but it could explainwhy she refrained from speaking when they were all together. Seriously, though,a woman with her looks? How could she not be a social butterfly?

Donovan knew, of course, that looks didn’t automaticallycreate a stunning social intellect, but the two often went hand-in-hand.Sia seemed to suffer from crippling shyness, and it only endeared him to hermore.

Those were the shiny gems he thought about as he trekkedthrough the forest closer to where he’d seen the doc park her car. Marika hadoffered to call Sia to maybe figure out what was going on, but he’d asked herto hold that thought. He wanted to see where this particularrabbit hole led, so he requested that Marika give him a day. Now maybehe would get some answers.

He’d pulled off the road about half a mile back and joggeduntil he spotted her crossover halfway up a drive.Then he used the vehicle as cover, darting into the forest once he reached itto flank her for a better view. And there she was, even her silhouettealluring. She’d certainly been blessed with impressive curvatures, but really.That kiss. He couldn’t stop thinking about it and how inexperienced the doc hadseemed.

“That—that’s not possible.”

He heard the astonishment in Sia’s voice and crept closer,making sure the trees offered him enough cover to approach unseen. He listenedas a woman spoke about the cabin’s previous occupants. Though he couldn’t hearevery word, he caught enough to know that what the woman said stressed the docout.

Sia picked up her phone, and Donovan finally realized whyshe had been standing with her hands in the air—the woman held a shotgun onher. A blind rage consumed him instantly. Naturally, he’d left his pistol inthe truck, but he didn’t waste a moment. He stepped out of the cover of thetrees and said as casually as he could, “There you are.”

The woman swung the shotgun toward him, as expected.

“Sorry, I got turned around,” he said, taking in as much ofthe doc’s demeanor as he could. She was not having a good day. Her chest roseand fell in short bursts, but he couldn’t worry about that right now. Hepretended that he’d just seen the shotgun and raised his hands. “Whoa. No needfor that. We come in peace.”

“Like I haven’t heard that before.”

So, either the woman was an alien enthusiast or on justenough medication to make her paranoid. “We were just looking for theHendersons.”

The woman shifted to get a better view of him.

That’s right. Keep your attention right here. Hetook another step closer.

“What are you doing here?” Sia asked him, and the panic inher voice caused an odd reaction in him. Was she worried about him?

“I said I’d meet you. I know I’m late, but damn.” He looked at the woman and shook his head. “That’salways been my problem with women. I’m very forgettable.”

“Donovan, you need to leave,” the doc said, and he wanted tosmile. She was actually worried about him. This mightjust be the best day of his life. At least, thus far.

“What?” he said, feigning disappointment as he took anotherstep. “You told me I could finally meet the Hendersons.”