Hopeful (21 page)

Hearing that he’d been watching her without her knowledge made her skin prickle and her hands start to shake. “You shouldn’t have done that, Will. It isn’t right.”

But, just like always, he continued on, as if she’d never uttered a word. “To my shame, it seems that men can’t help but talk about you, help but notice you. Men can’t help but follow you around, try to gain your attention.” His voice cracked a bit. “And you’ve let them.”

“I haven’t been with other men.”

He lowered his voice. “Oh, we know that’s a lie, don’t we?”

Mary Kate desperately peeked through the open doorway, hoping against hope that she could formulate some kind of plan. Unfortunately, she was as alone as ever. She had the only apartment above a vacant hardware store that was up for sale.

No cars were in the alley below. No men or women walked nearby. She was as isolated as one could possibly get in Sugarcreek.

Goose bumps formed on her arms. What should she do? Let him keep talking, in the hopes that he would wear himself out and leave on his own? Or should she continue to try to force him out and then lock her doors?

Hoping the Lord would look out for her, she decided to keep talking. “I haven’t let anyone do anything I would be ashamed of.”

“Mary Katherine,
nee
. I’ve seen that Junior Beiler walk into the schoolhouse when you were all alone. I saw him eating with you at the Sugarcreek Inn. Why are you leading him on when you know that you’ll always be mine?”

A cold knot formed in her stomach. “All I did was share a quick meal,” she said. “There is nothing wrong with that. I mean, my goodness, we’ve shared many meals over the years.”

“But that was different, ain’t so? I mean, you were mine.”

Only in his mind. The truth was that she’d never been his. All she’d ever wanted to do was have an independent life. To do what she wanted, when she wanted.

But Will had always been there, on the outskirts of her existence, watching, judging. Promising her parents that he’d always look out for her. Promising that he’d never let her go.

She gazed at the open space beyond him, hoping and praying to see anyone who would hear her if she screamed for help.

“Will, if you don’t leave, I will go to the police and tell them about you.”

Amusement lit his eyes. “And what will you tell them? That a man who loves you, who has promised to always love and protect you, has come to pay you a visit?”

His voice turned darker. “And what will you say when the police visit your parents? You know they will never understand why you brought strangers into their lives. Especially since they want you to always be with me.”

“My parents have nothing to do with us.”

“They do. They know we’re going to get married, Mary Katherine.”

“I never said I would marry you.” More than that, she’d done everything she possibly could to discourage him. Obviously, it hadn’t been enough. At last she’d realized that the problem wasn’t hers; it was his.

He still blocked the doorway. Desperate, she snaked out a hand and pulled at the handle, hoping to nudge him to one side so that she could escape.

But of course her efforts did no good. He was too strong. Her panic increased. “Will, you must leave. Right now.”

“Must?” The last bit of tenderness left his gaze. All that remained was the hard stare that had haunted her dreams—and driven her to leave her home and take a job she knew she wasn’t qualified for.

“I . . . I don’t want anything to make things worse between us.”

Reaching out, he clamped one of his hands down hard over hers and pulled her inside her apartment. With a slam, the door closed behind them. Locking her in.

“
Nee
. Mary Katherine, I’m not going to let you go. I came here to convince you to see reason. I can’t keep waiting for you to make up your mind.”

His grip was bruising her skin. “This isn’t the way to convince me.”

“Just give me a chance.” His voice turning plaintive, he looked beyond her, almost as if he were talking to someone else in the room.

“I’ve given you a chance. Many chances.”

“Not enough of one. Mary Katherine, if you listen to me, finally listen to reason, you’ll finally understand. You’ll understand that I’m everything you are ever going to need.” He twisted her arm, causing her to cry out in pain.

“You have no choice, Mary Kate,” he whispered. “I’m in control now.”

Tears filled her eyes as she realized he was right. She was at his mercy. Instead of telling someone—anyone—about her fear of Will, she’d kept everything to herself. Now no one knew that she was in danger. No one knew how afraid she was to be alone with him. “Will—”

An urgent knock on the other side of the door startled them both. “Mary Kate?” the voice called out.

They both froze. Will was glaring at the door in shock.

And she? Well, she was feeling a bit of shock, too.

Junior Beiler was outside.

As the seconds passed, Mary Kate said nothing. She couldn’t do much to save herself, but she could certainly prevent Junior from getting involved.

Will eyed her with a new suspicion in his gaze. “You got a new boyfriend, Mary Kate?”

“Nee.”

“Sure about that?”

Before she had time to answer, the knock came again, this time as three short, impatient raps.

“Mary Kate? What’s going on?” Junior’s voice sounded a little chiding. Then his voice turned louder. “Listen, would you go ahead and answer the door? I saw you on your landing a couple of minutes ago. I’ve got something I need to talk to you about. I promise, this won’t take long.”

Junior sounded concerned. And, truth be told, strong and capable.

Like he could handle anything, even Will.

As Will squeezed her arm and debated whether to let her answer the door, her mind began to spin all kinds of scenarios.

Maybe he’d seen Will enter her apartment. Maybe he’d seen her struggle against him. Maybe because of that, he rushed over to help her.

Maybe he’d even be able to rescue her.

If all of that was true, she ached to run to the door and let him in. But if it wasn’t? She was going to be responsible for his getting hurt.

As the seconds passed, Will’s face became mottled. And then he finally made his decision. “Answer him,” he hissed.

Finding a reserve of courage she hadn’t known she possessed, she complied. “Junior, I am here, but I’m in trouble. Please help me!”

Will’s eyes widened. It was obvious he’d never imagined she would stand up to him.

And why would he have thought such a thing was possible? She’d always let him lead, always cowed under his bullying ways. But not anymore.

The doorknob rattled. Obviously, it was locked.

She reached for the doorknob and had just enough time to slide the deadbolt to the right when Will grabbed her shoulders and pushed. Losing her balance, she slammed into the wall.

She cried out.

“Mary Kate?” Junior yelled.

Will glared at her. “Don’t you move,” he ordered. But though his voice was firm, his eyes darted from one corner of the room to another. One of his hands started to shake as his resolve began to falter.

The doorknob rattled again before it flew open with a loud
whoosh
, banging against the wall with a hard slam as Junior rushed in. “Mary Kate! What in the world is going on?” He stopped, looked curiously at Will, then paled when he saw her on the ground.

“I’m all right.” And she was. Oh, she was scared, and her shoulders burned from where his fingers bruised her. But she was going to be all right now.

“Junior, I’m so glad you’re here,” she said, attempting to rise to her feet. Just before Will turned and slapped her mouth hard enough for her teeth to break skin and her head to hit the floor with a hard thump. The sharp tang of blood teased her lips.

“You stay quiet, Mary Katherine!” Will screamed. “Shut up and let me handle this.”

She was too frightened to do anything but pray and hope that Junior would take control of the situation.

Her eyes began to fill with tears as an incredible pain filled her head. Furious, she blinked. The last thing she wanted was for Will to cause her to shed one more tear.

“Turn around and leave,” Will yelled to Junior. “Forget you were ever here.”

“You’d best step aside,” Junior murmured.

“Or?”

“Or you’ll wish you had.” When Will still tried to block him, Junior looked positively aggravated. “I work on a farm all day. I’ve raised four brothers. Do ya really think one cowardly bully is going to stop me?”

And with that, he grabbed Will’s shirt, pushed him toward the floor, then knelt on the floor next to her. “Mary Kate? Are you all right?” His hands hovered over her, as if he wasn’t sure whether to pick her up and carry her away or stay by her side.

She wasn’t sure what she wanted him to do. But perhaps the best thing for everyone was for her to finally tell the truth. “I’m not all right. Will, here, forced his way in.”

“And he hurt you. You’re bleeding.” His eyes narrowed. “And you’re bruised.”

“I think I hurt my head, too. But, um, I . . . I’ll be okay.”

“This ain’t none of your concern,” Will said.

“You’re wrong about that,” Junior said as he clambered to his feet and sighed, looking terribly put upon when Will struggled to his feet yet again. “Stay there a moment, wouldja, Mary Kate?” he muttered, just as he turned, calmly tackled Will to the floor, and then pinned him to the ground with a knee in the middle of his back.

Then, just as if he were asking for a glass of water, he said, “Mary Kate, if you could, go get me a cord or rope or something. Please.”

Getting to her feet, she remembered some kitchen twine she’d bought in one of the drawers. Ignoring her throbbing head, she pulled it out and handed it to Junior. “Will this do?”

“Well enough.” Still resting his knee on the middle of Will’s back, Junior fingered the twine, tested it for strength, then smiled at her. “It will be just fine.”

Mary Kate stood a safe distance away, torn between wanting to fall on the couch in a tired heap and actually doing something useful. “Junior, what can I do to help you?”

He glanced over his shoulder and frowned. “Why don’t you sit down for a spell?”

Feeling dizzy and more than a little out of sorts, she sat and watched Junior truss up Will like a turkey.

To her amazement, Will hardly struggled. Instead, he looked more concerned about getting hurt himself.

Once Will lay immobile on the floor, Junior stood up and sat next to her. Carefully, he took her hand and squeezed. “What do you want to do with him, Mary Kate?”

It was time to stand up to Will. If Junior could so easily, surely she could finally do something besides run. Standing up straight, she ignored her swelling cheek and looked Junior in the eye. “We need the police, Junior. This Will, he’s from my hometown. He’s been stalking me for years.”

“I haven’t been stalking you. I’m your boyfriend, Mary Katherine,” Will protested. “I love you. And you love me, too.”

She shook her head, wincing as the pain reverberated behind her eyes. “
Nee
, I do not. I never did.”

His face turned dark with rage all over again. “Shut up! Just shut up, Mary Katherine.”

Junior sighed. He went to the kitchen, grabbed a dish towel, and strode to Will’s line of sight. “Do ya want to be gagged, too? Because I can do that if you won’t stop yelling at Mary Kate.”

After a long moment, Will pressed his lips together with a fierce glare.

Junior turned to Mary Kate. “If you can make it all right, I think it would be best if you went and got the police. Of course, I’ll stay here and watch over things while you’re gone.”

Junior was so calm, his demeanor so accepting, the tears that she’d been trying so hard to keep at bay fell to her cheeks. Mary Kate knew she’d never felt so low in her life.

Without a doubt, all of this was her fault. She should have tried harder to get her parents to believe her when she’d told them that Will Lott was a dangerous man.

She should have told more people about Will’s anger and the way he refused to ever listen to her when she told him no. She should have gone to the police and filed a report.

At the very least, she should have done something besides plan for a new place to run. “I’m so sorry, Junior,” she murmured. “I didn’t want to involve you in this.”

“I’m glad you did, even if it wasn’t on purpose. That’s what friends are for. Ain’t so?” When she nodded, he gestured to the door. “You’d best go. It probably ain’t right to keep Will tied up like this for long.”

Knowing he was right, she slowly walked to the landing, took a deep breath, and then carefully walked down the stairs one step at a time. She felt dizzy and sick to her stomach. However, she forced herself to think positively, to push away her pain. Helping Junior was what she needed to do right now. She needed to help Junior and help herself. After all, all of her worst fears had finally come true, but she’d survived. And Junior Beiler had saved her.

When she got down the stairs at long last, she took a fortifying breath and made her way down the alley to Main Street. She was close now. She knew she could make it if she just stayed strong.

Just as she turned right on Main Street, she realized that Junior had been correct after all. She had needed more friends. More friends like him.

When they were alone and Junior was completely sure that Will’s bindings couldn’t come undone, he took a seat on the couch.

Though Mary Kate had told him she’d been in a bad relationship, he’d never imagined anything like this.

Actually, he’d never spared much of a thought about men like Will Lott. He simply couldn’t imagine ever harming a woman, let alone holding her hostage.

“Why are you staring at me like that?” Will asked.

“I guess I’ve been trying to understand you. I don’t understand why you terrorized Mary Kate.” He shrugged. “Actually, for the life of me, I don’t understand anything you’ve done.”

Will stared at him for a good long minute. “If you don’t understand, you’ve never been in love.”