Haunted in the Night

Chapter Ten- Part One

Chapter Ten.
“Bob didn’t tell you he set this up did he?” Chad asked her, reading her awkward body language.
“No he didn’t” she told him and he smiled at her softly.
“I understand if you don’t want to go on a date with me, if you want we can just hang out here, keep an eye on the cabin, Bob told me about the rose petals, that you may have a stalker" he told her and she frowned and nodded in reply.
“I don’t even know who it could be, how could I have a stalker and not even have any clue as to who it might be, some criminal profiler" she sighed sadly as she sat down on the couch, her elbows on her knees as she rubbed her temples.
“Don’t doubt yourself Claire, you’ve been helping Bob way more than anyone else ever could, he had nothing before you showed up" Chad sat down next to her on the left, trying to comfort her.
She had always had trouble with self doubt but she had always fought it, never gave into it and worked even harder but this case and now this stalker, it was wearing her down.
“Come with me" Chad said suddenly as he stood back up, putting out his hand for her to take.
“Where?” she questioned as she hesitantly reached out for his hand.
“I’m taking you on that date" he winked at her, he was trying to cheer her up and she smiled at him gratefully when he helped her to her feet and he continued to hold it all the way out to his car.
“Where are we going?” she asked him once they were on the road.
“It’s a surprise" he smiled charmingly, not revealing even a slight clue.
She looked at him in complete confusion when he pulled up outside of the hardware store.
“What are we doing here? I don't understand, I thought we were going on a date" she asked him but he just continued to smile, giving nothing away.
“Come on, you’ll like it, I promise" he assured her as he climbed out of the car, she reluctantly followed suit.
Claire was gobsmacked from the moment she stepped foot inside her parents old hardware store, it had fairy lights all around the tops of the walls and shelves, some of the shelves had been pushed to the sides so there was a big gap in the middle of the room and in that gap was what took her breath away.
A blanket, blue, a basket, brown, and green cushions all over, he had set up a picnic for her, but it wasn’t just any picnic.
“I remember when we were young you wanted to go on a picnic, you had your heart set on it so your mum and dad planned it all up, but just as you were getting ready to go the storm clouds rolled in and it started raining, you were so disappointed, so your parents and myself helped clear the store, we hanged fairy lights and set up a picnic in the store for you just like this, and then because I helped you invited me to join you, I’ll never forget that day" he told her.
However Claire was lost for words, he had taken one of their best memories and brought it back to life for her, tears had entered her eyes but for once they were the tears of happiness and he sensed that because he reached over and took hold of her hand in his and gave it a little squeeze.
“Thank you" she barely managed to whisper it out but he still heard her and shyly she embraced him, wrapping her arms around his neck and buried her face into his chest, at first he was shocked, he had not expected that at all but it only took him a split second to return the embrace and wrap his arms around her shoulders, holding her close.
It was a sweet moment and once Claire had cleared her eyes of the tears she pulled away, instantly missing his warmth and the safety she felt when he held her.
“Shall we eat?” she asked him as she went over and sat down on one of the cushions and looked at him waiting for him to follow.
Once he sat down he opened the basket and pulled out a couple cans of Fanta, it had always been her favourite and her parents used to let her have some on special occasions, then he pulled out some sandwiches to which he blushed shyly at.
“I’ve never done a picnic before so I wasn’t certain on what you would want to eat" he said as he handed one to her.
“It’s perfect" she replied as she admired the room, memories swimming before her eyes, it was so kind of him to do this for her and she found herself regretting almost not coming with him.
The sandwich had cheese, lettuce, egg and chicken slices, one bite and it all practically melted in her mouth, it was delicious, especially for a sandwich.
“You look lovely today Claire" he complimented her which caused her to blush, she had changed before Chad had got there thankfully, after Bob had woken her up, she wore a white dress that had yellow hibiscus flowers on it and white sandals, thankfully it was a warm day today and her hair was done in a ponytail.
“Thank you Chad" she said as she nervously fiddled with her sandwich.
“You look nice too" she replied embarrassed, not sure on what to say, he wore a black button up shirt with dark blue jeans and back joggers.
“Thank you" he said as they continued to eat slowly, once the sandwiches were gone he pulled out some fruits to snack on while they talk, there were strawberries, blueberries and cut up pieces of oranges.
“You like fruits huh?” she smiled at him as they ate a couple.
“Yeah, Helena taught me everything I know, she even helped me start my own veggie garden which is where all of these came from" he admitted to her.
“Helena taught me lots about gardening too but there’s not many places in Adelaide to start your own veggie patch, unless you live in the suburbs” she told him and he nodded.
“What’s it like there?” he asked her curiously, he had never been to a big city before and he had always wondered.
“It's different, obviously I mean, it’s not like this place at all, it’s overly crowded, always busy, and you don’t know everyone there, I mean how could you, there is just so many people" she chuckled as she tried her best to explain it to him.
“Do you like it there?” she froze when he asked her that, she hadn’t been expecting it, nobody had actually ever asked her that before and she’d never really thought about it until now.
“Honestly I don’t know, I mean my grandparents are there and I have my university course in criminal profiling but sometimes you do just want to escape it, all the rushing about, all the people, the sirens of emergency units going off every few minutes, it can be stifling” she answered honestly and he smiled at her softly as he reached over and took her hand.
“You don’t have to go back you know, you could stay here" she could hear the hopefulness in his voice and her chest tightened, she could feel it, the feelings she had for him growing, the feeling of wanting to stay here with him but too many bad memories were held for her in this town and what of her grandparents and her career aspiration.
“I..... I don’t know" she stuttered out and he sighed, knowing that he was putting her in a hard place.
“I’m sorry, I just really miss you and I thought maybe....” he trailed off, unsure if he should finish his sentence.
“Maybe what?” she asked looking into his eyes but he only looked down shyly.
“I thought maybe I could make you happy again" he admitted to her putting his head down scared to see her reaction, he could be quite shy for someone with a lot of confidence, she found it attractive, especially when he spoke his mind.
She couldn’t say anything, she didn’t know what she could say so all she did was wrap him in an embrace which he returned.
“Stay with me Claire, just think about it, this place doesn’t just exist to hurt you, I can make the clouds over this place go away, I can bring the light to your eyes again, I know it, just give me a chance" he whispered tenderly into her ear and she felt herself melt into his embrace more, she wanted what he spoke of, she wanted to be with him, to be happy with him but she just didn’t know if she could.
“I’ll take you home" he said after a few moments of silence, understanding that she didn’t know what to say and things were becoming awkward, so they packed up the basket and stood up.
“I’ll deal with all this later" he told her before they walked out to the car.
Once seated all Claire could do was fiddle with her fingers, she couldn’t bring herself to look at Chad, she felt that if she did she would never want to leave, so much had been happening in such a short time, especially their feelings for each other.
It didn’t take long before he pulled up out the front of Claire’s cabin and they climbed out, as soon as they were walking next to each other he reached out and took hold of her hand again but she still couldn’t meet his eyes, not even once they were standing in front of her door.
“Look at me Claire" he spoke softly, pleading for her to let him in, to let out her emotions instead of hiding them.
Slowly she looked up into his eyes, they were soft, full of caring and affection, she could feel herself getting lost inside of them and slowly he leaned forward, their lips only centimetres apart, their breath mixing together and his scent was intoxicating, she wanted to feel his lips upon hers, she wanted to know if they were soft, if they were firm, she wanted to be in his arms and she knew she doesn’t want to leave him, their lips only seconds apart.
“CLAIRE" suddenly they were torn from the bubble of their emotions as someone shouted out Claire’s name, she quickly pulled away from Chad and she could instantly see the disappointment etch across his face.
“Claire there you are, I finally found you, I’ve been looking everywhere for you darling" a man said as he walked up to them and he went to put his arm around her shoulders but she quickly pulled away confused, the same confusion was also on Chad’s face.
The man was tall, he had short slicked back black hair, brown eyes with big bushy eyebrows, bit of stubble and he wore black jeans with a black suit jacket and a white button up shirt.
“Sam? What are you doing here?” Claire asked completely confused as to why of all people he would come here.
“Darling please, as if I’m going to let my girlfriend come to a town that has a killer in it alone, no, I’m here to keep you safe” he declared proudly, holding his head held high.
“You’re dating someone already?” Chad asked, hurt all over his face and in his tone, his eyes were filled with sadness, with betrayal and mistrust, a way that she never wanted him to look at him with.
“No Chad I can explain...” she tried to start explaining to him but he cut her off.
“Don’t bother” he snapped instantly turning around and walking off.
Claire watched hopelessly as he climbed into his truck and pulled off, she could have sworn she saw tears glistening in his eyes but was too far away to be sure.
“So darling now that I have found you shall we go to dinner?” Sam asked her looking down at her expecting her to just swoon into him, she didn’t.
“Sam did you leave those rose petals on my table yesterday?” she asked, crossing her arms protectively over his chest, planting her feet and stood tall, she would not let this rude cunning and deceitful man intimidate her.
“Of course, did you like them? Such a romantic thing for me to do for my darling girlfriend” he cooed, going to grab her hand but she swatted his away.
“I am not your girlfriend Sam, why would you even think that? We only went on two dates, two and I made it perfectly clear that I was not interested in dating you anymore” she stated angrily, he had just ruined a perfect day and made Chad think that she was a player, anger boiled in her stomach and she wasn’t sure if she could hold it in.
“Darling don’t be that way, I know I can be possessive but I can promise you that you will learn to love it about me” he attempted a charming smile at her but all he was met with was a slap to the face, he took a step back, stunned then anger washed over his face.
“You stay away from me, or I’ll have you charged for stalking, breaking and entering and harassment” Claire warned, pointing her finger at him to tell him she was serious before she quickly turned her back on him, unlocked her door and rushed inside, locking it straight away behind her.
She didn’t wait, she wasn’t going to take the risk, she instantly pulled out her phone and rang Bob, begging him to get there as soon as he can, he could hear the fear in her voice and he was already on his way.
“Claire darling don’t be that way, you know I only want the best for us, for you, and that is not for you to be here with that insignificant little boy, you deserve to be with me in Adelaide, now open this door” Sam spoke through the door, she could hear he was gritting his teeth angrily, trying to hold back his temper and she could see the knob of the door turning against the lock.