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Hazel Hart took her now-cheerful daughter’s hand and walked with her toward the SUV. Earlier Evie had fussed about being told she could not go for ice cream today. Hazel’s schedule was far too busy. But Evie liked passing out cookies to Hazel’s clients. Hazel had told her five-year-old she could sample one with them. That had taken care of the ice cream tantrum.
Hazel glanced around. The street was quiet. This area of town didn’t get much traffic. On the edge of Mustang Valley, there was a lot of new development and not much commercial business. The back of the strip mall across the street hid most of the activity there, though landscaping along the sidewalk made it more palatable for residents. The client she’d just left enjoyed the convenience of Hazel’s home deliveries, especially since she had been taken ill with breast cancer. The woman was going to be all right, but had hired Hazel to provide her meals while she recovered. The woman had family but they all lived out of state and she didn’t like the food her neighbors prepared.
Hazel had left her job at an upscale restaurant several months ago to go off on her own as a personal chef. She preferred the independence and not having to work under someone else’s thumb. Plus, she could always be with Evie, which was her most favorite thing in the world.
Reaching the SUV, Hazel unlocked it and had her hand on the back seat door handle when Evie said, “Mommy, what is that man doing?”
Hazel looked in the direction Evie pointed and saw a man in a blue sedan, wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap.
“Why did he hit that man over the head with a rock and put him in the car?”
Hazel turned sharply to Evie. “What?” She looked around and didn’t see anything.
Evie pointed. “That man put another man in the trunk, Mommy.”
Hazel felt a wave of apprehension sweep through her as she stared at the sedan. If the driver had struck a man unconscious and put him into the trunk, he could not have any good intentions. He started pulling out into the street way too quickly for Hazel’s comfort.
Hazel memorized the license plate as the man began driving along the street, right toward them.
Reaching for Evie’s hand, she went to pull her daughter onto the sidewalk. Evie dropped her Cookie Monster and bent to pick it up. Horror flared up in Hazel. She glanced up and saw the car was almost on them! They’d be run over!
“Evie—” Just then someone swooped Evie up and grabbed Hazel’s hand, yanking her backward.
The stranger in the sedan continued to race for them. Hazel screamed, as did Evie, as a man hauled them behind her Mercedes and up onto the sidewalk. The other car whizzed past, taking out her Mercedes’ driver-side mirror.
“Are you all right?”
Hazel pulled her hand from the man’s, heart flying and struggling to catch her breath. A car had just tried to mow them down! The sound of the Mercedes mirror being torn off kept echoing in her mind.
She reached for a crying Evie. The heroic man handed her daughter over and Hazel held her tightly. “It’s okay, baby. We’re all right.” She looked at the man as she answered his question.
Hazel checked up the street and saw no sign of the driver. Then she turned back to her hero. “Thank you.”
He took out his phone and called 911.
Her adrenaline began to abate as Evie’s crying softened. Smoothing the few tendrils of brunette hair that had fallen free from the two ponytails sticking out from the sides of Evie’s head, she wiped her daughter’s cheeks.
Looking over the child’s shoulder, she saw the man as more than her rescuer. His reddish-blond hair was slightly wavy and he had strong facial features. He wore dark slacks with black leather loafers that had thick soles, and between the lapels of his black jacket she could see he had on a white shirt with the first two buttons undone. He finished telling the operator where they were and disconnected. Towering above her, he was probably six-three and had an athletic build.
“I’m Callum Colton,” the handsome man said.
“Hazel Hart, and this is Evie, short for Evelyn.”
Evie turned her head, still pouting, and looked at Callum.
“Hi, Evie. Are you okay?” Callum asked.
Evie nodded.
“That’s an awfully cute stuffed monster you have there,” he said.
“Her name is Cookie,” Evie said, brightening.
He chuckled and glanced at Hazel, who became transfixed by his smile. “That’s appropriate.”
Well, whether he was a kid person or not, his tactics worked. Ever since Ed ran out on her after hearing she was pregnant, Hazel always wondered whether or not a man who caught her eyes liked children.
“I think Evie saw something,” Hazel said. “She said a man hit another one over the head with a rock and put him into the trunk.”
The faint sound of sirens joined the gentle hum of distant town movements. Hazel put Evie down and held her hand, needing to have contact with her. Having nearly been run down by a car had rattled them both. To think Evie could have been hurt, or worse...
“Did you see him, too?” Callum asked.
She shook her head. “He was in the car already when I saw him. I didn’t get a good look at him. I did get the plate number, though.”
“That’s great.” Then he asked Evie, “Can you describe the man?”
The little girl nodded. “Mm-hmm. He looked really mad.”
“Mad?” Hazel asked, prompting her to elaborate.
Evie crowded her tiny eyebrows over eyes that were greener than her mother’s. “Yeah.” Evie nodded. “He looked like the man at the mall, Mommy.”
Hazel met her daughter’s round, innocent eyes, heart melting as usual at Evie’s adorableness and also searching for the memory. Then she recalled a homeless man they had encountered at the edge of the parking lot. He had been dressed in heavy clothing and had a beard, a dark beard.
“Was the man you saw as hairy as the man in the parking lot earlier?” Hazel asked.
“No, he was not skinny. And no hair on his face.”
The homeless man had been slim and had a beard. “The man she saw was average in height and weight,” Hazel said.
The sirens were now a blaring howl and seconds later, fire trucks, police cars and ambulances converged upon them.
“I hope this doesn’t take long.” Hazel had to prepare meals for tomorrow’s deliveries.
“You witnessed a crime,” Callum said. “The man got away. What if he comes after you again? We need to catch this guy.”
Hazel hadn’t considered that. Police approached and, filled with intensifying apprehension, she had to turn away
