Past Revisited

By C A Vincent

Jillian Morrow lives in self-imposed exile for good reason. She wants to live. Her days are spent tending her menagerie of pets and rescuing wayward hikers who ignore the warning signs she’s posted. In the space of one afternoon, one such hiker turns her world upside down.

For the first time in all her years alone, Jill’s tempted to ignore the responsibilities she’s taken on in favor of running away again. Compelled by the need to know how and why she’s been found however, she goes against her gut instincts and brings him into her home. Unfortunately, it isn’t answers her unwanted patient has. Instead he has a question of his own and it's “Who am I?” Unwilling to provide more than his name – Gabriel Johnson – a battle of wills ensues between them.

Soon Jill comes to realize Gabriel may not be the nightmare-come-to-life she thought he was. To make matters worse, he wants her and won’t act on it until she gives him the go-ahead. His restraint and gentleness soon have her at war with herself. Can she trust Gabriel, or will her worse fears be realized?

• Language: English
• Publisher: C A Vincent
• Release date: Oct 20, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370148875

C A Vincent

C A Vincent is the pen name for Chantal Toms. I write for the joy of storytelling and, occasionally, to quiet the voices in my head.

Book preview

Past Revisited

C A Vincent

Copyright 2016 C A Vincent

All rights reserved.

Smashwords Edition

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Other books by CA Vincent

Alicia’s Folly

Twisted

Long Road Back Home

Lies & Love

Coming soon:

Tall, Dark & Dangerous Series Book II -

Her Heart & His Pride

Chapter 1

August 2010

Jill heard the angry bellow clear from across the gully. It echoed off stone walls then made her skin crawl when it continued after the initial shout was cut short. The fact the yell didn’t come to its natural conclusion told her the hiker had hit his head. If the guy had any common sense, he was with a group of friends and they would help him out. She bit down on her bottom lip and paused, deluding herself for a few moments she could pretend to not have heard it.

She was wiped out. Trips to the city always left her feeling tense and edgy. The traffic. The noise. The people. After living alone for six years, Jill doubted she’d ever be able to adjust to living with or around people again. The entire ride home, all she could think of was being completely and utterly alone with a glass of wine and the romance novel she’d just bought.

A niggling sense of guilt and duty was invading her subconscious, however. Darn her conscience anyway. There was no way she’d be able to rest if she didn’t make absolutely certain the hiker was okay. A frustrated sigh exploded past her lips as she straightened and stretched out her lower back. Thoughts of soaking in a tub of hot water flitted through her mind as she turned toward her high-powered telescope and looked through it.

Freaking bloody – Damn it all to heck. In less than a heartbeat, her mild annoyance turned to full-on aggravation. The hiker was solo. Who in their right mind goes hiking by themselves? Anyone with half a clue knows to go out with at least one friend in case something happens. She continued to rant as watched his efforts to extricate himself from what looked to be a potentially disastrous situation. She had half a mind to just leave him there.

The way he was limping, it was clear he’d twisted his ankle, though. Then there was the blood on his forehead. It was oozing from a nasty cut just below his ebony hairline. Her mood soured further when she took in his physique. He was tall and built, two sure indicators of a confrontation to come.

It was always the fit and healthy ones who took the biggest hits to their egos when they were injured, especially when they realized they were being rescued by a woman. Jill continued to rant and curse, even as she loaded gear into her truck. At least he was near the top and she wouldn’t have to climb. She hated climbing.

After she had everything loaded, she checked her scope one more time, just in case his friend or friends were merely delayed in responding to his situation. Jill pulled a face when she saw there was no one scrambling frantically to retrieve him. It looked like she was definitely going to work.

It never ceases to amaze me how often the Private Property. Keep Out signs are ignored, she muttered. Damn bloody obtuse people.

Even though she’d located the hiker, she called to her dogs. If anything happened to her while she was rescuing someone, they were trained to go to their nearest neighbour for help.

Ironically, her neighbour was the previous owner of the cabin she lived in. He’d relocated to a larger house a few miles away when he decided the solitary life in the gully wasn’t for him anymore. Jill didn’t understand his reasoning though. He still lived alone and was further away from the city than before. But, his relocation allowed her to live her own solitary life so she didn’t ask questions.

Rufus was already half way to the truck, his gait slow and uneven. Pretty soon, he wouldn’t be able to join in on the rescues. Jill always worried what that would do to him. The old dog lived for going out to save lives. She didn’t even need to call him to the truck. He always seemed to know when it was time to go to work.

Wilson was the newest addition to her family. She’d picked him up from an animal shelter a few months back. When he didn’t come right away, Jill realized he was off chasing God-only-knew what. She sighed heavily. She knew she shouldn’t let him run free so much, but the pup had too much energy for her at the best of times. And he really was a good dog. Unless he was off chasing some hapless jackrabbit, he came when either Rufus barked or she whistled.

A loud, deep, staccato bark sounded as she repositioned Rufus’ cushion to the front seat. When the old dog called for him, Wilson knew he had to get back right away and normally yipped a response. Jill sighed heavily when there was no reply. Not necessarily in a rush to get to the hiker – he’d been conscious and mobile the last time she checked on him – she timed the pup to see how long it would take for him to come home. After two minutes with no answering puppy bark, she scowled.

Come on boy. Let’s get you settled, she told Rufus as she watched him carefully. If he turned away from her, Wilson was in trouble. As much as her old friend affected annoyance with the younger generation, the two dogs got along very well. Their relationship was like that between a grumpy, old grandpa and his happy, carefree grandson. Rufus gave a huff which ended in a snort, signalling his disgust. He then continued toward the truck. Jill laughed. Wilson was clearly all right.

You’re such an old man, Rufus, she told him, scratching behind his ears. Let’s go before our hiker does something stupid like try to go back up the trail on his injured leg.

Wilson appeared just as she was shutting the door. He was limping and favouring his left front paw. His big, brown eyes begged her for both assistance and forgiveness. Angry, Jill scooped him up and dropped him beside Rufus on the front seat. The old guy growled his displeasure. Without the usual antiseptic or cleaning, she tweezed a large thorn from between the puppy’s toes.

If there’s a broken piece in there, you’re just going to have to suffer with it, she scolded, closing the door. We’re late again because of you.

It didn’t take long to reach where she’d seen the hiker. Unfortunately, he was no longer hobbling on the ledge on his injured leg. Instead, he was unconscious and the original cut on his forehead now had a partner. The second cut was deeper and the area around it looked to be swelling rapidly. Jill swore violently under her breath. The rescue would be that much harder now. Damn him for being macho and trying to climb back up the steep trail on a bad leg.

She carefully made her way down to where he lay and assessed his injuries. His forehead was misshapen where it was swelling. His upper lip was puffy too, and there was a bad scrape on his nose. With all of the cuts and swelling bits, he was starting to look like something out of a fantasy fiction novel.

Jill shook her head and sighed in frustration as she took some clean cloths out of her kit and applied them to the cuts. Because he was unconscious, she used his limp arm to hold the bigger ones in place until she was ready to apply bandages. Then she went to work splinting his leg, making sure to include cold packs in the wrappings.

The work of stabilizing his leg and cleaning his cuts was so routine she did it all on auto-pilot. Within minutes, he was ready to be strapped to a body-board. Before doing this, she took a good look at his face. He was attractive enough, with strong chiselled features and a hint of stubble staining his jaw. The longer she looked, though, the more uneasy she felt.

Then, as she scowled down at him, something, some indefinable thing, clicked in the back of her mind. A memory from long, long ago made her stomach churn. He looked very familiar and not in a good, happy way. Truth be told, it wasn’t a familiar she’d ever expected to be reminded of. Not up close and personal like this.

Normally, she would worry about cleaning cuts and scrapes when she was back at the cabin. This time, she went to the trouble to wash the rest of the blood from her patient’s face. When she was done, the same dark, chiselled, handsome features she’d noticed initially had her hands practically twitching with the need to shove him the rest of the way into the gully below. The urge was so strong she balled them into fists and held them rigidly in front of her. When that didn’t work, she gripped the edges of her jacket.

Along with his chiselled jaw, he had high cheekbones and dark as night hair. Jill lifted an eyelid, praying his eyes wouldn’t be green, even though she knew deep down they would be. And they were. Feeling sick, she backed as far away from him as she possibly could and hugged herself tightly.

This was the man from her nightmares, only bigger and stronger. After several protracted seconds, it dawned on her he was taller too. Much taller. A shudder of mingled relief and fear coursed through her. So maybe this wasn’t the man, but the resemblance was so strong, there was no doubt they were related. And if his relative was here, then he wasn’t far behind. Which meant she was in trouble. Deep, deep trouble.

* *

Keep and eye on him, Rufus, Jill ordered quietly. The old dog would bark and howl to get her attention if her patient either woke up or went into any kind of distress. The evening was as clear and beautiful as the day had been, meaning she wouldn’t have any trouble hearing Rufus, even from across the gully.

The question she’d have to face if her patient woke up was whether to come back or whether to head for the highway and keep driving. Just in case, she loaded all of her files, along with the big, black bag from her past into the truck. It creeped her out just to touch the thing, but it was integral to her continued survival.

And her death. Jill would love nothing more than to leave it behind. It couldn’t be done though. As long as she had it, she stood a chance of possibly, maybe (but not very likely) surviving.

After loading everything into the truck, Jill debated packing food and drink for the road as well. It would be the smart thing to do. It also meant digging through all of the supplies she’d stowed earlier. The thought was daunting, considering how exhausted she was.

As she stood there debating, it dawned on her she was procrastinating. Anything to avoid confirming her suspicions, it seemed. She sighed. It was better to find out who her unwanted patient was sooner rather than later. Who knew how long it would be before more unwelcome visitors arrived. Besides, she’d taken the cap off the truck. She’d hate to leave without it. It was custom built, a gift from one of the hikers she’d rescued a couple of years ago.

She was too tired to wrestle with it tonight. There were other things she couldn’t leave, either. She’d created some memories in this little cabin over the last six years. Unable to just walk away from them, she decided to take measures against her patient waking up and calling for back-up by handcuffing him to the bed. Between his various injuries and the cuffs, he wouldn’t be able to go anywhere fast. Now she had a fighting chance at being able to pack more of her things, even if he did wake up.

Jill was terrified of what would happen when he regained consciousness. Would he demand to make a phone call? Would the call be to Tommy, the man in her nightmares? Should she leave now? Would her decision to cling to things sentimental mean her death?

She looked around the yard. Her chickens were tucked away in their coop and her dogs in their kennels. Inside the barn were her other pets. Jill sighed heavily. They all needed her. She couldn’t leave and she couldn’t pack them into the truck. Doing so would involve putting the cap on and loading enough supplies to keep them until she found somewhere else suitable to live. She was stuck for tonight.

With one last look through the screen of her door at the man lying unconscious in her bed, she palmed the keys to her truck. He practically filled her double-size mattress. Jill shuddered. The thought of a Vincenzi in her bed made her nauseous. She turned to throw up in the dirt beside her stoop and managed only a series of dry heaves. That’d teach her for making plans to grill a steak later. She snorted as she wiped her mouth.

New weight loss program. Rescue a relative of the men who want to kill you, she muttered.

One of the men who wanted her dead was Tommy Vincenzi. Back when she knew him, he was a mob son and she’d seen first-hand what he did to people he wanted out of his way. If the man in her bed was related to him, and everything about his physical appearance said he was, then she was as good as dead. Jill had to find out more about him, if only to determine just how much time she had before Tommy showed up. For all she knew, he’d already been called.

Her insides turned to water at the thought. She nearly went into full panic mode. Then she remembered what day of the week it was, as well as what time. If he still kept to his old patterns, Tommy preferred to be hands-on at the clubs he ran for his father. It was Friday, one of the two busiest nights. Not even the enticement of killing her would compel him to be gone on the biggest money night of the week.

He also lived thousands of miles away to boot. Jill reasoned she had until at least Monday evening before he showed up. And he would show up. He wasn’t one to let someone else do his dirty work for him.

With a last warning to Wilson to stay put, she climbed into her truck and drove back to the trail head. She’d seen an SUV and some camping gear near it. Jill planned to go through every last bit of it in order to find out what was what.

Deep down, she knew she’d leave the cabin, and her animals, behind if absolutely necessary. Her life was more important than theirs. Even though the trip into the city had been stressful, the thought of leaving her quiet little place didn’t make her sad or send her into a panic like it used to do. She was lonely out here and ready for a change, even if it was a small one to a slightly more populated area.

In fact, she’d been hoping things would go her way for once and she’d be able to relocate sooner than later. But the correspondence she was waiting for was slow in coming unfortunately, so she had to stay. There was no way she’d risk moving back to the city without it. Unless, of course, she learned her unwanted guest had ties to her past.

As Jill reached the half-way point between her cabin and the campsite, she took her foot off the gas. Despite wanting to know more about her patient, she couldn’t bring herself to move faster than a snail’s pace. What if he wasn’t alone after all? What if others had arrived at his campsite while she was setting him up in her cabin?

Panic took her, swift and sudden. Jill stomped on the brakes and clutched the steering wheel in a vice-like grip. It took every ounce of willpower she possessed to not slam her truck into reverse, do a quick one-eighty and drive away without ever looking back. Every fibre of her being screamed at her to do just that.

The problem was, she had nowhere to go. In order to feel secure, she needed time to plan her move. It might only take two days, like when she found her current home, or it might take longer. Without a plan, she’d feel exposed and vulnerable, as though every person she encountered was a spy for Tommy Vincenzi and his father.

This tiny cabin, beside a deep, deep gully, had been chosen because of how far away it was from the city. The quiet solitary life was hard sometimes. Even though she couldn’t handle crowds well anymore, she really missed people. She’d endured though, because she figured there was no way Tommy would find her out here.

And now he had. Jill killed the engine and sat in her truck, shaking. Silent tears of anger and frustration rolled down her face as memories of a long ago birthday party gone wrong played through her mind.

Chapter 2

June 2004

You’re not serious, her mother scoffed. Her tone lacked its normal acidity. This fact was brought home by