Free Waiting For Eden (Eden Series) by Jessica Leigh

called her back.
    “Hey, I just thought of something.  It’s Friday night, right?”
    “Yes.”
    “Well, then I’m ninety-nine point nine percent sure that Jamie will be at the North Fork tonight.  He’s a regular on Fridays.  You could take the stove along with you, if you like.”
    Alex thought about it for a moment, and then nodded.  She kind of wanted to see James anyway, to apologize in person for her forgetfulness, and perhaps even her rudeness.  He was the first person to make her laugh in a long time.  Even if he had made fun of her middle name, she thought with a grin.
    The old forester watched her go, and chuckled to himself.  Jamie Sheldon had lent her a propane stove?  There had to be a good story behind that.  Not to mention the little miss had looked darned disappointed that Jamie wasn’t there in person.  Yeah, he was sure Jamie would be at the North Fork.  Laughing now, he wished he could be there too.
     
     
    ~~~~~~
     
     
                  The North Fork Restaurant was not exactly what Alex expected.  It was a large building, log-cabin style, constructed with great, dark wooden beams.  A wrap-around porch with a beautiful pine railing completed the picture of a rustic, homey atmosphere. 
    Alex could discern the slow beat of music from within, but it was nothing like the harsh jukebox wailing that she had expected.  There were no winking neon lights, or no drunken couples necking outside.  “No fleet of leather-clad bikers, either,” she murmured, and then felt a twinge of chagrin at her city-bred penchant for stereotypes.
    Night had fallen swiftly, and the parking area was peppered by lurking shadows.  The vast expanse of the sky was devoid of moon and stars, even the last vestiges of the sunset had fled beneath the thick weight of the heavens on her drive from District Headquarters. 
    With a small ripple of trepidation, Alex noted the only illumination in the lot filtered down from a single, sodium-vapor streetlight.  She chided herself then, for this was just not comparable to D.C. 
    Alex parked the truck and stepped out, breathing deeply.  The air was thick and dewy, laden with the moist scent of sleeping earth.  Spring peepers sounded noisily from the shadows, their small voices joining in a singular melody, giving the illusion of coming from all around her in the same instant. 
    The forest loomed behind the building, an imposing backdrop of hulking blackness.  The mountain seemed to hover, like a predator avidly waiting for the right moment to swoop down and cloak the unwary valley in a flutter of dark wings and sharp claws. 
    Although the day had been fairly mild, Alex shivered momentarily. She gave a short chuckle at her own theatrics and headed for the restaurant. 
    A large shadow wavered as she approached the stairs, and her steps faltered when she realized it belonged to a person.  Or at least a very large something was standing next to the stairs, watching her from within the concealing gloom. 
    After glancing behind her at the empty parking lot, Alex swallowed reflexively, fingered her mace vial, and then forced her body forward.  For a few moments, the shadow remained nothing but a shadow.  Then she saw the glow of a pale face, the reflection of window-light on a high, sloping forehead, and inky circles where eye sockets would be.
    The dark shape stepped in front of her.  It was a man.  Alex stopped and cleared her throat while her heart rate accelerated.  “Excuse me.”
    When she received no response, she leaned forward cautiously, peering upward for a closer look at the... person.  Teeth flashed at her, he was smiling. A large, hideous, threatening smile.  His eyes were dark hollows, gleaming now as a shard of light danced upon the irises.  The smile stretched, widening almost freakishly.  Alex’s heart and stomach flip-flopped in the same moment, and she slowly raised the mace.
    “MOUSE!” a voice bellowed behind her, and Alex and