Back Home To You

Chapter 1

Emily Bennett grabbed the gun she had in the nightstand as she slipped off her bed. Less than a minute ago, her phone had alerted her to the triggered motion sensor she'd installed in her front yard.

A man—a bulk of a man—stood staring at her front door.

Even with the high definition night vision camera, he was too far away from the camera installed above her door to get a good view of his face.

For now, all Emily could see was a greenish pale face partially hidden by the cap the man was wearing.

Emily took a deep breath to calm her racing heart while staring at her phone's screen. Walk away, she willed as she watched the live video feed streaming from the security camera.

She held her breath as the man made his way toward the front door, his cap still shielding his face from the camera. I'll have to adjust the angle of the camera.

She'd installed the motion sensor and security camera half-heartedly. She didn't allow herself to get complacent, but that directly contradicted with her conviction to stop living in the shadow of what happened over three years ago.

Emily licked her lips as the man strode to her front door. She'd expected he would break a window or get down on his knee to pick the lock.

He did neither.

But Emily couldn't see exactly what he was doing. His large frame took up most of the screen.

I really need to get a better angle. Or she could add another camera once she figured out whatever was causing the interference of the video feed. She'd spent quite a bit of time to get the security camera into a position that didn't cause the live video stream to flicker every other second.

Then, her front door popped open.

Her heart rate ramped up another notch, and she drew a deep breath through her nose. No time to panic.

Emily tightened the grip on her gun. "Who are you?" She squinted at the screen, at the brazen intruder strolling through the doorway as if he belonged in the house. Another hired killer sent to put a bullet through her head?

But something about the way the intruder moved ...

Hesitation? Uncertainty? Those weren't characteristics of an assassin.

Regardless of who this guy was, Emily would deal with it. She couldn't sit around and be a waiting duck in her bedroom. It wasn't her style.

Not bothering with her cushioned slippers, she quietly put her phone down on the nightstand, then headed toward the bedroom door.

Emily turned the doorknob slowly.

She had her thumb on the lock button, catching it as it popped back. That minimized the click. Still, she was concerned the softened sound still gave her away.

No time to hesitate.

In one swift move, she pulled the door back and stepped out with her gun leveled.

But only the cool air greeted her. The intruder hadn't made it to her door.

She turned with her gun, aiming at the stairs covered with hardwood panels.

No one was there either.

Emily padded down the stairs barefooted.

She fought a shiver as she was halfway down the stairs. The few seconds with the opened door was enough to let the frigid cold air of mid-January in.

But the weather wasn't what concerned her.

She had hoped to confront the intruder somewhere on the stairway so she would have the advantage of being on higher ground. But he hadn't made his way up the stairs. Why? What's he hoping to achieve?