A Time to Heal(66)

He stiffened. "Yeah. I didn't start the fire."

"Of course you didn't. Any more than you poisoned Daisy's food."

Surprised, he turned to face her. "What?"

She nodded. "The vet called a little while ago. I was out returning his call in the phone shanty, and that's when I saw the fire marshal's car."

"I didn't—"

"Of course you didn't poison Daisy. I saw how much you love my horse. How much you love these friends you've made here—and Hannah."

"I—"

"My old eyes work just fine, young man. Don't tell me you don't have feelings for Hannah."

She sat heavily in the chair beside him, seeming to have run out of breath.

He looked at her swollen ankles, then into her eyes. "When are you going to tell them that your heart is giving you trouble?"

Startled, she stared at him. "How do you know? Hannah didn't tell you because she doesn't know."

"My grandmother had congestive heart failure. She'd get swollen ankles and she got breathless when she did too much."

Sighing, Phoebe sat back. "No one needs to know. They'd just worry and make an invalid of me, fuss over me, do so much for me I wouldn't feel I had a life."

She took a deep breath and let it out, then shook her head."And don't try to distract me. You shouldn't be leaving. Not the way you're doing it—so quickly, without seeing Hannah and Matthew and Jenny."

He didn't know how she knew he had left a note for Matthew and Jenny. "I have to." Phoebe reached over and took his hand."Tell me what's wrong. Please? I want to understand what's making you leave when you love it here."

"All the bad things will stop when I leave."

"But you're not doing them." She squeezed his hand. "I know you're not doing them. So don't even try to tell me you did."

"No," he said at last. "A man who wants to hurt me is. He was put in prison because I testified against him, and he said he'd get me when he got out. I don't know how, but he's gotten out of prison and he's doing these things. I just know it. The barn fire. Daisy. The note to the bishop. The only way to keep everyone safe is to leave."

"Why do you think you'll keep everyone safe if you leave?"

Chris sighed. "If I leave he'll follow me."

"But Chris, he could hurt you. We'll call the police. Matthew and Jenny and Hannah wouldn't want you to go if they knew.They'd want to stand with you."

He looked up at her. "I can't risk anyone else getting hurt."

Her eyes were sad. "So you'll draw him away and take him on yourself? You remind me of David taking on Goliath."

"The man who hates me isn't a giant, but he's had a powerful effect on my life."

Phoebe considered that. "Well, the giants of Gath were felled by David and his fellow kinsmen and servants. Why not this devil too?"

She tried to argue with him but he was resolute. He was nearly undone when she stood and hugged him. He'd come here and fallen in love not just with Hannah but with so many people.

There was no changing his mind, though.

When he stepped outside, he didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

But it was almost as if the air was charged as he stepped off the porch.

He walked toward town, knowing that he was putting himself right out in the open. There were other ways to get there without exposing himself, but this way it would be very clear that he was leaving and he'd keep the people he'd come to care for safe.

Several buggies passed on the opposite side of the road and some of their occupants who'd met him waved.

And then he saw the oncoming buggy driven by Hannah.He bent his head, hoping that she wouldn't recognize him.

"Chris!" She pulled the buggy over to the side of the road."Where are you going?"

"Just into town for a while."

He hated the lie but didn't know how else to get rid of her.His eyes swept the area to see if he was being followed.

"No you're not."

"Yeah, I'm just on my way to town."

She climbed out of the buggy. "You're leaving and you weren't going to tell me."

He lifted his hands. "Okay, you caught me. Yeah, I'm leaving.It's time to move on, babe."

"Babe?"

"Yeah. Hey, it's not like we were an item or something. We didn't even have sex, so it's not like I'm gonna have to worry about you showing up in nine months with some brat."

She looked like she'd bit hit by a two-by-four. His stomach turned over at the way he had to hurt her, but he needed to move her along just in case they were being watched.

"So, I'll be hitting the road now, if you don't mind," he said."It's looking like it's going to rain. Gotta make some time so I don't get wet, you know?"