Hidden hearts, p.1
Hidden Hearts, page 1
HIDDEN HEARTS
JADE RIVER SANCTUARY
SAVANNAH KADE
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events and incidents are either a product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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CONTENTS
Join Savannah
Also by Savannah Kade
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Afterward
About the Author
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Novels by Savannah Kade:
The WILDFIRE HEARTS Series
Crash & Burn
Catching Fire
Flash Point
Up in Smoke
Down in Flames
From the Ashes
The WILDER Books:
Our Song
Heartstrings
Love Notes
Music & Lyrics
The Wilder Complete Book Set
That Night in Nashville
The TOUCH OF MAGICK Series:
WishCraft
DreamWalker
LoveSpelled
SoulFire
ShadowKiss
The Touch of Magick Series: Complete Set
The AGAINST ALL ODDS Series:
Steal My Heart
Call Me Yours
Ask Me to Stay
Promise Me Always
Against All Odds Complete Set
Georgia Grace
The BREATHLESS Series:
Gifted
Perfect
Ruined
Rebel
Lucky
The Breathless Complete Set
The DARK FALLS Series
Dark Falls - Lori Ryan
Dark Secrets - Savannah Kade
Dark Legacy - Trish McCallan
Dark Nightmares - Becca Jameson
Dark Terror - Sandra Owens
Dark Burning - Lori Ryan
Dark Echoes - Savannah Kade
Dark Memories - Sandra Owens
Dark Prison - Lori Ryan
Dark Tidings - Trish McCallan
CHAPTER ONE
The beer in her hand was as warm as the tears on her cheeks were cold.
Pounding at the door had her taking another sip of the beer, certain that the lock would hold and that—if it didn’t—surely the fact that this was a church would keep them from breaking it in.
“Come out! Please.”
She didn’t even answer. Just sipped the beer. The mounds of tulle around her made it look as if she were in an insanely frothy bubble bath. Oh, the irony.
Each time, it was longer and longer between visits. Longer and longer between when they tried to coax her out. Maybe they were learning that they couldn’t.
The guests had to have all gone home now. Maybe they’d eaten the food and had a grand party, or a solemn one, while her heart broke. Damn, she’d missed the baked salmon and the chocolate cake.
That fucking chocolate cake was supposed to celebrate the happiest day of her life, not this shit.
She sipped at the beer again.
Kicking off the insane white pumps she’d bought just for this—of course it was just for this—brought a soft clank. Sucking in a sharp breath, she almost dropped the beer in a mad scramble through the tulle. She had to find that penny. She’d forgotten she’d tucked it into her shoe this morning when Gamma had given it to her.
Her heart pounded. She could not lose that penny!
Gamma would be so disappointed with all of them if she ever found out. But Brandy managed to snatch the penny just before all her shuffling around made it slide down the drain. So much for good luck. Hers had been the exact opposite.
Heart rate slowing, she leaned back again, sliding down until she lay in the tub the way it was intended. Though probably not in the dress.
One fist held the penny tightly now, the other still clutched the beer.
Her eyes fell closed—her puffy, red, irritated eyes. How long could she stay here? She didn’t know . . . but she might try to find out.
She was almost asleep when the pounding came on the door again.
“Let us in!” the feminine voice pleaded.
Nooope. She never wanted to hear that voice again.
Then his voice. “Please, at least let us know you’re still alive.”
Barely, she thought. They’d ruined everything. Her mother had come by asking what had happened and in that moment, as Brandy had opened her mouth to spill everything, she’d snapped her jaw back shut.
They’d broken her heart. But if she told, she would completely destroy her family.
Had her heart stopped beating? She’d given her mother enough trouble for one day. So, she’d lied through her clenched teeth then and with a false calm said, “I’m okay, Mama. I just can’t do this.”
But these two would keep bothering her until she said something.
Still, they could wait while she took another sip of this nasty, warm beer. It tasted as bad as the day.
They pounded again and she sucked in a deep breath before calling out in her most irritated voice. “I’m alive!”
No thanks to either of you.
CHAPTER TWO
The drive had been beautiful—what he was staring at now was not.
Ash Cooper put his hands on his hips and turned around to face the other way just so he didn’t have to see what he’d just seen.
Looking down the long gravel path, he saw across the mountains. Thick trunks grew upwards into the tops of the trees. In the distance, he could see the Jade River flowing through the valley below. His breathing calmed just a little with the sight.
With a slow, supposedly cleansing breath that did absolutely jack shit, his brain started churning through the implications.
The view here was spectacular, but he’d still seen what he saw.
He couldn’t do this again.
Did he even have a choice though? Was there anywhere else for him to go?
The only thing to do was turn back around and face it. His car was the only one in the large gravel lot. Had he gotten the time wrong? Or, God forbid, the day? She was supposed to be here to greet him—and it wasn’t supposed to look like this.
Ash thought about unclenching his jaw, but it wasn’t even clenched. Had he already given up?
He couldn’t tell.
The building in front of him—what had to be the main lodge—was filthy. “Dirty” would be a massive understatement. A large spider had spun an intricate web on one side of the porch from roof to railing. Black and yellow, it was beautiful, but it shouldn’t be here.
From the looks of the place, the spider fit in a hell of a lot better than he did.
Broad, wooden double doors would have been welcoming if older, dustier webs hadn’t hung from the knob. If leaves hadn’t built up, blocking the threshold . . . and it wasn’t even fall yet.
He would have rolled his eyes, but Ash wasn’t one for wasting effort.
The window on the right was broken and the others were so grimy, that without the broken one he wouldn't have been able to see ins
Ash peeked in and slowly stopped breathing.
He’d signed a contract. Had he legally bound himself to this place for several years? Or was this enough to break the contract?
Climbing the front steps, he tested each one as he went. They looked sturdy enough but given the state of the windows and the grime on the place, he wouldn't have been surprised if he fell right through.
He thought about checking the doorknob but wasn’t willing to brush away the old cobwebs draped over it.
Not my circus, not my monkeys.
But he was here to help build the circus. God help him.
He told himself he didn't have to know what was inside. He was supposed to meet her here. But as he turned back around and surveyed the view off the front landing, he realized something was wrong.
Hopefully, it was him. Surely, he’d come at the wrong time.
The grounds were empty—at least of human sounds. When he stopped and listened, he heard the birds in the trees, the kind of twittering sounds that only came from mountain birds. He hadn’t heard that in a long, long time. In fact, he almost hadn’t taken the job just because of the location.
Rustling noises came from the underbrush in the trees just beyond the clearing. Hopefully not from inside the building. Although from the state of it, if they opened the door and found a family of raccoons, he wouldn't be that surprised.
Holy Hell. What had he done?
He listened again, wondering if that was the river he was hearing in the distance. Was it loud enough to reach up to the sanctuary?
Some sanctuary, he thought. Good for spiders who wanted to live undisturbed, not for people. Not for dogs. Not for anything civilized.
What he didn't hear was the sound of tires coming up the gravel drive. He made his way off the front porch, at least a little more trusting of the foundation this time and headed around the back.
Part of his contract was that he had a cabin on the premises. God help him if the cabins were in as bad of shape as this main building was. As he cleared the back of the building, he saw chain link fencing that might have been dog runs at one time, though now it was cut in places, rusted and rolling away. Absolutely not suitable for use and probably even a hazard.
He'd expected to help design some things. He hadn't been told he’d have to help repair and build the whole sanctuary.
He sighed heavily, wondering why he wasn’t more upset than he was. Was he just so burnt out that he couldn’t feel anything? Had he gotten used to losing, and this was just the next thing in line?
He’d burned so many bridges on the way here, could he burn one more?
And if he didn’t stay here, what would even be left for him?
Ash didn’t know. What he did know was how to keep moving.
The cabins weren't in sight yet. When he thought about it, that might be good design. It was going to be enough living where he worked—if he stayed. The nearest city was Charlottesville, over forty-five minutes away. The local town, Jade River Valley, was barely big enough to support a small chain grocery and basic supply store. There were two fast food restaurants that he had seen as he drove through. He was hoping there were a few more that maybe weren't on the main road.
So it might be good that the cabins weren't right next to the main building. They might afford a little bit of privacy, and he might very well want it in case he needed to scream into the void, or in case he found a spider at night.
Right now though, the privacy made him very, very nervous. Still not hearing tires behind him, he headed down one of the walkways. At least the paths remained relatively clear. Once upon a time someone had taken the care to put down paver stones. That kept the small plants and weeds from fully taking over. In a few places, tree branches had reached across and he had to hold them back as he passed.
Had Roz simply banked on the potential of this place? Because even now he could see that it had once been beautiful. At last, he stopped in front of the cabin.
Taking a good hard look, he felt his heart sink.
CHAPTER THREE
He'd heard the tires as he was heading back toward the main lodge, and as he came around the corner, he heard the door of the large SUV slam.
The woman had climbed down, and Ash instantly recognized her from the tiny headshot he’d once seen. This had to be Roz. But the headshot hadn't done her justice—her black hair was bobbed, ending just above her shoulders, marked with a few faint streaks of gray. Her wide hazel eyes were luminous and frantic. Worry showed on her brows and at the corners of her mouth.
“Did I give you the wrong time?” She leaned forward as she asked. “I got held up in traffic, but I thought I'd still be here before you.”
“I may have read it wrong. You must be Roz.” Ash held out a hand. Despite what he'd seen he was still going to be nice.
“And you must be Ash Cooper.” Her grin didn't quite reach her eyes, he could hear the fear in her voice. “Did you get a chance to look around?”
Oh, dear God, if she was asking him that . . . He'd barely begun to nod before she said, “Is it all as bad as this?”
She waved her long, slim hand at the front of the lodge.
“Have you not been here before?” He had to ask. He could see something at the edge of her eyes that looked like a combination of regret and anger.
“No, but I was given detailed images.”
“That didn't look like this?” he asked.
“Is it even safe?” She ignored his question, then immediately switched topics as she looked back at the building. “Are there snakes inside?”
He had to laugh. As much as this was a complete shit show, her anger and fear and irritation were comforting. “I was guessing raccoons.”
“Are we placing bets on it?” She moved toward the porch, fishing in her pocket for a key.
“Twenty dollars?” He might get enough for dinner out of this. It wouldn’t hold him until he got a new job. He’d been hoping for a paycheck starting in a few days, but clearly that wasn’t going to happen here.
She pulled out the key ring, the plastic tag from the realtor still dangling from it and headed up the steps. She took the first one quickly, then—like he had—seemed to think better and slowed down.
“Can I ask what you paid for it?”
She began testing the wood in front of her, muttering something under her breath. She turned back at the last moment. “You can ask, but I'm not going to answer.”
He saw her hesitate only for a moment before she reached out and wiped away the cobwebs with a bare hand. Somehow, they magically didn’t stick to her, or else she knew a trick he didn’t. But she was fitting the key into the lock and seemed pleased to find that it worked.
Interesting. It hadn't just been him thinking this place was not as expected. But she should have come out and seen it for herself before she bought it.
Still, she had some kind of resolve. Putting her hand on the knob, Roz turned back to him. “Raccoons or snakes, twenty bucks!”
She swung the door wide, letting a beam of sunlight sweep across the open floor. Sure enough, they watched as several small animals scurried away.
