My phone rang as we were driving to his cabin. Jude told me I could answer it, but it was my generic ringtone not an assigned one, so I just reached into my purse and hit the button to silence it. If it was important, the caller could leave a message.
We got off the main road about five miles out of town and were soon enveloped in a tunnel of trees. It was incredibly beautiful and peaceful, and I couldn’t resist rolling my window down to smell the fresh, woodsy air. I stuck my arm out, turned my face to the side, and inhaled deeply. Jude chuckled when I sighed out a long “ahhhhhhhhh” and I grinned over at him. It made me happy to know he had this scenic and relaxing drive to look forward to at the end of a long day at work.
I couldn’t wait to see his home. I hoped it was equally serene and peaceful.
The road gradually grew steeper, then we turned again and went another mile or so, higher up on the mountain.
“This is it,” Jude said, turning once more, this time onto a curving lane. I sat forward in my seat, eager for a glimpse of the place he called home.
We rounded a bend and there it was. A big, gorgeous log home set in a clearing with utterly amazing views. Jude had described it as a cabin, but it was hardly that. The square footage had to be double my own house, if not more.
I immediately understood why Jude had wanted to buy the place as soon as he saw it—it was a dream home. I adored the deep, roofed front porch, complete with comfortable-looking furniture cushioned in muted shades of green and brown—the color scheme of the surrounding forest. The appealing porch gave the home a welcoming atmosphere, just like the homes featured on my beloved home and garden shows.
The front section of the main floor had a high, lightly sloping roof and a long row of windows, promising bright, airy rooms. The back of the house was two stories, and the gable facing the front was also full of beautiful windows. I knew the abundance of glass would allow the beauty of the outdoors to be featured in every room, and I couldn’t wait to see inside.
I exhaled slowly. “I love it, Jude. Oh my word, you must have been thrilled to find such a perfect place.”
He chuckled. “Let’s just say the setting and the exterior of the house are a lot more impressive than the inside right now. But that’s changing, slowly but surely.”
“Thus the reason you’re crashing at Chase’s,” I said as we walked up the steps and across the porch to the front door.
“You’ll understand why I’m staying with them when you see the mess,” he promised. He unlocked the door, pushed it open, and stood back to let me go first.
I walked in, going about ten feet before stopping to look around. I knew my eyes were huge, but I couldn’t help it. Even though there was obviously a lot of work yet to be done, the bones of the home were beautiful. Right away I started imagining what it would look like when it was finished.
“I’m speechless, Jude,” I said softly, turning in a slow circle, taking everything in.
He walked to a spot beyond me, toward the kitchen. “There used to be a wall right here,” he said, pointing out the spot. “I took it out to open everything up. It made a huge difference in the feel of the place.”
I didn’t doubt it. Almost all of the first floor was now one huge open area made up of the kitchen, dining area, and a living room with expansive windows looking out over the rolling mountainside. The outer walls were exposed logs, the ceiling was wood with heavy beams, and the floors were gleaming planks—which were currently being intently inspected by Jude on his hands and knees.
I let him do his thing while I continued to look around. It should have been too much wood, but somehow, with all the different textures, it wasn’t. It was modern yet still rustic, and I loved it, even without any furniture.
I wandered over to the kitchen, which appeared to be in need of the most work. Only the cabinet bases were installed—no doors, drawers, or countertops—but the layout was all there. A large island, a long countertop wrapping around two walls, and a hole for a big sink under the window.
I turned so I could see the entire big room from this vantage point and caught myself nodding slowly. I could totally picture the way it would look when it was done. The enormous stone fireplace taking up the far corner of the room was the focal point. I imagined it burning brightly, with a foot of snow outside, visible through the big windows.
I also imagined a big, soft couch with Jude and I snuggled up together, enjoying the heat from the fire as we watched the snow come down.
Perfect.
Jude stood up and flipped a couple of switches on the wall. I reluctantly exited my daydream and looked up to admire the sleek steel light fixtures and three ceiling fans hanging down from the high, sloping ceiling. A wooden staircase ascended the back wall, and I suspected it led into the mostly glass gable I’d seen from outside.
The master bedroom was most likely down the hallway leading off between the dining and living areas. If that was the case, it would offer a view of the backyard, instead of the front. I had a feeling that view was just as stunning.
The wall at the back of the great room was the only wall on the first level that wasn’t made of logs. It was currently painted a rather jarring brick red, but there were some paint color swatches tacked onto it, which was a pretty good indication Jude was going to change that.
He looked over at me, waiting for my verdict.
“It’s incredible,” I said sincerely. “I can’t imagine anything more perfect. And I can totally see you here. It’s like something you would’ve built yourself.”
“It’s getting there. It looks so much better with the flooring in.” He continued his examination of the planks as he came to join me in the kitchen, then he explained what the finished kitchen would look like. Light hickory cabinets with a rustic, natural stain, black stone countertops, farmhouse sink, and stainless appliances.
“A mix of cabin and modern,” I said approvingly.
He showed me the rest. A half bath at the front of the hall, with all new fixtures, followed by a big master bedroom and bath, again with everything brand new, including a beautifully tiled shower and a whirlpool tub. And, as I’d suspected, the backyard and forest view from there was spectacular.
There was an office area across the hall from the bedroom, and Jude explained that he’d added a second window to brighten it up. The flooring hadn’t yet been installed in any of these rooms, and the new drywall was still dusty and needed painting. I could definitely see why Jude had moved out during the renovations.
He told me he’d bought the house fully furnished, but he’d decided it was time to get rid of all that and replace it with things he picked out himself. Some of the basics were already ordered; other stuff would be added as needed.
We went upstairs where there were two bedrooms with a Jack and Jill bath in between. Jude said the bathroom was new and he’d had to change the layout of the bedrooms to accommodate it, but he’d felt giving up a little space in the rooms in order to have a bathroom on the second level was worth it.
There was a large open area by the front gable windows spanning the whole length of the second story. I couldn’t help thinking it would make a perfect play area if he ever had a family. The bedrooms were waiting on new flooring and paint, but the front space had the same new hardwood as the lower level. Which, of course, Jude had to inspect.
When we got back downstairs, he told me there was also a guest room and bath over the garage. “The stairs are through that door,” he said, pointing. “I haven’t done any work up there yet, but it’s in decent shape as it is. I considered staying there while I renovated, but I decided it would be better to get out of the mess altogether. It’s not so bad now, but during the tear-out it was awful. I didn’t want to hole up in there eating takeout for two months.”
“So are you happy with how the floors turned out?” I asked, running the toe of my sandal over the smooth wood.
He nodded. “What’s down so far is good. I hired a crew I’ve worked with in the past, so I know they do good work, and I was real specific with what I wanted. Looks like they listened.”
“It’s a great house,” I said, rubbing my hand over the rough-cut stone of the fireplace.
“Glad you like it. I’ve brought Hannah out a few times to get a female perspective on the renovation. I don’t want it to look like a bachelor pad.”
“It’s definitely not that. It could be a great family home, if that’s what you want it to be.”
My phone rang again before he could respond. This was the third time now, so I unzipped my bag and dug it out, frowning when the number said “unknown.”
“Go ahead and answer it,” Jude said. “I’m going to go check out the back deck.”
“I’ll join you in a sec,” I told him.
I answered the phone, hoping to quickly get rid of whoever it was.
“Ms. Milton, glad I finally got you. This is Harv Grayson. I’m with the crew packing up the computer room at your condo. I got your number from my boss. I hope it’s okay I called.”
“Of course,” I said, my frown deepening. “Is there a problem? Are you still on track for getting here tomorrow?”
“Oh yeah, no problem there. We’re right on schedule. But we found something I think you should know about. I mean, maybe you know already, but it’s just kinda strange….”
His voice trailed off and I prompted him. “What is it, Mr. Grayson?”
“Oh, you can call me Harv, ma’am.”
“And I’m Ava. What did you find, Harv?”
“Well, ma’am, Ava, did you know about the, uh, the cameras in the ceiling?”
I tried to figure out what he meant. “You mean my security cameras? The ones I have at the front door and on the back deck area? You don’t have to worry about those. I’m leaving them for the new tenant.”
“No, no, I mean the ones—the ones mounted in your computer room. They’re little pinhole cams, three of them. One of my guys found them when he was removing the cable conduit from along the ceiling. He was up on a ladder and saw a little hole in the drywall and got suspicious. I authorized him to cut out just enough of the drywall to see what was there, and it’s a pretty sophisticated cam. We found two more holes, and both had the same cams. Of course, if you had them installed yourself, it’s all fine and dandy and my company will cover the repairs to the ceiling. But since they weren’t listed on the inventory, and people usually don’t go to the trouble of hiding ’em like that, I wanted to check with you before we do anything else.”
I was shocked into silence. What was he talking about? Hidden cameras in my ceiling? Three of them? But…..why in the world would there be cameras in my office ceiling?
I needed to sit down, but there were no chairs. I leaned back against the wall and pressed a hand to my forehead, my mind whirling.
“Ma’am? Ava? You still there?”
“I didn’t put them there,” I finally said, my voice weak. “Um, can you do me a big favor and check the rest of the house? See if there are more?”
“Sure, if you authorize us to go through the rest of the house,” he said. “We usually just stick to the rooms we’re clearing out.”
“Yes, of course I authorize it. The place is completely empty, you can go anywhere. Check every room, okay? And call me back as soon as you’re done. Let me know if you find any more.”
“Yes, ma’am. I’ll get my guys on it and we’ll get back to you soon.”
“Thank you, Harv,” I said, my voice little more than a whisper. I hung up and staggered over to a window, staring out at the trees as I tried to reason things out. Only…..how could I reason out something that seemed to completely defy logic?
There were cameras in my ceiling. In my ceiling! How could that even be? Had someone been watching me? Me? Who would do that? And why?
My mind scrambled for an explanation. Maybe…..maybe the cameras were old and not even meant for me. Maybe the last owner had installed them and forgotten to mention it when I bought the place.
I liked that theory. I wanted to latch on to it. The problem was, that whole room had been extensively redone when it was made into my panic room. If the cameras had been there then, they would have been found.
Ugh. Much as I hated to believe it, they had to have been installed after I moved in. But when, and by whom?
I didn’t want to give in to panic, so I concentrated on taking slow, steady breaths as I tried to calm down and think things through rationally. It wasn’t easy. What if there were more cameras? In my bedroom. In the bathroom. What if some…..voyeur…..had been sitting in front of a monitor watching my every move?
My stomach bottomed out. Sex tapes weren’t a threat, thank goodness, as I’d never had a man in my bedroom. But obviously I’d gotten naked in there. And who wanted someone watching them in the bathroom? It was a horrifying prospect.
“Hey, Ava, you coming out?”
Jude’s voice came from the French doors off the kitchen, but I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. I just kept staring outside, wondering and fearing what Harv Grayson was going to tell me when he called back.
I heard Jude’s footsteps as he moved across the shiny new floor. I gripped my upper arms to stop my hands from shaking.
“Ava?” He stopped behind me. “You okay?”
I shook my head slowly, tears stinging my eyes at the concern in his voice. He put a hand on my shoulder and gently turned me to face him.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” he asked softly, his brows drawing together. “Was the call bad news? Is your family okay?”
I saw the worry in his eyes and nodded quickly. “It’s nothing like that. Everyone’s okay,” I assured him. “I just—I got some really strange news, and I don’t know what it means. I don’t know what’s going on, but….no…. no one’s hurt or anything.”
He ran his hands up and down my arms. “Can you tell me what the news was?”
I swallowed hard and nodded again. I wanted to tell him. I needed to.
“The phone call. It was from the guy who’s in charge of the crew packing up all my equipment. He said they found—”
I couldn’t bring myself to say it. It sounded too unbelievable for words. Jude looked concerned, but he waited patiently while I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“He said they found cameras, hidden cameras, in the ceiling of the office in my condo. The ones that use little tiny holes that you don’t notice. There were three of them.” I shook my head as Jude’s eyes narrowed in disbelief. “I don’t know why. I don’t know who would’ve put them there. And I don’t know if there are more….in other rooms. The guy is checking.”
Putting that fear into words made me shudder all over again.
“Geez, Ava.” Jude put his hands on my shoulders. “I can’t even—are you sure they weren’t there when you bought it?”
“Yeah. I had a lot of work done to that room when I moved in. If there were cameras there then, they would’ve been found.”
“Is there any way to track them? Find out where the signal’s going or something? Would that lead to who’s watching?”
I seized on that idea because it gave me something different to think about. Something other than being secretly watched in my own home.
“It depends on the cameras,” I said thoughtfully. “I assume they’re motion activated with the video going to a recording device, but I should’ve asked what kind of cameras they are. Then I’d know if the feed can be accessed live as well.” I let out a groan. “I should’ve asked a lot more questions, but I wasn’t thinking. I was too freaked out by the thought of someone watching me inside my house when I had no idea.”
Panic threatened again, and the words spilled out. “Who does that, Jude? Who would go to the trouble? Was it someone I know? It has to be, right? Because why would a stranger choose my house? But I honestly can’t think of a single person I know who would do something like that.”
I stopped rambling when his arms came around me, pulling me against his chest while he rubbed my back soothingly. I released a shaky sigh and leaned into him, feeling his comforting warmth through the smooth fabric of his shirt.
The contact not only shocked me silent, it helped take the edge off. I felt myself growing calmer, and I would’ve stayed in the safe haven of his arms much longer if I wasn’t afraid he’d think I was too needy.
“I’m okay,” I said against his shirt before reluctantly pushing away. He dropped his arms when I stepped back, but the worry on his face remained.
“Tell me exactly what the mover said.”
I repeated our short conversation as accurately as I could, shuddering again when I told him Harv was going to call me back when he found out whether there were more cameras in other rooms.
Jude folded his arms, his expression serious. “Here’s what I’m thinking, Ava. If there are cameras all over the house, you’re dealing with a person who has some kind of a personal obsession with you. Someone who wants to watch you live your life. But if they’re only in the office, it’s more likely a professional espionage thing. Someone who knows you do secret government work and wants to watch you do it. Would you agree?”
I frowned, not liking either option. The first one completely violated my privacy and could go as far as blackmail. Because who wanted naked videos of themselves on the internet for all to see? The second threatened my top-secret clearance. If I found that someone had managed to capture the details of projects I’d worked on, I’d be obligated to report it, and my clearance could be pulled. That would get me kicked off the team and also limit the type of work I could do in the future.
“I guess that seems logical—if anything in this scenario can be logical.” I pressed a hand against my stomach, which was starting to hurt from the tension. “This seems like a bad dream.”
“It does.”
I paced away from him, back to the window. “I just can’t figure out how it happened. My security system went way beyond what was required. I can’t see any way someone could even get into my condo, let alone install a whole surveillance system without leaving a trace.”
I turned to face him. “If the cameras are high resolution and were positioned right, they could definitely see my screens. That’s bad, but I’m not sure which would be worse. Losing my job because of this, or knowing there were cameras all over my house and someone was just—just watching me. Maybe even recording me.”
He ran a hand through his hair and I could tell he was truly hurting for me. “Both possibilities suck, no doubt about that,” he said gently. “I’m so sorry.”
My throat went tight with emotion and regret. “I’m sorry, too.” I barely managed to get the words out. “I wanted to be a fun date today. Not a basket case with stalker problems.”
His lips curved up slightly. “You are a fun date. And your stalker problems aren’t going to scare me off. I’ll do whatever I can to help, but you’ll have to tell me what you need.”
I smiled gratefully. “Having someone to talk to is the biggest thing right now. I can’t tell my family—they’d go ballistic and lock me up in their house to keep me safe. And I can’t tell anyone else I know, because they could be the ones who put the cameras in.”
“You can always talk to me, Ava, and you can trust me. All I want to do is help.”
“I do trust you,” I told him, silently thanking the good Lord for bringing Jude into my life when He did.
“You also need to trust me when I say you’re going to get through this. We’ll get to the bottom of it and we’ll deal with it, then you can move on.”
I opened my mouth to thank him, but my phone rang before I got the words out. My heart began to race and my hand shook as I pulled my phone from my purse.
Which was it? A professional intrusion, or a personal one?