She spoke a few more words. When she hung up she turned to Max, white faced. “Someone’s taken Irenke. Zsuzsa’s on her way here.”
“Taken?” He shook his head in confusion.
“Irenke, Zsuzsa’s granddaughter. She’s been kidnapped. Why in heaven’s name would anyone do a stupid thing like that?”
Max stared at Lacy. “The why’s easy. Someone wants that manuscript, at any cost.”
“But who…” Lacy sat down abruptly.
“It could have been the man who abducted you in Salzburg. It could even have been government operatives. They’ve been known to resort to such extremes occasionally. But I think more likely it was the same man who attacked Inga and Riana.”
“You’re suggesting Richard?”
“I think it highly likely.”
“As far as I’m concerned, he can have the damn book.” Lacy’s body was rigid with tension. “Nothing’s worth risking the life of that child. I’m sure Igor would agree.”
Max sighed. “What do you propose we do?”
Lacy couldn’t control the tremor in her voice. “We’re going to the vineyard and find that last memory stick. Then we’ll just have to wait for someone to make contact with us. It won’t be long. They’ll either call us or come for us. I’m sure of it. Nothing else makes sense. The book for the child. If we can get Irenke back unharmed I don’t give a damn about any of the rest of it. We have to find those last chapters so we can save Irenke.”
“I’ve already found the last memory stick.”
“What? You went to the caves without me this afternoon while I was asleep? Where is it? Give it to me!”
“I intended to.” Max took the small device out of his pocket and handed it to Lacy. “I didn’t know they’d taken Irenke. I just wanted this thing to end. If you’d found the memory stick and run with it, they’d have chased you again. At some point, either government agents or the Mafia would catch up with you. And I doubt I could continue to keep you safe from them. I’m afraid we’re no match for them, Lacy. They have all the resources in the world. You could end up dead.”
Lacy frowned. “But we’ve managed to keep ahead of them so far.”
“They’ve allowed us to keep ahead of them. Until they were sure we had the last piece of the puzzle, they had no need to stop us.” Max shook his head. “From now on, Lacy, it’s not just the people doing the dirty work we have to evade. It’s the people behind them. Think about it. It’s the secret services of three countries and the organized crime groups in those same countries. They’re not going to stop until this document is retrieved and destroyed. I spent all afternoon debating with myself. I came to the conclusion we should either publicly destroy it ourselves or turn it over to one of the government agencies.”
“That choice has now been taken out of our hands,” Lacy reasoned. “We’ve got to bargain what we have for Irenke. We need this last memory stick.”
“Agreed. And we have it. They’ll be expecting us at the caves tonight. They’ll have gotten that much information from Zsuzsa. You can be sure they’ll make contact with us there one way or another.”
Max handed Lacy her jacket. “Put this on. It’ll be chilly in the caves, and it could be a long night.” His expression was grim.
****
Once at the base of the vineyards, Max followed the winding dirt track used by trucks at harvest time to the crest of the hill and positioned their small car a bit apart from the others, facing out so they could move quickly if need be. Before them was a sea of neatly tended grapevines, row upon row of them from the hilltop to the lake below. There were scattered trees on the hilltop, and under these, long tables were brimming over with food. Just at the crest of the hill, Lacy could see the cave openings, dug deep into the hillside, the method used for storing and aging wine from time immemorial. Four cave entrances were visible from where she stood. People were everywhere, strolling in and out of the caves, around the tables, all chatting and laughing, clearly in a party mood.
“Which one is Andor’s?” she asked.
Max pointed to the one closest to them.
“Ah! I see you came!” Andor approached them, glass in hand. “Come. You must taste my wine.”
He took Lacy by the arm and led her into his cave, with Max following. The cave was electrified, but even so the light was dim. Andor led them to one of the numerous barrels lining the walls. Taking a strange looking long glass tube with a bubble end, he siphoned off white wine and filled two glasses.
“It is best if you have a glass of my wine. First, it’s very good wine and you should try it, but second you must appear to be my guests if we are not to raise suspicions among my neighbors. So come, drink, have some food, and then”—his voice hardened—“you can tell me why you are here. I thought you had what you came for. I expected you to be long gone.”
Max said, “Sorry for the intrusion, but I’m afraid we may not be the only uninvited guests here tonight.”
Andor scowled. “What do you mean?”
“There are some very nasty characters who want what Igor Telchev left in this cave. They want it so much that they’ve kidnapped Zsuzsa’s granddaughter in order to get it.”
“Irenke? They’ve taken Irenke?” Andor pumped his fist in his hand. “Bastards. We have to get her back safely. What can I do to help?”
“For the moment,” Max suggested, “just keep your eyes peeled for strangers.”
Lacy hadn’t realized she’d been holding her breath. They’d be able to count on the help of this fierce man. They might well need it.
Andor shepherded them outside the cave and over to a table piled with local specialties. There was good dark bread and kolbaszt. Cheeses of many kinds. Pastries, both sweet and salty, in the best Hungarian fashion.
The three of them stood, looking into the crowd, sipping their glasses of wine.
Max turned to Andor. “This is really an exceptional wine.”
Andor nodded. “Of course it is. People who have to obtain all their wine from bottles bought in stores have no idea what good wine tastes like.”
“How can you even think of wine at a time like this?” Lacy chided.
Max glanced over Lacy’s shoulder. “Don’t turn around. I think the first of our uninvited guests may have arrived.”
“What does he look like?” Lacy asked.
“Medium height. Thin. Dark skinned. Dark hair. Flat-looking grey eyes.”
Lacy peered around Max’s shoulder at the newcomer.
Max pulled her back. “Watch it, Lacy. I’d rather he didn’t see you.”
“I don’t think he’ll know me. Different hair, different clothes.”
“You recognize him?” Max asked.
“It’s dead-eyes,” she said.
“Who?”
“I’ve seen him three times. On the road in the Berkshires, then in Miltenberg where he was pawing through my suitcase in the car. And then in Wurzburg. He’s the man I threw the pitcher of beer at.”
Andor laughed a deep booming laugh. “You threw a pitcher of beer at him? You’re a woman after my own heart.”
Max laughed with him. Then he said to Lacy, “I never got a good look at the man. I was busy trying to catch you. Is his buddy with him?”
“I think so. Over there, in the shadow of the tree.”
“Do you think they’re the ones who have Irenke?” Andor asked. “I’ll take them apart.”
Max put a restraining hand on Andor’s arm. “I don’t think they’re the ones. I think they’re probably government agents. And I think they’re just the beginning of our company tonight.”
“Maybe I should go offer them some wine?” Andor suggested. “Perhaps I can persuade them to confide in me.”
“Persuade?”
Andor simply smiled.
“Get them to talk to you if you can. But I somehow don’t think they’re the ones who have Irenke,” Max replied. “Kidnapping’s not generally their style. There’s no doubt they’re interested in Igor’
s book, but if they were the kidnappers, they’d have approached us by now.”
“It won’t do any harm to offer them a drink or two and have a chat with them.”
Andor headed for the man under the tree and throwing his arm around the shocked man’s shoulder, pulled him into the cave, stopping only long enough to gather in the man’s partner with his other arm. His voice was jovial and he swayed as if he’d had a bit too much to drink.
“You’re strangers here. You must sample my wine, my friends. This is not a night for sobriety.”
Max smiled as he watched Andor in action. “That frees the path for the serious contenders.”
****
An hour later, Zsuzsa arrived. She was grey with worry and tension, but surprisingly calm. “My son doesn’t yet know that Irenke is missing. He and his wife are in Vienna on business, and I haven’t been able to reach them. Irenke was staying with me. She was taken while we were in the park in front of the hospital. I turned my head for a moment only, and she was gone.”
There was a catch in her voice. “A man telephoned to say he had her. That she was safe and would be returned to me once they had Igor’s book. You’re going to give them what they want?”
“Of course,” Lacy assured her. “We’ll act the moment we hear from them. I don’t understand why we haven’t been contacted yet. We were so sure they’d be here.”
****
The evening wore on. The noisy party around them showed no sign of waning. As the hours passed, Zsuzsa sat immobile on a bench under a tree, staring into the distance without seeing.
Max was off wandering through the crowd, looking for Richard, trying to discover who belonged and who might be there for some purpose other than sampling the new wine.
Lacy stood near Andor’s cave, nerves taut as a bow spring, tying to remain visible, approachable to anyone who might want to make the trade, the memory sticks for the child. She became more and more tense as the evening wore on. Why hadn’t she been approached? She’d been so sure the kidnapper would be here. Could she have been mistaken?
The phone in Lacy’s pocket vibrated. She took it out with shaking hands.
“Do you have the complete book?” The voice was soft and menacing.
“Where is Irenke? Is she safe?” Lacy cried. “If you’ve harmed her in any way…”
“The child is perfectly safe for the moment. Do you have all the memory sticks? Do you have Igor Telchev’s complete manuscript?”
“Yes. Yes, please. You can have it all. Just tell me where she is.”
The phone went dead. Lacy looked around wildly. Was he here? Where was he? Why had he hung up without telling her how to make the exchange?
Max. Where was Max? She needed to tell him about the call.
“Lacy! Thank God I’ve found you. I’ve been trying to locate you ever since you left me stranded at the opera.”
Shocked, Lacy turned to the familiar voice. “Richard!” She looked around. Max was nowhere in sight. Andor had disappeared into the cave. Lacy fought the impulse to run. Or to scream. She needed to stay calm. And she had to keep Richard here until Max returned.
She tried to make her voice sound normal, conversational. “What are you doing here, Richard? How did you find me?”
He smiled. “It wasn’t easy. I’ve had the police of two countries searching for you. I wasn’t at all sure you’d disappeared voluntarily.”
This was Richard, stable, dependable Richard. He’d been best man at her wedding. He’d stood beside her at Igor’s funeral. He’d been her close friend for more than five years. He couldn’t be the kidnapper. He couldn’t be the man who had so viciously attacked Inga and Riana.
But he’d lied about knowing Jean-Paul and Claudette. He’d lied again and again. Lacy’s eyes filled with tears.
“Are you all right?” His voice was filled with concern.
“No, Richard. I’m not all right. I’m tired and I’m worried half out of my mind.” Lacy broke down. “Do you have Irenke?”
“Do you have all the memory sticks? The complete book?”
“So it was you.” The last traces of doubt fled. Lacy accepted the truth she had been trying for so long to deny. This man who had claimed to be her friend, who had wanted to be her lover, had betrayed her.
Lacy’s voice was flat. “You hurt Inga and Riana. You kidnapped Irenke. For what, Richard? Money? Power?”
“Survival. Clearly you haven’t read the last chapters of Igor’s book. I repeat, do you have it all?”
“Yes.”
“Give them to me. I’ll take care of everything now, Lacy. Igor should never have involved you. It’s too dangerous a business. I did love you, you know.”
Lacy reached into her pocket and drew out the three small devices that had caused so much trouble.
“Thank you, Lacy. I’ll take those,” Richard said.
Max pushed his way through the crowd. “What are you doing, Lacy? You can’t give those up without knowing where Irenke is, that she’s safe.”
Richards stared briefly at Max and turned back to Lacy. His voice was calm and reasonable. “I assure you the child is safe. Come with me, Lacy. Igor is no longer in our way. I took care of that. And now, with the threat of his book neutralized, we can be together forever. Come.” He reached out his hand to her.
Lacy shrunk back, repulsed. He had no conscience, no sense of wrong-doing. He was evil. How could she have failed to see that before? “You killed Igor! You kidnapped an innocent child, and you seriously injured two women. And you think I’d ever go away with you? You’re mad. Take the damned book and get out of our lives!”
His expression hardened into a mask of fury. “If that’s the way you want it.”
He turned to Max. “Give me the car keys.”
Max stared at him.
“The car keys,” he demanded. “I need your car. Mine had a flat on the way here. The keys first. Then I’ll tell you where the child is.”
Lacy turned to Max. Why hadn’t he reacted? Why wasn’t he stopping Richard? Then Lacy saw the gun in Richard’s hand. A gun pointed directly at…at her. Where had that come from?
Without warning, Richard grabbed Lacy and pulled toward her toward him, his gun pressing into her neck, using her body a shield.
“No!” Zsuzsa rose from her bench and took one tentative step toward Lacy as Andor emerged from his cave and stopped dead in his tracks.
“Let her go.” Max’s voice was tight with suppressed fury.
“Keys first. Toss them to Lacy.”
Max tossed the keys.
“I’ll shoot her if you follow me. Just stay where you are.” Slowly he backed toward the car dragging Lacy with him.
The three stood frozen. The party went on around them. The music was loud. There was dancing and laughing and singing. No one seemed to be aware of the drama being enacted in their midst. They watched helplessly as Richard pushed Lacy into the car, the gun still in his hand, pointed menacingly at her.
Richard then ran around to the other side of the car, grabbed the keys from Lacy and glanced down to insert the key into the ignition.
This was her chance, perhaps her only chance. Lacy bolted out of the car and ran a few steps. Suddenly she stopped and turned back toward the car. “Richard,” she called. “Please! Irenke…where…”
“Lacy!” Max ran toward her.
They heard the click as the motor failed to turn over. And then a second click.
Lacy was propelled through the air and knocked to the ground as a blast of heat seared her skin. The car was engulfed in a ball of fire. Her breath seemed to be sucked from her lungs as hailstorm of glass and twisted metal rained down on her. She tried to pull herself to her knees, to breathe, to crawl away from the scorching heat, from the pain, from the burning on her back, on her arms and legs. She looked down in surprise at a piece of glass embedded in her leg, at the blood flowing from it. She smelled sickening odor of singed hair. Hers? Her vision blurred. She lost consciousness hearing Max’s
tortured cry. “Lacy!”
Chapter Fourteen
Lacy surfaced slowly. She tried to move, but her limbs were too heavy. She hurt all over. The aching was a dull throb, but she had a feeling if she were fully awake she would hurt much more. Where was she? She tried to speak. “Water.”
Max’s voice shook. “She’s awake. Get the doctor.”
“Thank God. I’ll let him know she’s regained consciousness.” Zsuzsa hurried out of the room.
“Water,” Lacy repeated.
Max took some chipped ice on a teaspoon and held it to her lips. “We’ll have to check with the doctor before we can let you drink.”
“Where am I?” she croaked.
“In the hospital in Budapest. You had a lot of glass in your back and legs from the explosion, and some burns. You’re going to be fine. It will just take a little time.”
Glass? Burns? That explained why she hurt. What explosion? She drifted off again before she could ask the question.
The next time she woke, the sun was streaming in her window. It still hurt to move, but she felt marginally better. She saw she was hooked up to drips. Two of them. She turned her head carefully. Max was asleep in the chair, his head drooping on his chest, his hair tangled, his face unshaven.
She smiled. It hurt to smile. She raised her hand to her face. Bandages. One covering her right cheek, one at her hairline. Her head was pounding, and she was thirsty. There was a plastic container with water on the tray beside her bed. She tried to pick it up with a bandaged hand, but it slipped through her fingers.
Max jumped to his feet. “Sorry. I must have dropped off. You want water. I’ll get it.”
A moment later he was back with a glass filled with chips of ice and water and with a bent straw. He held the glass as she sipped.
“How long have I been here?” Her voice croaked.
“Two days. You were unconscious. Concussed, bleeding from glass cuts, burned by molten metal. I’ve been nearly out of my mind with worry. The doctor said you’d recover fully, but you were so still, lying there…” Max’s voice broke. “I thought I’d lost you. I love you so much, Lacy.” He leaned over her and touched her short singed hair with incredible gentleness.
Romantic Road Page 20