“Where are we riding to? And which horse am I taking? You nearly killed Shiloh.”
She was answered with a careless shrug. “I had to be sure you’d come here today. So...don’t worry. We have a number of horses to choose from. Let’s go.”
* * *
Dustin drove in the sheriff’s department car with Frank Vine and Jimmy Callahan.
Not one of his phone calls to the Horse Farm had been answered. Malachi and Abby were on their way and backup vehicles, including ambulances, were behind them.
“Explain this to me again,” Frank said to Callahan. “Damn you, Jimmy, why the hell didn’t you figure out what was going on?”
“How was I to know I was dating a maniac?” Callahan demanded. “Frank, we talked about family history. I thought it was really interesting that she could trace her history back so far, and I also suggested that maybe she should consider taking a job in Nashville when it was offered. She might have gotten one of those ghost tour shows—she might have gone really far. I had no idea that...that...whatever!”
They reached the Horse Farm; Dustin paid no heed to the arguing officers.
He saw the prone body of Sydney Roux in front of the house and rushed to him, crouching down to check for a pulse. It was faint. On the porch, he found Drew. He, too, was still alive.
As he rushed into the house, he saw that Jane was trying to help Sloan stagger to his feet.
“Dustin, they used the darts.... We were down.... Olivia... I think Olivia pulled the darts out of us,” Sloan said, and swore furiously.
“Whoever...came in from the back—none of the dogs barked,” Jane told him.
“Where is she? Where’s Olivia?”
“I don’t know. But the attack came from inside the house,” Sloan said. “And whoever it was took my gun...”
Dustin rushed out. Sloan and Jane came tearing after him, but as they arrived at the stables, Jane faltered.
Sloan stayed back to steady her. Dustin swung on both of them. “What’s the matter with you? You’re in no shape to be running around! Wait here—ambulances are on their way.” As he spoke, Malachi came driving in with Abby.
Frank left the stables and headed for Dustin, while Malachi and Abby ran to meet them.
“Two of the horses are gone,” Frank said breathlessly.
“Yeah, and we need to get going. Malachi, tell them—they’ve been hurt. They can’t come.”
Malachi pointed at Sloan and Jane. “You two—emergency attention,” Malachi said.
“Come on,” Dustin urged, “we’ve got to follow quickly. I can’t imagine what she’s planning for Olivia, but if she rode away with her, we’ve got a chance.”
Jimmy Callahan hurried to the stables. As Dustin followed, he heard movement in one of the stalls. He pulled his gun and whirled around.
It was Shiloh. The horse was back on its feet.
“Wait!” Malachi shouted.
Dustin turned to stare at him. “Look, we’re not talking about someone in her right mind here. And she’s just about gone over the edge while being in a desperate situation at the same time.”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying we have to be prepared to play mind games.”
“And do you have a suggestion?” Malachi demanded.
“I do,” Jimmy Callahan said, striding between them. “I do. Mariah is crazy about the history here—crazy about General Rufus Cunningham. She’ll say everyone sees him except her, but that she’s the one who deserves to know him. If you want—”
“Dammit, tell me what you’re talking about!” Dustin snapped.
“It’ll take another five minutes. Come with me. To Drew’s room. He’s involved with a reenactment group. Come on, I’ll show you.”
Dustin had no idea whether it was going to work or not; it might be his only chance. He was trying with all his might to think rationally, like an agent, and not like a man who felt he’d die if something happened to the woman he, yes, loved.
He looked at Malachi and remembered that he and Liv were cousins and that Malachi must be feeling as torn as he was.
“All right. I’ll do it. I’ve done a lot of reading on the general,” he said.
Five minutes later—as Jimmy had promised—he was ready.
Malachi and Abby were on their way out, while ambulances thronged the drive to the Horse Farm. Various deputies were mounted up and moving, and Chapparal had been saddled and bridled for him. He climbed on the horse and started to leave the stables.
“Whoa!” Malachi held up a hand. “Let’s divide the area into sections. We’ve got a lot of property to cover.”
Callahan was on Battle-ax. “The ravine?” he asked Dustin. “The ravine—where Marcus died?”
“Maybe. Frank, why don’t you take the ravine with some deputies. Malachi, you and Abby stay with me, but give me some space. I’m going to follow the trail to the campground.”
He galloped out of the stable on Chapparal and across the pastures.
If you were crazy and thought you had some kind of divine right to a piece of land—as well as the hereditary right to speak to a ghost—where would you go?
A cemetery.
* * *
“Here’s what I don’t understand,” Olivia said. “You’re a good therapist, Mariah. And I always thought you loved what you did.”
“I’m an okay therapist,” Mariah told her. “You’re the great lover of the downtrodden, confused and drug-addicted. And, oh, yeah, they love you, too. You should see the disappointment on their faces when they find out they’re with Mason or me for the day. Now, what I am is a great historian. I can tell you everything about the occupation of Nashville. I can describe every Civil War battle in this state—oh, and I can tell you anything you want to know about Andrew Jackson.”
“I grew up in Nashville,” Olivia reminded her. She felt the gun inside her shirt and wondered if and when she’d get a chance to use it. During the ride they’d taken so far—running the horses hard most of the way—she’d had no opportunity.
Mariah was a good storyteller. She was also a skilled horsewoman. The entire way—gallop, trot, canter and walk—Mariah had kept the gun on her.
And Mariah knew a lot about marksmanship; she’d proven that.
“Yes, you grew up in Nashville. And your good-looking cousin is with the FBI. And you have a great house from your uncle, so naturally you just have to inherit another house from Marcus. And, of course, an agent comes out here with drop-dead looks and of course he immediately falls for you while... Never mind.”
“What do you mean, never mind?”
“Don’t pull any therapist bull on me, Olivia. You can’t analyze an analyzer.”
“Isn’t it more like you can’t con a con artist?” Olivia asked.
“Whatever. Give it up.”
“Okay. I take it you plan on killing me, although that’s pretty dumb. They’ll know it’s you.”
“They arrested Sandra Cheever.”
“And you think she’ll go down alone?”
“I’ll call her a liar. She had the motive. She was the one sleeping with Aaron.”
“But she’s in custody now, Mariah. She couldn’t have done this. People will arrive at the Horse Farm. They’ll find all the bodies you left strewn around—and they’ll realize I’m missing.”
“No one saw me. There are dozens of other people who might have done this,” Mariah said.
“You’re crazy. Aaron’s dead. Drew and Sydney are half-dead. Sandra is in custody and—”
“Mason is out there somewhere and, God knows, I’d implicate that crazy old broad at the café.”
“Key words, Mariah—crazy old broad at the café. She’s always working, always surrounded by witnesses. When could she have done a
ny of this? But the point is, if you’re going to kill me... What started all this? Marcus was good to everyone. Why did you kill him?”
“I looked it up, Olivia. My great-great-great-grandfather was born on this land. I’m entitled to it. The Horse Farm had to fail.”
“So you could buy it?” Olivia asked incredulously.
“It’s really my land. I have the right to it. I shouldn’t even have to buy it—but I will.”
“It was Marcus’s family land—that’s how he got it,” Olivia said.
“Yeah, well, I went on one of those ancestry sites. And it led me back a bunch of generations. My great-great-whatever was Marcus’s great-whatever’s brother, which means I have just as much right to the land as he did. And then I wouldn’t have to be a so-so therapist. I’d get to be a great hostess for a haunted bed-and-breakfast, and every night I’d give history and ghost tours.”
“You’re crazy.”
“No.” She shook her head. “It should have been so simple. Everyone should just have said, oh, how sad. Marcus Danby became a heroin-whore again and it proves that the whole therapy thing was a pile of bullshit. It would’ve been simple as hell.”
Simple? The murder had been simple?
“But no...you wouldn’t believe it. You dragged in the law, and then when the law here realized that yes, addicts do fall back, you just had to call your cousin. You know, I was onto you—I knew as soon I saw Mr. Handsome Federal Agent walk in that you’d pulled some strings. Yeah, he needed therapy, my ass!”
“Sandra was in on it, though, right?” Olivia said. “I mean, you needed help, didn’t you?”
“Sandra is an idiot!” Mariah snapped. “She wanted Marcus out of the way because she wanted Aaron running the place. She wanted Marcus’s house, and she wanted Aaron in charge, and she wanted a raise. After that, she wanted the two of them to play house forever and ever. But then, when everything seemed to be coming together once Marcus was dead, it looked like the Horse Farm was going to survive! And Aaron was a jerk—”
“But Sandra just let you kill him?”
Mariah sighed. “Sandra might have been a bad choice as a helper—although she should’ve been good. She can be such a bitch, but she’s really a total coward. And dumb! She actually thought what happened at the stream was an accident! I set up the image of the general so I could get all excited and create a diversion before Aaron was found. She didn’t help me. She didn’t even know. I didn’t count on the ripped-up pieces of that cow being all over—they really did make me scream. And it meant I could leave the picture behind, which made everything that much more convincing.”
Olivia stared at her. It was almost impossible to fathom the complexity of a deranged mind. The old cliché about method in madness occurred to her. “What...what about the darts?” she asked. “How did you come up with that?”
“Olivia, I have to tell you—the dart thing is just great. I make those little suckers myself. I add the tiny feathers and then they fly like a damn. They fall out at the slightest movement, which is another plus, and the concoction I put together is pretty impressive. You’d have to be looking for specific poisons to even hope to find them at autopsy. I learned all that from Drew and Sydney, by the way. They know how to mix stuff up because Marcus insisted they had to be prepared for animal emergencies at all times.”
“Good to hear you’re such a wonderful student,” Olivia told her. “So, Sandra didn’t know you were going to kill Aaron—but she gave you the key to his place, anyway?”
Mariah didn’t answer.
“She didn’t give you the key, did she? You took it and had a copy made.”
“I did that months ago,” Mariah said proudly.
“So, Sandra’s really innocent?” Olivia asked.
“No. Sandra innocent? Give me a break. She’s totally conniving. She knew what I was going to do to Marcus. In fact, she told me that if I wanted to make it look like someone else was involved, I should take his horse—or hers. Depending on who I wanted to implicate.” She giggled. “I would’ve taken Shiloh, but you were riding him that day. As far as Sandra’s concerned—well, if this bit her in the butt, she deserved it.”
Olivia reined in and turned around. “Where are we going?”
“Don’t you know yet?”
“No, I don’t.”
Mariah smiled at her. “There’s something I want from you—before you die, of course.”
“What’s that?”
“I want to see the general.”
Olivia gaped at her.
“I know you’ve seen him. I should have that. And you can give it to me.”
“Mariah, I’m trying to stay alive here, but—”
“Then don’t lie.”
“Ghosts were people, Mariah. They remain the real essence of the person they were.”
“Spiritual crap, Olivia. Keep at it.”
“Ghosts don’t just appear on command!” Olivia felt the gun against her waist. There had to be a chance for her to use it. Maybe now...
By the time she drew it out, she’d be dead.
“Keep moving and quit stalling.”
“Why? Because you know it’s all over? That someone will come searching for the two of us.”
“If they do, we’ll go out together,” Mariah promised her sweetly. She smiled. “You’re always telling the kids to do their best—to reach for what they want and work hard to achieve it. I’m just listening to you, Olivia. So, keep moving. We’re almost there.”
They rode again and came to the point in the copse where they had to dismount so they could walk the trail to the cemetery.
“Do you think the general’s going to hang around his grave?” Olivia asked.
“You’d better hope,” Mariah muttered. “Now, get down.”
Olivia dismounted. Mariah waved the gun she was carrying.
“Move.”
Olivia followed the trail to the small cemetery where General Rufus Cunningham’s mortal remains lay buried. It was still daylight, but the surrounding trees shaded them from the sun.
* * *
The cemetery, situated in the shadow of the forest, was touched by traces of sunlight. It was difficult to tell if anyone had used the trail leading to the cemetery in the past hour or so. Although there were a few signs of recent use, he couldn’t be sure. Still, as they neared the small collection of graves, Dustin became convinced that he was right—and that Jimmy Callahan had been right, as well.
He reined in before they came to the clearing in the woods. Behind him, Malachi and Abby stopped, too.
He slid down from Chapparal and walked back to Malachi. “There are some broken branches here that seem fresh. I think they dismounted a short distance ahead and walked to the cemetery. There’s really only one main trail. I’m going to crawl through some of the trees and bushes to approach from the other side.” He hesitated. “If I get a clean shot at Mariah...”
“Take it,” Malachi told him. “I intend to do the same. Abby and I will tether the horses and come up along the old trail.”
Dustin tried to move as quietly as possible—and as quickly as possible.
He thought of the different situations he’d faced in his life.
This was just one woman.
One crazy-ass woman with a gun—a gun she was pointing at Olivia.
He paused, stepping on bracken and expecting to hear the crack of a branch. But he heard nothing. Until, moving forward, he heard voices.
“Olivia, I’m from this land—don’t you get it? This land right here. You’re from the city.”
“And don’t you get it, Mariah? It’s all connected. The city needs the country, the country needs the city. Look, if you want to see the general...you have to be open to him. And he has to be in the area.”
Malachi
finally came up on the cemetery. He hid behind one of the trees that grew around the little area, as if they were nature’s homage to the dead.
They were at the general’s grave site.
Mariah had Olivia by the arm. Her gun was wedged into Olivia’s side. He could take a shot; he could kill her easily. But there was no guarantee she’d go down before she pulled her own trigger.
Mariah suddenly swung Olivia around. Dustin could see that she was sweating, agitated. The hand that held the gun against Olivia was jerky. The trigger might be pulled easily.
“Where is he?” Mariah demanded.
They were looking right at his position, right at where he stood. Dustin straightened his cavalry jacket and pulled the plumed hat he wore lower over his forehead.
“Mariah,” Olivia said. “I told you—I’ve tried to explain. Ghosts don’t appear on command. They exist, and if you’re just open to them—”
“I’ve spent my life being open to the general!” Mariah shouted. “He’s part of me, part of my soul, my existence! You’ve got ten seconds, Olivia—ten seconds!”
Olivia suddenly spun around, jerking something out from under her shirt. She fumbled with it; Mariah, thrown from her, fired.
Thankfully, the shot went wild.
Olivia fired, too. The recoil sent her falling back and she tripped, crashing into a tombstone, the gun flying from her grasp. Mariah stumbled to her feet and half walked, half crawled over to Olivia, rising with the gun aimed directly at her.
“Miss Mariah!” Dustin said in a hollow voice, stepping from the trees.
Tension knotted in him fiercely; he was no actor.
“Miss Mariah!”
Mariah turned and looked at him. For a moment, she stared at him in awe. Then she smiled and slowly raised her gun. “You’re not a ghost!” she said. “But good try, Agent Blake.”
“I’m not alone, Mariah. If you fire that gun, you’re going to go down in a hail of bullets.”
She aimed at Olivia again. “She goes with me,” Mariah said.
Dustin felt something touch him—or almost touch him. He closed his eyes, praying that the real general had come. A man seemed to rise from mist and take shape before him.
Krewe of Hunters, Volume 3: The Night Is WatchingThe Night Is AliveThe Night Is Forever Page 89