Met Her Match

by Jude Deveraux

  Frank listened as he finished the last of the pizza and said, “But it’s nothing, is it? Just unrelated facts.”

  Rowan and Nate looked at each other.

  Nate answered. “We believe that everything that happened to Terri was caused by whatever was done to Leslie.”

  Frank was so pleased by Nate’s phrasing that he almost smiled. “It all works together.”

  Nate took a chair off the couch—Rowan had covered the white upholstery with sheets—and sat down. “I can’t go back until Terri’s name is cleared, so whatever it takes, I’m ready to do it. Maybe I can’t solve the mystery about her mother but I’d sure like to get my hands on that Thorndyke loser. My guess is that he did something rotten, then made Terri swear not to tell.”

  “Yeah?” Frank smiled. Three beers, half a large sausage pizza and having two kids interested in his life’s work was making him happy. He picked up his cell phone and tapped in a number. “Hey, Billy!” he said into the phone. “I gotta guy here that wants to talk to you.” He held out the cell phone.

  Nate took it and put it on speaker. “You’re the yo-yo kid?”

  There was a chuckle on the other end of the line. “I guess so. I hadn’t thought of it that way.”

  “So how come you left behind a mess for Terri to take the blame for?”

  “Terri?”

  “Yeah, Terri! Ever hear of her?” Nate didn’t wait for an answer. “That whole town blames her for your family leaving. They think she did something to make the Great and Wondrous Billy Thorndyke run away with his tail between his legs. She still can’t go into that damned town without someone making a crack about it.” Nate stopped ranting but there was no sound. “Are you listening to me?”

  “I didn’t know,” came a whisper. “No one told me. Oh, poor, poor Terri.”

  Nate’s body stiffened and he handed the phone back to Frank. “I think he’s crying.”

  “Billy?” Frank said as he took the phone off speaker. “Are you okay?” He listened. “I understand. Yeah, sure. Sorry about that. We’ll be there soon.” He looked at Nate in question and he nodded. “Okay, see you then.” He clicked off the phone. “Billy is leaving as soon as he can and he’ll meet us in Summer Hill.”

  Nate sat back down. “Great,” he said in sarcasm. “The love of my girl’s life is coming back to town. Me and my big mouth.”

  “What did he say?” Rowan asked.

  “Billy’s parents have kept in contact with a few people in Summer Hill, so he figures they knew that Terri was being blamed. They just didn’t tell their son. He said he wanted to call her, call some of his old friends, but his parents kept saying that he should make a clean break,” Frank said.

  “How old is this boy that he still lets his parents make his decisions?” Nate’s voice was disgusted.

  “He should be like you and defy his elders like you did Kit?” Frank shot back. “Look how that’s worked out.”

  Rowan waited for a reply but the two big men just glared at each other. “If you two bulls want to fight, let me know so I can leave. Otherwise, I need to visit some people to make arrangements to search the bottom of a lake. Anyone want to go with me?”

  Frank and Nate didn’t move.

  Rowan rolled his eyes. “We’re out of beer and I will not buy any while I’m out. If you want some, you have to come with me. Both of you.”

  Chapter 19

  Rowan arranged everything. Nate wasn’t sure, but he thought maybe Rowan stretched the truth so he could use his FBI resources. “They’ll meet us at the dock in Summer Hill at 8:00 a.m. the day after tomorrow.”

  “Divers?” Frank asked.

  “And a truck with a crane. Whatever is down there, we’re going to take it out.”

  “What about Brody?” Nate looked at Frank.

  “And what about permission to excavate?” Rowan asked. “I can’t get a court order based on no evidence.”

  Frank said, “Brody is in charge of the trust that owns the place. He’ll probably go into a rage but I’ll take care of him.”

  The two younger men nodded.

  The next morning they removed everything from the walls and tables, put it back in the boxes and packed the car. They rode together in Rowan’s car, leaving Frank’s truck and Nate’s car behind in DC. Frank protested until Rowan reassured him that he’d get someone to drive it to Summer Hill.

  “If you say so,” Frank said, making Nate roll his eyes.

  Rowan was the first driver, Frank beside him, Nate in the back.

  “I have no reason to think there’s a connection,” Nate began, “but Thorndyke and Kris Lennon left town at the same time.”

  “Kris’s mother, Abby, was Leslie’s friend,” Frank said.

  “Yeah, at Widiwick, she told me—”

  “Who won the prize this year?” Rowan asked.

  “Cresnor gave it to some kid who plays the piano. He gets her a Juilliard audition and if she gets in, he pays for a year. If she makes good grades, he forks over for four years. Now tell me what Abby said.”

  After Nate finished, Frank told of an interview he’d had with the woman who’d hired Leslie when she first showed up in Summer Hill. The facts of it had been in his files, but he was able to share more details. “Meryl said Leslie was all class. She didn’t have references and wouldn’t tell much about herself, but the dress she had on cost a lot. Meryl said she was shocked when Leslie said she was going to marry Brody Rayburn. Good-looking man but not Leslie’s class.”

  Nate frowned. “I guess she was one of them who thought Leslie did run away with some man.”

  “Naw. Meryl said half the men in town—including Lew Hartman—came on to Leslie and made fools of themselves, but Leslie was a real lady. She only saw Brody.”

  They didn’t want to get to Summer Hill too early so they spent the night in Richmond. Over dinner they grew serious. They were finally realizing what they were doing.

  “We might find nothing,” Rowan said.

  “Something is down there at the bottom of the lake,” Nate said. “But it’s probably just some old farm equipment Kissel got rid of.”

  After dinner, they went to their separate rooms. They were a quiet group. “Hope they have sheets like yours,” Frank said to Rowan, then pushed the elevator button.

  “Tomorrow,” Nate said. “Tomorrow may change everything.”

  * * *

  Terri was watching Billy try to tie the rope holding the boat to the cleat. He’d forgotten what she’d taught him when they were kids. Of course he’d been away from boats and even water for a long time, and that should have made her more forgiving.

  But it didn’t. She just compared him to Nate. Nate could tie knots, could back up trailers, could... Could do whatever needed to be done.

  “You haven’t changed,” Billy said as he stood up. “You’re still annoyed that I’m not half merman.”

  Terri wasn’t sure but she thought she heard at least two girls sigh at the sight of the big blond man. He looked over her shoulder and smiled in the direction of the sound. Blue eyes, white teeth, streaky blond hair. Put a horned helmet on him and he could star in a Viking movie.

  Terri had never realized how much she preferred dark men: hair, whiskers, eyes, honey-colored skin. And oh yeah, chest hair that grew from the middle and fanned out.

  “You okay?” Billy asked.

  “Sure.” She frowned at being brought back to reality. A year. A whole year before she’d see Nate again. Or maybe he’d forget about her and not return at all. What man would put up with her life? Or with separation for a year? Was she expecting him to do without sex for an entire year? No women at all? Maybe—

  “Hey!” Billy said. “Is that frown for me? Sorry I couldn’t remember the knot.”

  “You should get Nate to do it,” said Mr. Weber, a Rounder whose boat Billy had been tryin
g to fasten to the dock.

  “Ah, yes,” Billy said, “the magical Nathaniel. The man who can do anything.”

  Terri shot him a look to cut it out, then turned back to Mr. Weber. “Nate left and he won’t be back until... I don’t know when or if—”

  “He’s by the old dock.”

  Both Billy and Terri stared at him.

  “Come on, Terri.” Mr. Weber’s voice was teasing. “Are you going to tell me that something is happening at this lake that you don’t know about? There’s a whole lot of commotion over by the old dock and—”

  “There was an accident?” she asked. “Is Dr. Jamie there? He looks like Nate.”

  “I may be old, but I’m not senile. It’s Nate and the sheriff with some big equipment. And there are men and women wearing FBI jackets. I’m going over there to see what’s going on. I’m—” He didn’t finish because Terri had already run to her boat, Billy right behind her.

  As Terri rounded the corner, she saw the people gathered where the old dock used to be. There were about half a dozen men and women in blue jackets with FBI in huge letters on the back. A truck with a crane on it towered over them.

  Standing together in a quiet, solemn group were her father, Uncle Frank, Nate, and she was pretty sure that was Rowan Montgomery. She hadn’t seen him in years. They were listening to what a man in diving gear was saying. Terri would have yelled at them for not telling her what was going on, but the looks on their faces were so serious that she said nothing.

  She stopped her boat several feet away and told Billy to anchor it. The solemnity of the people seemed to make the air feel heavy and Terri had a sense of foreboding. Her father was looking at something and as she got closer, she could see that it was an iPad.

  It was Nate who saw her first. There was a darkness in his eyes that she’d not seen before. He hurried forward and, forgetting their agreement, put his arm around her and started to lead her back to her boat.

  “The divers found a car on the bottom of the lake and photographed it. Your dad says it’s your mom’s car.” Nate looked up to see Billy standing in front of them. “You’re Thorndyke?”

  “I am.”

  “Take her home. We don’t know what’s inside and—”

  Terri twisted out of Nate’s grip. “I’m going to be with my dad. Whatever is in there, he’ll need me.” She looked at Billy. “Take my boat and go get Elaine.”

  “You’re sure?” Nate asked.

  “Completely.”

  Nate nodded to Billy and he left, then Nate took Terri’s hand.

  “You and I shouldn’t be seen together,” she said. “We—” The look he gave her made her take a breath. She knew that whatever was going on took precedence over a broken engagement and town gossip. She wanted to ask him questions of how and why and what had made him do this, but now was not the time.

  When her father looked up and saw her, he had tears in his eyes. Terri went to him, hugged him, then stepped back and linked her arm tightly with his.

  They watched, clinging to each other. Frank came to stand beside them as the divers went down, holding on to the chain hooks needed to attach to the car.

  It was slow going and Terri looked up when she heard the motor of the boat. Billy was coming toward them, driving at full speed. As bad as he was at mechanics, he did indeed love to go fast.

  Elaine was holding on to the sides, her carefully coiffed hair blown flat back. She leaped into the water before Billy fully stopped and ran to Brody and fell into his arms.

  When Terri stepped back, Nate was there. He led her to the side, pulled her into his arms and held her. She clutched him tightly.

  “Sorry,” he said, “but I couldn’t stay away.”

  She had her head pressed hard against his chest. “Stacy hates us.”

  “It’s deserved,” Nate said. “Are you back with...with...?”

  “Billy? Naw. He can’t even remember what a half hitch knot is.” Her tone made him sound useless.

  Nate’s arms tightened so much that Terri thought her ribs might crack, but she only smiled. They’d heal.

  For a long moment they held on to each other in silence. Behind them was the noise of the truck and people talking. A crowd was beginning to gather and boat motors were idling.

  “On that day when you cleaned up around here, you saw something, didn’t you?” she said.

  “Yeah,” Nate said. “I was so busy showing off to you that it didn’t register until later. The posts from the dock had been cut, not broken, and I saw something on the bottom. It was a while before I realized that I might have seen part of a car.”

  “Uncle Frank always said my mother didn’t leave us.” She pulled away to look at him. “But maybe she ran her car off the dock and left with...him.”

  “Maybe,” Nate said. “And maybe he cut the posts. It’s just that she disappeared so completely. Rowan checked all files and she vanished.”

  “She could have—” Terri broke off when they heard a shout. The car was coming up.

  Nate took her shoulders. “You don’t have to see what’s in there. If you want to leave, you can.”

  She didn’t answer and started back toward the group, but then she took Nate’s hand. It suddenly occurred to her that maybe she didn’t want to know the truth. All her life her uncle Frank had put doubts in her mind. He’d been fierce that Leslie had not run away. As for Brody, he’d refused to talk about his wife’s disappearance. Never a word spoken about it. Terri had made up a hundred scenarios of what had happened to her mother. As a kid, aliens and fairies played a part in the stories. She’d clutched onto anything rather than believe what people whispered about her mother.

  The car came out of the water slowly, back end first. An old Toyota, rusted, covered in years of underwater debris, emerged.

  Elaine with Brody, Nate with Terri, and Billy beside Frank, stood together as they watched Rowan look inside. He shook his head no. There was no one inside.

  Terri could feel hope leaving her. Her mother had not been lost in the storm and accidentally driven off the pier. It looked like she’d hidden the car, discarded it so no one would find it. Did her lover steal the lake’s chain saw and cut the posts?

  Rowan and the FBI agents and even the bystanders were looking at the group with sympathy. The poor Rayburns, their faces seemed to say. The wife ran away with another man and left them.

  “Oh hell!” Nate said, and dropped Terri’s hand. There was a crowbar on the side of the big truck. He grabbed it, ran to the car and broke open the trunk.

  The lid flew up—and everyone close enough to see inside froze in place, unable to move.

  Frank shoved his way through them, then he too stopped. Immobile.

  Brody was still standing with Elaine, and he didn’t seem to want to see what they were looking at.

  It was Terri who stepped forward. Nate put his arm out for her and had it securely around her before he stepped back to let her see.

  Inside the trunk was a skeleton. There was a rusted metal belt around its middle, shoe buckles by its feet—and handcuffs around its wrists.

  When Terri’s knees weakened, Nate picked her up, carried her away from the car and set her on a rock nearby. Standing, he held her against him.

  “That wasn’t natural. She was...”

  “I know,” Nate said softly. Neither of them wanted to say the word murdered.

  Terri was clutching him about the waist. “Someone did that to her.”

  “Yes. And we’ll find...” He trailed off because that didn’t matter now. He and Rowan would move heaven and earth to find out who had done this to Leslie Rayburn, but that wasn’t going to bring back Terri’s mother.

  Gazing over her head, Nate watched as Brody, holding hands with Elaine, went to the car. “I gave her that belt on our honeymoon,” he said softly. Rowan caught him when he almos
t collapsed, then he and Elaine led him to Terri’s boat. Elaine drove it as they went back to Club Circle.

  Frank was still standing there. He hadn’t moved since he’d first seen what was in the trunk. Rowan looked at Nate and gave a sharp jerk of his head for him to come and get Frank.

  To the left, Billy Thorndyke was standing back, waiting to be needed. Nate nodded to him, then he bent to Terri. “I’m going to help Rowan and Frank now, okay?”

  She nodded.

  “Thorndyke will see that you get home and I want you to stay there. Rowan called Jamie and he’ll be here soon and he’ll talk with you. He knows all there is to know about trauma and grief.” He kissed her forehead. “I’ll be with you as soon as I can and we’re going to dispense with this stupidity about what the town thinks. Understand me?”

  All Terri could do was nod.

  Billy was standing close and waiting.

  “Take her home,” Nate said, then added, “and if you touch her I’ll break every bone in your body.”

  “Good,” Billy said. “I’m glad she found you.”

  Nate watched them walk away, then went back to the rusty old car. The others had moved away, but Frank was still standing and staring at the gruesome skeleton.

  Nate stepped beside him.

  “The bones in her wrists are broken,” Frank said softy. “She tried so hard to get out that she broke her bones. Those are the handcuffs Jake got for me. He etched my initials on them.” His voice was rising. “They were on the wall but they disappeared in the storm. Jake said I took them. And he said I took the chain saw. All I did was get mad. Why didn’t I put them together with Leslie’s disappearance?” Frank looked at Nate, his face red with growing rage. “If I’d been smarter, faster, maybe I could have saved her. There was air in that trunk. I bet there was enough air in there that I could have—”

  Nate grabbed Frank, pinning his arms down. It was an unbreakable grip. Frank fought him. He twisted and turned, kicked, but Nate held him. Frank was strong but Nate was stronger and he didn’t let go.