Maybe the injury wasn’t that bad, I thought. Then again, maybe they weren’t telling the whole truth.
When we were done that morning, a large batch of soup sat simmering on the stove. Grilled vegetables were cooking in the oven and a turkey Nancy had dug out of the freezer was thawing on the counter.
“It will be turkey sandwiches for the rest of the week, or till they fix the bridge,” she’d said with a warning note in her voice. “Be prepared for turkey for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and y’all can make your own sandwiches.”
She had even made sleep arrangements. Doctor Fulton and Charles and Caril now had rooms on the west wing on the third floor.
I wasn’t sure if Nancy was a snob or if she just didn’t like the couple. The scowls she’d given Katy the day before were now being offered to Caril and Charles. In response, they’d kept their heads down and kept to themselves.
We’d finished breakfast with the rest of the family, with Katy sitting as far away from the pastor as possible. Afterward, we’d helped Nancy clean up and left the house on the pretext the car needed fixing.
The phones and the Internet were still down, and we had no idea who the letter writer was. But the doctor was suspicious of Mrs. Robinson’s death now. If he could get an autopsy approved, we’d have evidence. That was progress enough.
It wasn’t even noon yet, and it had already been a rough morning.
Now that we were outside in the early morning light though, we had a better view of the house and the grounds.
Up close, we could see the decay on the roof and walls, and the broken hinges on the doors and windows. This house hadn’t been repaired for years, maybe even decades.
Despite the rundown mansion, the view was breathtaking from up here. Impossibly tall pine and spruce trees covered the rugged terrain behind the house. Maple and birch trees with their multicolored foliage lined the perimeter of the grounds, and the snowcapped mountain range rose grandly on the horizon.
We were in mountain country, a part of the world many people never get to see. If Mrs. Robinson’s death hadn’t been weighing on my shoulders, I’d have enjoyed this view.
I turned to Tetyana, who was wiping her hands on an oily rag.
“Do you really think it was the storm that brought down the bridge?” I asked.
Tetyana leaned in to tighten the oil cap.
“Or was it Jim?” I said, lowering my voice. “He was outside when we heard the bang.”
“His motive?” said Tetyana, studying the engine pensively.
“Motive?” I collected my thoughts. “Maybe he’s the killer. He knows we know more than we show and doesn’t want us to leave the house. Maybe we’re next?”
“I don’t think so,” said Katy, “Jim’s not a murderer. My gut says he’s a good man.”
“Don’t make assumptions, remember?” I said to Katy.
Tetyana shrugged. “Thing is, Jim wouldn’t know how to bring down a bridge even if he wanted to.”
“So, what are you...” I stopped, watching my friend who was now studiously ignoring me.
There was only one person in our midst who had the training and the knowledge to blow up a bridge without getting caught.
Katy let out a gasp as she realized the same.
“It was you!” she said, jabbing Tetyana’s arm.
“Why in goodness’s sake would you do that?” I said. “Now we’re stuck here with a murderer on the loose.”
Tetyana moved away from us and tinkered at something else on the engine.
“Tetyana,” I said, my voice rising. “What are you playing at?”
“I don’t play.”
“Fine, but you had a hand in this, didn’t you?”
“Do you seriously think I’m capable of doing something like that?”
“Yes!” Katy and I chorused.
Tetyana could and would single handedly take on the entire New Hampshire Army National Guard and defeat them, if she put her mind to it.
She straightened up and looked at us from across the engine.
“Didn’t you say we had to find a way to stay? These guys didn’t sound like they wanted us around, so I had to think fast.”
“Are you kidding me?” I spluttered. “I was going to pull the starter relay from the car and you blow up—”
“Keep your voice down.”
“Did it not occur to you we had easier solutions?”
“Anyone would smell that starter trick in a minute,” she replied. “Good idea, but it’s amateur and temporary.”
“You brought down a bridge!”
“No need to announce it to the world.”
Katy gave her a wild look. “What were you thinking? We’ll be stranded here for weeks!”
“Not true,” said Tetyana. “There’s enough lumber next to the barn. Give me a few hours and I can easily get a makeshift footbridge up and running.”
“A footbridge?” I said. “How about something strong enough to take our car?”
“For that, I’ll need to wrangle some extra muscle. With a few additional hands, it should take a day or two.”
“A bridge in two days?” said Katy. “Impossible.”
“The Russians loved to blow up our bridges, again and again. How do you think we got our armored cars over to fight them before they got away?”
I was beginning to think bringing Tetyana to this mission was like bringing an anti-tank rocket launcher to a job that needed a spanner.
“How on earth did you do it?” I asked, vacillating between wanting to shake her and feeling awed by her ingenuity and gumption.
“A pipe bomb.”
“Are you out of your mind?”
“Didn’t need much. I had the gunpowder. Scrounged a few scraps of pipe from near the barn and twenty minutes later, I got myself a nice little IED.”
“IED?”
“Improvised Explosive Device. All I had to do then was to hide behind the pine trees till the coast was clear.”
“Don’t you think this was a tad overkill?” asked Katy.
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned about this house, it’s that nothing is what it seems.” Tetyana paused. “The danger here is greater than we can see.”
We stared at her.
“Don’t you realize what we’re sitting on? What this place is worth?”
Katy and I exchanged looks.
“Ten million? Six million at least?” said Katy.
“If that codicil is real, we own this property. This entire estate.” Tetyana’s face took on a determined look. “Do you know how hard it would be for us to rustle up the cash to fund another place for lost kids? Madame Bouchard put this in our laps, on purpose. I for one don’t plan to give it up without a fight.”
She was right, but I was sure there were other ways we could assert our rights. Besides, I wondered, did we really want to be burdened with this remote and crumbling place?
“I have an urgent email drafted to Peace in my outbox,” I said. “As soon as the Internet turns back on, that will be on its way. Hopefully, he can clear this for us.”
Tetyana nodded. “Until he does, damned if I’m going to slink away quietly while they try to wrestle this out of our hands.”
“Tetyana—”
“I didn’t blow that bridge up for the fun of it.”
“We don’t know if the codicil is legitimate.”
“Yet.”
Chapter Thirty-four
“Our family feud mystery has turned into something that might or might not implicate us now,” I said, shaking my head.
“I doubt Mrs. Robinson’s death was natural,” said Tetyana. “Our first job is to figure that out.”
Katy nodded. “I suspect everyone, even that hiking couple.” She paused for a second. “Especially them.”
“Never saw them come in,” said Tetyana, “which means they must have been on the grounds before we got here, hiding someplace.”
“Strange how fast that twisted ankle healed too,” I said.<
br />
Katy nodded. “They’re lying.”
I turned to her. “Do you recognize them from somewhere?”
“Never seen them in my life.”
“You had a funny look on your face when they told their names.”
“You mean Caril and Charles?”
“Does that mean something to you?”
Katy shrugged.
“It’s probably nothing.”
“Katy,” I said. “Something’s bugging you. Tell us.”
“Don’t you guys ever watch TV?”
I shook my head. “No time.”
“Got better things to do,” said Tetyana.
“Why? Are they actors?” I asked. “Famous people we should know?”
“Haven’t you guys heard of the Natural Born Killers?”
A chill went through me.
“I thought everybody knew who Caril and Charles were,” said Katy.
“Are you saying we have two serial killers in the house?” I whispered hoarsely.
“The real Caril and Charles are both dead. Their killing spree happened in the fifties.”
“Let me get this straight,” said Tetyana, “a young couple shows up out of nowhere in this house, and they have the same first names as two serial killers from decades ago?”
Katy gave a slow nod. “Weird, isn’t it?”
“Are you sure those are the exact same names as the Natural Born Killers?”
Katy nodded.
“They’ve got some gumption announcing themselves like that,” said Tetyana, frowning. “Especially if they’re planning on following in their namesakes’ steps.”
“God, I hope not,” said Katy, turning white.
We stared at each other silently, trying to digest this new piece of information.
I knew negativity bias was an innate human trait. Plus, it hadn’t helped that we had all gone through hell and back many times before. I had a tendency to jump to outlandish conclusions, especially during times of crisis.
Then again, being stuck in a decaying mansion deep in a remote mountain region with a dead body in the basement and all access to civilization cut off counted as a crisis.
“Could it be coincidence?” I said, forcing myself to see the other side. “Charles is a common name.”
“Caril isn’t,” said Katy. “The thing is, I’m sure those aren’t even their actual names.”
“What makes you say that?” I asked.
“I was cleaning the carrots and needed the paring knife. Caril had it next to her. I called her name three times. She was working at the counter but never looked up. Charles had to come over and nudge her. I know she’s not deaf. She was talking to me before, so that was weird.”
“So,” I said, “they’re not who they say they are.”
“Looks like we’ve got more digging to do, girls,” said Tetyana.
The labyrinth was getting even more convoluted, I thought with a sigh.
We would need all our firepower to survive this strange house.
BEFORE WE WALKED BACK inside, Tetyana, Katy and I had a furious debate on whether to warn the others about the mysterious hiker couple.
Tetyana was in the emphatic no corner, while Katy said an unequivocal yes. I wasn’t so sure we could trust anyone just yet, just like Mrs. Robinson had felt.
My vote was to wait and see before telling anything to anyone.
Tetyana slammed the car bonnet down and locked the car, and we walked back into the house.
I felt myself bracing as we entered through the side door. For what, I didn’t know. Bloodied bodies littered on the floor?
Inside the kitchen, Pastor Graham, Doctor Fulton, and Nancy were sitting around the counter, drinking coffee. The fireplace had been started, and the kitchen smelled of old-fashioned home cooking.
I felt my shoulders relax. They’re not dead, said a small voice from the back of my head. Not yet, anyway.
All three turned as we walked in.
“You ladies okay?” asked the doctor. “Car’s not in terrible shape, I hope.”
“Seems like we drew the short end of the stick at the rental car lot,” I replied, “but it should get us back to town once the bridge is fixed.”
Nancy let out a sigh.
“Hope that won’t take weeks. I’ll run out of flour.”
“Don’t want to scare you, but it might take a while,” said the pastor.
“How long is a while?” asked Nancy, screwing her eyes as she looked from the pastor to the doctor and back again.
The doctor shrugged. “Don’t look at me. I’m a doctor, not a civil engineer.”
Tetyana cleared her throat.
“If a few folks can give me a hand, I can get something decent up in a day or so,” she said.
Everyone turned to her.
“You can do that?” said Nancy, sitting up, eyes wide.
“A temporary makeshift crossing until you find a more permanent solution.”
Everyone at the kitchen counter was staring at her now.
“I’ll need a few sturdy planks, some basic construction equipment, and a couple of tall ladders to throw across the banks for scaffolding.”
“My goodness,” said the pastor, slapping the counter. “That would be super. By the time they rustle up a construction crew from town and all that, it could take days, maybe even a week, knowing them.”
“With the right equipment, it will take a day.”
“Well, you’re a godsend, my dear,” said the doctor giving her a smile. “Have you, er, done this sort of thing before?”
“Joined the army a few years back,” she said, not specifying which country. “Picked up a few essential skills.”
“Impressive,” said the pastor, looking at her in awe.
If only they knew, I thought.
“I’m no engineer but I can make do with the right stuff,” said Tetyana. “I will need some help though.”
“I’m a little too old to carry planks for you,” said the doctor, “but I’d be happy to hand you the tools and make you tea.”
“Used to be a strapping young man once,” said the pastor, giving her a wistful look, “can lend you some muscle, if you’ll take old muscle.”
“I’ll take help wherever I can get it.”
The doctor’s frown had disappeared. He let out a relieved sigh. “Seems like I got stuck here with the right folks,” he said, bringing his tea mug up as a salute to Tetyana. “Thank you.”
“Where’s Jim?” I said. “We could do with his help too.”
“Feeding the horses,” said Nancy, pursing her lips. Her face turned a slight pink. “I think.”
She’s mad at him about something.
“What about the couple?” asked Katy, looking around the kitchen. “Where are they?”
Nancy shrugged. “In their room, I guess, keeping to themselves.”
“Exhausted, probably, after that hike through the mountains all night. That must have been hellish,” said the pastor, shaking his head. “Nancy didn’t give them much of a break this morning either.”
“How they didn’t get hypothermia is a miracle,” said the doctor, frowning at his tea mug.
The pastor stood up.
“Coffee?” he asked, friendly now that we had turned out to be useful.
Tetyana shook her head.
“I’d like to get a head start. I’ll scope the barn for any material we can use.”
The pastor’s smile vanished instantly.
“The barn?”
“Is it locked?”
A dark shadow crossed his face.
“I’ll get Jim to show you around.”
“No need to bother him if he’s busy with the horses. I can look.”
“No,” said the pastor, his voice so forceful, even the doctor and Nancy shot him surprised looks.
“Lots of heavy equipment in there.” He paused as if he was choosing his words carefully. “It’s not safe for you to go in there by yourself.”
Chapter Thir
ty-five
Tetyana rattled the doorknob.
“What if the killer’s inside?” whispered Katy from below. She was standing at the foot of the steps, refusing to come up to the door with us.
It was Tetyana’s idea to check out the cabin in the woods first.
We’d told the coffee crew in the kitchen we were going to explore the woods for lumber to build the footbridge.
Though we knew a perfectly usable pile of planks were stacked next to the barn, the pastor didn’t volunteer that information. He looked relieved to know we weren’t going anywhere near the barn.
“If someone’s squatting here illegally,” said Tetyana, banging on the cabin door, “we have a darn good reason to find out who it is.”
“We’re not the official owners yet,” I said. “Even if the codicil is legit, there’ll be tons of paperwork to do. We must handle this delicately with the family too.”
“Damn the family,” said Tetyana, taking what looked like a penknife from her pocket and bending over to the keyhole. She stuck the pointy end inside and wiggled it.
I stepped down and signaled to Katy to follow me. “Let’s go check the back.” If Tetyana had decided to break into the cabin, I wasn’t going to be able to stop her.
If my found-family had one common characteristic, it was that we all had an independent, stubborn streak. Once one of us had made up our minds, no amount of cajoling, pleading, reasoning or even bribing could sway us.
It had been true ten years ago when we had all met under adverse circumstances. It was still true today.
Katy and I walked around the cabin, watching our steps and keeping our eyes open for anyone or anything suspicious.
The sky was overcast, a dull gray that sucked any joy left from the day. The sun had disappeared behind the clouds again and from far away, I could hear the angry rumblings of a storm in the distance. But at least we had enough daylight to make out our surroundings in the woods.
As we toured the little structure, I realized it was in better condition than the manor. The ground was uneven in this part of the woods, so thick wooden stilts had raised part of the cabin. Whoever had constructed this had taken care to do a good job.
Merciless Legacy: Merciless Murder - A Thrilling Closed Circle Mystery Series Page 16