by Sandy Smyth
“I’m sure we’ll find out eventually. Why don’t you come with me to see Mrs. Mallory?” We might be able to delay dinner for a while, or else take food down to the pool room for the teams. We might even want to order in pizzas and maybe buckets of chicken for later tonight for the M-G crew. What do you think?”
“I think I’m the luckiest man in the world to have you, Kate. I love you very much, and I’m so sorry today turned out to be such a disaster. I had everything planned out you know, right down to the tiniest detail,” Tom said wryly.
“It’s my firm belief that everything works out for the best, most of the time. Let’s go, Tom. I’m starving.”
Chapter 6
“Tell us how you found this, Connor,” said Mike. “I’d like to get as much information as we can before Sheriff Whittaker arrives. He said he was only a few minutes away from here.” He looked at the thin, gangly twenty-five-year-old youth with his freckled face, intense concentration, and the stubborn cowlick standing straight up from his sandy hair, wondering if he’d ever been that young.
Connor gestured around him. “We had cleared this area just fifteen minutes previously. We wanted to get the peripheral area of the room checked out before we did the inside of the pool later tonight. I thought I’d take another quick look at the place. You know, the waterfall, the island, everything. It’s the most unique place I’ve ever seen, and frankly, I was anticipating checking it out later tonight. As my eyes swept the pool for the last time I noticed a trail of water leading from the side of the pool to the plants in back. It looked like someone tried to wipe the water up, but was interrupted before he finished. I didn’t recall seeing any water earlier, so I followed the tracks, and this is what I found.”
“Good work, Connor. John, can you turn the pool lights full on? We need to find out how this guy entered.” Mike squatted down next to the window where the inside and outside pools were kept separate by the sliding glass panel.
“It looks as if the glass goes all the way to the bottom, Mike, at least from this angle. We’ll have to go down,” said John, and began unbuttoning his shirt.
“I’ll go. I’ll go!” said Connor as he whipped off his shirt and kicked off his shoes. He suddenly stopped and looked around in consternation, his face flushed and red. “I mean, if you want me to, I’ll be happy to go down and check it out.”
“Go ahead, but be careful. If that glass has been cut, it will have sharp edges,” said John, trying to hide his amusement.
He’d hardly gotten the words out of his mouth when Connor dove into the water with barely a splash, his trousers tossed on top of his shoes and shirt. They watched as he swam to the bottom of the channel, looked around, and then swam under the partition to the outside pool and looked around the sides of the panel. He swam back under the panel and straight up to where Mike and John were waiting and started talking as soon as his head broke water.
“Don’t believe the panel is glass, but some type of polymer. The bottom of the panel was approximately a foot and a half above the concrete bottom of the pool. And since the edges of the panel were beveled, it wasn’t cut. There were some large, heavy scratches where the panel met the wall of the pool. It could indicate that someone had a problem installing it, since it would have to have been done underwater. I believe the plastic panel was switched with the original glass one not long ago because the scratches look relatively new.” Connor finally took a deep breath and continued. “I’ll be happy to check for anything else down there if you want me to.”
As Connor pulled himself from the water, John tossed him a towel. “Not right now, Connor. I think we’ll wait for the sheriff to arrive first.”
* * * *
Sheriff Ben Whittaker was not a happy man. He had missed lunch earlier today when he came out here, and it looked as if he was going to miss his dinner, too. He followed Tom and Kate down to the pool, marveling again at the incredible things that money could provide. Yet, he was here because there were problems, problems that had put Tom in a wheelchair and were continuing to threaten him.
As they entered the pool room Mike waved them over to the back wall of the pool area. There, amidst a lushly fragrant group of flowers, was a large envelope with Tom’s name printed in capital letters. Next to the envelope was a gun. The hand grip of the gun was wedged into the earth with the barrel pointed out at anyone approaching the envelope.
“No one has touched the envelope or the gun. We called you immediately. Our instruments have not detected any wiring anywhere in the area that could be attached to an explosive. The gun itself, while appearing threatening, is obviously missing a trigger. Apparently this guy entered from the outside pool. We did find that the glass panel that separated the pools was replaced with a shorter plastic panel that doesn’t go to the bottom of the pool. That’s all we can tell you at this point.”
After examining the scene, Sheriff Whittaker joined Tom and Kate. “Ma’am.” He nodded to Kate as he removed his hat and placed it on the table. “Tom, as soon as the area is photographed and the evidence bagged, we can slit the envelope and find out if there is a message inside and maybe learn what this is all about.”
“Ben, would you like to see the photos Connor took while waiting for Mike and me to get down here? We can make copies for you if that will save any time, or you’re welcome to use our digital camera and take your own photos.” John made a motion to Connor, imitating taking a picture. Connor picked up a folder and the camera and brought them to the Sheriff. Ben took the folder and opened it, scanning the photo on top.
“Carolanne just finished printing up the photographs I took. Before she left to take some sandwiches to Trey and Mark upstairs, she said a couple of the photos were very interesting and needed to be looked at more closely. She said she put them on top. I haven’t had a chance to go over them yet. There! That shadow. Look at that! He’s just going under the panel to the outside pool. Look! Look at that! This next picture just shows his feet. Oh, my God, thirty seconds earlier and I would have caught him. Just thirty lousy seconds. Oh, well, at least we know how he got in and out of here” he said dejectedly.
“One piece of advice,” Ben said as the photos were passed around. “Lose the coulda, shoulda, woulda crap, and all of the ‘if onlys.’ They keep your mind on what you did or didn’t do in the past, not what you need to do in the present and in the future. You did one hell of a job with these photos, Connor. And so did Carol—?”
“Carolanne,” said Connor.
“Right, Carolanne. The focal point of the photo was the watery track in the background, yet she was thorough enough that she examined the whole picture and was able to pick out a suspicious shadow in the water on the far edge of the picture. It could have been an easy miss for any of us. Okay, let’s get the evidence bagged and see if we can find out what’s going on.”
It was a work of just moments to get the gun lifted, bagged, and labeled. They picked the large envelope up using the tweezers and slipped it into a large plastic evidence bag. Connor held the envelope through the evidence bag while Ben used his knife to slit open the top and the tweezers to remove the two sheets of paper inside.
There were copies of two photographs on each page. The photographs were taken with the zoom lens of a camera which was jury-rigged to the barrel of a rifle. It appeared that a crude bulls-eye target had been hand painted on the lens of the camera, with the center circle an outline, showing the photographed face of the intended target perfectly lined up with the sight on the barrel of the rifle. Kate and Tom were on one sheet, and Mike and John on the other. The words hand printed on each sheet were, You will never know when.
“Motherfucking goddamned son of a bitch!” raged John as he reached for the photos, only to have his wrist clamped firmly by Ben.
“He’s playing you, John! Get control of yourself. Connor,” said Ben. “Do you have any clear plastic sheet protectors? If so, I need two, now! The rest of you can try to figure out where the photos were taken by what little backgr
ound is showing. It looks as though all four head shots were taken at roughly the same time and place.”
“Here you go, Sheriff.” Connor handed the sheet protectors to Ben, and then turned to John and to Mike, who was trying to pull John away. “I need to talk to you both about personnel. I don’t think we have enough coverage in a place this big. I’ve already called Don Phelps and Ryan Underwood, and they’re available and on the way. If you don’t think we need them, let me know now so I can get back to them right away. I’d also like to call Sophie and Gina, if that’s okay.”
“Good, call them. The quicker they all get here, the better. But everyone has to be aware of the threat this asshole has made,” said Mike. “We can’t guarantee that he won’t target any of our employees, and they have to know that up front. What do you think, John?”
“Mike’s right, Connor. Get back to those guys before they get too far and make damn sure they understand the threat and that it could extend to our people, too. There will be no blame for anyone wanting to leave. Hell, I want to leave. Did you bring any weapons, vests, night vision equipment?” At Connor’s emphatic nod and his barely concealed excitement, John smiled wryly and continued.
“Okay then, all employees have completed our weapons training program and should have their licenses with them, so those who stay are to be fully armed and ready for anything.”
“Tom,” John called out. “The privacy shades on these windows should be lowered. I know the windows are already coated so that we can see out, and that it’s difficult, though not impossible, for anyone to see in, but I want to make sure we’re not sitting ducks for anyone with a high-powered rifle.”
“Got it,” said Tom. He used the remote to lower the blinds and to close the blackout curtains on all windows in the pool room.
“Connor,” Mike said. “I want you to pull the van into the garage before you finish unloading it. Get Trey and Mark to go with you. You will need to tell both of them exactly what is going on and ask if they want to leave. You may tell them that any employee who wishes to leave will be paid for the entire week. Those who are staying are to be sent down here to view these pictures. If they look at the pictures and still want to stay, they’ll be getting a ‘high risk’ bonus when this is over.”
“One other thing, Connor,” said John. “We need to transfer our command center down here. The library is just too far away. We’ve had our jamming equipment running down here so that we can discuss our plans of operation without fear of being overheard, but the inside pool, island, hot tub, and waterfall still need to be checked out for hidden cameras and listening devices. Let your teams know where the extra swimsuits, robes, and towels are located. Maybe they can get some enjoyment out of this mess.
“The secret entrance and exit from the physical therapy room was sealed earlier, but we haven’t yet come up with a way to seal that water channel to the outside pool, so we need an armed guard here all night to prevent access through that channel. We should have the channel blocked soon. You and your teams can come up with a rotation schedule to provide everyone a chance at guarding as well as a swimming check and doing an electronics sweep. I want at least two armed people in this area at all times. In fact, everybody is to work in pairs. No exceptions, Connor, even you are not to run around alone, and that’s an order.”
“Got it, boss,” Connor said and lifted his cell phone and began talking. He nodded to Carolanne as she entered the room.
“Did I just hear you right?” Sheriff Whittaker loudly demanded of Mike and John. “You’re arming these kids with guns and live ammo? What the hell is the matter with you? They’ll end up shooting each other or shooting at shadows all night long. You can’t just hand out guns to your employees on a whim. They need extensive training.”
“Calm down, Ben. They’re all licensed by the state to carry. And they’ve all been through extensive training, not only our own training program, but also the state’s program.”
Ben stiffened as he felt someone walk up behind him, invading his space. He could tell it was a female by the delicate scent that accompanied her. He froze as she moved to within an inch from his back and leaned slightly forward and spoke directly in his ear.
“I’ve got my license, Sheriff,” she whispered in his ear, then paused. “Would you like to check me out?” The smooth rasp of her velvety voice conjured up erotic images that had Ben fighting to control an escalating erection. She was so close that he could feel the heat from her body and her breath warming his shoulder.
Slowly he turned his head. He looked over his shoulder directly into a pair of wide, whiskey-colored eyes framed by short, dark eyelashes. Heat shot straight to his groin, igniting a throbbing flash of desire as his cock went to full alert, ready for action. He could see an answering flare of awareness and instant desire in her eyes as she held his gaze. Her lips were eminently kissable, not too full and not too thin. Her hair was a deep chestnut, with threads of russet, dark brown and burgundy scattered throughout. She wore it tied back at the nape of her neck. Her age had to be mid to late thirties.
Ben had to take two steps forward before he could turn around and see all of her. She was tall, maybe an inch or two shorter than he was, and wouldn’t she fit perfectly in his arms. His eyes leisurely followed a downward path, past breasts that were buxom and enticing. Her hips were solid and her denim-covered legs seemed to go on forever, ending in well-worn cowboy boots that just about matched his own. Hoo-boy! Yee-hah! Damn, but she was his kind of woman.
“Hi, there, Sheriff, I’m Carolanne Higgins,” she said, holding out her hand.
Ben captured her hand in his and raised it to his lips as he stared into her whiskey-colored eyes.
“Is that Mrs. Higgins or Miss Higgins?” Ben asked directly, still holding on to her hand.
“You can just call me Carolanne,” she said with a sultry smile, then relented as she held his gaze. “I’m divorced and not involved with anyone at the present time.”
“I can’t tell you how glad I am to hear that, Carolanne.” Ben gave an exaggerated sigh of relief and smiled at her chuckle.
“Hey, Carolanne, come on over here,” Connor called from across the room. “You need to look at these photos we took out of the envelope that was left here. The bosses want every employee to look at these photos and decide if they want to stay or not.”
“Be right there, Connor,” she said, still looking into Ben’s eyes as she slowly tugged her hand from his.
“A pleasure meeting you, Sheriff.”
“Ben. You can call me Ben. And I’m divorced and not involved with anyone either.”
“That’s good to know, Ben.” Carolanne smiled warmly, then turned and walked across the room to Connor.
Ben continued to watch as Carolanne bent over the table to examine the photographs. As he shook his head and started to turn back to Tom and Kate, he grabbed his hat off of the table, holding it in front of himself.
“Before I leave,” Ben said. “I’m going to check the outside pool and the area just beyond. Even though it’s too dark tonight to find much of a trail, maybe we’ll get lucky and find that he dropped his wallet,” he said with wry sarcasm.
Mike and John stood. “We’ll go with you, Ben. We should be able to cover a wider area with the three of us looking,” said John. “Wait here until I get our jackets and some night vision equipment for when we get beyond the yard lights. Ben, I’ll bring your coat and a pair of goggles for you, too.”
Kate walked up to Mike and Ben. “Make sure the three of you come back down here when you’re through with your inspection. That includes you, Sheriff. Mrs. Mallory made enough food for an army. So don’t let her food go to waste. It’s too good.”
“I surely would hate to have good food go to waste, and I appreciate your hospitality. Much obliged, ma’am.”
“Sheriff, I have a feeling we’re going to be seeing a lot of each other in the future. Please, call me Kate. Ma’am makes me feel like a grandmother.”
Be
n smiled. “Believe me, Kate, no one would ever mistake you for a grandmother.”
Chapter 7
A frigid wind whipped the wet leaves into a frenzy and then swirled around his hiding place, seeking every cold, wet surface on his body. On his belly, he slowly backed away from the suddenly darkened windows throughout the pool area and moved into the sheltering darkness. Fury began displacing the euphoric high he’d been on since his success earlier today.
He should have just waited and killed Tom Martins this morning instead of leaving those notes on his bed. He didn’t like making mistakes. And that was a big, big mistake. But damn it, he’d had to do something to get that relieved, no, that happy…that satisfied expression off of his face. He had needed to see the fear back, the desperation, the knowledge that his life was effectively over.
Now they’d found and cut off his access to the warm, dry, hidden passage behind the physical therapy room. For almost two years that space had been his secret refuge, his secret joy. Hour after hour he had spent in comfort, watching his enemy. Sometimes he’d even sleep back there. Now he would no longer have the pleasure of watching his hated enemy suffer through the excruciatingly painful exercises, nor would he now be able to wander freely around the house whenever they were gone. They had even found two of his cameras and his listening devices in that room. He’d had to use the outside pool to access the house this evening.
Rage twisted in his gut as he realized the chances were great that they’d already found his other message in the back of the pool room. That wasn’t supposed to be found until he was ready for the next step. And, damn it, he wasn’t ready yet. The worst was when he’d come within inches of being caught. The adrenaline that had drop-loaded into his system at that time was just starting to abate. He was coming down, hard. He would still have access to the house through the outside pool if that damned nosy kid had been where he was supposed to be, and where did all of those people suddenly come from? He inched backward on his stomach until he reached the woods, his body now almost violently reacting to the bitterly cold winds.