Roberta had been at her shop since eight that morning. Kitty lay in the guest room playing Angry Birds on my iPhone. There was no cell signal on the hill, so I wasn’t missing any calls from Quinn by letting her use it.
I kept the sliding glass doors open so I’d hear the landline phone. But it hadn’t rung. Not one brrrring. Not one trill.
I was completely cut off from the man I loved and worried sick that he’d run into trouble with Big Fred.
An hour later, I walked back inside to use the facilities and check the phone for a dial tone.
It was working fine, and there was still no call from Quinn.
Ruby sat in her cage on the table by the couch. “Gimme cookies! Pretty bird!”
“Ruby, I just fed you a few hours ago. Are you really hungry again?”
The red bird hopped onto her swing, cocked her head, and repeated three times, “Feed Ruby! You da man!”
“Okay, baby. Here you go. But I’m not your man, sweetie. He’s…” I teared up, then refilled her dish, freshened her water, and opened the door to pet her. She leaned her head against my fingers and let me stroke her neck.
“Where’s your daddy, honey? Huh?”
Ruby remained quiet.
“When’s he gonna call?”
Ruby busied herself in her seed tray and seemed to tune me out.
Food always won; it was never even a contest.
On the way back to the porch, the phone rang. I ran, slipping on the clean linoleum, and knocked my knee against a side table. Lunging for the phone, I practically shouted into it. “Hello?”
“Marcella, it’s me.”
Relief flooded through me. “Quinn! Are you okay?”
His voice was raspy. “Not really.”
My heart thumped. “What’s wrong?”
“Are you sitting down?”
I took the handset over to the couch and plopped onto it. “I am now.”
He paused; his breathing sounded ragged. “Birdie’s dead.”
My heart skipped a beat. “What?”
“She was murdered around the time Kitty came to us.”
“Murdered?” I shifted the phone to my other ear. “Who did it?”
“I’m not sure. But she was left to rot in the woods. They just found her body yesterday. She was badly beaten and stabbed in the chest.”
I slumped back against the cushions. “My God.”
He didn’t speak for a while, and when he did, his voice quavered. “Yeah. It’s unbelievable.”
“Do they have a suspect?”
“Everyone’s talking about a drifter who was supposedly seen around the reservation that day. The locals are all blaming it on him. I don’t know what the cops think. I need to get Copper to dig into this for us.”
I sat for a few minutes, thinking hard. “Maybe Kitty witnessed the murder. She knows who did it, Quinn. That’s why they’re after her.”
“Exactly what I thought,” he said.
“If that’s true, then Big Fred is not only a rapist, but a cold-blooded killer.”
“That’s my guess. He probably killed Birdie to keep her quiet about the rape. I found out he’s campaigning for congress. Wants to be one of the first native people to hold that office from our area.”
I breathed in and out slowly. “So he needs a squeaky clean record.”
“Right.”
“God, Quinn. I’m so sorry.”
He was silent for a few seconds. “I’ll be home tonight. I’ll call when I get to Speculator. You stay put and I’ll pick you and Kitty up at Roberta’s, okay?”
I gripped the phone tightly. I didn’t want to let him go. “Okay. Be careful now. Don’t let them see you.”
“It’s okay. I’ve been getting all the information from my grandfather’s brother, Nandi. We’ve had some long talks. But I haven’t left his house the whole time. Nobody could’ve seen me.”
“You sure you can trust him, Quinn? What if he’s in on things with Big Fred?”
“I trust him. He hates Fred.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. If you met him, you’d know what I mean. He’s a crusty old bastard, who doesn’t mince words.”
“Maybe I could meet him some day.”
He was quiet for a minute, then sighed. “Yeah. You really should meet him. When all this is over.”
“Okay. Now get here in one piece, okay? Ruby and I miss you way too much.”
“Will do. See you soon.”
I replaced the handset gently, stroking the plastic with my finger as if it were Quinn’s hand. I missed him so much, the ache grew stronger with every passing hour.
Ruby chirped from her perch. “You da man!” She danced side to side, shaking her beak and flapping her wings.
I sat by her cage, watching her antics. “Yes, honey. That was your daddy. He’s coming home soon.”
With a heavy heart, I headed into the guest room to have a one-sided conversation with Kitty. It wasn’t going to be pretty.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Kitty looked up from my iPhone with a questioning expression in her eyes. She sat up, pushing back a stray lock of glossy hair. Dak jumped on the bed beside her, circled, and promptly fell asleep again.
“Hi, honey.” I sat down on the bed and gently took the phone from her. “I just talked to Quinn.”
Her eyes widened in fear. I had a feeling she’d been scared to death that Fred or one of his cronies would hurt him.
“No worries,” I touched her hand. “He’s okay.”
She backed up to the pillows at the head of the bed and pulled her knees to her chest, peering through a curtain of hair. Her dark eyes darted around the room, looking everywhere but at me.
Did she know what I was about to tell her?
I moved a little closer to her and slipped an arm around her shoulder. “Kitty?”
She slowly dragged her eyes to mine.
“I have some bad news for you. But I think maybe you already know what I’m going to tell you. It’s about Birdie.”
Before I could go further, big tears welled in her eyes and flowed down her cheeks.
“You know Birdie’s gone, don’t you?”
She nodded and laid her head on her knees.
“Did you see what happened, honey? Is that why you left the reservation?”
Another nod.
“Can you tell me what happened? Can you tell me who’s after you?”
Her shoulders shook now, and the heaving sobs began.
I gently brushed her hair back from her face. “Kitty. Listen. If you can somehow tell us what happened… if you could write it down…or answer yes or no to our questions, then the police could arrest the killer and he wouldn’t be chasing us anymore.”
With a sudden flare of fear, she shook her head and scurried back into the corner. I watched as her face grew impassive, her eyes blanked, and all expression disappeared. She turned on her side and closed her eyes, holding herself and rocking.
I pulled the quilt up over her and leaned down to kiss her cheek. “It’s okay, honey. You rest now. We can try again later.”
Roberta’s voice startled me.
“What happened, Marcella?”
I turned to see my aunt laden with bags of groceries, leaning against the doorjamb. I wasn’t sure how long she’d been watching us.
I jumped up to help her and closed Kitty’s door. “Come on. I’ll tell you in the kitchen.”
We set the bags on the counter and started putting food away.
“The good news is, Quinn called, and he’s coming home.”
Roberta placed three avocadoes in a bowl on the counter. “Thank God. I was starting to worry.” She straightened and reached for the carrots. “What’s the bad news?”
I stood with a bag of Pink Lady apples in my hands and stared out the kitchen window. The unmoving dark pines were unaffected by the news that shuddered through me. “It’s Birdie.” I turned to her and felt my resolve shatter. “She’s dead. T
hey killed her.”
“Holy St. Peter.” Roberta took the apples from me and set them aside, then pulled out a chair for me to sit in. “Are you okay? Sit here, dear, and tell me all about it.”
I started to shake, then steeled myself and told her what I knew. “Quinn said they found her body in the woods yesterday.”
“Good Lord. That poor girl.” Roberta opened a bag of oranges and set them in a bowl on the table. Quietly, she finished stowing the rest of the groceries. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s sit down with a cup of tea.”
I wasn’t sure why I was reacting this way. Of course I was horrified that Birdie was dead. And I figured I knew who did it. It had to be Fred or his men. But I didn’t know this woman, had never met her. Why was it suddenly hitting me so hard? Why did I feel like a rag doll who’d lost all her stuffing?
My insides slid further downhill into a dark pool of sadness. I felt numb, yet on fire. I was unable to move, yet wanted to run away. Far away.
I hadn’t known Birdie. I’d only seen her in the visions through Kitty. Maybe it was because I’d felt Kitty’s love for her, or because I knew how much Quinn had cared for her in his youth. It felt personal. Very personal.
Had Kitty really watched her friend be killed?
“Are you okay, Marcella?” Roberta brought me back with a hug and a peck on my cheek.
I looked up and smiled. “Sorry. It just sort of hit me. That poor woman. She was so beautiful, so alive in the vision Kitty showed me.”
“I know, dear. It’s awful.”
I looked around for Mimi, suddenly realizing she wasn’t in the house. “Where’s Mimi?”
“I left her with my girl at the shop. She’s good protection for her.”
“Protection?” I grabbed Roberta’s hand. “From what?”
“Listen, honey. We’ve got trouble.”
A tingle of fear rushed along my spine. “What’s going on?”
She pushed a teacup toward me. “People are starting to ask questions about Kitty’s whereabouts in Speculator. I was just up at Charlie Johns, and Lane told me two men—both natives—had been in at different times, casually inquiring about you, Quinn, and the girl.”
I stood and paced. “Two of them?”
“Yeah. He said they’ve been hanging around Speculator, sitting outside Frosty’s. Lane’s not positive, but his cashiers know Quinn pretty well. They know about Tall Pines. And everyone there knows I’m your aunt.” She took a deep breath and grabbed my hand. “Something may’ve slipped out.”
I leaned against the sink and peered out the window, searching the woods. “Do the cashiers know where you live?”
“Uh huh.” She startled and jumped up, locking the kitchen door. Her eyes scanned the woods. “But anyone can look me up in the phone book, too. It’s not a secret.”
“We’d better call Copper.”
“My thoughts, exactly, chickipoo.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
I automatically reached for my iPhone, frowning when I realized Kitty had it, then remembered anyway I couldn’t get a signal here.
Roberta noticed and pointed to the landline. “It’s the only thing that works up here.”
“Right, I forgot.” I rolled my eyes and hurried over to the desk, dialing Callie’s number. I waited a minute, then depressed and released the button a few times. “What the heck?” I looked at the phone as if it were human. “Shoot. I don’t have a dial tone.”
Robert hurried to my side. “Didn’t Quinn just call you on this phone?”
“Yeah, like half an hour ago.”
Roberta took the handset from me, listened for herself, and stiffened. “Someone’s cut the line.” Her mouth tensed, and she stood erect, listening. “Was that a car door shutting?”
I hurried to the bay window that overlooked the parking area. “A Jeep. With two guys in it. Running toward the house,” I said. My heart nearly thumped out of my chest.
“They must’ve followed me.” Roberta pulled me back from the window, closing the drapes. “Get back.” We huddled for a minute in the living room, but in seconds, Roberta pointed toward the front door. “Oh, God.”
I followed her gaze. The front door knob twisted back and forth. A shadow wavered behind the frosted glass window. No one knocked.
Whispering, I dragged her into the hall that led to Kitty’s room. “We’ve gotta get out of here.”
“Darn tootin’.” Roberta snapped into action, grabbing her rifle from the corner behind the sofa. “Get your coats, your backpack, and meet me down in the cellar. We’ll go out the storm door.”
I saw a shadow at the kitchen door behind the yellow frilly curtain, and stifled a surprised yell. “They’re around back, too!” We both ducked, then slid around the corner into Kitty’s room.
“Hurry. The cellar door is on the side of the house. Maybe we can sneak out without them seeing us.”
In seconds I grabbed Kitty, our coats, and stuffed my purse into the knapsack that already held my oils. I snapped Dak’s leash on and he pranced and frolicked after me, as if we were going for a walk in the woods. I didn’t have time to pack food or water, and lamented the fact that we didn’t have an emergency escape plan. I should have thought about it before this.
Kitty and Dak both followed me like lambs down the cellar stairs, and we quickly joined Roberta.
My aunt wore a coat with multiple bulging pockets. Maybe she had her own emergency plan? She pointed to my rucksack. “Open your pack. Hurry!”
She stuffed an assortment of things inside, then slung it on her back and tucked her rifle under her arm. Urging us toward the steps that ended beneath a slanted wooden door, she whispered. “Move!”
Upstairs, the sound of loud knocking was followed by a splintering crash. I worried about leaving Ruby behind, but figured if she was quiet they might not take notice of her, especially if they were intent upon finding and killing a beautiful young Seneca girl who knew enough to send their big boss to jail.
Roberta unlocked and slid open the bulkhead door a crack. She pressed her eye against it, then took a deep breath and pushed it all the way open. “It’s clear. Come on.”
We hurried out the door and gently closed it again, then sprinted after Roberta toward the closest trees edging the forest. A beige Jeep was parked in Roberta’s drive, and out of the corner of my eye I saw shadows moving rapidly through the house.
Two men. Moving fast.
We didn’t have long before they’d realize we’d escaped.
I pulled Kitty along beside me, ducking beneath heavy pine branches and trying not to stumble. Roberta was not following any path, and I wondered what she was thinking. Wouldn’t they be able to track us faster this way, with all the grass matted down and branches broken? If these guys were Seneca, they were probably experts in tracking prey.
“Roberta,” I huffed. “Where are we going?”
She put one finger to her lips and beckoned me to follow her.
Who was I to argue? She had the rifle, knew the land, and was one of the toughest mountain women I’d ever known. I figured I’d better just shut up and listen to her.
We’d been running for about five minutes when I heard shouting back at the house. The language was not English, and Kitty reacted violently to their words.
Face frozen in fear, she now pulled me along behind her, almost catching up with Roberta. Dak romped at our sides, apparently not sensing the danger. My loving puppy didn’t exactly fit into the watchdog category.
In the distance, a large shape loomed. Roberta dragged a green camouflage canvas off the mechanical monster, revealing a vehicle much like a John Deere Gator, but this thing was very old and painted dark olive and brown. It almost looked like a mini-Jeep with army colors. With two bucket seats in the front and a bench seat in the back, it was perfect for our escape.
Roberta reached under the wheel hub and came up with a key holder. She slid it open and palmed the key. “Get in. Hurry!”
Roberta and Kitty got in the
front and Dak and I jumped in the back. I nervously glanced toward the house. The men raced toward us, waving and shouting.
The words escaped me in a hollow whisper. “Oh, God. They’ve seen us.”
Three shots rang out, shattering overhead branches. The guns they were using weren’t your standard handguns. They must have had scopes on them, or something that allowed them to lock into us at a great distance and nearly take our heads off.
Without waiting for another round, Roberta gunned the engine and took off. This time, she headed for a clearly marked narrow trail, and barreled down it at breakneck speed.
I swiveled around to keep watch from the back. The Jeep in the driveway roared to life, bumped and bounced over the lawn, and crashed through the trees in our general direction.
I shouted in Roberta’s ear. “They’re after us. In the Jeep.”
“Hang on,” Roberta yelled. “We’re going off-road.”
I grabbed Dak and the roll bar. Roberta took a side track through a group of white birches. Branches slapped at me, knocking me down onto the seat. The grassy trail blurred past us—lime green and yellow grasses stretched forever beneath the forest of birches. In seconds, we took another turn, following a roaring creek that snaked uphill.
The growl of the Jeep grew louder. Somehow, they managed to crush whatever was in front of them and maneuver around the trees.
“They’re gaining on us,” I cried.
“Hold on!” Roberta glanced sideways, wrenching the wheel to the right, down a bumpy curving trail that seemed to melt into the hard shale lining the sides of the river. Down, down we went, shimmying sideways and nearly rolling on several occasions. Now we rode along the riverbed, splashing sprays of water in great arcing bursts as we gained altitude on the hill.
No way they can get the Jeep down here.
I looked back, glad to see they hadn’t followed us, but in one horrified glance I spotted them about five hundred yards behind us, following the river on a road above that paralleled the shore.
Shots rang out, zinging past my head and pinging the metal of our vehicle.
“Get down!” Roberta shouted, pushing Kitty to the seat with one strong arm.
I grabbed Dak and made him lie down beneath me, huddling as low as I could.
Tall Pines Mysteries: A Mystery/Suspense Boxed Set Page 60