I brought the Kleenex box closer to us, realizing I’d been crying right along with my friend. My cheeks were soaked. My throat felt dry. My heart ached.
And then the guilt stabbed me.
My husband would be fine. He’d endured a short surgery to stitch up his insides that were nicked by Valentino’s knife. But the liver wasn’t punctured, as the doctors first thought. And he’d be fine. Alive. Well. Ready to welcome me back to our marriage, if I could just behave myself and stop my insane longing for Sky.
Quinn slept in a hospital bed two floors above us. He’d been the first to emerge from the operating room, and we were told he’d recover in a few weeks.
Sky lay in his own room, two doors down from Quinn. He had a concussion and they wanted to watch him for a few days.
We’d bopped from room to room for a while, returning each time to the waiting room to sit on the uncomfortable chairs to await news of Copper’s surgery. Hours later, here we still sat.
McCann stayed all night with us, bringing coffee and helping to check at the desk when we thought we couldn’t wait another minute for a report from the operating rooms. He’d left a few hours ago to go back to his hotel to shower and change.
Guilt hit me again.
Quinn would survive.
What had I done to deserve this? I’d practically jumped on Sky in that cold cave. I’d been aching for his touch. I’d been willing it to happen.
And yet, my husband would live.
Callie’d done nothing but love Copper. She cooked her meals and washed her clothes and worried about her when she went on duty. She was a devoted lover and partner.
I sighed, cuddling Callie to me. It was so unfair.
“Marcie? What will I do if I lose her?” she sobbed.
I hushed her, rubbing her back and crying right along with her. “Don’t worry, honey. We’ll take care of you. We’re here for you. She’ll pull through.”
McCann appeared in the doorway, freshly showered and changed. Only his eyes showed evidence of the long night he’d pulled at our side. “Marcella? Can I see you for a minute?”
Sky appeared behind McCann, dressed in a too-short hospital gown, wheeling an IV pole behind him. “Callie. Oh, God. Come here, sis.”
Callie flew into Sky’s arms. “You—you shouldn’t be out of bed.”
Sky managed to wrap her in one arm and pull her to his side. “This old skull’s a lot tougher than the docs know, hon. And don’t you worry. Copper’s a strong woman. She’ll pull through.”
He huddled with his sister on one side of the room, comforting her as fresh sobs escaped her raw throat.
McCann motioned me out to the outer waiting room. I followed.
Now what?
Chapter 39
McCann touched my sleeve, beckoning me to follow him. “Walk with me.”
I followed him to the coffee machine, wondering what he needed from me at a time like this. “Cream and sugar,” I said, when he pointed to the selection buttons.
We took our too-hot-to-hold coffees to a quiet area of the waiting room and sat together.
“Are you okay?” he asked. His face showed the strain of the past few days.
I loosed a crazy-sounding laugh. “Not really.”
He patted my arm. “Of course you aren’t. But I’m concerned about you.”
I took a sip of coffee, scalding my tongue. “Considering I just killed someone, watched my husband practically die before my eyes, was nearly raped by a freaking lunatic, and have a good friend fighting for her life as we speak, I’d say it’s a miracle I’m still standing.”
He chuckled, but his eyes stayed serious. “For sure.” He shifted in his seat and I sensed there was more.
“What?”
He looked at his watch. “Listen. I’ll need a statement from you sometime soon. Maybe you can come down to the station this afternoon? My boss is on my back to get the facts down. You know the drill.”
“I don’t, really. But I understand. It’s your job.”
“I’m sure they won’t charge you, Marcella. But a man was killed, so we have to go through the motions.”
I sat up, bristling. “Charge me? Cripes, McCann. I should hope not.” I huffed. “My God. I did your job for you.”
He grimaced. “Well, yeah. You kinda did. Except we would’ve cuffed him instead of running him over with a snowmobile.”
“He was aiming a rifle at my head, Gordon. He shot out my windshield.”
With a nod, he patted my hand again. “I know, I know. No worries.”
He rose to leave, but I tugged at his sleeve. “Did you find them yet?”
He frowned. “You mean the missing girls?”
I stood up. “Yeah. I was thinking of Ginny and her daughter, Aria. Any word? Any phone calls?”
“No.” He shook his head. “We still don’t know why in God’s name the kidnapper called Ginny. It’s so out of the pattern, it’s really bizarre.”
I lowered my voice. “Did you know she has leukemia, Gordon?”
He hadn’t known, and it showed in his surprised eyes. “Who? Ginny? What?”
“Aria.”
“Oh, crap. Really?”
“Yeah. Ginny told me. Just before she got the phone call.”
“That’s a wrinkle I hadn’t anticipated. Do you know if she was currently in treatment for it?”
I thought about it for a minute. “Well, I know her mom was working at Project Hope because of that. And she said she was coming out of remission and ‘needs her medicine.’ So yeah, I guess so.”
McCann’s face went gray. “That poor kid.”
“At least maybe now her mother’s with her. I hope.”
“I hope so, too.” McCann looked doubtful. “Not to sound like a broken record, but I still don’t get why they took the mother. It’s so weird.”
I agreed, but my brain was too tired to think any more. I’d had little or no sleep in two days and was ready to drop. “I’ll try to sneak out of here later in the afternoon, Gordon. Would four be okay?”
He linked arms with me and walked me back to Callie and Sky. “Sure. See you then.”
I spent the rest of the day dividing my time between Callie, Sky, and Quinn. Copper came out of surgery, but there were questions about her mental capacities if she survived the next twenty-four hours. It wasn’t looking too good for her.
During one of my trips between the hospital rooms, I was surprised to find Becky Crowell walking the hall, trailing an IV pole.
I stopped, touching her arm. “Becky?”
She froze, then relaxed when she recognized me. “Marcella, right? Oh my God. I thought I’d never see you again. They say you saved my life back there. I never got to thank you. Not properly.”
“Well, my friend Callie and my husband were all part of it, too. Callie and I walked you back from the river, and Quinn actually carried you up a steep hill. He was amazing,” I said, remembering the ease with which he’d tossed the girl over his shoulder and powered up the ledge.
“Do you think I can thank them in person, too? I mean. You have no idea. No idea what you saved me from. I would be…” she paled and wobbled on her feet.
I pointed to a bench at the end of the hall. “Wanna sit?”
“Sure.” She scooted forward with her pole until we reached the seat where we settled side by side.
“I heard that he’s dead. Is it true?”
I knew she meant Valentino. “It is. He’s quite dead. You’ll never have to worry about him again.”
She looked at me as if she wasn’t quite sure of her next words. “I heard you killed him?”
I chuckled, trying to play it down. “Me and a big snowmobile. He was trying to shoot me. I had no choice.”
“You did the world a favor.”
She clenched and unclenched her hands, and finally tears traced her cheeks. She didn’t move, or shudder. She sat perfectly still. Silent tears continued.
“You killed him. For sure?”
I nodded. “For su
re.”
She swiped a hand over her cheeks. “Good. But the other guy’s still out there, isn’t he?”
I reached for a tissue on the side table, handing her one. “I know. He still has three hostages.”
She looked up. “They haven’t found any more bodies yet?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Maybe they’re okay. Maybe they’re still alive.”
“I sure hope so.” I squeezed her free hand in mine, searching her pretty eyes. “And honey?”
“Yes?”
“I’m so glad we found you.”
She hitched a sob. “Me, too.” With an intense stare, she turned back to me. “Marcella?”
“Uh huh?”
“This might sound weird.” She closed her eyes. “But thank you for killing Valentino.”
It did feel odd to be thanked for killing a man. But I understood her completely. “Honey, you’re very welcome. And I’d do it again if I had to. The man was vile. He needed to be gone.”
She opened her eyes, tears welling and tracing her cheeks again. “He was horrid, Marcella. I’m glad he can’t hurt any more girls.”
I slid an arm around her shoulders and hugged her. “Me, too, honey. Me, too.”
Chapter 40
On the way to the police headquarters in Speculator, I decided to call my mother, whom I hadn’t talked to in a few days. I also wanted to call Roberta, who had rescued Dak from the cold cabin and kept him overnight for me. I needed to tell her what had happened.
Mother first. I knew she’d be going nuts because we hadn’t talked since I left home in a huff.
I waited until I had a decent cell signal, steeled myself, and dialed our home phone, navigating the roads that had finally been plowed, but were still slippery.
“Marcella? Oh my God! I’ve been trying to get hold of you since yesterday. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, Thelma. I’m okay.” I didn’t like lying to her, but I also wanted to avoid giving her a heart attack.
“Is Quinn with you? Are you two doing better? By golly, I really hope so. It was so upsetting to see you two fighting. Gadzooks, I’ve never seen you like that. I told my friend Fran that I didn’t think I could handle much more.” She stopped to draw a huge breath. “So, are you okay? You’re not getting a divorce, are you?”
I sighed. Had it really only been a few days since Quinn and I had the overblown argument about Kimi? After all we’d been through, the significance of my loss and our disagreement seemed to pale. After all the killings and kidnappings and other horrible events, I realized that all in all, my little Kimi was safe and alive. Even if I couldn’t have her, she was okay. I shuddered. I should have listened to him. I should have dug deeper to understand why it was so important to him to return Kimi to her relatives on the reservation. I shouldn’t have been such a childish bitch.
“We’re doing better.” I certainly didn’t want to tell her I’d been tempted to jump in the sack with Sky Lissoneau and had been afraid I was turning into a slut. Boy, had I been tempted. I hardly could admit it to myself.
I could practically hear my mother pouting on the other end of the line. “When are you coming home? Ruby misses you.”
I knew our bird missed Quinn more than me. She was his baby. “Um, we’ve been at the hospital for the last day. Callie’s friend—Copper—was injured.”
“Oh, no! On the job?” she asked. “Is she okay?”
“Um. Yes, on the job. And, no, they’re still operating on her. She’s out of her third surgery, but…oh, it’s complicated. We’re waiting. But it’s been a horrible night, Thelma.”
She sucked in a huge breath and then let it out. “Good grief, Marcella. Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
I felt myself tiring, and I slumped lower in the seat of the van. “It just happened last night.”
“I like her. At first she kind of scared me, being so big and…”
…black, I finished her thought silently. “Yes. She’s an impressive woman. Very brave.”
In a rare display of compassion, my mother said, “Oh dear. Is poor little Callie okay?”
“Not really. She’s a wreck. I’ve been trying to help her, keep her company, you know? Sky’s here, too. He’ll be good for her. He’s a rock.”
“Poor Callie,” she murmured. “Tell her I’m thinking of her and Copper, okay?”
“I will, Thelma.”
I was about to hang up, starting to think up a reason why I had to go, when she changed the subject abruptly.
“Listen, honey, someone from the reservation keeps calling for Quinn. He won’t tell me diddly-squat. But it must be important, because he calls every day, twice a day.”
“Really? Did he leave a name?”
“Yes, but it’s not anyone I know. A Mr. Redhawk or something like that.”
“That doesn’t ring a bell.”
“Didn’t to me, either. This guy sounded kind of official, if you know what I mean?”
“Hmm. Okay. Well, you can have them leave a voicemail on my cell, or leave a message on the cabin landline. It’s okay to give them the number. I’ll have Quinn call them back as soon as he can.”
“I wasn’t sure what to do. I know you two like your privacy up there.” I heard the accusation in her voice, because I let her know several times that I didn’t like her calling all day long when we were at Tall Pines. It galled her.
Up ahead, I noticed a couple of cars pulled over to the side of the road. Two men were trying to restrain a hysterical girl who seemed to be fighting like hell to get away.
Another kidnapping? My heart leapt into my throat.
“Thelma? I’ve gotta go. Someone needs help.” I hung up abruptly to the sounds of my mother sputtering and pulled off the side of the road beside a humongous snow bank.
With my heart drumming wildly beneath my ribs, I jumped out of the van and ran toward them. “Stop that!” I yelled. “What the hell are you doing? Leave her alone.”
I reached them in seconds. They both loosened their grip on the girl, looking like I’d unjustly accused them of rape.
A tall gangly guy in his twenties raised both hands in the air. “No, miss. It’s not what you think.”
The other man, a heavyset businessman, puffed toward me. “The girl ran out of the woods. I almost hit her with my car. She’s hysterical. Can’t get her to calm down. She needs help, and we were afraid she’d run back into the road. We think—”
“Let me go!” the girl screamed, twisting out of their grip. She scrambled toward me, her eyes wild and her dark hair a tangled mess.
The teen threw herself at my feet, sobbing. “You have to listen. Please. He’s got my mother. And Annie. We have to help them.”
I studied the girl’s face for a moment, then helped her to her feet and held her hands. “Oh my God. Are you Aria?”
“Yes,” she sobbed. “Yes. Please help me.”
I nodded to the men. “Call 911. Tell them you’ve found Aria Joolston. She’s alive.”
The tall young man nodded obediently and pulled out his cell, quickly dialing for help. The businessman grabbed a plaid blanket from his trunk and gingerly handed it to me, taking care not to get too close to Aria, who shrank away from him.
“Don’t touch me!” Her pale skin perspired, and dark smudges ringed her eyes.
He backed away, holding up both hands. “No problem. I’m late for my meeting, anyway.” He looked toward me. “You guys okay without me?”
I shooed him away. “Go. We’re fine.”
I turned to Aria, who was dressed for the weather with a hat, parka, and mittens. I put the blanket around her shoulders anyway. “Here you go, honey. Want to get in the van to wait for help?”
Alarm slowly spread across her face. “NO! There’s no time. We have to save them. I need your help. Both of you. My mom can’t walk. She broke her leg. And Annie’s handcuffed to the wall. He took the keys when he left.”
“He left? Who left?”
“The freaka
zoid who kidnapped us!” She dragged me toward the other side of the road, her face twisted in anguish. “Come on. We’re wasting time.”
“You escaped from the killer?” I asked, trying to be sure I had it right.
“Yes, I got loose! Mom told me to go for help. But he’ll be back in a few hours. If he sees I’m gone, he’ll flip out. He’ll punish them.”
“Where are they?” I asked, suddenly all business.
“Up that trail.” She pointed with a trembling hand toward the woods. “At the top of the hill.”
With that, she spun away from me and started up the path. “Come on.”
Chapter 41
“Aria! Stop.” I stuffed the keys in my pocket and ran after her, beckoning the young man to follow. I ran up the hill, calling to her again. “We should wait for the police!”
Over her shoulder, she screamed, “It’ll be too late for them if we wait. He’s gonna kill them when he gets back.”
My blood chilled. God help us. Did he tell them they’d die today?
I struggled through the deep snow after her, turning to the young man who’d just reached my side. “Hey. What’s your name?”
“Mickey.”
“Okay, Mickey. I’m Marcella. Listen, we’ve got to catch her before she gets too far ahead of us. There’s a killer up there,” I pointed to the top of the hill, “and he’s got two others.”
His eyes widened. “Holy Mother of God. No kidding? The Valentino Killer?” He huffed beside me, making his own tracks. “That is bizarre. I mean, I’ve seen his picture on the news. That’s really wacked.”
“I know.” I used Aria’s footprints to climb after her. “It’s not actually Valentino. But it’s his evil twin, or something like that.” I wanted to ask him if he was armed, but realized with a hysterical inner laugh that it would be insane to expect the boy to have a gun on him.
He wore a parka and work boots with a wool cap and gloves, dressed for the snow like a knowledgeable local should be. Sadly, no bulges of gun handles protruded from his waist. I gave up the hope of acquiring a weapon and kept stumbling forward.
“Did you get hold of the police?” I asked, trying to keep Aria in sight. Like a mad jackrabbit, she made her way up the hill so quickly I was afraid we’d lose her.
Tall Pines Mysteries: A Mystery/Suspense Boxed Set Page 85