“Just the main one and the one off the kitchen. Why?”
“Oh, my imagination is sparked, I guess. You hear all about hidden staircases having been built into some of these big old houses as a way for servants to take shortcuts.”
Nissa shrugged. “I know there were supposedly tunnels and secret passageways—Dad and Uncle Alex got stuck in one when they were kids. Then Granddad had them sealed off.”
“Tunnels and secret passages?” My pulse ticked at the thought. “But you don’t know where?”
“Nope. I tried to find my way into one when I was a kid, but I never did. I figured maybe Dad and Uncle Alex were just teasing me.”
When she was a kid…as if she was so grown-up now.
Suddenly sensing we weren’t alone, I glanced over my shoulder to see Theo standing stock-still and staring after us. I hadn’t even realized the barn manager was there. He must have heard our entire conversation. Not that it should account for his strange expression.
“Morning,” I said.
“Morning, miss.”
I felt his gaze on the back of my neck as we entered the gazebo and settled in. I glanced back the way we’d come, but Theo was gone. What was his deal? I wondered, then thought how awful it felt to be suspicious of everything and everyone. Self-preservation in a new form.
“So, what should I work on today?” Nissa asked, snapping me back to the moment.
“What would you like to work on?”
“Me? I get to choose?”
“Being Saturday…today you do.”
“I can choose anything?”
“As long as it has some direct learning value.” When she gave me a blank stare, I prompted her, “As in English, math, geography, history—”
“History! The history of horse racing in America.”
I laughed. “History it is.”
For a while, I lost myself with Nissa. But eventually darker circumstances invaded my thoughts.
Secrets…disappearances…danger…
Jack Larson telling me Priscilla might be locked up in the attic. Intimating worse.
Someone trying to run me over…
“Chloe, is something wrong?”
I blinked and saw that Nissa was frowning in concern. “Oh, my mind was just wandering,” I said, hedging. The truth, if not the details. “I’m fine.” At least for the moment.
“You looked like I feel sometimes.”
Her voice trembled and I knew she was having a bad moment and it was all my fault. I reached out for her and gave her a hug and maybe held on to her a bit longer than I might have if all these strange things hadn’t been happening to me. Nissa clung to me, and I felt as if she would never let me go.
Part of me yearned for this—this feeling of belonging. I’d had it with my mother and I’d had it with Dawn. I feared to get too close to Nissa, though.
How would my leaving affect her?
How would it affect me?
I dreaded finding out.
APPROACHING THE GAZEBO to see if Nissa and Chloe wanted to ride before lunch, Damian stopped within yards of the structure when the tutor put her arms around his daughter. Nissa’s response was instant and totally natural—she hugged Chloe in return.
Watching them together, his chest tightened. For a moment Nissa looked the way he always wanted to see her—truly happy. She’d rarely worn that look of pure, positive emotion in her short lifetime. Sometimes she had with him. Never with her own mother. With Priscilla, Nissa had always seemed more hopeful than fulfilled, as if she knew from toddlerhood that her mother only had so much to give her.
The girl had craved more—that had always been obvious. He’d seen the longing written on Nissa’s face when she was with Priscilla too many heart-wrenching times to count. No wonder she preferred to think her mother was dead. Better than admitting that she’d been abandoned by the parent who was supposed to love her.
Damian swallowed the guilt the last triggered in him. He was responsible, but he’d done what he’d had to—he’d been protecting his child. And it wasn’t as though Priscilla hadn’t asked for it, after all. She was a selfish bitch who’d always loved herself best.
Not Chloe, though. The tutor was full of surprises.
As if she were privy to his thoughts, Chloe looked his way and immediately let go of Nissa and straightened in her chair, seeming…embarrassed? Then his daughter realized he was there.
“Dad!” she called, waving, her freckled face made prettier by a dazzling smile.
Grinning in return, Damian moved forward and stopped at the entrance to the gazebo. “Could you stand to be interrupted this morning?” he asked Chloe directly.
“That all depends on the nature of the interruption.”
Did she think he wanted to chide her for some new transgression? Remembering their disagreement over dinner the night before, Damian figured she might hold that in the realm of possibilities.
“All depends on whether or not you’re ready for another horseback ride. It would have to be this morning, though, since Alex and Nissa and I are going to a friend’s house for a get-together and dinner late this afternoon.”
“You’ll take us?” Nissa asked excitedly. “Yay!”
“There’s one vote for it.” Damian arched an eyebrow at Chloe. “What say you?”
“Sounds great!”
“Get yourselves together, then, ladies, and I’ll have Clifford ready your horses. Meet me at the barn in fifteen minutes?”
Chloe was already gathering her things. “We’ll have to hurry if you want to change, Nissa.”
“I’m hurrying!” Nissa said as Damian set off for the barns. “Riding horses is even better than researching them. I’m psyched.”
Damian didn’t miss the excited laughter behind him. He glanced over his shoulder. Both of them seemed so happy, he had to smile himself.
Chloe had certainly changed the atmosphere around Nissa. Dawn had been good in her own way. But she’d also been emotionally needy, her demand for attention nearly as sharp as his daughter’s. That hadn’t been good for Nissa, who needed someone sure enough of herself to be a steady influence. Nissa needed a Chloe in her life.
As do you…a little voice whispered.
Not that it would do him any good. Chloe Morgan was young. She was a city girl. She had certain standards. Expectations. No matter that the attraction between them was growing. No matter that they’d shared that kiss.
A mistake.
Damian had known that even as he’d held her in his arms.
If the lovely tutor knew what he’d done to protect Nissa…the farm…their very way of life…Chloe Morgan would run from him as fast as she could.
Not that there was any need for her to know anything he didn’t care to tell her. She was here for the summer, no more. He couldn’t let it be more. However, he could enjoy her company, enjoy watching her with Nissa, while subduing his deeper desires.
With that settled, he found Clifford and asked the groom to tack up Sweet Innocence and Wild Cherry, while he saw to Sarge himself.
Twenty minutes later they were riding out toward the palisades. He let Nissa take the lead and was content to ride alongside Chloe.
“The family will be leaving for that get-together about four. I’ve given the staff the night off, so I’m afraid you’ll have to see to your own dinner. If you want to go into town, I’d be happy to buy.”
“Actually, I could use some downtime. If I have permission to rummage through the refrigerator, I won’t starve.”
“Permission granted. You’re sure?”
“I look forward to spending a few hours on my own. I could use a few hours alone.”
Or maybe she wanted to avoid Galena after almost being run over. “No ill effects from last night?” he asked.
“A few sore spots. Bruises.”
“You were lucky.”
She didn’t say anything. He wondered if she was thinking about the car coming at her or if she was thinking about the kiss that f
ollowed.
He figured she might comment on one or the other, so he was surprised when she said, “Tell me about the secret passageways in the house.”
“How do you know about them?”
“Nissa.”
Damian chuckled. “That girl never forgets anything.”
“Actually, since she never could find them, she wasn’t sure if you were telling her the truth or having a laugh at her expense.”
“There was nothing funny about getting trapped in the dark, believe me,” Damian assured her. “I was twelve and Alex was ten. We’d only just discovered them and started exploring the system that ran through parts of the house when Alex found a doorway to an underground tunnel. I told him not to go in there, but he wouldn’t listen. He wanted to see where it led.”
“So you went in after him?”
“That’s what big brothers are for.”
“To get into mischief with their siblings.”
Damian laughed, remembering. “We got into trouble, all right. The door jammed closed so we had to walk the entire length of the tunnel to look for an exit, and a few minutes in, the flashlight batteries went.”
“Then what happened?”
“We felt our way out to the palisades, but that exit was blocked by rock. We could see out to the river, but the openings weren’t big enough to squeeze through. Trust me, Alex tried his best, and he was pretty scrawny at the time.”
Thinking she might be amused by the story, he glanced at Chloe and wondered at her thoughtful expression.
“So how did you get out?” she asked.
“When we didn’t show up for dinner, the whole household searched for us. Luckily, we didn’t secure the secret door we used to get into the passageways, so Dad figured it out and got the tunnel door open. I was never so glad to hear his voice, even though he was angry.”
“I assume there were consequences.”
“We went to bed hungry, but Dad decided the lesson was enough punishment.”
“Nissa said he had the passageways sealed up.”
“He figured the lure was too much for two nosy boys to resist. He was right.”
“So you’re sure he sealed all the entrances?”
Again the serious expression, Damian noted. “Trust me. Alex and I checked it out. To our great disappointment, we were locked out. Why are you so interested?”
“Our childhoods tell us a lot about who we are.”
“What does this story tell you?”
“That you thought you were in charge even then. And while Alex isn’t exactly a leader, he isn’t a follower, either. He goes his own way, no matter the consequences.”
“Wow, you got all that from one story?”
“The story…and personal observation.”
“What else have you observed?”
Chloe seemed distracted for a moment. She was looking deep into the woods. They were in that area where she’d claimed to have seen the gray horse.
But just when he thought he’d lost her, she turned back to him and said, “About Alex? That he’s not happy here.”
He’d meant about himself—he wanted to know what Chloe thought about him—but her reference to Alex put him on edge. “My brother always thinks the grass is greener somewhere he’s not.”
“For him, maybe that’s true.”
“He can leave whenever he wants. I’m not tying him to the farm.”
“There must be some reason he’s staying.”
“Money, pure and simple. When they retired and moved to North Carolina, our parents put the estate in a trust, with me as the head of the business for as long as I wanted to run it. Neither one of us can sell our share unless we both agree.”
Thank God they had. If not, Damian feared he would have been looking for a job long ago instead of simply worrying about the possibility of having to do so.
“Alex seems to be pretty smart. I’m sure he’s well educated, and he’s certainly charming. He could get a job elsewhere.”
“Yeah, he’d make a great car salesman,” Damian said with a chuckle.
Chloe didn’t laugh with him. Her forehead was pulled and she was biting the edge of her lower lip, as if she were trying to figure out something important.
Finally she said, “Maybe he doesn’t want to leave so much as have more of a say in the business.”
“We each serve our own functions.”
“That might not be enough for Alex. Maybe he doesn’t really want to leave you and Nissa, but maybe he needs to explore a new tunnel that he’s not supposed to enter.”
“Hah!” Damian scoffed, but in his gut he knew Chloe could be right. Alex had always hated feeling like he had boundaries, and Damian couldn’t get past putting up roadblocks. They might have matured, but their relationship hadn’t really changed since they were kids.
“So where are these myriad entrances to the secret passageways?” Chloe asked.
Was she trying to keep him from asking her to analyze him? No longer certain he wanted her to do so, Damian went along with the distraction.
“There used to be a couple on each floor, but like I said, they’re sealed off.”
“The attic, too?”
“All of them are—”
“Hey, Dad! Chloe!” Nissa suddenly yelled. “Stop being so poky!”
Realizing how far ahead the girl had ridden, Damian urged Sarge into a lope, and Chloe did the same with her mount.
Having only been part of the household for a few days, Chloe certainly knew a lot about the place and people. Either she’d taken a lot of psychology courses and couldn’t help analyzing everyone she met, or she had good reason to dig into their psyches.
Maybe both.
Digging too deep wouldn’t be smart on her part. He couldn’t have that. As much as he was attracted to her and liked her, if she learned too much about how he’d handled his business, he would simply be forced to get rid of her.
SO THE HOUSE HAD secret passageways, staircases and a tunnel, I mused. No wonder I’d been bothered by noises overhead at night. Someone had found his or her way inside and was stealing into the upper reaches of the house, rummaging around, searching for something.
The Equine Diamonds?
A logical explanation, I thought.
If so, the mystery person hadn’t been Damian. He had free rein over his own home. Could Alex be searching under Damian’s radar? I didn’t think so. That would be contrary to how he operated.
As I thought about the potential suspects, I stood at the kitchen counter and scarfed down some leftovers for dinner. I was used to eating alone, so this wasn’t unusual for me. When I’d rummaged through the refrigerator as Damian said I could, I’d looked over my shoulder expecting Mrs. Avery to show up, her expression disapproving as usual. No Mrs. Avery. Or anyone else for that matter.
Nissa had said the housekeeper was going to visit her nephew and the cook was simply going home. If only Merle had stuck around, just until Mrs. Avery was gone. I’d never yet found the opportunity to talk to her alone without interference. It had taken the housekeeper long enough to leave—more than an hour—but now I was truly alone and meant to make the most of my time in the empty house.
The lure of exploring secret passageways and a tunnel was great, but Damian had avoided telling me how many there were or where I might find them. Probably most of them were still sealed.
But someone had found a way in….
I had other things I wanted to investigate, so after taking my last bite of food and setting the dishes in the sink, I headed for the library.
It wasn’t the computer that interested me this time. Not knowing what I was looking for, I started with the desk, which seemed to be the most logical place to find information. Nothing revealing in the top drawer or the ones on the right. But the big one on the left was in reality a file drawer. A look at the labels revealed my name.
I pulled the file and scanned the contents—basically my résumé and a letter that had been faxed from the agency. I
found Dawn’s, as well. The same. No home addresses—the agency was very careful to protect its employees’ privacy—so there was no connection between me and Dawn here.
Every employee had a file, so I took them out, one at a time, and scanned the contents—mostly job applications and résumés. A few letters of recommendation and copies of letters written for various employees.
Remembering Alex’s comment about Mrs. Avery being Priscilla’s creature, I took special interest in the housekeeper’s folder. No résumé. No application. Just a sheet with emergency information and a name that jumped out at me. Mrs. Avery’s emergency contact was her nephew…one Jack Larson!
My mind raced. Jack wanted to get his hands on this farm, and his aunt was working here. His very own spy? Definitely possible, and a reason for Mrs. Avery to continue to work for Damian even though Priscilla was gone. Speculating further, I wondered if it could be Jack ransacking the attic for those diamonds—the reason Mrs. Avery didn’t want me going up there! She’d even been standing guard that first night.
Squirrels in the attic, indeed!
My hands shook with excitement as I replaced the file and scanned the remaining contents of the drawer.
One thick folder caught my interest. I pulled it out and realized I’d stumbled into Damian’s private life. I almost returned it until I saw the folder had to do with his split from Priscilla….
Including divorce papers.
Glancing at the signatures—both parties had signed the document—I felt the weight on my shoulders lift slightly. I’d been half convinced that Priscilla was dead. But Damian had been telling the truth about the divorce. I’d let rumor and a child’s fantasy get to me, and this legal document proved me wrong.
Replacing the folder, I felt almost giddy when I heard something scrape against floorboards high overhead.
Attic high.
Was someone up there now? Jack Larson?
I took a deep breath, determined to find out.
What if the person was dangerous, though? What if it was Jack and he’d been the one who’d tried to run me over the night before?
Dawn and I had taken an eight-week class in self-defense for women, but I wasn’t comfortable with facing a potential enemy empty-handed. If Damian owned a gun, it wasn’t in his desk. I looked around the room, my gaze stopping when it reached the fireplace. Quickly I crossed to it and lifted the iron poker from its hanger.
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