Eyre House

by Caitlin Greer

  “Fuck’s sake, Ben, who?”

  “Rafe. Rafe Mason.”

  I sat back with a thud. “Mason. Fuck it all to hell. I knew there was something I didn’t like about him.”

  “Look, he was my best friend, once. I get how soft in the head it sounds. But I didn’t stab him. He did that himself. Found out I’d followed him, and he wanted to turn Ginny against me. And because I didn’t tell her not to, she told him right where I was. He stabbed himself so she’d doubt anything I did or said after that.”

  “I thought there was something off about that stab. The way the knife had gone right between the bones and muscle so no major damage was done.”

  “I wondered if someone’d notice that.”

  I nodded. “But he’s been in a sling this whole time. How could he do half of what he did, especially killing Brandon?”

  “You’ve seen him since?”

  “Yeah, he’d been around, popping up at odd times, like he was stalking Ginny. Hell, I guess he was.”

  “He was. Damn. I thought he’d gone underground.”

  “No. He kept showing up, insisting on talking to Ginny alone. I never heard all of what they said, but I’m guessing he was trying to convince her how dangerous you were.”

  “I’m sure he was. But far as his arm goes, he wouldn’ta needed the sling after a day or two. Woulda been just a ruse to throw suspicion off him.”

  I grimaced. I should have seen it. “Dammit to hell. Then the messages, our things moved around, Keith, my jacket and my bike, all of it—it was all him? Killing Brandon? That seriously fucked-up stalker shrine in the passage in Ginny’s room?”

  “The hell?”

  “There was a wall of pictures in the secret passage that led to her room. Pictures of her, of us together. And other stuff,..Jaime’s stuff. His toys, the clothes he died in.”

  Ben sagged visibly. “Shit. I never shoulda let him come back. I shoulda called in the MPs the minute I found out the truth.”

  “You couldn’ta known, Ben. Any more than I could.”

  He hit the table with his fist. “As long as I’ve known him? I should’ve.”

  I sat back and shook my head. “So what’s his issue? Why Ginny?”

  “He wasn’t always like this. I mean, he always had a thing for Ginny, but I thought it was just a kid sister thing. Rafe changed, though, after we joined the Corps. By our second tour in Iraq, he’d turned angry and obsessive. This last tour in Afghanistan, he crossed the line. Got himself saddled with a dishonorable discharge.”

  “What did he do?”

  He shook his head. “Too much of it’s classified, but trust me, it was bad. I helped him as much as I could, for the sake of our friendship, but we’d become more like strangers. I still tried. I was helping him pack when I stumbled on the truth. I knocked over this box he had, and when I picked it up, it was full of pictures of Ginny. Not just any photos but surveillance-type pictures. Stalker pics.

  “I lost it, called him out on it. And when he opened his mouth, I realized just how far gone he was. The boy’s completely delusional and completely obsessed.”

  All the pieces fell into place. “He must’ve gone after Brandon because he was being such an ass, never leaving Ginny alone.”

  Ben nodded. “In his head, he’s been trying to show her just how well he can protect her. It was all him. Well, it was me in your room that first night Ginny was back. Sorry. I just needed to see what kind of guy you were.”

  I shook my head. “Forget it, man. We’re even, since I was pretty sure you did all that other stuff. And it wasn’t you that shredded my jacket with Ginny there.”

  “Be glad she was. It’s probably the only thing that saved your neck. In fact, I couldn’t figure out why he hadn’t gone after you before that until a minute ago when you were talking about his arm. You patched him up, didn’t you?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. Stopped the bleeding, got an ambulance called.”

  “Makes sense. He thought he owed you. But the minute you and Gin started sharing a bed, all bets were off. He’s that obsessed. Your jacket was a warning, you know. And when that didn’t work, when you stuck around, he killed Brandon. And then he framed me.”

  I couldn’t keep the bitterness out of my voice. “And like an idiot, I let her run me off to Savannah to lick my wounds. Convinced myself she’d be safe because you were locked up.”

  He shook his head. “We all made mistakes. Like you said, let’s stay focused on getting her back.”

  “Yeah. Look, Ms. Catherine is in with the cops and the lawyers, trying to get you out. She managed to send me a text after he took her—I’m assuming he took her.”

  “He took her. That was always the plan, far as I can see. But I doubt they’ll let me out. That knife has his blood and Brandon’s, and the only prints on it are mine. Rafe was smart. It’s my knife, and he wore gloves. The cops aren’t going to be interested in lettin’ go of their best suspect. They’ll just say I had an accomplice.”

  “Well shit. I can’t find her without you.”

  “Yeah, you can. He’ll be hiding out in more of the ruins.”

  I barked a sharp laugh. “Ben, there are more ruins than houses on that island.”

  “Not that’ll work for what Rafe needs. Too many of them are falling to pieces or are too public. Look, Evan, you have to find her. The police will take too long, and every minute you waste is another minute he comes closer to doing something awful to her.”

  “I don’t even know where to start!”

  “Sure you do. He won’t be in the Jack Daw ruins. The cops know about those because he led them to me there. And he won’t be in the ones under Eyre House. He can’t risk those, not now that he has her. There’s really only two other places big enough for him to hide that aren’t under a marsh.”

  I wracked my brain, trying to remember places Ginny had taken me. “You think he’s where, Botany Bay?”

  Ben nodded. “The Sea Cloud ruins are too far gone, and nothin’s left of the ole Sharegould house. But Bleak Hall was huge, and it still has a shit ton of places that are intact and closed off by the Preserve. I’d lay every cent I own that he’s got her there.”

  I stared at him. “They close it at night, too, don’t they? Makes it that much less likely he’ll be found by a wandering tourist.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Shit.” I shook my head. “I need your help on this, Ben. I can’t get her out on my own.”

  “You can, and you have to.”

  “He was a Marine! Hell, the cops won’t even have a chance. You need the SWAT team and the FBI to get her out!”

  “He’s not god, Evan. He’s a sneaky son of a bitch, but a good SWAT team could handle him easy. But Ginny’s too vulnerable, and they’ll take too long. One person, two, tops, could get her out easy. You’re the only chance she’s got. They’re not gonna let me out. You can do this. Don’t engage him directly. Don’t leave your back open.”

  “What if—”

  “Don’t ask what if.”

  I pushed out of my chair and paced the room. “Ben—”

  “You can do this.”

  I stared at him. The problem was, I was pretty sure I couldn’t.

  Chapter Twenty

  Ms. Catherine and the lawyers came in before I could say anything else. Ms. Catherine looked grim, but the lawyers were actually smiling.

  “I have good news, Mr. Eyre. Your aunt has posted your bail. You’ve been remanded into her custody pending your arraignment and trial. But if everything goes well, I’ll have these charges dropped before it ever comes to that.”

  Ben and I both stared at Ms. Catherine.

  “Aunt Catherine, you didn’t. Please tell me you didn’t.”

  My head swung towards Ben. “What?”

  Ms. Catherine just looked down.

  “She put Eyre House up as collateral for my bail.”

  “Done is done, Ben. You’re not planning on running, so they won’t ever have to collect.”

/>   “But Eyre House—”

  Ms. Catherine cut him off with a hand. “Ginny is more important than a house, Ben.”

  His mouth shut with a click, and Ms. Catherine turned to me. “You promised me you’d get her back. Can you, honey?”

  I looked at Ben, who nodded. “Yes, ma’am, Ms. Catherine. We can.”

  “Good. Then let’s stop wasting the time God gave us.”

  Ben’s duffel bag landed on the kitchen table with a definite thud. He looked at me and nodded sharply. The black tactical clothes he’d given me fit well enough, even if I did feel like an absolute idiot in them. He unzipped the bag and tossed me a knife, pointing to my leg. I strapped it on without comment.

  “Do you know how to shoot?”

  I looked up and shook my head. “Never learned. It’s on the list of things to do, but—”

  “You’re not learning tonight. I won’t risk Ginny because you don’t know how to use a gun.”

  “Fine by me. I’m happy with a knife.”

  “Good. Sit down.”

  I sat, and he started covering my face in black paint. It was cool and greasy, and my fingers itched to scrape it off as soon as he was done.

  Ben frowned at me, like he could read my mind. “Don’t touch it.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I figured.”

  He finished my face and started in on his own. “There’s a baton in there you can take, too. It’s extendable and will give you a better reach. Can you fight at all?”

  I smiled. “Fighting I can do. I grew up on the rough side of Charleston. I may not be trained, but I can hold my own.”

  “It’ll have to be enough.” He tossed the paint back in his bag and zipped it up. “Let’s get.”

  I took a deep breath and followed him. I’d been in my fair share of fights growing up, but I was so completely out of my depth here. Serious fish-out-of-water stuff. I had no clue what I was doing. But if dressing up in black tac gear and face paint would help us get Ginny out, I’d do it. I’d do whatever it took.

  Outside, Eyre House seemed to be waiting. It watched us, lit windows glowing like pale beacons. No judgment now, just a pale thread of hope. Hope that we’d bring her back.

  We went the distance between Eyre House and the Bleak Hall ruins on foot. The sun was setting as we crossed into Botany Bay Preserve. With the park closing, we kept off the roads as much as we could, which meant climbing through the underbrush and tall grass through half the property. I just hoped there weren’t snakes. We didn’t reach Bleak Hall until after full dark.

  “We have to hurry,” Ben whispered. “Seabrook’s fireworks’ll be starting soon, and that will be our best time to go in.”

  I nodded. Fireworks had been going off since the sun went down, not on Edisto, but on Seabrook and Kiawah Islands just across the North Edisto River. With Bleak Hall located on the northeast point of Edisto, the neighboring island’s fireworks would be loud enough to give us some cover.

  “Remind me again why we’re doing this, and not the police?”

  “Cops’ll just get her killed. They don’t know how he operates, and there’s no way they’ll listen to me about it. I’m still a suspect, remember? This is our best chance. If he hears police dogs or helicopters, he’ll kill her. If he hears a tac team coming in, he’ll kill her. He was our platoon’s best recon specialist. He’ll hear a part-time SWAT team coming a mile away.”

  I really didn’t like what that said about my chances.

  “Relax, Evan. I’ll keep you on track.”

  I took a quiet breath. “Okay.”

  Ben dropped his duffel and crouched low, handing me something out of it. “Night vision. If you get caught by the fireworks or if Rafe’s got a flashlight, it’ll blind you, so careful with ‘em.”

  I pulled them on, and the world turned black and green. It was a little disorienting. The depth perception was off, and only seeing two semi-digital colors was just weird. Ben put on a pair and moved us slowly until he found what he was looking for. A small rise of crumbling wall, hidden by overgrowth. Inside was an iron gate. Ben dipped into his bag again, coming up with a can of WD-40. I couldn’t help but grin.

  “Duct tape and WD-40,” I whispered.

  “Damn straight.” He greased the hinges and picked the lock. “Slow and careful. There’s good reason the Preserve has these locked off.”

  I nodded, and we moved forward, but Ben threw an arm up before I’d gone more than five steps. He looked at me, then pointed to the floor.

  “He’s definitely here.”

  I stared into the darkness until I could see the tripwire strung across the stone and brick hallway. I looked back at Ben and nodded. We avoided it, and moved forward slowly.

  Outside, the first boom of the fireworks split the sky. Ben glanced back at me. “Come on.”

  We crept through the maze of cellar rooms and old kitchens to the thunder of Independence Day above. I knew inside ten minutes that I’d been right. I never would have made it even this far on my own. Rafe was good. Tripwires littered the underground maze, and so many times Ben found a trail only to turn back when he realized it was false.

  When we finally found Ginny, it was completely by accident.

  Some of the rooms in Bleak Hall’s ruins still had doors. Most of them were falling off their hinges or half-rotted, but occasionally, we found one intact. We’d wandered into what looked like the remains of a wine cellar when we came across one of the intact doors. The thumping of fireworks had picked up, meaning our time was running out. Ben tapped my shoulder and pointed to the floor.

  I glanced down and saw scrapes. The door had been opened recently.

  Ben handed me the WD-40 for the hinges and motioned he’d be around the corner, keeping an eye out. I nodded, and said a silent thank you that I wasn’t here alone. I’d seriously have blown all of us up by now.

  The freshly greased hinges didn’t make a sound. I pulled on the door as quietly as possible, trying not to make too much noise as it scraped the ground. Even with the fireworks, the door sounded way too loud to me. I slipped past as soon as there was enough room.

  Inside, Ginny lay sprawled out on the floor.

  Silent. Unconscious.

  I could see her breathing, but that didn’t stop the flood of absolute rage that hit me at the sight.

  It killed me not to run straight to her, but Ben had given me a good bit of caution. I glanced around the room first, paying attention to the floor especially. It was a small, dusty, empty of anything she might’ve been able to use as a weapon. Nothing but an old brick room with a dirt floor. When I was as sure as I could be that there weren’t any traps, I crept forward to her.

  “Ginny.”

  My hand touched her shoulder. She groaned softly. I reached up and pulled off Ben’s night vision goggles, not wanting to scare her, and shook her gently.

  “Ginny, wake up.”

  Another groan. I kept my hand on her shoulder as my eyes adjusted to the darkness. I hadn’t noticed with the night vision on, but there was a small amount of light coming from somewhere outside the room. Above us, the fireworks were starting to peak.

  “Evan?”

  I jumped at the sound of her voice and spun back towards her. “Ginny! Come on, Gin. We’ve got to get you out of here.”

  “Evan… Rafe… It’s Rafe…”

  “I know.” I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her up. “Come on.”

  “He’s… He’s coming back.”

  “Then let’s get you out before he does.”

  I slid the night vision back on and strung her arm around my neck before squeezing us both out the door. Outside, the wine cellar was silent and empty.

  I didn’t see Ben anywhere.

  “Shit.”

  Ginny leaned against me half limp, and I started to wonder if she’d been drugged. At this point, I wasn’t ready to put anything past Rafe. I looked around one last time, hoping Ben would crawl out of a corner somewhere, and picked Ginny up in my arms.
r />   “All right, Ginny. We’re getting out of here.”

  I crept forward, my eyes on a swivel. The booming fireworks outside crashed in a cascade of noise and then faded away. Seabrook’s show was over, and our cushion had officially run out.

  And then the world disappeared in a blinding flash of pain, and it wasn’t just the cushion that had run out.

  I came to with a throbbing headache and a sharp pain in my shoulder. On the up side, I could see, thanks to a light in the corner.

  The downside was parked inches from my face wearing a seriously pissed-off expression.

  “You just couldn’t leave well enough alone, could you, Evan?”

  I glared at Rafe and shifted, taking the weight off my shoulder. I’d have been happier if my hands weren’t tied behind my back, but at least the shooting pain dropped a notch or two.

  “Where’s Ginny?”

  “Not here.”

  “Where is she, Rafe?”

  His fist connected with my cheekbone, knocking my head into the stone behind me. I grunted, wincing at the private firework show that went off behind my eyes.

  “Fuck’s sake.”

  “Hush your fuckin’ mouth, orphan boy.”

  I leaned against the wall with my eyes closed until the worst of the spinning stopped. “What do you want, Rafe?”

  A thin line of cool metal touched my face. I opened my eyes and realized it was my knife.

  “I think you know what I want. I just don’t think you understand how far I’m willing to go to get it.”

  The blade bit into my skin, sending a line of fire up my face. I tried not to scream.

  “I’ve known Ginny since she was a little pigtailed redhead running around skinnin’ her knees on the dunes. I waited very patiently for her to grow up. And then you show up, with your fancy motorcycle, and your charm.” The burning line grew as he increased the pressure. “I gave you a pass before, because you patched me up. But you just had to go and sleep with her.”