Krewe of Hunters, Volume 2: The Unseen ; The Unholy ; The Unspoken ; The Uninvited

by Heather Graham

  By then, patrons near them had heard the confrontation, and with Logan and Corey Simmons both looming over Murphy, the tension and testosterone seemed to be rippling through the bar.

  Sandy came rushing over. “Ted Murphy! What are you doing? Get out! See that sign over the bar? It says the owner has discretion over who should and shouldn’t be served. You’re creating a public disturbance, and you’re going to ruin my business, and if you do, I promise I’ll sue you—and your paper—up the wazoo. Do you understand me?”

  Ted Murphy had already taken a few steps back. No doubt he’d known he wasn’t going to taunt Logan Raintree into pounding him and creating negative press for the Texas Rangers. Corey Simmons didn’t seem to care about the consequences.

  “I think I’ve gotten what I came for,” Murphy said. “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.” He turned away, took the time to drop cash on the bar and walked out.

  “That sniveling little bastard!” Logan said.

  “He’s gone now. Please, sit, enjoy the saloon,” Sandy pleaded, glancing from him to Kelsey.

  Kelsey nodded and glanced at Logan.

  “Sure. I’m looking forward to a special special barbecue,” he said with a smile. Kelsey sat, he sat and so did Corey Simmons.

  “Ease up,” Kelsey warned Logan softly. “You’re going to break that glass.”

  He stared at his hand, at his white knuckles against the bronze of his skin.

  Then he grinned, but it was a deadly grin. “God knows what the man is going to plaster all over that damn tabloid.”

  “Then it’s a rag. Who cares?” Kelsey asked.

  “Well, it’s a local paper, a daily, but it sure ain’t a very respectable one.”

  “My point exactly,” Kelsey said.

  “Hey, it’s me he’s going to skewer,” Corey said. “Big ’fraidy-cat tough-boy cowboy. But you know what? He’ll get his. I promise you,” Corey said. “Drink up, friends, drink up!” He lifted his stein. Kelsey politely lifted hers in return. Obviously, Corey could see that Logan’s mood hadn’t lightened. He stood, winking at Kelsey. “I’ll just leave you two alone now. If you need me, you know where to find me!”

  When he’d left, Logan looked at Kelsey. “Murphy truly is a rat,” he told her. “He’ll put all kinds of half-truths in the paper, and get the public going, screaming that the police and the Rangers are putting the city in danger.”

  “It may not be that bad,” Kelsey said. She tried to smile. “Hey, I come from Key West. If news isn’t bizarre, it’s worthless.”

  He finally cracked a real smile. Then it faded. “Sorry. I don’t loathe many people, but I loathe that man. When my wife…”

  His voice trailed off. She was surprised to feel her heart sink.

  He had a wife. Well, that wasn’t a great surprise. The man was walking sexuality, rugged and masculine to a fault.

  After a moment, he continued speaking. “When my wife was murdered, and I found her just minutes too late…”

  He shook his head and then looked at her again. “It was one of those instances. The kind we’ve talked about. I found her because I heard her.” He brought his fingers to his forehead. “In here,” he said. “I heard her crying out, and then, after I found her, I realized I’d heard her because she was dead. I’d put a killer on death row, and his brother wasn’t happy. When the trial was over, he kidnapped my wife—and didn’t give a damn if the world knew who’d done it. He said he’d heard I had ‘Injun powers,’ and that if I wanted her back, he’d give me clues, but I’d have to use those powers. I don’t think he even meant to kill her—he buried her alive, but he didn’t set up the oxygen supply right, and she suffocated. I got to her, but too late. We put her killer on death row, too, but…” He paused. “Reporters all over were writing about the case. I never said how I found her, never spoke to anyone about it. I was sent on leave. When Murphy got wind of what happened, he wrote an article about Indian dream states, one that actually suggested Texas Rangers with Native American blood used peyote, and that my, uh, supposed drug habit might have been the reason Alana was so easily taken. There was a protest, of course—the Department of Public Safety was going to sue. I didn’t know about it, and I didn’t give a damn about it at the time. But the article couched the insinuations so carefully that everything was merely a suggestion. An implication. And in the end there was no lawsuit. Murphy isn’t stupid. He’s a vicious bastard, but he isn’t stupid. If he puts anything out there now, it’ll be filled with innuendo, but he’ll manage to make us all look like bumbling idiots.”

  Kelsey wasn’t sure what to say; she felt his pain and bitterness as if it were a tidal wave, washing across the table and sweeping her in. She wanted to touch him, tell him she was sorry, but he didn’t seem the kind of man who wanted pity. Before she could decide what, if anything, to do, Ricky came bearing their dinner plates, oblivious to the recent conflict.

  “Here we go, an extraspecial dinner special!” With a flourish he served them. “Right back with the barbecue sauces—hot, spicy and mild for the faint of heart.”

  Logan straightened, a forced smile coming to his lips, something of a mask slipping over his features, hiding his thoughts and emotions. “Thanks.” He glanced at Kelsey. “Texas barbecue is famous, you know. And when it’s special—well, there’s nothing better.”

  She felt that Logan had long since learned to cope with both his fury and his agony, concealing them behind stoicism. She felt numb and awkward herself; she’d learned so much about investigating people, but it hadn’t occurred to her to find out more about Logan Raintree. Then again, they were on the same side. But she didn’t know how to react. She couldn’t move so quickly from an agitated state to a relaxed one, and she must have stared at him, stricken, when she should have been doing or saying something—anything—else.

  “God, I am so, so sorry. I didn’t know,” she said at last, her voice shaking.

  “And you shouldn’t have known. We can’t work together with you tiptoeing around my feelings. I’m sorry—it’s just that Murphy is the one person who can hit exactly the right buttons to send my temper over the edge.”

  She grinned. “But you didn’t belt him one.”

  “Don’t go applauding me on that. I’m afraid that if I ever touched him, I wouldn’t be able to stop. I’d kill him.”

  She could tell he wanted to change the subject. But she couldn’t help herself. “How long ago did this happen?” she asked him.

  His jaw tensed for a moment. “Don’t worry—I’m not going over the edge now. Alana died three years ago. I took my time dealing with it. I’m doing okay.”

  “I wasn’t worried,” she said honestly.

  He studied her again and seemed to believe her. “Good,” he said. “I don’t think the food can be all that special if you don’t eat it.”

  “I’m eating, I’m eating.”

  “The barbecue is excellent,” he told her. “And messy.” He grimaced and licked barbecue sauce from his fingers.

  The food was delicious; Logan could handle the fiery hot sauce, while she had to opt for mild. They both concentrated on eating during the next few minutes, and only a few pleasantries and requests were exchanged—Logan’s, “Pass the salt, please,” and Kelsey’s “Another beer?”

  “Sounds fine,” Logan agreed. Ricky brought them a second round. By the time they’d finished the food and lingered over their beers, Logan seemed to have his anger under control.

  “Why did your friend Sandy buy this place?” he asked.

  “She’s coveted the Longhorn for years,” Kelsey said. “She loves Texas history and grew up here, listening to stories about the Alamo and the Longhorn. She took business and hospitality courses, and managed to pull together the financing when the previous owner was ready to sell it and retire. Sandy worked really hard to get this place. Her folks died close together when we were about nineteen. She got her education, plus money for the down payment, from what they left her.” Kelsey sighed. “She was deva
stated when Sierra Monte was killed while she was in the middle of purchasing it. Or, I suppose I should say, disappeared, leaving behind so much blood that she couldn’t possibly have survived. They had to bring in a biohazard cleanup crew, and there were a number of police and legal situations she had to deal with—in the midst of such tragic circumstances. So, with all of that going on, the saloon has really been a labor of love for her.”

  He nodded. “Did Sandy know Sierra Monte?”

  “No, not really. She was in and out of here at the time, and they might have passed each other and exchanged a few words, but they weren’t friends or even acquaintances.” She hesitated a minute. “Do you want to see Room 207?”

  “Yes, I’d like to see it very much,” he said.

  They both rose. Logan started toward the bar to pay their bill, but Kelsey flagged Ricky down. “Don’t worry about it. I have a house account,” she told him with a grin. He stiffened slightly.

  “I pay my way,” he insisted.

  “So do I,” she said promptly. “You’re up next time.” They were going to be partners. Paying their own way didn’t mean they couldn’t take turns—not that she’d ever been one to worry about that kind of accounting. She was happy to treat.

  She hurried up the stairs, aware of being watched. When the saloon was in full swing, those not staying at the inn often watched guests mounting the stairs with envy.

  Logan was right behind her.

  As she reached the balcony, she paused.

  She was used to being observed, casually or sometimes, with male appreciation. Actually, the drunker the clientele, the more appreciation she received.

  But tonight, she felt someone watching her intently. She walked to the carved white wood rail that overlooked the saloon. Some people were eating, and some were still playing poker with their peanut shells. Quite a few were entranced by the music, while others were just interested in their drinks and the conversations they were enjoying at the long bar.

  She surveyed the room below.

  Ricky was out on the floor. He set down a beer, looked up at her, grinned and waved. She realized he’d seen Logan, as well; maybe he assumed they were both getting lucky.

  She flushed and waved back.

  Sandy was on the floor, too, and she waved. So did the cowboy, Corey Simmons.

  She glanced at the slatted, swinging doors to the sidewalk. They were fitted into glass now, to protect the flow of air-conditioning demanded by modern patrons. And, in the glass, she could see a face. The eyes in that face, she knew, were directed at her.

  The face belonged to the reporter. Ted Murphy.

  Let him watch, she thought.

  She decided not to say anything to Logan. The man was standing outside the saloon, doing nothing illegal. Better not to risk another confrontation. Or another reminder of the past.

  “What is it?” Logan asked.

  “Nothing,” she said. “I was just thinking that the saloon probably looks just like it did a hundred-and-fifty-plus years ago. Sandy studied old drawings and photographs to get it right, and she had the furniture repaired or replaced with similar period pieces.” Conscious that she was babbling, she dug in her bag for her room key.

  “The historic societies in this area owe Sandy a big thank-you,” Logan said, pushing open the door after she’d unlocked it.

  Entering the room, he stood still for a moment and slowly looked around. “I wasn’t here at the time the murder—or bloodletting—of Sierra Monte occurred,” he said. “And homicide detectives from the police department handled the investigation. None of the bodies that were found are Sierra Monte—we know that from the DNA testing—but it seems more and more likely that she was a victim of the same killer.”

  Kelsey nodded thoughtfully. “Yes, she was obviously a stabbing victim like some of the others—like Jenny Doe and Josie Doe. They have that in common. But Jenny and Josie…where were they killed?”

  He angled his head. “Every murder has to have a crime scene. We simply haven’t found them yet. And there’s another question. Was Sierra Monte killed in this room by sheer coincidence, or is there a reason that two different women living in different centuries were killed here?”

  “What could the past have to do with Sierra Monte’s death?” she asked. “The first murder was really sad—well, all murder is. But the whole story is sad. From the bits of legend I’ve picked up, Rose Langley started life as a sheltered plantation girl. She fell in love with a drifter, who pimped her out as they made their way across the states. And then she was kidnapped by another guy, who eventually murdered her.” She broke off, frowning. “He wanted something from her,” she told him.

  “He?”

  “Her killer.”

  “What?”

  “I don’t know. I can’t tell from what I’ve…seen,” Kelsey said.

  “Can you describe what you saw? Where they were? What was happening?”

  Kelsey tried to recall both the waking vision and her dream. The details hadn’t altered from one to the other.

  “When the vision starts, they’re both in the room—Rose Langley and Matt Meyer. Rose was really stunning, even after all she’d been through. Slim and shapely, with a pile of dark curls that she’d pinned up, but they came loose and tumbled around her face. She and Matt must have been in the room for a while, fighting. Her dress lay on the floor—over there—and the bed was by the window that looks out onto the street. Rose was still wearing her corset and garters, her stockings…and Matt Meyer was dressed more like a businessman than a Davy Crockett or Daniel Boone type. He must have been considered tall for his day. He was at least your height, but heavier set. Maybe his drinking habit was taking its toll.”

  She flushed, a little embarrassed that she was giving him her opinion when he’d just asked her to describe what she’d seen. But he was listening.

  “Then Matt walks across the room to Rose. She’s standing here,” Kelsey said, striding to the center of the room near him. “He grabs her by the shoulders. And yells at her. ‘You won’t hold out on me! I want it, and I want it now.’ That’s what he says to her.”

  “And then?”

  “Rose says, ‘I don’t have it.’ The man’s grip on her tightens and his face twists into a really cruel expression, and he tells her, ‘You’re a liar! I know what happened in Galveston that night, and I know your pretty-boy lover won it. I want it!’”

  Kelsey swallowed. She’d watched it all before, but she hadn’t stood where Rose Langley had. She felt such sorrow for the woman.

  She turned away from Logan. “I’m trying to remember exactly what they said. And never once did either of them mention what ‘it’ was.” She thought back and said, “Rose told him ‘No! It’s mine!’”

  “Then he killed her?” Logan asked.

  “Within the next minute or so. He taunted her first. He said, ‘You think you’ll get back to that no-good weakling? Well, give up that dream. He moved on the moment you were gone.’”

  “And then…”

  Kelsey closed her eyes, trying to recall what they’d said. She was surprised that the words came so easily to her lips, almost as if she were an actress, playing the part of Rose Langley.

  “‘I hate you,’” Rose said. “‘I hate you, Matt. I loathe you. You forced me here, and you’ve used me enough. Even if I had it, I’d never let you have it!’”

  She opened her eyes and looked at Logan.

  “Matt Meyer responded with, ‘You’re an old whore, Rose. I want it, and I’ll get it.’” Kelsey shuddered. “Then Rose said, ‘I will never give it to you.’”

  She wrapped her arms around herself, imagining the feel of the man’s hands around her neck. Rose had clutched his arms, trying to break his hold. She’d tried to scratch and claw him, but she hadn’t been strong enough.

  He’d wrenched the woman to him, his fingers curled around her neck. He’d squeezed his hands tightly together; he shook her hard. She grabbed desperately at his arms, trying to free herself.r />
  “She begged him then. ‘Please, Matt?’” Kelsey said. “But his fingers were around her throat, and he told her, ‘I’ll kill you, and I’ll rip this place to shreds—and find it.’ She was able to whisper ‘please’ one more time. And then she was dead,” Kelsey finished. “He picked her up and threw her on the bed as if she meant nothing to him. I hope he never found it.”

  Logan shook his head. “He never did.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Well, Marshal O’Brien, it’s obvious you’re not a Texan, and not from San Antonio. After hearing your description of the murder, I’m positive that it can only be one thing. And I’m sure a lot of people might have felt it was worth fighting for, killing for—dying for.”

  “Well, what was it?” she demanded.

  “The Galveston diamond.”

  Chapter 6

  Logan lay in his room, staring at the ceiling fan as it whirred. He’d spent all his time since he’d returned home going through the various files on the victims. The stories he’d heard about the Galveston diamond kept playing through his mind, but so far, all he had was the fact that if Kelsey’s vision was true, Rose Langley had left Galveston with the diamond, and she might have died trying to keep it. Once the ring had disappeared after a poker game in Galveston, it had never been seen again.

  Chelsea Martin had been a part-time gemologist. But he couldn’t find anything relating to gems or gemology regarding Tara Grissom, and, of course, the as-yet-unidentified corpses had given them nothing about their past likes, loves or hobbies.

  He started trying to find everything he could on Sierra Monte. There were plenty of newspaper articles, but he wasn’t looking for background on the investigation. He wanted to know more about the woman herself. He was glad to discover that he could trace the articles and police interviews to some of her friends and find old references on their social networking pages. She’d written one friend about an “amazing” citrine she’d found on eBay, and another page had an old reference to a ring she’d bought in New York’s diamond district. “A blue diamond! It’s magnificent—and I could afford it!” Sierra had written.