The Damaged Heroes Collection [Box Set #1: The Damaged Heroes Collection] (BookStrand Publishing Mainstream)

by James, Sandy

  “Get some sleep. I’m going back to the attic to see what I can find. You damn well better be ready to use that gift of yours in the morning.” He chuckled, the sound grating on her nerves. “Who knows? Maybe that ape will come through for you.” Then Alex shook his head and narrowed his eyes. “Nah. They’re here, not in Chicago. I want those diamonds, Laurie. And I want them soon.” He slammed the door as he left.

  The instant he disappeared, she went to work trying to slip her sore, contorted hand through the cuffs. I’ve gotta get out of here. Now that they were isolated on the ranch, for the first time Laurie began to truly fear for her own life. If Alex figured out she’d been lying to him, she had no doubt he’d direct all of that rage he kept walled up inside him at her. Struggling against the handcuffs, she started to quietly cry out of frustration and fright.

  Ross, I need you! Please, Ross! Find me!

  Chapter 25

  After his experience with the kidnapping and death of George Black’s daughter, Ross didn’t trust the River Bend police to do anything but get Laurie killed. He had the Remington plane set down at the nearby Deer Fork City-County Airport. The Jeep waited just as Seth Remington had promised. Seth hadn’t asked Ross what the shovels, flashlights, and work gloves were for, and Ross genuinely hoped he’d never have to explain it to the man.

  As they stood on the tarmac next to the Jeep, Sheila spread out some papers on the hood. “When I was online, I found two cemeteries. One’s by an old church. The other’s on the outskirts of the town. I printed out these maps for both.” She pointed to one of the pages. “I say we try the older one first. The website says this town’s only been around since the 1870s. I don’t think the first one would be entirely filled up after fifty years.”

  “Good a place as any to start,” Ross said. He didn’t care where this macabre plan began. He just knew where he wanted it to end. A happy reunion with his wife.

  Sheila snorted a laugh. “Of course, we could just stop a local yokel and ask. He might think we’re doing research or something.”

  Bruiser chuckled and nodded his head. “Sure, Babe. That’s a great plan. Just go up to one of them cowboys and say, ‘It’s one in the mornin’. Can you tell us where the graves from 1920 are so we can go dig someone up?’ Yeah, that oughta go over real well.”

  Sheila seemed to take offense to Bruiser’s teasing. “I don’t want to dig her up.” She shuddered. “But that’s gotta be where the diamonds are. I’ve read those rhymes a hundred times.”

  Bruiser didn’t appear convinced. “You really think it was Duchess who took the diamonds and killed Ice?”

  “Look at the rhymes as many times as I have, and you’d think so too. She confesses it. ‘To save a Fortune, One paid the toll. ‘Twas worth the price, One’s immortal soul.’ She capitalizes the ‘F’ like it’s a name. Same thing with the ‘O.’ Ellie’s the ‘One’ in all the poems she wrote in the journal.” Sheila looked at Ross as if wanting some support. Ross nodded, and she started explaining things to Bruiser again. “It’s gotta mean she did it, and I’d guess it was ’cause she loved T.J. ‘A hidden heart still bore the pain.’ She didn’t want to hurt Ruby. They were like sisters.”

  “I think you’re reachin’,” Bruiser said.

  “No, I’m not. The last rhyme Ross found clinches it,” Sheila insisted. “Duchess loved Fortune. But Fortune only loved Ruby, and Duchess knew he would always love Ruby. She wrote, ‘My heart will forever pine for the Fortune I cannot make mine.’ A name again.”

  Ross could tell by her tone, Sheila was getting really agitated with her boyfriend. He sure didn’t want to be in Bruiser’s shoes.

  Sheila continued to frown at Bruiser. “She must’ve felt guilty Ruby died and figured the stones were cursed or something. She probably figured if Fortune ever found them, he’d know she killed Ice and sent them all running away. I think she blamed herself for Ruby’s death.”

  Bruiser seemed to consider all she’d said for a few moments before he finally nodded. “I suppose it makes sense...from a female point of view.”

  Oh, Bruiser. You’re in trouble now, big guy.

  Sheila fisted her hands against her hips and glared at Bruiser. “From any point of view, you big ox. We just need to dig where Ruby’s body is buried, and I know we’ll find the stones. We get the stones, we can get Alex to let her go.”

  “‘Ice’s fortune lies where one life ends,’” Ross added.

  “Exactly,” Sheila said in a smug tone.

  “So, now all we gotta do is rob a grave,” Bruiser said. “No problem. That oughta endear us to local cops.”

  As the trio piled into the Jeep, Ross suddenly heard his name being called in the distance. He stopped and searched around for a source, but they were alone. Frustrated and tired, he splayed his hand through his hair and opened the door.

  He crawled behind the steering wheel, turned the key that was waiting in the ignition, and started the engine. Then Ross heard his name again—as clear as if the person calling stood right next to him. “Did you hear that?” he asked Sheila and Bruiser. Both shook their heads. “My imagination must be playing tricks on me.”

  “You haven’t slept much,” Sheila said. “You want one of us to drive?”

  “No. I’ll drive,” Ross said before he pushed the car into gear and punched the gas pedal.

  * * * *

  Laurie gritted her teeth, braced her feet against the brass headboard, and gave one last tug against the handcuffs. Her contorted and slippery hand suddenly pulled free. She tumbled back on the mattress and then fell to the floor. Holding her breath, she waited to be sure Alex hadn’t heard the racket she’d made.

  Her heart pounded so loudly it echoed in her ears, drowning out all other sounds. A minute passed. Two. Three. No Alex. Hallelujah.

  Laurie grabbed her shoes, jammed them on her feet, and moved as quietly as she could to the window.

  Her teeth tugged at her bottom lip as she carefully opened the locking mechanisms and gently coaxed the window up. She didn’t even realize she had been holding her breath again until it left her lungs in a rush as the window opened silently and without a struggle.

  Sticking her head outside, Laurie tried to discern what she could as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. The tree stood close enough she could reach a strong branch, and she tried to calm her worries over the two-story drop. Dear God, I hate heights. Please help me through this.

  Taking a deep breath, she pushed one leg through the window to straddle it as she leaned out to grab the branch of the tall tree.

  “C’mon, Laurence. You can do this,” she whispered. Wrapping her hands around the branch, she hauled herself out the window and dangled, trying to find a place to plant her feet.

  Oh, God. Oh, God. I’m gonna fall. Please don’t let me fall.

  She finally wedged one foot between two smaller branches and slowly worked her hands along the branch’s rough bark to reach the thick trunk. With a relieved sigh, Laurie finally found herself in a good position to climb down.

  The bark cut into her hands and the smaller branches scratched at her face and tangled in her hair as she worked her way toward the ground. Adrenaline flowed through her like a raging storm as Laurie eased her way down. When her feet touched the grass, she wanted to fall to her knees and kiss the thick, green turf. As violently as her legs were shaking, she was amazed she could even stand upright. But she didn’t have the luxury of waiting for her body to calm itself.

  With one last glance up to the open window to see if her escape had been detected, Laurie turned and sprinted toward the woods she’d grown up exploring with her cousins. The light of the waning moon all but disappeared when she reached the thicket of trees.

  I got away from him. Find me, Ross. I’m waiting in the woods.

  * * * *

  The Jeep entered the small town of River Bend, and Sheila helped Ross locate the cemetery. The small fenced graveyard stood next to an old white church that bore a large blue marker proudly proclaim
ing its historical significance.

  Ross pulled the Jeep into a small grove of trees to camouflage the vehicle. After Ross and Bruiser retrieved the shovels and gloves, the three of them moved silently through the markers, looking for Judith Madison.

  Sheila found the first headstone with a familiar name. “Daniel Miller. First name on Laurie’s family tree. We found the patriarch himself. Born 1836. Died 1912.”

  Bruiser put his hand on another monument. “Grace Riley Miller. Born 1843 and died 1918.”

  “She might’ve have died in the flu epidemic that year,” Ross said as he moved to another headstone. “Guys, look at this. Ellie McCrae. Duchess is buried with the Millers. 1901 to 1961. And here’s a Benjamin Miller. Born 1882 and died 1962. He’s got to be T.J.’s father.” He thought about the dates for a moment. “That means he would’ve been awfully young when T.J. was born. I don’t see a wife, either.”

  “That’s a story for another time. Here’s T.J.,” Sheila said as she pointed to a grave. “He’s got a war veteran notation. He was born in 1899 and died 1970. I’m amazed there are graves that new in a cemetery this old. The family must’ve been important to the town. Here’s Ruby. Buried right next to him. Judith Madison. Born 1901. Died 1922. They didn’t bury her as a Miller.”

  “No wonder Alex couldn’t figure it out. If he didn’t know Ellie or Judith, he wouldn’t know who was Ruby and who was Duchess,” Ross said. “Without the last poem, he’d never know the gems were here.”

  “So, we gonna do this, or what?” Sheila asked.

  Bruiser sighed, but nodded. “Yeah. We’re gonna do this. Diggin’ up some poor lady eighty-some years after she died to hunt for some stolen diamonds so we can solve a mystery. I imagine Stephen King would love a shot at this story. You don’t suppose Ruby’s ghost will haunt us for this, do you?”

  Ross stabbed his shovel into the grass. “If she haunts anyone, it’ll be Alex. He’s the one who kidnapped her great-granddaughter.”

  * * * *

  The open window taunted him, reminded him of yet another failure.

  She’d escaped, and Alex was furious. The monster took total control for a few minutes. He stomped around the room waving the gun, kicking the furniture, and vowing all sorts of violence upon Laurie. It took him quite some time to harness the fury that was becoming more and more difficult to contain.

  Alex ran out of the house to the stand outside the window next to the tree she’d obviously used to make her get-away and stared out into the night.

  “Where would she run?” he asked the darkness.

  He knew it wouldn’t do her any good to hide in the big barn. He’d learned every inch of the structure as he searched for the journal the last time he visited. And they’d turned the place upside down following Laurie’s premonitions.

  That had turned out so productive.

  “Where’d you run, Laurie? Olly, olly, oxen free,” he called in a sing-song voice.

  Alex figured Laurie was smart enough to avoid the main road to the ranch because there would be no place she could hide if he pursued. No, Laurie was smart. It was one of the things he found fascinating about her, something that set her apart from the other women of the world. She would find a way she could conceal herself while making her way back to the wretched little town so she could warn her husband.

  Because she was, after all, just another worthless woman.

  Looking toward the trees, Alex suddenly knew where Laurie had gone.

  “Ready or not, here I come,” he said, heading into the woods.

  * * * *

  The shovel clanged as it hit metal about three feet into the excavation.

  “I hope to hell that ain’t a casket,” Bruiser said.

  Ross dropped his shovel and brushed the dirt aside with his gloved hands. The lid of small metal box winked at him in the moonlight. Bruiser helped him work the container free from the grave.

  After handing the box to Sheila, Bruiser and Ross watched as she popped the rusty latch and lifted out a small burlap bag. Using her fingers and teeth to work through the tight knot of twine, she was finally able to open the bag and get a look at the contents.

  “Man, o’ man. Get a load of this.” Sheila reached inside, pulled out a good sized diamond, and held it up for the men to see. The gem twinkled in the dim light. “There’s gotta be forty just like this in the bag.”

  “The lion’s head ring?” Ross asked.

  Sheila sifted through the bag. Then she held up an enormous gold ring shaped like the head of a lion with bright diamond eyes.

  Ross released a grateful sigh. Thank you, God. “Let’s get this mess cleaned up and get to the ranch,” Ross said as he and Bruiser crawled out of the grave. Ross grabbed his shovel and pitched dirt back into the hole. Then he heard Laurie call his name. Clear as day.

  Sheila must’ve caught the change in him. “What’s wrong?”

  “You didn’t hear that?” Ross asked.

  Sheila shook her head as she retied the bag and put it back in the metal box.

  “Didn’t hear nothin’,” Bruiser replied as he threw another shovelful of dirt into the grave.

  Ross heard it again. “It’s Laurie. I can hear her like she’s standing right here.” He looked around again, but there was nothing but darkness.

  Ross watched a disbelieving glance pass between Sheila and Bruiser.

  “I’m not imagining it. I can hear Laurie.”

  “Let’s get done and get out to the ranch,” Sheila said as she tucked the metal box against her side before she walked back to the Jeep.

  Ross and Bruiser filled in the layer of dirt and grass they’d removed in search of the diamonds. They both threw their shovels and dirty gloves into the back of the Jeep, and Ross slid back into the driver’s seat and followed Sheila’s directions to the Circle M.

  He only hoped the place would be easier to find without a blizzard swirling around him.

  Chapter 26

  Laurie sat on a large boulder and rubbed her sore elbow. She hadn’t noticed the tree root until she’d already stumbled and jammed her arm against the unyielding ground. The moon provided very little light through the dense canopy of the huge pines, and she figured the steep cliffs were getting way too close for her to wander around anymore in the dark.

  Alex had most likely discovered her missing by now, and she hoped he would waste some time searching through the ranch house and barn before he figured out she had run. But because she’d barely been able to swallow her fear long enough to force herself to crawl out of the window and down the tree, Laurie hadn’t found a way to shut the glass behind her. Alex would figure out pretty quickly that she’d flown the coop. If she could only hold out until sunrise, she’d be able to find her way back to River Bend to get help.

  Funny. When Ross came to her in the blizzard, she had worried about him being dangerous. With an ironic scoff, Laurie realized the adder had already been in her nest. Because of his ability to block her empathic ability, she just hadn’t recognized Alex as the treacherous villain he truly was.

  Her intuition nudged at her, but she felt too drained both mentally and physically to pay much attention to it. Every conscious thought was wrapped around getting word to Ross and her friends so they would be prepared if Alex could slip away before the police could catch him. She comforted herself with the knowledge that Alex would need to eat up a lot of time getting back to Chicago before he could get close enough to cause any of them harm. The first person she would call after her husband would be Bruiser. The detective was more resourceful than any police officer.

  Laurie felt a little foolish thinking she could reach out to Ross, leaving him clues like she did. He’d seemed to understand what she’d told him on the phone, but she couldn’t be sure. Cloak and dagger stuff just wasn’t her forte. The message in the car wash restroom had obviously been too vague for anyone to notice. Yet her intuition prodded her not to give up hope.

  With a weary sigh, Laurie slid off the boulder so she co
uld sit on the softer ground. She leaned her head back against the rock to let her fatigued body rest as she waited for the sunrise and the new opportunities that would come along with the light.

  * * * *

  “The place is empty!” Bruiser hollered out of the open second story window.

  Ross ran his hand through his hair. He had been sure Laurie would be waiting for him.

  As Sheila and Bruiser plowed through the house, Ross stood next to a large tree and felt Laurie’s presence as if she was standing right next to him. His fingers ached to reach out and touch her. “Where are you, Kitten?”

  Then he heard a whisper.

  Go into the woods.

  “What did you say?” Ross asked Sheila as she came out of the kitchen door to stand at his side.

  “I didn’t say anything. I think I’m gonna get you an appointment to get your hearing checked when we get back to Chicago.”

  Ross was adamant. “You told me to go into the woods.”

  “No, I didn’t,” she insisted. Sheila handed him the small metal box that held the diamonds. “Here. Take these stupid things. I don’t want to hold ‘em anymore. They’re giving me the willies.”

  Ross stared at the tarnished metal for a moment. How many lives had been destroyed for the cursed stones lying inside that sorry piece of tin?

  They were blood diamonds.

  Then the words whispered through his mind again. Go into the woods.

  Ross took off running toward the trees before Sheila could even make a move to stop him.