“It’s Castle. I have everything in place. Meet me at our location in thirty minutes then we’ll head to her house. When we get there, you and I will go in a couple minutes after her. Make sure you’re not identifiable. We are to stay out of the way as much as possible. We want them to think she’s alone if they’re watching the place.”
A different type of excitement shot through Gavin. It was time to put their plan in action, and he hoped it worked. “See you then.” Gavin hung up and pulled his hand from Ellery’s shirt.
“Is it time?” she asked, suddenly serious.
“Yes. Let’s get them.”
23
Ellery stood outside of her condo building and stared at it as if she’d never seen it before. How had it been just days since she’d last been there, when it felt so foreign now? It hadn’t taken long to know Shadows Landing was where she wanted to be. Right then she couldn’t wait to get back. But first things first, she had to clear her name.
Ellery took a deep breath, crossed the street, and walked into the lobby. She used her keys that Agent Castle had grabbed from evidence to grab her mail and stuffed it into a fishing rod promotional bag Gavin had in storage on his boat. The lobby appeared how it always had as she slowly looked around. She didn’t see any new cameras but knew the lobby had one that was monitored by a private security company. She gave it a wink knowing police would be looking at it before taking the stairs to her condo.
Her hands shook as she stood there listening at her door. Was someone moving inside? Was there a shadow under the door? She put in her key and paused. She heard the elevator ding and turned to look as Castle and Gavin stepped off. They both had hats pulled low with raincoats around them. She looked out the window at the end of the hall and noticed rain had begun to fall.
Castle put his finger to his lips and motioned for Gavin to open the door. He pulled his gun, and the reality of her situation slammed into her like a freight train. This wasn’t a nightmare. This was real life and someone, not only her, could be killed.
Gavin opened the door and jumped back as Castle stepped inside. Less than a minute later he was back. “I’d checked everything on the cameras I’d installed and it was clear, but I wanted to make sure. Come grab whatever you want and leave your calling card.”
Castle had printed off small index card sized pictures of Mark Vosslinger paintings along with pictures from the party. Ellery stepped into her home and felt as if she didn’t belong. She’d loved her condo. It had been her sanctuary, but not any longer. Now it felt like a prison.
Gavin and Castle stepped into the living room and looked out the window as she moved to her bedroom. She grabbed her suitcase and everything she could without looking at it or folding it. She stuffed it all in her suitcase before grabbing two tote bags. She filled one with toiletries and the second one with her jewelry and personal photos.
“Ready?” Gavin asked.
“We’ve got company,” Castle said calmly. “We need to go.”
Fear spiked as Gavin grabbed the totes, and she wheeled the suitcase to the front door. She pulled out an index card and dropped it on the floor in the living room.
“We can’t go down. Is there a back way out?” Castle asked.
Ellery shook her head. “You can take the fire escape. But go up. Tibbie will hide us.”
“Are you sure?” Gavin asked, sounding way calmer than she was feeling. They heard the elevator being called to the lobby and Ellery nodded. “She will protect me. Penthouse now.”
Ellery didn’t wait for them but quietly opened the door of the stairwell and proceeded up the stairs. She was relieved when Castle grabbed the heavy suitcase three steps up as they sprinted upward. Ellery stopped at the door to the penthouse and took a deep breath. She heard the door open below her and voices calling out to search the stairwell as she quietly turned the knob and opened the door.
They tiptoed through it, and Ellery silently closed it before they walked rapidly down the hall to the front door. Ellery rang the bell and shifted from foot to foot waiting for Tibbie or Elijah to answer. She heard Miss Muffy bark as the group kept turning to keep an eye on the stairwell door.
“Come on,” she whispered under her breath.
Finally she heard the shuffle of someone coming to the door. “Quiet, Muffy,” Tibbie ordered as she opened the door. The second the door was unlocked, Castle was pushing his way through as Tibbie gasped in shock.
“It’s me,” Ellery said, grabbing Tibbie’s hands as Castle shut and bolted the door.
“Ellery?” Tibbie gasped. “Oh my stars. What is going on?”
“We don’t have time to tell you. I need your help and then I’ll tell you everything,” Ellery said as quietly as she could as she practically dragged Tibbie from the front door.
“Gracious, Ellery?”
“Mr. Cummings, I’m sorry to burst in. I didn’t kill Mark. Someone tried to kill me and tossed me in the ocean. Somehow I ended up in Shadows Landing, and Dr. Faulkner here saved me. But the people who hurt me are watching the building and saw me come in. We have to hide.”
Elijah’s wrinkled face filled with determination. “Back of Tibbie’s closet. You all can fit, and no one will find you back there. I’ll take care of this.” The doorbell rang and Miss Muffy began to bark. “Go!”
Elijah pulled himself up from his leather armchair and grabbed his gold-topped cane. Ellery didn’t wait to see what he would do. She led Castle and Gavin through the large penthouse and into the master bedroom. Off the bathroom was a giant walk-in closet. There was a closet within the closet, hidden behind floor to ceiling mirrors. That’s where they were going. Tibbie used it to store out-of-season clothing.
Ellery slid open the mirrored door and then the three were engulfed by Tibbie’s perfume covered clothes. “Just keep pushing back,” Ellery whispered as she pushed through the wall of suits, sweaters, and dresses, not that she could see them. They didn’t dare turn on the lights and were completely blind as she made her way to the back of the closet. She heard the men moving behind her and stopped when she hit the back wall. Gavin ran into her and pressed her body against the wall. He stepped in front of her to protect her in case anyone found them. Ellery heard the snap and then the sound of Castle’s gun sliding against his leather holster as he pulled it free. The sound of him flipping off the safety echoed in her ears but was lost among the rows of clothes.
She lifted her hands and found Gavin’s back. She wrapped one hand into his shirt and tried to control her breathing. It felt as if she couldn’t stop breathing hard and the whole penthouse would hear her, but the more she tried to control it, the worse her panic grew. The fear of being caught because of her heavy breathing seemed to escalate her panic until she wasn’t sure she could breathe.
Then lips were on hers. A tongue pushed its way through her lips and into her mouth. Gavin had spun and wrapped her in his arms and was kissing her senseless. It could have been five seconds or five minutes. But then the door opened, and Gavin flung her backward as he spun around to place his body between hers and whoever opened the closet.
“You can come out now. They’re gone.”
Ellery almost burst into tears at the sound of Tibbie’s voice. Castle pushed his way forward as the light came on and Ellery noticed that while he’d flipped the safety back on, he wasn’t putting it away as he dragged her suitcase with the other hand.
As soon as he was out of the closet, Castle dropped the bag and took off with his gun in hand to clear the penthouse. Ellery followed Gavin from the closet and was immediately wrapped in a hug by Tibbie. “You poor dear. Elijah wouldn’t let them come in. He said I was sleeping, and he didn’t want me disturbed. They tried to get in, but he squashed a toe with his cane and told them to find their manners before coming back.”
“Oh, Tibbie. I’m so sorry. I’ve put you in danger by coming here.”
“Pish,” Tibbie said with a wave of her hand. “You’re as close as family to us, and we take care of our own
.”
Gavin followed quietly behind as Tibbie led them to the informal sitting room. It was filled with overstuffed leather furniture, oil paintings of previous hunting dogs, and Castle grinning at Elijah Cummings, one of the most influential businessmen in the history of Charleston. His reputation didn’t retire when he did. It was still alive and well.
“Mr. Cummings, thank you so much,” Ellery said as emotion made her throat close. She rushed over to him sitting in his favorite chair and hugged him.
“Now, now, dear child. Of course I’ll help you. What’s all this about?”
“Are these the men who came to the door, Mr. Cummings?” Castle asked, handing him his cell phone.
“Yes. They said they were police officers, but I’m a regular donor to the police force and know many of the men on it. This one, he’s a schmoozer. He’s always at the fundraisers we have. Not an officer, but an administrator. He works with the police chief. But that one,” he said, pointing to a cold looking man in a suit Ellery recognized as the man who tried to kidnap her. “He’s not a police officer.”
“I’m sending this to Ryan to run through facial recognition in the Lexington office. I don’t want to do it here and have anyone find out,” Castle said as he showed her the picture. “Do you recognize them?”
Ellery wished she didn’t, but in the end she said, “Yes. The big one is the one who tried to kidnap me.”
“It appears they have a key to your condo. They went in and immediately saw the calling card we left. Then they did a quick search and discovered your clothes missing. Two people went downstairs and two came up. Do you recognize these two men?” Castle said, pausing the video again and showing it to Ellery.
“That one looks familiar, but I can’t place him,” she said, tapping the picture of the professional haircut of a man who looked more like a banker than a police officer.
Castle showed the picture to Elijah and Tibbie. “I know I’ve seen him,” Elijah said with a sigh. “Maybe with the mayor? I’m sorry, this old trap has sprung a leak.” He tapped his head with his finger.
“Nonsense, you’ve already been a huge help. I’ll find out who they are soon enough. Now, we better get out of here.”
“Son, that dog ain’t gonna hunt.” Elijah tapped his cane on the hardwood floor for emphasis that Castle’s plan to leave wasn’t going to fly. “I think it’s time you all sat down and told us what’s going on. We’ve been worried sick, young lady.”
Ellery automatically sat. “Yes, sir. I’m sorry, sir.”
Tibbie sat next to her on the couch as Gavin and Castle moved to the chairs across from them. Ellery began with what she remembered, up to talking to Tibbie before heading back into the rain. Then it picked up with Gavin leaping into the river during the storm to rescue her. Miss Tibbie had tears in her eyes, and Elijah nodded his head solemnly as a sign of respect for what Gavin did to save her.
“And so that young Coast Guard officer was there to get information from us? Well, I be doggone. And both those young men are your cousins?” Tibbie asked Gavin.
“Yes, ma’am. They want to try to find out who would have enough power to pull the police strings to control an investigation like this.”
“That must mean you’re pretty serious about our Ellery. No man would do all this if he wasn’t,” Elijah said as he steepled his fingers in front of his chest.
“Elijah,” Tibbie tried to warn as Ellery felt herself blush.
Elijah ignored his wife and kept his eyes drilled to Gavin’s. “We’re the closest thing to family our girl has. I want to know his intentions or I’ll get my hunting rifle.”
Ellery didn’t want to look at Gavin, but when she glanced up he was smiling at her. He gave her a wink and turned back to Elijah. “I respect that, sir. I care for Ellery very much, and I’ll do everything in my power to keep her safe.”
Elijah was quiet for a moment and then dropped his hands to the chair arms. “That’s good enough—for now. So what do you need us to do to help?”
“You already did,” Ellery said as she patted Tibbie’s hand.
“You said you needed to find out who’s behind this. Darlin’,” Elijah said to his wife, “put on something pretty. We’re going to the club.”
Tibbie smiled and stood up. “Wonderful idea, dear. We’ll find out all the gossip there. Elijah, don’t be stingy with buying the drinks for your friends.”
“Yes, darlin’,” Elijah said as he stood up. “Lay out my suit. I’ll show them out and be right back.”
Tibbie kissed everyone’s cheeks. “Don’t you worry about a thing. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”
“If you do get some information, please don’t hesitate to call me,” Castle said, handing his card to Elijah.
Elijah put his hand on Ellery’s shoulder as they walked to the door. “You know, these old houses have been around since Blackbeard held Charles Town hostage for medicine, right?”
“Ghost stories?” Gavin asked with a smile.
“No, what they left behind are not just stories. Shadows Landing isn’t the only town with a pirate history,” Elijah said, opening the small drawer of an antique table that stood by the front door. He pulled out a thick iron key ring with two keys on it. “Piracy has a long history in Charles Town and even Charleston. In fact, some of these old historic houses have tunnels under them for smuggling. Now, a couple have been closed off when the sewage system was updated, but some weren’t because no one ever knew about them.”
Ellery felt herself smile. “And you happen to know of one?”
“There’s a reason this house has been in the family all these generations. When my family settled here and built this house they made their fortune selling smuggled goods stolen from Spanish ships before going legit. Go into the basement. It’s the last room on the right. Use this key to open that door and then this one to get into the tunnels. Just make sure you lock them back up tight,” Elijah told them as he handed the heavy keys to her.
“Where does the tunnel come out?” Castle asked.
Elijah grimaced. “You’ll need to use some muscle to get the door open. It’s been fifty years since they were last used. And when it opens, you’ll need to act like you belong. It comes out on the Coast Guard base in the old stone building they use for storage. It’s only a short distance away. Once upon a time, that room was storage for smuggled items before the Coast Guard existed. The door is hidden, so as far as I know, it hasn’t been discovered. Also, it’s only one way access. Once the door’s closed, you can’t get back into the tunnel.”
“Are you sure we should do this?” Ellery asked.
“You know they’re out there waiting to see if you exit the building. I think it’s our best chance,” Castle told her. She was afraid that was going to be the answer.
“It’s a good thing I have a Coast Guard connection,” Gavin said with a wink as he pulled out his cell phone. “Wade, hey. We need a favor. Are you on base?”
24
The tunnel was creepy. Gavin wasn’t one to believe in ghost stories, but if a pirate ghost came out right now, he wouldn’t be surprised. In fact, he was seriously considering calling Skeeter and telling him he’d found the holy grail of pirate ghosts. The air was stale, and it felt as if it were reaching out and touching them. It gave him the heebie-jeebies.
No one talked as they had to duck their heads and move along the stone and earth tunnel. There were some wood planks here and there, and even some torches on the walls, but they weren’t about to light them. Instead they used the flashlights on their phones as Castle led the way through the tunnel, which seemed to be a pretty straight shot.
“Where’s the door?” Ellery whispered as if the entire Coast Guard was waiting for them on the other side.
“I think it’s here,” Castle said, handing his phone to Ellery. “Gavin, help me with this.”
Gavin put his phone in his pocket and found the keyhole. Castle put in the old key and twisted hard. Finally there was the sound of crea
king metal sliding free. “Push,” Castle ordered as he and Gavin put their whole weight to the door. At first it did nothing, but then slowly it began to swing outward.
“No freaking way,” Gavin heard Wade say, his amusement clear in his voice as his fingers appeared around the edge. Wade pulled, Castle and Gavin pushed, and finally it opened enough for Ellery to slide through. Gavin was next and then Castle.
Gavin was breathing hard as he looked at the hidden door. It was made of old wood on the tunnel side and the outer side was lined with heavy stone that matched the interior of the storage area. “We better close it,” Gavin said with a sigh.
A few old bulbs with no covers lit up the windowless room. Stacks of supplies filled the space no bigger than fifteen feet by fifteen feet. Gavin put his shoulder to the stone and pushed. Wade and Castle joined and slowly they closed the hidden door and with a loud click of the lock sliding back into place they stood back. When Gavin stepped back it was impossible to tell where the door was.
“Amazing. We had no idea that was even here,” Wade said with wonder.
“And no one will know,” Ellery reminded him.
“I have to see inside it,” Wade begged until Ellery smiled.
“I’ll ask permission from the owners. But now, how do you intend to get us out of here?”
Gavin wondered the same thing.
“My truck is right outside. Hop in the truck bed and I’ll toss a tarp over you and away we go. No one is on this side of the base. We’re close to the old docking station, but that was closed eighty years ago or so . . . oh, it was the smuggler’s dock. That makes sense. The Coast Guard secured this property because of its location to the harbor. The location made it perfect for ships to unload without having to come all the way into the harbor. They could make a quick escape if the British came.”
Gavin placed his hand on the small of Ellery’s back. “Are you ready?”
“More than anything. Can we start at Mark’s place? It’s not too far away, and on our way back to Shadows Landing, we can stop at the gallery and any other place Agent Castle wants.”
Saving Shadows: Shadows Landing #1 Page 17