by DiAnn Mills
“I don’t deserve to take Darren’s place, not with the mistakes I’ve made.”
“I think that’s how we become better law enforcers,” Frank said. “You’ve done an excellent job on the task force.”
“I’m grateful you came as fast as you did today,” Carr said. “I was sweatin’ buckets before you arrived. I talked to Wesley until there wasn’t anything left to say. I’d have been dead if you hadn’t rounded those stairs when you did.”
“Was close. After getting the call from Bella, we headed out this way. The shot fired at us could have been aimed at you.”
“Or you. Don’t care to be that close to a killing again,” Carr said. “Thanks.”
Roano disappeared inside the house, leaving Bella, Frank, and Carr to catch their breath.
“We’ve got a lot of threads yet to untangle, but we’ve made progress.” Bella took a deep breath to steady her emotions. Wesley claimed her father wasn’t involved, but she didn’t believe it. Not really. Peering at Carr, she didn’t want to think about nearly losing him. “Sure glad you’re okay.”
“I was afraid we’d lose our phone connections, but it worked out.”
She wanted to kiss him but not in front of Frank. Carr put his arm around her waist, and she didn’t try to stop him. She needed him in some tangible way that she’d fought all along. He complemented what she possessed and added to what she lacked. And it felt good. Very good.
Chapter 57
Before nightfall, Wesley revealed all he knew about Howard MacGregor—alias Aros Kemptor—and Brandt Richardson. A lot of gray areas remained due to Brandt’s doling out information in small bites to his protégés, but Bella relaxed in the knowledge that an arrest would be made in Mexico City.
She had a report to wrap up before leaving West Texas. Right now she was awaiting instructions whether to fly to Mexico City in an official capacity to bring in Brandt or drive back to Houston.
Her emotions jumbled between relief and satisfaction that the investigation neared the end. But she had a valley full of regret for having to leave Carr and her siblings. She planned to see the boys and Anne later on this evening to make plans and consider the future. She hadn’t been able to convince Anne of the need for them to move to Houston, but the boys might be more easily persuaded.
Bella’s relationship with Carr was another matter. She’d shoved the discussion about them aside until the murders were solved, but now what?
Bella stared at the sun glistening off Carr’s swimming pool. She sensed him beside her, but she chose to keep her thoughts private. “How do you feel about some treasure hunting?”
Carr laughed. “Since when are you into lost gold?”
“Since I wondered where Shep Wither’s map led.” She hadn’t shown it to him or anyone, but this morning she wanted to see what might lie buried at the butte. Six people were dead, and it all led back to the Spider Rock treasure. “Let’s throw a shovel into the back of your truck and see if we can figure out this mess. Oh, and a camera, too.”
“And a ladder in case this is a really deep hole.”
She laughed. “Maybe I should pack a picnic.”
At the butte, Bella sat inside the air-conditioned truck and unfolded the map with Wither’s instructions.
“I’ve never seen anything unusual here,” Carr said. “Can’t figure out what’s been missed.”
“That’s because there’s nothing to see.” She stared out into the shimmering sunlight, then lifted her sunglasses to her head to study the butte. Peering in every direction, she took a moment to wonder if she’d lost her mind. “What time is it?”
“Twenty minutes to one.” He looked over her shoulder. “Why?”
“I want to tell you what Shep told me the day I met with him in Junction. His story is fascinating, and who knows? It may be the truth. We’re about to find out.” She pulled out another folded piece of paper, a copy of the Spider Rock map used by the treasure seekers. “To the best of anyone’s knowledge, no one has ever deciphered this map. Lots of men have come close, and artifacts have been found, but no one claims to have discovered a cache worth $64 million.” Bella handed him the map.
“With all of modern technology, it seems strange that hieroglyphic experts couldn’t figure it out,” he said. “And my thoughts about contacting those who understand the area and history of the Incas have already been done. So what did Shep have to say?”
“He said that his great-grandfather got his information from an old Mexican priest. The priest claimed the three rocks in Aspermont, Clyde, and Rotan represent the Trinity, and in the middle was another map that indicated the true treasure was here.” She pointed to the butte.
“Did he actually use the word true?”
Bella nodded. “Not real or gold or artifacts but true.”
“Strange.”
“I agree. According to Shep, the one who buried the treasure was not the Spanish soldier but the priest who traveled with them.”
“Maybe he saw how greed was destroying the souls of the soldiers.”
“Since history doesn’t tell us how they died, you might be right.”
She considered all those who had given their lives for a glimpse of treasure. “Enough people have died over it.”
He picked up her left hand, then trailed his fingers up her arm, the one that would always carry a scar.
“It’s over,” she whispered. “Mair’s been picked up, and I bet she’ll sing to plea bargain. Took a little persuasion to convince Wesley to help us, but now we know Brandt is on his way to Mexico City to have knee surgery. Sure glad Frank and the authorities are waiting there to pick him up.”
A hint of sadness spread over his chiseled features. “Brings us back to the true treasure. All of the senseless killings and lost souls for gold.”
“I think Shep has the best perspective about it.”
“How do you figure?”
“Grab your shovel.” She opened the door and walked toward the right corner of the rock fortress. “Let me know when it’s straight up one o’clock. Actually, it used to be noon, but daylight saving time altered Shep’s directions.”
Carr studied his watch. “Now. What now?”
Bella pointed to the left of where the rock shimmered like diamonds. “See how the sun lightens that section?”
He nodded. “Dig there?”
“Not yet. We’re supposed to take seventeen steps to the left.” Which they did.
She bent and examined the spot and the rock. “This is supposed to be it. The same spot where Professor Miller’s body was found. Where he wrote Spider Rock in the dirt.”
Carr shook his head. “Good thing I care about you because I wouldn’t dig out here in this heat in rock-hard ground for just anybody.”
“And I doubt if you’ll find a thing. I’m only following Shep Wither’s map and instructions. Have no clue where the number seventeen came from, except the original map had a seventeen on it. Do you want to mark the spot and come back early evening when it’s cooler?”
“Not on your life. Curiosity will drive me nuts.” He clamped his foot onto the shovel and drove it into the dry earth.
Bella sat on the ground opposite him. “I’d help if it wasn’t for this bandage. I’ll be the water girl.”
He chuckled. “I always knew I was good for something. What are we going to do with the $64 million in gold?”
“Open a home for at-risk teen boys.”
“Are you going to stay out here and help me run it?”
His voice held a ring of hopefulness, and for the first time in her life, she was ready to say yes to a man. But not until Frank phoned her about Brandt’s arrest. Earlier she wanted to talk about her and Carr’s relationship. Now she was doing two steps backward. No wonder women were labeled as fickle. “I might. We’ll see.”
“So you’re an old-fashioned girl who’ll say yes to a marriage proposal before agreeing to a kiss?”
She wagged a finger at him. “Maybe.”
He leaned on the
shovel and wiped sweat from his face on his shirtsleeve. “For that, I’d dig for a long time.”
She felt delightfully smug, and it was an incredible feeling. She drew up her knees to her chest and watched him dig where Shep Wither believed the Spider Rock treasure lay buried. In the West Texas heat, Carr deepened the hole to three feet, stopping for frequent water breaks at her insistence.
“Let’s come back later,” she said. “Maybe bring Jasper or someone else to help. I’m afraid you’re going to have a heatstroke. And digging with a bandaged arm has to be excruciating.”
“Nope. I’m into this now.”
“Keep digging.” Another male voice sent shivers up her spine.
Bella’s attention whipped to the man standing behind her and the young girl in his clutches. “Anne.” She sucked in a breath.
The girl’s eyes were glassed over in terror.
“Let her go, Brandt. She has nothing to do with this.”
“She has everything to do with it.” He grinned at Anne. “If your big sister doesn’t cooperate, you and I have our own destiny.”
Not my Anne. “Okay,” Bella said. “Whatever you want.”
“Take your left hand and ease out that Glock in your ankle holster. Then toss it over to me. Anything else, and I’ll have to shoot little sister.”
Bella complied, her injured arm burning while her mind spun with how to free Anne and Carr.
Brandt limped toward them. “I warned you to stay out of this. I had you covered.”
“You what?” Her pulse raced with the deranged man before her, the man who would not think twice about killing Anne, Carr, or her. She had to outthink him, stall for time. But no one knew their location.
“I’ve worked hard to protect you, to give you everything a woman could want.”
“But you tried to kill me.”
“That was Aros, and he paid for his stupidity. You should have stayed away from the investigation until I had everything ready. I called you. I did everything but lock you up.”
Ready for what? “I don’t understand, Brandt. Explain this to me.” She poured compassion into her voice. If he was obsessed with her, then she’d use it against him. Maybe she could get him to release Anne.
“For fourteen years, I’ve searched for the gold and planned for us to be together. Everything I’ve ever done since meeting you has been for you.”
“For me? Why?”
He limped a few steps closer, the pain evident in the tightened muscles of his face. Yet he didn’t relinquish his hold on Anne. He couldn’t have walked from the road. With no vehicle in sight, he must have ridden from the road on horseback with Anne—just as he’d done when he murdered the three men. But where was the horse?
“How did you hurt your knee?”
“Slipped and fell while climbing mountains in Peru.”
“I’m sorry. Was Mair with you?”
“Are you jealous?”
The thought sickened her. “I might be.”
He stared in her face rather pathetically. “No need, sweet lady. You’ve always been number one.”
“I wish you hadn’t killed those three men who were digging here.”
“Them and others who got in my way. They outlived their usefulness. It was all part of my plan so you and I could live the rest of our lives together with no financial worries.” He motioned to Carr. “Keep digging. We’ve waited a long time for this, haven’t we, Rachel?”
“Of course he needs to dig.” Bella continued to lace her words with tenderness. “The gold is here for both of us. Anyone else involved has to be eliminated.”
Anne’s eyes widened. Bella feared she might faint. But better that than become hysterical and have Brandt hurt her. She avoided looking at Carr for fear Brandt would see the emotion between them.
For the next two hours, Carr continued to dig. He widened the hole and pointed out that it would have to be widened even more so he could step inside and dig deeper. Possibly might need to add the ladder. Every swish of the shovel cutting through the hard ground brought all of them closer to whatever Brandt had planned for them.
“I like what you’ve done to your voice,” Bella said.
“Do you?” His face softened, a face she knew could distort to whatever disguise he so chose.
“It’s pleasant—deep, manly.”
“I wondered if you knew it was me.” The moonstruck look on his face displayed his deranged mind.
She forced a smile. “Of course. A few times I questioned if you were following me, like the landscaping man at the hotel.”
He laughed, and she remembered fourteen years ago, when his laughter preceded terror. “What else?”
She searched her mind for those times she tingled . . . and wondered. “The man in the elevator. The older man at Zack’s baseball game.”
“And of course, the phone call from ‘Vic.’ You didn’t even question the number I texted you to use.”
She stared into his face, undaunted. “What’s next for us, Brandt?”
“I have plane tickets to Mexico. We’ll be married there, and I’ll have this bum knee taken care of. Then I have a wonderful surprise for you.”
Stall him. “What kind of a surprise?”
“A mountain estate for us in Brazil. It’s beautiful and filled with the fine things you deserve. The gold here will be our comfort cushion.”
She nodded and captured his gaze. “I’m excited. Thank you, Brandt.”
“I knew you’d be pleased. Now we wait until Sullivan here pulls up the gold.”
“It’s terribly hot. Are you okay in this heat?”
“Yes, my sweet lady.”
She wanted to throw up, and poor Anne must be thinking her sister was a criminal. “Did you ride?”
“I have a horse waiting for us on the other side of the butte.”
Just as she’d thought. “May I stand?”
“I don’t think so.” He stared at her with a faint look of admiration. “I’m so proud of you. Your experience with the FBI will help us stay out from under their radar once we’re in Brazil.”
Her experience was going to help her, Anne, and Carr get out of this mess. “Thank you. I’m glad. What about Anne? Will you let her go?”
“Not sure. Depends on how well Sullivan cooperates. I heard what you said to him. Clever. I mean the part about marrying him.”
And I meant it. Every word. “I’ve learned how to get what I want.”
“I’ve changed my mind. Why don’t you come over here a little closer? Sullivan might grab you.”
Disgust bubbled up her throat. She had the martial arts skills to apprehend him. Maybe she could get to her weapon in the dirt and free Anne. “Okay.”
“You have to earn my trust, Rachel. That’s the way it works.”
“I understand.”
“So when the time comes, you’ll be the one to put a bullet in Sullivan’s head.”
She masked the horror, the repulsion of what Brandt was asking. Dear Jesus, help me. “I’ve never murdered anyone before. I don’t think I can do it.”
“Oh, but you will.”
Without her weapon, she was defenseless. And that meant she’d need to use defensive tactics. Was this what trust in God was all about? All she could do was wait while Carr continued to dig. Time dragged on, and the sun traversed farther across the sky. She feared he’d pass out from the heat and work.
A dull thud alerted her attention to Carr’s digging.
“Was that a rock?” Brandt said, eagerness tipping his words.
Carr stepped into the hole and wiped away the dirt. He’d dug to about five feet. He cleared the dirt around it, widening to a huge piece of pottery. “If I’m not mistaken, it’s some kind of earthen jar.”
“About time.” Brandt sucked in a breath. “I’ve spent the last eighteen years looking for this.”
“The question is what?” Carr’s response held no sign of fear. Could he have a plan as well? “Can’t be a cache of gold here unless the
pottery opens to a room or tunnel.”
“The legend speaks of a huge room filled with Inca gold,” Brandt said.
“Come see for yourself.” Carr hoisted himself out of the hole.
Bella saw her opportunity. Brandt limped closer, insane greed glazing his eyes. She caught Carr’s attention. Anne, watch me.
Fifteen feet.
Twelve feet.
Ten feet.
Eight feet.
Come on. Just a little closer. Carr could use the shovel as a weapon. Anne could wiggle from Brandt’s grasp.
Six feet.
She could almost reach out and touch him.
“We could finish this by ourselves,” Brandt said to Bella. “We could open the jar and take the tunnel to the gold.” He turned his gun on Carr. “Since Rachel hasn’t ever killed a man before, guess I’ll have to do it myself. She can prove her trust in other ways.”
“No.” Bella started to reach for Brandt, but he swung the weapon toward her.
His eyes flared. “What’s the problem? Have you lied to me?” He jerked Anne between them. “Why not let me take care of little sister first?”
Bella drew in a sharp breath. “There’s no point in killing either of them. He could help us get the gold out of there. I mean with your knee and all.”
“Drop it, Richardson.”
Bella startled at the sound of her father’s voice.
“I told you years ago that you’d better never mess with my family again. And that means leaving my daughters alone.”
Brandt laughed, but he didn’t lower his gun. “You gave Rachel to me. Remember? You sold her to me.”
“That was before I got smart.”
“You mean became a religious cripple?”
“Yes. But since I have a gun aimed at your back, I don’t think I’m a cripple.”
“How’s that? I have my gun on Anne’s pretty face. Or I can kill Rachel. Which one is it going to be?”
“Turn around and face me like a man instead of the snake you are. Leave women and children alone.”
“Big talk for a little man. Let’s be reasonable.”
“Not when it comes to my daughters. Drop it now.”
Brandt hesitated long enough for Carr to whip the shovel from the hole and into his midsection. Brandt lost balance and fell over the hole, his body sprawled out like a pagan tribute to an idol. Anne screamed and scrambled away. Bella grabbed Brandt’s gun, but he grabbed her foot, causing her to fall.