“Wait, I think I saw something back there,” Ellie said suddenly. “Headlights, down that dirt road we passed.”
Russell turned the truck around in the road and went back. They rounded a bend in the road just in time to see a car turning off of the dirt road and onto the main highway. The vehicle was heading back the way they had come, towards the Gaines brothers’ house. The sheriff increased his speed, coming up behind the car close enough so they could read the license plate.
“That’s him,” he said. He turned the flashing lights back on. Ellie, who was half prepared for a chase scene like in the movies, was surprised when the vehicle slowed down and pulled over without hesitation.
“Stay here,” Russell said firmly as he unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the truck. He withdrew a large, heavy flashlight from under his seat and flicked it on.
She watched in mute fascination as he approached the car and shone the light in, looking first through the front window, then into the back seat. He took something from the driver — Ellie assumed it was the person’s insurance and registration — and looked it over before handing it back. He gestured, and the driver’s door opened. Someone stepped out. She leaned forward, trying to see who it was, but it was dark and Russell was still aiming his flashlight at the car.
The driver put his hand on the car and stood while the sheriff patted him down for weapons. Then Russell reached inside the vehicle and a second later the trunk popped open. He walked slowly around to the back, opened the truck the rest of the way, and shone the flashlight inside.
At that moment, the car’s driver ran into the woods.
Ellie could hear Russell swear through the glass. She saw him unclip his radio from his belt and bring it to his mouth. Probably calling for backup, she thought. He turned and held up his hand in a gesture that very clearly was telling her to wait, then turned and ran into the trees in pursuit of the driver.
She made a good effort to wait in the truck, but after a few minutes’ curiosity overwhelmed her sense of responsibility. The trunk was wide open. How could she not look? Besides, it wasn’t like she would be in any danger. There was no one else around, and Bethany and Liam were bound to get there soon.
“Just one peek,” she said to herself as she unbuckled her seatbelt. “Then I’ll get back in the truck and wait, just like Russell wanted.”
She left the truck’s door open as she walked down the gravel shoulder of the road, pausing to turn her cell phone’s flashlight app on before she shone the light into the car’s trunk. She was both disappointed and relieved by what she saw. There wasn’t anything gruesome, just a bundle of black clothing.
Ellie was about to turn off the flashlight app and return to the heated interior of the truck when she realized the importance of what she was looking at. Black clothing. Could it be the same clothing that Celestine’s killer or the car vandal had worn? Her curiosity renewed, she prodded the bundle of clothes until she managed to separate the pieces. Sure enough, there was a ski mask, and not only that, but there was something hard in the pocket of the sweatshirt that turned out to be a folding pocket knife.
Even though she knew that she should go back to Russell’s truck and wait there, it was impossible to curb her curiosity. Ellie walked up to the driver’s door and peered in the open window. She saw a pile of papers, and leaned closer. It was the registration and insurance that the driver had handed to Russell. She recognized the name on them immediately. The car belonged to Alexander Gaines.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
* * *
Alex must have been behind it all, she thought. Everything seemed to fall into place. What Chris said was true — he must have been totally obsessed with Celestine. He killed her attacked all of the men that she had contact with. She shivered, suddenly feeling the cold November air more keenly. She was worried about Russell now. Someone as unstable as Alex might be a real danger to him.
She heard the sound of an engine and turned moments before a car rounded the bend from the direction of town. She felt a rush of relief. It was probably one of the deputies, here to give Russell the backup that he needed. The car slowed and parked behind the sheriff’s truck. Ellie put her phone in her pocket and walked towards it, only to stumble to a halt a few feet away when she was able to see the vehicle more clearly past the headlights. It was the wrong color to be one of the deputies’ cars.
Feeling a swirl of fear in her stomach, she took a step backwards as the driver’s side door opened. A tall, dark shape unfolded itself from inside, but she didn’t recognize him until he stepped in front of the headlights.
“Chris,” she gasped, relieved that it was someone she knew. “What are you doing here?”
“I saw my brother’s car.” He nodded towards the dark blue vehicle with its trunk wide open. “Is he okay? Did he get into an accident?”
“No, he was pulled over.” She took a deep breath “I think you were right. About him killing Celestine.”
He closed his eyes and turned his face away from her for a moment. She wondered what he was thinking. She had never had a sibling, but she could imagine that it must be hard to learn something so terrible about a family member that he was so close to.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly.
“It’s all right.” He sighed and sat down on the hood of his car. “I was expecting it, but still, to hear it out loud…” he shook his head. “Where is he?”
“He ran into the woods,” Ellie said. “Russ — the sheriff — is looking for him. Backup will be here soon.”
“Into the woods?” Chris asked. “Did you see which direction he was headed?”
“Um, that way, I think,” she said, pointing.
“He’s heading back towards the house,” he muttered. “Crap.”
“I’m sure they’ll catch him, even if he makes it to the house.”
“That’s what I’m worried about.” He sighed and stood up. “I’m going to head there and see if I can intercept him. You coming?”
“I don’t know, I was supposed to stay here…” she said hesitantly.
“I don’t think it’s safe for you to stay here on your own. What if he circles back?”
“Well… okay.” He had a point. Alex was obviously not in his right mind, and she wouldn’t feel safe waiting alone in the truck for Russell to return or the deputies to show up. At least with Chris, there would be safety in numbers.
She got into the passenger seat of his car and looked out the window, feeling bad for leaving without saying anything to Russell. If he came back and saw that she was gone, he would be worried. Still, the thought of being alone on the side of the road if Alex came back was simply terrifying. She would have no way to defend herself. There might be a gun somewhere in the sheriff’s truck, but she would have no idea how to use it safely.
“You ready?” Chris asked. She nodded. He put the car into gear and pulled out from behind the sheriff’s truck. Soon they were speeding down the road towards the Gaines brothers’ house.
Before long, Chris put on his turn signal and pulled up the gravel drive to the large, but slightly run down looking house. The windows were dark, and there was no sign of anyone in the yard.
“You wait here,” Chris said. “I’m going to go make sure he’s not in the house. If you see anyone come out of the trees, yell.”
Ellie nodded mutely, feeling slightly annoyed that once again she was being asked to wait in the car like someone’s pet. Still, she couldn’t deny that she was glad that she didn’t have to walk through a stranger’s home looking for a murderer.
After Chris left, she kept her eyes glued to the tree line. Where was Russell? Was he still chasing Alex? Had he caught him yet? Were they on their way back to the road, or was the sheriff lying in a pool of his own blood in that dark forest somewhere?
As more and more time passed, the anxiety and concern kept growing inside of her. Something should have happened by now. It couldn’t take that long for Alex to run from his car through the woods to
the house. It would be a straight shot through the forest, much shorter than taking the road, which curved in a big loop around this section of trees. If Russell had managed to catch the other man, then surely they would be back at the truck by now. Once the sheriff noticed that she was missing, he was bound to call her.
Ellie checked her cellphone for what felt like the hundredth time, but there was still no sign that Russell had tried to contact her. She had considered texting him herself, just to let him know where she was, but she didn’t remember seeing him turn his phone volume down, and didn’t want to jeopardize his safety by sending him a message at the wrong time.
And what was taking Chris so long, anyway? He had turned a couple of lights on in the house, and now she could see him walking past a window on the upper floor. It didn’t seem like he could still be searching for Alex, and she was tired of sitting in the car and doing nothing.
Making up her mind, Ellie undid her seatbelt, shoved her phone into her pocket, and got out of the car. At least inside she wouldn’t be a sitting duck if Alex did show up, and maybe she could even convince Chris to tell her more about his brother. She still couldn’t figure out what, exactly, had driven him over the edge and caused him to end things with his girlfriend once and for all.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
* * *
Ellie opened the front door cautiously and stepped through. The first thing she noticed was that the house was a mess. A picture frame hung crookedly off the wall, its glass shattered. A small table in the entranceway had been knocked over, and the drywall at the foot of the stairs had been caved in. It almost looked like someone had kicked it.
“Chris?” she called out. She heard something fall upstairs. Feeling uncomfortable and beginning to wish that she had stayed in the car after all, she tentatively walked up the first couple of steps. What happened here? she wondered. It looks like someone went on a rampage. Maybe Alex was even crazier than she had thought, though why he would take his anger out on his own house, she had no idea.
Beginning to feel concerned for Chris, she continued up the stairs. At least the upper story didn’t look like a hurricane had raged through it. Only one room had a light on, so she headed that direction. She knocked on the doorframe a second before poking her head around it.
“Chris, it was taking so long I started to get worried —” She broke off mid-sentence. “What are you doing?”
He was throwing clothes into a suitcase, and it looked like he already had a second one packed and ready to go. He looked up when she came in and his expression hardened, but other than that he didn’t acknowledge her presence.
“What are you doing?” she repeated. “Are you packing?”
“Yes,” he said shortly. “You should have waited in the car like I asked.”
“Well I wanted to make sure you were okay. And I hate just sitting there without being able to help. What in the world happened downstairs?”
“Alex.” Chris’s face was a sneer.
“Did he get here before us?”
“He did that earlier today.”
“Oh.” Ellie fell silent, watching him continue to inexplicable shove all of his possessions into the suitcase. Something occurred to her. “Wait, Russell told me that the original call to the police came from this house. Was that you?”
He put down the shirt that he had been attempting to fold and looked up at her. His expression was cold, and there was something in his eyes that Ellie didn’t like.
“I’ve got to say, I’m a bit surprised that it took you that long to figure it out,” he said. “Yes, I called the police on my brother. He came in here with his fists swinging, looking for a fight. I pulled a knife and he took off. I thought the police would at least be competent enough to catch one guy, but I guess I was wrong.”
“But why did Alex attack you?” she asked. “Did he find out that you think he killed Celestine.”
A grim grin broke out across Chris’s face. “No. He found out that I’m the one that had been sleeping with his girlfriend.”
A stunned silence fell. After a moment, Ellie said, “Well, that was terrible of you.” Chris just shrugged and continued packing.
Ellie turned and was about to head back downstairs when she heard the front door slam open. Chris swore loudly behind her, and a moment later she felt his fingers close around her arm. He yanked her back into the bedroom and shut the door.
“Get in the corner,” he said. “Don’t try to leave, or you’ll be sorry.”
Her heart pounding, Ellie did as she was told. Chris went back to the bed and began frantically trying to zip up his overstuffed suitcase. She heard the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs.
“Chris —” she began, but he cut her off.
“Shut up. Just do what I say. Come over to the window and crawl out onto the roof.”
“No, don’t be stupid —”
“What did I say?” he growled, rounding on her. She heard the metallic sound of a pocket knife opening and glanced down to see a blade in his hand. She gulped.
At that moment, the doorknob twisted and rattled as someone tried to open it. Ellie knew that the little lock on the handle wouldn’t hold if the person on the other side was determined about getting in. Her eyes flitted from the door to Chris’s menacing frame in front of her. She was trapped between two dangerous people, but only one of them was a murderer.
“Okay,” she whispered to Chris. “Okay, I’ll do it. Just put the knife down.”
She walked over to the window and pulled it open. It took her a moment to figure out how to get the screen out. She had just popped it out of the frame when she saw two, no, three sets of headlights pull into the driveway.
“Not enough time,” Chris muttered darkly from just over her shoulder. “Get between me and the door. Now.”
Confused and terrified, she did as she was told just as the bedroom door burst open. Alex stood behind it, leaves and twigs in his hair and his hands shaking.
“Leave her be, Chris,” he said. “Face me like a man. Ellie, hurry up and get away from him.”
“No way,” Ellie said, her voice coming out more squeaky and high pitched than she expected. “You killed Celestine. Why would I think you wouldn’t do the same to me?”
“I didn’t kill her!” Alex shouted, his eyes wild. “My brother did, and he’s going to do the same to you if you don’t get away from him.”
“That’s not true. I know you killed her, I figured it all out. She was cheating on you, and you didn’t know with who at first so you tried to scare off every guy that she had contact with, but you just couldn’t stand it, could you, so you stabbed her!”
“Only half of that is right,” Alex said. He was easing slowly into the room. “I admit to trying to scare off the guys that she saw, and it was stupid of me. At first I was just mad, but after she died I thought the best way to solve her murder would be to find her killer. She went to break up with him earlier that day, you see. She wanted to start over with me. She never told me who it was, but she swore to me that it was over. So yeah, I made a list of all of the guys she’d seen over the past couple of weeks and stalked them for a while. Pretty soon I realized that none of them were the right guy. But I’d never hurt Celestine. You’ve got to believe me.”
“Why would you slash the sheriff’s tires?” Ellie asked, beginning to be convinced by his story but still full of questions. “He’d never even spoken to her.”
“I didn’t,” Alex said, looking puzzled. His eyes flashed behind her, to his brother. “Was that you, Chris? You might as well come clean. I’m your brother, man, I deserve to know.”
“It was me,” Chris said through gritted teeth. “I figured out you were obsessing over finding her secret lover, and guessed you were the one messing up people’s cars. I thought if I brought your little tire slashing habit to light by doing the sheriff’s car, he’d track you down and see how mentally unstable you were. Then you’d be carted away and I’d be free. You took my ski mask, you jer
k. Did you ever guess it was the same one I was wearing when I killed her?”
Alex paled, and Ellie gasped. “You killed her? But why?” she said, spinning around to stare at Chris with horror.
“She dumped me for my wimpy little brother, and to make matters even worse, she was planning on telling you.” His face twisted. “She broke my heart, so I stabbed her through hers.”
Smoked Gouda Murder: Book 5 in Papa Pacelli's Pizzeria Series Page 7