All That Glitters (20 page)

She put her hand on the latch, careful not to make a sound. It opened!

As quietly as she could she pulled it toward her just enough to squeeze through the opening, shutting it softly behind her.

She quickly slipped into her shoes and ran toward the stables. She was strongly tempted to look behind and make sure no one was following her.

Don’t do it! she warned herself. You might stumble and fall. Keep going! You’re out of that room and no longer a prisoner—that’s the important thing!

After what seemed an eon, but was only a matter of one or two minutes, she reached the huge tree and looked for the hidden door. She pressed it open. As she stepped inside the trunk and pulled the door shut behind her, she thought she heard footsteps.

Someone’s coming! She tore down the winding, concrete stairs. To her left she spied the small closet. As fast as her feet would carry her, she entered it and pulled the door shut behind her.

She waited.

Listened.

As she stood there, afraid to breathe, she realized that what she heard was one of the horses in the stables pawing the floor of his stall.

She slowly pushed the door of the closet open and peeked out, making sure no one had followed her.

Still no one in sight.

But in her haste to exit from the tree trunk, her sweater caught on the bark of the tree. She yanked it free.

Quietly, but quickly, she sneaked over to the footbridge. This is almost too easy, she thought.

She shook off this false sense of security. Don’t let down your guard, she admonished herself. You’re not completely free yet.

There was a four foot fence at the other end of the footbridge, blocking her way, but thanks to her early ballet training she easily leaped over it to the other side.

She rushed over to the brook. She stood looking at it with dismay. How do I get across?

You’ve come this far—don’t stop now!

Although the brook was quite narrow, she decided not to try and wade across. The current was too strong.

The huge boulders might serve as stepping stones, she figured. She only hoped they weren’t too slippery as she stepped gingerly on to the nearest one, testing it to make sure it was secure. It was fairly flat on top, and she had no trouble with it. Let’s hope the others are as easy as this one, she prayed. If one of these stones should move, I could fall off and be swept downstream, and who knows where I’d end up? I might even be killed!

Her heart pounded and her knees threatened to buckle, but she gritted her teeth and kept going.

It’s now or never!

She crept across the boulders one by one until she finally reached the other side of the brook.

A short distance away she could see a road, and ran toward it, shivering in the chilly night air. Her multicolored sweater was all she had for warmth. Francois had taken away her coat and purse when they first arrived at the Chateau, in an attempt to discourage her from trying to escape. But he hadn’t counted on the grit and determination that were so much a part of her character.

After walking along the lonely road for an hour, she was tempted to stop and rest. She resisted, warning herself that at any moment Francois might discover she was gone, and come after her. She was tired and cold. The temperature she guessed to be somewhere in the forties. But whenever she heard a car approaching she hid behind the nearest tree, resisting the temptation to flag it down. What if it’s Francois or Gabe looking for me? The very thought made her shudder.

If only I could find someone who would help me, she thought in desperation—or a house nearby where I could stay. But how do I know who can be trusted? The news reported that Francois would pay any amount of money to get me back. That could be very tempting. As she looked around, she spied a lonely looking shack sitting back from the road. Hugging her sweater closely around her shivering body, she made her way over to it.

Very slowly, she opened the door. There was no one there. Except for a chair and a fireplace, the room was empty.

She crept down the tiny hallway and, much to her surprise and delight, she saw a bed cozied up against the wall. I’ll just lie down for a minute, she promised herself. Her body was weary from walking and hiding, and tense from fear.

With a sigh of relief she collapsed on it, and was soon fast asleep.

CHAPTER XXVIII
 

Zack, Hildy, Jay, Jenny, Peter, Lilli, and Fran sat quietly in the library of the Chateau in Amboise, listening to the television report on Cammie’s kidnapping. It was the same report that Cammie heard at the Chateau de Boulanger.

Jeremy waited anxiously in Zack’s room.

Zack rose from his chair and walked to the corner of the library, trying to figure a way to get Hildy and Jay upstairs without arousing suspicion.

Before he got the chance, the phone rang.

Fran picked it up and turned on the speaker, so the others could hear what was being said.

“Count Dubonnet,” the voice droned, “this is Andre. I have your daughter-in-law. If you want to see her again you will follow my instructions to the letter. I don’t want money. The only ransom I want is for Madame Hilary Stuart to admit her guilt to the whole world, or she will never see her daughter again!”

Everyone in the room, except Fran, was aware that it couldn’t be Andre making that call with such preposterous demands. He was still in the hospital recovering from the gunshot wounds inflicted by the hit man hired by Lilli and Francois.

This could only be Gabe obeying Francois’ orders! Zack figured.

He glanced at Lilli. How would she and Francois react when they found out that they had failed?

We mustn’t let that happen! Zack determined. They would only try again!

Countess Lilli seemed surprised. “Why, that’s Andre! He used to be my butler! I thought he was dead! What is he doing with Cammie?”

Fran turned to Hildy. “What is he talking about?” he asked her. “Guilt about what?”

Hildy shook her head in bewilderment. “I don’t know.”

“Don’t try to pretend innocence, Madame Stuart,” the voice continued. “You stole ‘The Ginger Jar’ and ‘La Fleur Rouge’ from Gregory Wilcox and ruined his reputation. I’ve seen the young Count Francois and Countess Lilli suffer over the years because she was robbed of a husband, and he never knew his father. It was all your fault. You might as well have pulled the trigger. The time has come for you to admit your guilt, so the whole world will know what a fraud you are, and Gregory Wilcox’s reputation will be restored.”

“That’s a lie!” Hildy gasped. “He stole those musicals from me! This was proven in a court of law years ago!”

“Let us talk with Cammie!” Jay fairly shouted. “We’ve got to know she’s still alive before we agree to anything!”

“Sorry,” the voice continued, “there will be no concessions. That is all I have to say—except that you owe all the money you made with Mr. Wilcox’s musicals to Count Francois and his mother, Countess Lilli. I expect you to report your guilt to the newspapers by tomorrow at the very latest, Madame Stuart. If you don’t, I will have no choice but to kill your daughter. It is up to you.” He hung up abruptly.

Fran looked at Lilli. “Do you know anything about this?” he asked her.

Lilli gave him her most innocent look. “Cherie, I had no idea that Andre did this. I don’t even know where he is. Why, if I had known, I would have stopped him.”

Her answer seemed to satisfy the Count, but Zack had hard work to hide his disgust. Boy, she’s good! Her pretense sickened him. There was no doubt left in his mind. She and Francois are at the bottom of the kidnapping! And they’re trying to put the blame on poor Andre!

He could see that Hildy was on the verge of saying something. His warning look stopped her. They mustn’t let on that they knew it wasn’t Andre who had made that call! “Hildy? Jay?” he said. “I’m going to my room. Would you like to join me? We have a lot to discuss.”

Jeremy was pacing the floor, waiting anxiously when they arrived. As Jay led Hildy into Zack’s room, she was shaking with fear—fear for Cammie.

Zack put his finger on his lips and said nothing, until he checked to make sure there was no one outside listening to what was being said. “Jeremy has something important to tell you.”

Jeremy looked grim. “I saw Cammie yesterday at the Chateau de Boulanger. She waved to me from a fifth floor window. I waved back, and then I left. I thought she was just being friendly, but now I think she may have been signaling for help. Why didn’t this occur to me before I left?” Jeremy berated himself.

Hildy was distraught. “She’s at the Chateau de Boulanger? Is she all right?”

“She was yesterday,” Jeremy replied. “I’m sorry I didn’t understand what she was trying to tell me.”

“How could you possibly have known?” Jay asked him.

“We can’t waste time blaming ourselves,” Zack cautioned them. “We’ve got to figure out a way to get to the Chateau de Boulanger without Lilli knowing, and get Cammie out of there.”

Hildy burst into tears. “I think we should do as Francois asks,” she sobbed.

Zack was firm. “Hildy, I know how you feel, but Francois will never let her go. She knows too much. He needs her right now to bargain with, but once he gets what he wants, he won’t care. He’ll kill her the minute you do as he asks. He can’t take the chance that she’ll identify him as her kidnapper. I think he has a very clever plan in mind. He’s pretending to be upset over her kidnapping. He’s already making Andre the culprit. It’s a perfect setup for him to get off scot free, and for Andre to get the blame.”

“I agree with Zack,” Jeremy said. “Somehow we have to get to Chaumont without arousing suspicion.”

A knock on the door brought Zack to his feet. It was Jenny and Peter. “What’s going on?” they asked.

Zack put his finger on his lips and peered down the hall before ushering them in and closing the door. “We know where Cammie is being held prisoner,” he said, “but we don’t want anyone to suspect that we’re going there. Any ideas?”

“How do you know where she is?” Jenny asked.

“Jeremy saw her yesterday,” Zack replied.

“Then she’s not kidnapped!” Peter exclaimed.

“I’m afraid she is,” Zack answered. “We think she was signaling for help.”

“I didn’t understand,” Jeremy told them. “I thought she was just being friendly. We’ve got to get to her without anyone knowing where we’ve gone.”

“Why don’t we stay here and keep them occupied?” Peter suggested. “As long as we’re here I’m sure they’ll know you’re coming back for us.”

“Yes,” Jenny chimed in. “We can tell them you wanted to get away from here to think things over, and you’ll be back soon.”

Zack walked over to the window and looked out. After pondering their suggestion for a moment, he turned back and faced them. “That might just work,” he said. “It’s worth a try.”

“We may not be back till late,” Jay told them. “I know you’ll think of something to tell them that will avoid suspicion.”

Jenny and Peter stood up to leave, and were almost at the door, when Jenny turned back. “Where is Cammie?” she asked.

“Shh!” warned Zack. He rose and opened the door. He peered out. No one there. “I think it’s better if you don’t know,” he whispered. “That way you won’t have to lie if anyone asks questions.”

Jeremy was getting anxious. “Let’s go! We can’t wait another minute!”

They tiptoed down the stairs and out to the limousine, as Jenny and Peter headed back to the library to rejoin Lilli and Fran.

CHAPTER XXIX
 

The limousine drove off, and
Jenny and Peter returned to the library. As they entered
and sat down, the butler was serving coffee and croissants.

They sat there chatting and sipping coffee. Half an hour passed before Lilli became curious. She looked at her watch, then at the library door. “Where are Hildy and Jay?” she asked. “And Zack?”

“They needed to clear their heads and decide what to do,” Peter told her. “They went for a drive. They’ll be back soon.”

Lilli looked as though she didn’t believe him. “Where is Jeremy?” she asked. “Did he go with them?”

Peter hesitated, not sure how to answer.

Jenny jumped in, trying to keep Lilli from becoming suspicious. If we say no, she mused, she’ll probably check Zack’s room. She decided it was better to be truthful. “Yes,” she replied. “Zack invited him to join them.”

“What a nice young man!” Fran exclaimed. “I do hope he returns with them. I’d like to get to know him better.”

* * *

Lilli tried to hide her fear as she excused herself and left the library. She sped down the stairs and over to the other side of the Chateau where she and Fran had their private living quarters.

Once in her room she wasted no time. She picked up the telephone and called the Chateau de Boulanger. “Francois!” she exclaimed the minute he answered. “Hildy and Jay Stuart went for a drive and may be headed over there. They disappeared after your ransom call. Jeremy Douglass appeared here a couple of hours ago and left with them. Does he know Cammie is there?”

Francois was furious. “What is Jeremy Douglass doing at your Chateau?”

“I don’t know. I’m afraid somehow he found out where Cammie is. Make sure they don’t find her!”

“I’ll take care of it,” Francois assured her.

“Oh, another thing,” his mother warned him. “Their friend, Zack is also with them. I think you’d better be on the lookout, or he might blow this whole thing wide open.”

Francois snorted. “Zack is dead! He can’t possibly be with them!”

“Zack isn’t dead!”

“What?! I locked him up in the secret room! He was getting too close to the truth! I thought he would be dead before anyone found him!”

“Well, somehow he got out. This whole thing is getting us in too deep! I’ll be glad when it’s over, and Hildy makes her confession. Be on the lookout for them!” she warned.

“Merci, mon mere!” he replied. “I can always count on you.”

“They may insist on exploring the whole Chateau,” she warned him. “Perhaps you should hide Cammie in a more secluded place.”