Deadly Echoes (27 page)

Anson walked into the room. The compassionate expression
I'd seen on his face before was gone. In its place was something so cold it almost took my breath away.

“Obviously, I do. Thanks to you, Mike.”

“He's not the murderer, Anson,” I said. “You're the one who killed my family.”

“I didn't want to do it,” he said in a monotone. “But your father was going to ruin my life. I couldn't allow that to happen. When Hannah contacted me, I tried my best to lead her in a different direction, but she wouldn't let it go.” He shook his head. “I cared about her, Sarah. I know you probably don't believe me, but it's true. Unfortunately, when you get in over your head, all you can do is keep swimming.”

“You can't kill me too,” I said. “You'd never get away with it.”

“You're probably right. But I know how to make it look like an unfortunate accident.”

“Someone will figure it out,” I said. “This will come back on you.”

“I don't think so. I've planned everything very carefully. After I got to your charming little town, I spent quite a bit of time coming up with a scenario I'm confident will work just fine. You gave me the idea. And no one will connect me to it. You see, I'm already on my way back to Kansas City. I have people willing to swear to it.”

I didn't say anything. I was certain he was telling the truth. Right now all I could think about was Cicely.

“Why can't we just walk away?” Mike said. “There's no way Sarah can prove you had anything to do with Hannah's death.”

“Sorry. I'm not taking advice from you anymore, Mike. I figured you were the one who sent those flowers. You were the only one who knew about them. That's why I sent you here and bugged the phones, so I could keep an eye on you.”

“Doug Sykes saw the connection between you and the murders. There's some other smart detective who will see the same thing.”

“Yes, Doug had suspicions. That's why he came to me for help. But now the investigation is closed. Having contacts in prison silenced the perfect suspect.”

“But there's nothing to link him to Hannah's murder,” I said. “How could you close the case without evidence?”

He gave me a small smile. “That's a good question, Sarah. You see, several things stolen from your sister's house conveniently showed up in a downtown pawn shop. The owner, who is a friend of mine, will swear Steven Hanks brought them in.”

“You've thought of everything, haven't you, Anson?” I said.

He shrugged. “Yes, except I was hoping I was wrong about my friend Mike. But people let you down. It's a sad fact of life.” He walked toward me, put his arm around my neck, and stuck his gun to my temple. “Put your gun on the table, Mike. Then take the phone off the hook. Go upstairs and get the girl. If you try anything funny, I'll shoot Sarah right here. You know me well enough to be confident I'll do it.”

“You can't afford to—”

“If you don't do what I say, the police will find the gun in your hand—after you blow your brains out. No one will even know I was here.”

I wanted to ask him about Cicely, but I couldn't get the words out. The possibilities were too dreadful to consider.

“Go get her, Mike,” I said. “Staying together is our best defense.”

Mike put his gun on the coffee table and stood up. I could tell he was trying to figure out if there was any way to subdue Anson. But with the gun so close to me, there wasn't anything
he could do without risking my life. After taking the phone off the hook, he headed slowly upstairs. Tears fell down the sides of my cheeks, knowing what Cicely was getting ready to face. I called out to God for help, praying quietly.

“Stop it,” Anson snapped. “Praying won't help you. There's no one listening.”

“You're counting on that, Anson. But if you're wrong, you'll pay for everything you've done. You know that, don't you?”

“Never believed in God. Never will. Now shut up.” Still holding on to me with one hand, he grabbed Mike's gun and put it in his pocket.

We sat quietly, waiting for Mike and Cicely to come downstairs. It only took a couple of minutes before I heard footsteps on the stairs. Cicely came into the room, her eyes wide, fear plastered on her face.

“What's going on, Aunt Sarah?” she asked, her voice shaking.

“Everything will be all right, honey,” I said. “For now, I want you to do what you're told. Do you understand?” Anger bubbled inside me. Cicely had been through so much. Now this.

She nodded slowly, staring at Anson.

Anson moved away from the couch but kept his gun trained on me. “Anyone makes a wrong move, and I will kill Sarah. I mean that. Do you understand?”

Cicely nodded, tears sliding down her face.

He walked away from me and grabbed Cicely. She cried out, and rage rose inside me.

“Leave the girl alone, Junior,” Mike said. “You can hold the gun on me.”

Anson shrugged. “Sorry. Cicely makes the best hostage.”

“Junior?” I said, looking at Mike. “Why did you call him Junior?”

“That was my nickname when my dad was alive,” Anson spat out. “I lived in his shadow every day of my life.”

I looked over at Mike. “
JR
. Not initials. Hannah was writing ‘Junior.'” I looked back at Anson. “You're
J
.”

“Yes, I'm
J
.” He laughed. “Your sister used to call me Junior too. I don't think she ever used my real name. She thought I was just a chip off the old block, but I'm nothing like my father.”

I was certain that was true, but I kept my mouth shut.

“You'll both do everything I say, or I'll kill this girl. Mike, empty your pockets and put your cell phone on the table. Then pull your pants up and show me your ankles.”

Mike pulled a cell phone from his pants pocket and put it on the coffee table. He emptied his pockets, and then he pulled up his pant legs. “I didn't strap on my other pistol today,” he said. “Obviously, that was a mistake.”

Then Anson pointed his gun at me. “Pat him down. If you try to hide something from me, I'll shoot her.”

I patted Mike down, but there wasn't anything else on him, and I told Anson that.

“What about you?” he said. “Anything on you? Cell phone?”

“No, I don't have a cell phone, and my pockets are empty.” I pulled the pockets of my jeans inside out.

“Get your purse,” he ordered.

I retrieved my purse from the closet and held it out to him, but he waved it away.

“Dump it out on the coffee table. I want to see what's in it.”

I followed his instructions. Out tumbled my keys, my wallet, some breath mints, a small note pad, my brush, and a couple of pens.

“Is that it?” he barked.

I shook it one more time. The magnet I'd picked up outside
Hannah's house fell out with a clunk. I'd forgotten it was even there. Unsure why I hadn't found it earlier, all I could do was stare at it.
I
Am With You
. The reassurance gave me a sense of peace that didn't make much sense under the circumstances, but I began to believe we could make it through this alive.

“All right, put it back. We're all going for a ride. But first you're going to write a letter for me, Sarah.” He pointed to the pad of paper and the pen we kept next to the phone. “Get a piece of paper, sit down, and write exactly what I tell you.”

I got the paper and pen and sat down.

“Write this verbatim. Don't add anything. I'm going to check it, so no funny business.”

I nodded and lifted the pen, ready to write. I snuck a look at Cicely, trying to find a way to reassure her that she would be okay. A line from one of the Psalms whispered to me:
“The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them
out of all their troubles.”
I'm crying to
you for help, Lord,
I prayed silently.
Deliver us. I
put my trust in you.

“Janet,” Anson dictated, “Cicely is gone. I'm afraid she's at the mine again. Mike is taking me to look for her. We'll be back soon.”

I carefully wrote what he said. Would Janet really believe that Cicely had gone to the mine again? It was improbable but not impossible. It was certainly believable that Mike and I would drive over and look for her. Obviously, Anson's plan was for all of us to die in the mine, making it look like an accident. I snuck a look at Mike. It was clear he knew what was happening too. He gave me an almost imperceptible nod. Did he have a plan?

“Now sign it,” Anson said.

“All right. It's done.”

Anson came over to me, dragging Cicely with him. He looked
over my shoulder at the note. “That looks okay. Hang up the phone, put the note on the coffee table, and let's go.”

“We're going to the mine?” Cicely said. “Why?”

“Don't worry,” I said, trying to sound calm. “Everything will be okay.” I looked at Anson. “She needs her coat and so do I. It's freezing out there.”

“Where are they?”

“In the closet by the front door.”

He let go of Cicely and pushed her toward the closet. “Get your coat and your aunt's too.” He looked over at Mike. “Drive your car around to the back of the house. If you decide to drive away, I'll kill them.”

I glanced out the window, but Anson's car wasn't parked outside. I suspected he had someone set to pick him up at the mine after our “accident
.
”

Mike picked up his keys from the table.

“Put your billfold back in your pocket,” Anson said. “I don't want anything left behind that looks suspicious.” He nodded at me. “Take your purse.” He noticed the large envelope lying on the table. “What's that?” he asked.

There wasn't any use lying to him, since he could read it himself. Trying to keep him from getting angry and hurting Cicely, I told him the truth. “It's a copy of the report written when my parents were murdered. Before you had it changed. It names you as one of the officers on scene.”

He glanced at Mike. “Hand it to me.”

Mike put his billfold in his back pocket and picked up his keys. Then he carried the report over to where Anson stood.

“That's far enough,” Anson barked. He slid over next to Cicely, who stood next to the closet holding our coats. “Put your coat on,” he ordered her.

“Get going, Mike. Now.” He poked Cicely with his gun.

With one last look at me, Mike walked out the back door. Anson took my coat from Cicely and handed it to me. It wasn't my warmest coat, but it didn't seem important at that moment, so I took it without saying anything. Then holding Cicely by the arm, he walked over to the fireplace and threw the envelope into the fire.

Then the three of us just stood there, waiting for Mike and watching my evidence burn away. Would Mike leave us here? Would he take a chance that Anson wouldn't kill us? I honestly didn't have the answer. If he ran for help, it was possible we'd all make it out of this alive. It was just as possible that in anger, Anson would kill Cicely and me, even though it would be harder to explain. I suspected that by now Anson believed he could get away with anything. He'd been doing it for a very long time.

There wasn't a sound in the room except my ragged breathing and Cicely's whimpers as we waited. I stuck my hands in my coat pockets and almost cried out when my fingers touched Cicely's cell phone. I'd forgotten I'd put it in the pocket of my coat when I took it away from her. I hadn't worn this particular coat since we went looking for Cicely and Jeremiah at the mine.

I almost collapsed with relief when I heard Mike's engine at the back of the house. Although I couldn't be sure he'd made the right decision, at least Cicely and I were still alive. A few seconds later, I heard Mike come in the back door. He walked into the living room and stared at Anson.

“Pat him down again,” he ordered me. “And remember, I will search him myself once we get out of here. If I find anything that shouldn't be there, I'll kill the girl.”

“I don't have any guns in the car, Anson,” he said. “You know I don't believe in leaving loaded weapons in my vehicle.”

Anson shrugged. “I do know that, but there's a first time for everything.”

I patted Mike down again, almost hoping there would be a gun. But there wasn't. “No guns,” I said, turning toward Anson. The look on Cicely's face made me want to cry, but I was determined to stay strong and try to help her remain calm.

“All right. Everyone out the door and into the car.”

We filed out silently. Anson told me to get into the passenger's seat. Then he took Cicely and shoved her in the back. As he'd promised, he patted Mike down before ordering him to get into the driver's seat. Once Mike was belted in, Anson slid into the back with Cicely.

“Get down on the floor,” he ordered.

I turned to see if she was okay and found him staring at me.

“As we drive out of town, the only people anyone will see is you and Mike. If you gesture to anyone, I will kill her immediately. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“Drive to the mine, Mike. And don't try anything cute.”

I couldn't tell what Mike was thinking, but I had to assume we were both on the same page. Waiting until we could find the right moment to turn this around was our only option. Anson was crouched down in the backseat next to Cicely, with his gun trained on her. In that position, I wasn't in his direct line of sight. Even so, I didn't dare turn on Cicely's phone. I needed to find a few seconds when Anson wouldn't hear any sounds it might make.

As we began to drive out of town, I spotted some men on the front porch of the school. With everything going on, I'd forgotten they were working on the furnace today. Jeremiah stood on the porch, watching Mike's SUV approach. An idea
popped into my head and even though it frightened me, I decided I had to try it.