Fools Rush In (24 page)

Erin paced back and forth across the room. She paused by the balcony doors to check her watch and sighed. Max had been gone only twenty minutes, and already it seemed like hours.

Raking a hand through her short curls, she walked the length of the room again, mentally kicking herself for promising him she'd stay put while he checked around. "Why on earth did you let him talk you into it?" she demanded of her reflection when she passed the mirror.

The minute she voiced the impatient question her conscience pricked her. You know why. Because he loves you, and he's afraid for you.

Personally, she doubted that they had been followed this time. But she had seen genuine terror in Max's eyes this morning when he'd pleaded with her to stay out of sight. Lord knew, she hadn't wanted to, but all her arguments failed to reassure him. In the end, loving him as she did, she had given in.

After two more trips across the room Erin came to a halt beside the balcony doors and stared out at the picture-perfect scene below.

The small village, strung out along the base of Vail Mountain, gleamed, pristine and beautiful, in the brilliant sunshine. There was a definite Alpine flavor to Vail. Small plazas, fountains and sculpture abounded at various levels. Lining the narrow winding streets and alleyways were old-world-style half-timbered stucco buildings with rough-hewn beams and bay-windowed fronts that housed quaint shops, sidewalk cafes and Alpine lodges. Everywhere you looked were flowers—hanging baskets, landscaped beds, pots and planters filled with pansies, petunias, poppies and columbines.

From the balcony Erin could see the clock tower at the heart of the village, as well as the very top of the covered bridge over Gore Creek. Beyond, Vail Mountain's massive bulk loomed up against a vibrantly blue sky, its verdant slopes veined with ski runs that stood out as bright green swaths cut through the darker pines and aspens.

The only vehicles allowed within the village proper were the free shuttle buses and bicycles, and with mostly pedestrian traffic there was an air of tranquillity about the mountain town that was very appealing.

But its peace did not touch Erin.

Restless, she whirled away from the glass doors and made another circuit of the room. She stretched out on the bed, telling herself she would rest, but flounced off again a moment later. In desperation, she turned on the television and tried every channel, but nothing distracted her sufficiently and she snapped it off.

"If I don't do something, I'm going to go stark, staring mad," she snarled at the ceiling.

After a moment's consideration, Erin snatched up her purse and headed for the door. She would just pop down to the lobby and get a newspaper. That should keep her occupied for a while.

Erin had already pushed the button to summon the elevator when she remembered that she had not put on the wig. Frowning, she nibbled the end of her index finger and debated whether or not to go back for it, but before she could make up her mind the elevator doors opened. There were three other passengers inside. They looked at her expectantly, and when one young man said, "Well, are you going down or not?" she cast one last doubtful glance toward her room, shrugged and stepped inside.

It would take only a few seconds, she reasoned. The rack of newspapers was just a few feet from the elevator. She would step off, buy one and get right back on.

When the doors slid open Erin was the first one off, but three steps away she stopped as though she had hit a brick wall, every vestige of color draining from her face.

Across the lobby, not twenty feet away, Sam Lawford stood talking to the desk clerk.

For a moment Erin froze to the spot, her mind numb with shock. Then terror welled up inside her, and her heart began to pound so hard that she could barely breathe. She whirled around, but the elevator had already gone. She took a step toward the stairs, then realized she would be trapped if she went back to the room.

Panicked, she looked back over her shoulder. Sam was still at the front desk, but he would soon have the information he was seeking.

Oh, God, she had to get out of there! If he turned his head just a fraction, he would see her!

She looked around frantically. To go out the front she would have to pass right by him. No. No, she couldn't risk it. Keeping her eye on Sam, Erin sidled toward the terrace doors. Trying not to attract attention, she forced herself to move slowly at first, but halfway there panic overtook her and she broke into a run.

Erin snatched open the terrace door so forcefully that it slipped out of her hand and banged back against the wall. She moaned and kept going.

In warm weather the terrace was used as an outdoor restaurant. Erin darted past the startled hostess and cut a zig-zagging path through the tables. It occurred to her that there might be steps leading down to the street, but she did not take time to look for them. When she reached the edge of the terrace, she grasped the wrought-iron railing with both hands, vaulted over and landed hip-deep in a bed of columbine. Startled exclamations and murmurs arose from the diners behind her, but Erin hit the ground running. Hardly breaking stride, she tore through the flower bed, leaped into the street and sprinted away.

She ran full tilt, straining for all she was worth. She had to get away. She had to find Max. Oh, God! Where was Max?

At the corner she turned onto Bridge Street, but thick pedestrian traffic forced her to slow down. Nearly sobbing in frustration, Erin bumped and dodged and twisted, weaving in and out among the strolling tourists and bicycle-drawn rickshaws. Oh, please move. Move! she begged silently as she shoved her way through a clutch of people gathered around a sidewalk troubadour.

Every few seconds she darted frantic glances over her shoulder. There was no sign of Sam, but she didn't slacken her pace.

At the clock tower she turned right, raced through a wide pedestrian area for a short way, then veered off between two buildings and up a staired alleyway, taking the steps two at a time. Her lungs were on fire, and the muscles in her legs ached.

At the top, Erin found herself in a small plaza with a fountain at its center. Gasping for breath, she paused long enough to check the alley behind her. Two men were looking into the window of a small shop, and another had stopped to search in his pocket for something. At the bottom a woman and a little girl turned into the alley and started climbing the steps. None seemed in a hurry. More important, none was Sam.

Erin leaned against a building, took half a dozen deep breaths, then plunged across the plaza. The burst of adrenaline that had carried her that far was almost used up, and though she drove herself on, her steps began to lag.

Taking a wandering route around another cluster of buildings, Erin crossed a second plaza and stumbled down a short flight of steps that led to a rushing creek. Along its bank ran a row of shops and sidewalk cafes.

She was no longer running; it was all she could do to put one foot in front of the other. Her heart was pounding painfully, and her quivering legs would barely support her. She also had a painful stitch in her side. Erin glanced behind her, then headed for the nearest cafe. She had to rest.. .and think.

Even if Sam had given chase, she was fairly certain she had lost him. Just to be safe, though, she decided to go inside and take a seat where she could watch the entrance. Maybe she could get a table near the kitchen, so she could run out the back if she had to. She'd order something to drink and stay just long enough to get her second wind and decide what to do.

Before stepping inside the cafe, Erin took one last look over her shoulder, then nearly screamed when someone grasped both her arms just above the elbows.

"Why, Ms. Blaine. Where are you going in such a rush?"

Rendered senseless by terror, Erin stared, wild-eyed, at the man a full five seconds before she realized he was not Sam. Her relief was so great that her knees buckled.

"Here now! Easy does it," he exclaimed with a chuckle, tightening his grip as she began to sag. "Why, you're as white as a snowbank." Her chest was still heaving, and perspiration-darkened curls clung to her face and neck. Inspecting her, the man frowned and shook his head. "Don't you know it's not wise to exert yourself at this altitude until you've had time to get acclimatized? Two days just isn't long enough. Here, let's sit down."

Two days? Erin blinked in confusion as the man led her to one of the sidewalk tables.

When they were seated he poured a glass of water from the pitcher on the table and handed it to her. "Here now, Ms. Blaine, you just relax and sip this, and when the waitress comes we'll order you a soft drink. You'll feel better in no time."

It hit her then that that was the second time he'd used her name. Sipping the water, she studied him over the rim of the glass. He was tall, in his mid-forties, with a hawkish face that would be difficult to forget, but Erin was certain she'd never met him before in her life. Yet he knew her name.

"By the way, I apologize again about the problem with your family's cabin," the man added. "If I had known in advance that you were coming, I wouldn't have rented it, of course. But I've removed it from the listing, so when the Morrisons leave tomorrow I'll bring you the key and you can stay as long as you like."

Erin's heart gave a little leap as, suddenly, it all clicked into place. Elise had talked to this man! And she had used her maiden name! Leaning forward, she grasped his arm. "You're the agent who handles our cabin?"

"Yes. Yes, of course I am," he said, clearly startled. "We met on Thursday when you came by my office to pick up the key. Are you feeling all right?"

"Look, Mr....?"

"Ledbetter. John Ledbetter."

"Mr. Ledbetter, the person you talked to wasn't me. That was my twin sister. I came here expecting to find her at the cabin. I've been worried sick, not knowing where she was."

"Ah, now I understand," he said, looking vastly relieved.

"I take it you know where Elise is staying?"

"Why, yes. I rented her another cabin for a few days until yours is vacant. The next one up the road, actually. I'll take you there, if you'd like."

"Oh, would you? that would be..." She stopped, her expression uncertain. Max. She needed to find him and let him know. About Sam and Elise. But how? She hadn't the slightest idea where he was, and she couldn't go back to the hotel. All she could do for Max, she realized with a sick sensation in the pit of her stomach, was pray that he somehow managed to elude his partner.

But she could find her sister.

She gave Mr. Ledbetter a determined smile. "That would be wonderful. Thank you." Standing, she hitched her purse strap onto her shoulder. "I'm ready to go whenever you are."