Nowhere Safe (34 page)

Had Ani put something in the coffee? Hemlock or foxglove . . . ?

Grabbing up a paper towel, she carefully picked up the carafe. She could hear liquid sloshing so she carried it to the sink, holding it with one hand while she searched through nearby cupboards for a vessel to pour it into. Finding a bowl, she set it in the sink, then poured the coffee into the bowl. Something was pressing against the lid, so she pulled off the top and dumped whatever was inside into the coffee in the bowl.

Something sank, then floated to the surface.

A dead salamander.

Huh,
September thought.
Now what the hell is that all about?

She woke slowly, her ears recognizing the sound of a match striking, her nose registering the familiar burning scent at the same moment. Opening her eyes, she saw the glow of the flame as it touched a wick inside a hurricane lantern, dispelling the room’s darkness in a warm circle of light.

She was lying on a hard bed in a fir-paneled room. Years of caution kept her from asking the first question that crossed her brain:
Where am I ?

But the woman lifting the lamp from the bedside table answered her as if she’d spoken. “You’re with us now.”

Lucky blinked several times and stared at her. She was middle-aged, blonde, her hair pulled back into a bun, and she wore a long, old-fashioned nightgown with a high-necked, lace collar. She gazed down at Lucky in a stern way, as if she found her lacking, which maybe she did. Lucky had run into that all her life.

“Who are you?” Lucky demanded in a raspy voice which ended in a deep, rattling cough.
The ocean. The frigid water
. She remembered the sense of soaring as the car flew off the jetty.

And she realized, vaguely, that the clock inside her head had stopped.

“I’m Catherine. And you’re one of Madeline’s daughters,” the woman said. “Which makes us family.”

I’m at Siren Song
, she realized with a jolt. Inside the gates . . . inside the lodge.

“You can stay here until you have your strength back, but then you’ll have to leave.”

“How long do I have?” Lucky asked with an effort.

“As soon as you’re better you’ll have to leave. You’re not finished with your work.”

How did she know?
Did
she know? Lucky could only stare mutely at her, afraid to give too much away.

“I’ll give you as much time as I can,” Catherine promised her, walking to the window and gazing into the black night. “But we can’t have the authorities at our door.”

“No,” Lucky agreed quickly.

She turned and looked at her, her expression softening the tiniest bit. “Welcome home, Ani.”

ZEBRA BOOKS are published by

 

Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018

Copyright © 2013 by Nancy Bush

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

 

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

 

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ISBN: 978-1-4201-2503-0

 

eISBN-13: 978-1-4201-3276-2
eISBN-10: 1-4201-3276-8
First Electronic Edition: September 2013