One Book in the Grave (31 page)

“Then they must be up ahead somewhere,” Derek said.

Gabriel slowed down and turned off the headlights. “I’ll wait for a minute until our vision acclimates to the dark.”

Derek sat back and opened the left-side window.

The air in the car instantly chilled and I shivered, but it was more in fear than anything else. With the headlights off, we seemed more isolated up here in the dark. But I reminded myself that I was with two fierce warriors, so I shook off my nervousness and concentrated instead on the passing landscape, looking for any kind of inlet or turnoff or light somewhere in that deep, rugged woodland. But it was difficult to see anything beyond the line of trees growing so thickly along the road.

Gabriel slowed down even more to allow us to better scrutinize the interior of the woods.

“There’s a dirt road,” Derek said. “Looks like a house light a few hundred yards in.”

“I thought I saw a light flicker,” I said, “but I didn’t see a road.”

“They’re too damn well hidden,” Gabriel muttered.

“We’ll find them,” Derek vowed.

And from the determined tone of his voice, I wouldn’t want to be the person standing in the way of his goal.

Another minute later, Gabriel said, “We’re getting close to the winery.”

“I’m not sure they’ll go onto the winery grounds,” I said, taking an educated guess. “The whole area is well lit, and there’s a family who lives on the property. I think they’ll pull off into the woods.”

“Yes, I agree,” Derek said. “This is survivalist territory. They’ve got to have a place up here. They wouldn’t come up this way otherwise.”

“We’re all agreed,” Gabriel said, peering into the woods as he took another curve. “And we’re clearly at a disadvantage, because they probably know every inch of this hill and these woods.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Derek said grimly. “Nothing’s changed. If they’re out there, we’ll track them down.”

He kept repeating that vow, as if he would make it so by simply saying it. And, frankly, knowing Derek, I wouldn’t have been the least surprised to find out he had that kind of power.

So I wasn’t about to speak aloud my real worry, that we might find and rescue only Minka and not Emily. I knew the Sisters of Charity wouldn’t be pleased with me thinking that way. It wasn’t my most charitable moment, but I couldn’t help it. So I kept my mouth shut and continued searching the woods.

Gabriel brought the car to an abrupt stop.

We all stared at the heavy chain that barred the entrance to the long, winding tarmac drive leading up to Charity Mountain Winery.

“That settles that possibility,” Gabriel muttered.

I sighed. Derek squeezed my shoulder in an attempt to comfort me. Bitterly, I looked at either side of the chain barrier. There was no room for a car to have gone up and around it and onto the property. So we really were at a standstill.

But not for long. In silence, Gabriel made a three-point turn around the dead end, then, keeping the headlights off, drove slowly back down the road.

With all the lights near the winery’s entrance, it took a minute for my eyes to readjust to the darkness. Gabriel stopped anywhere there was a break in the heavy growth of trees that might be wide enough to fit a car through.

Long minutes later, we rounded the curve and drove past the point where I’d seen the light flickering.

“Stop,” Derek said.

“Did you see something?” Gabriel asked.

“That light is still on in there,” Derek said. “And there’s just enough of an opening to squeeze through.”

Gabriel turned in his seat. “I’ll drop you off and find another inlet farther down the hill to hide the car, then double back on foot.”

The sound of Derek sliding the magazine into his gun
made me jump. Then he murmured, “Turn off the interior light.”

“Got it.” Gabriel flicked a switch. “You’re good to go.”

“I’m going with you,” I said.

There was a pause. “You’ll do everything I tell you. No discussion.”

“Of course.”

I thought I heard him snort, but I could have been mistaken.

We both got out of the car and closed the doors as quietly as we could. Then Gabriel drove off. The moon and stars were blocked by clouds and the darkness was almost absolute.

I grabbed for Derek’s hand, then flinched when he whispered in my ear, “Stay behind me. Let’s go.”

We snuck through the line of trees and were instantly enveloped in woods. Leaves slapped at my face as we made our way toward the meager light a few hundred yards away.

Finally we reached the edge of a clearing and saw a small, rustic A-frame log house situated at the foot of a steep incline. The car with the broken taillight was nowhere in sight.

“Shall we?” Derek whispered, tugging at my hand.

“Shall we what?” I said in a hiss. What did he have in mind?

He didn’t hang back to chat about it, but edged closer to the house. Somehow, he barely made a sound, while my feet were like jackhammers as I trod over fallen leaves, twigs, and dried-out flower beds someone had once cared enough to plant.

Is he going to knock on the door?
Well, why the hell not? We’d done stranger things, and maybe the A-frame owners had seen or heard something.

But Derek skirted the steps up to the front door and crept around the side, where he peered into a window, then walked on toward the back of the house. I was making too much noise so I waited for him on the side of the house, pressing myself against the wall to avoid being seen.

“Hhrrmmmmrup!”

I jolted nearly a foot! Then I stumbled back against the rough log exterior, scraping my back. It hurt, but I tried not to moan out loud since someone else out here was in worse shape than I was.

Derek dashed around and found me. “Was that you?”

“No. It sounded like someone trying to call for help.”

I scanned the woods before grasping the fact that the cry had come from inside the house. “Someone’s in there.”

Derek took the front steps in one hurtle and grabbed hold of the doorknob. I scurried after him.

“Locked,” he muttered.

“Now what?”

My question was answered as Derek stepped back a few feet, then kicked the door in. I grinned. I couldn’t help it. Even in this crazy, dangerous situation, I had to admit that Derek Stone was really something.

The door swung back and forth futilely and Derek pushed it out of the way; then we stepped cautiously inside the dimly lit front room. I looked around but didn’t see anyone. The furniture—a sofa and two chairs, various tables—was all neat and matching. The house was clean. I peeked into the kitchen. It was tidy, with a few dishes drying next to the sink. So someone had to be living here; they just didn’t appear to be around at the moment. Probably a good thing.

Derek crept toward a doorway leading to a short hall. I followed inches behind him. Peering down the shadowy hallway, I could make out four closed doors.

The first opened to a small bedroom. It was empty. So was the bathroom next to it. The third door was a closet so dark, I couldn’t see a thing inside it.

We made our way to the last door and opened it. The light on the nightstand was turned on, illuminating the room enough that I could see what I never expected to see.

In complete shock now, I could barely breathe. I clutched Derek’s arm and tried to swallow, but my throat was too dry. I could feel Derek’s arm muscles tense up, as well.

A man wearing only a pair of knit boxer shorts was lying in the middle of the bed. Splayed in four directions, his hands and feet were tied to the four bedposts of the fancy, queen-sized bed. He twisted and struggled to free himself, but to no avail. He could only grunt and moan because of the wide strip of duct tape covering his mouth. His eyes were wild with fear and desperation.

It was Solomon.

Solomon?

“Good lord,” Derek murmured, and rushed over to the bedpost to free the pitiful man’s hands.

“Wait,” I said. Tossing my shoulder bag on the small chair by the window, I walked up to Solomon and stared into his eyes. It wasn’t fear I saw there. It was…defiance? He stared right back and I tried not to flinch. Even bound and gagged, the man had the ability to scare the heck out of me. I turned away.

“Derek, we need to talk in the other room.”

“Let’s get him untied first.”

“No. Talk first, please.” I walked out, down the hall, and into the front room.

He followed me and said quietly, “Brooklyn, that man needs to be released.”

“That man could be a monster,” I whispered so I wouldn’t be overheard. By whom? I had no idea, but I wasn’t taking chances. “This could be a trap.”

“Yes, it could be.” He glanced around and I could tell he’d already considered that possibility. “But we still can’t leave him here.”

I folded my arms tightly across my chest, not yet willing to agree. “Both he and Angelica have calculated every move from the very beginning.”

“That’s true, but he’s right where we want him now.”
He took hold of my arms. “We’ll take every precaution. I’ll loosen his wrists from the bedposts, then bind his hands behind his back to transport him down the mountain.”

“Okay.” Maybe I was making too much of Solomon’s power, but I dreaded going back into that bedroom. I hated being in the same vicinity as the man. But more than that, I trusted Derek to take care of Solomon.

“Would you rather wait in the car?” Derek asked, squeezing my shoulder with concern.

“God, no. Well, maybe.” But the thought of traipsing back through the dark woods alone wasn’t appealing. And I knew that waiting by myself in the car would give me the creeps. “No. Let’s get this over with.”

We went back into the bedroom. I grabbed the end of the rope holding Solomon’s right foot to the lower post. The knots were intricate and it was slow going getting them loosened. Somebody knew their Boy Scout knots, for sure.

I glanced up, met Solomon’s cold gaze, and quickly looked away. I stared at the taut rope and got angry. How dared he intimidate me when he was laid out in this ridiculous position? I looked back at him, refusing to show alarm or acknowledge the shivers I got from merely looking at him.

Solomon made muffled sounds through the duct tape and I figured he wanted us to remove it so he could speak. But I didn’t want to hear his voice.

“The duct tape stays,” I said gruffly, trying to ignore his muted grumbling. We still hadn’t found Emily, and I wanted to blame Minka and Solomon for leading us off track. First, stupid Minka had stuck her big nose where it didn’t belong, and now we had to deal with rescuing Solomon, of all people. It wasn’t nice of me and I wasn’t proud of myself, but there it was.

I concentrated on undoing the intricate set of knots trapping the man’s ankles to the bedpost and wondered if this night would ever end.

Solomon continued to moan through the duct tape
and I realized it was cruel to leave it on. What if he couldn’t breathe?

“Fine,” I said reluctantly. When Derek glanced up, I asked, “Will you take the duct tape off?”

I didn’t want to get too close to the man on the bed. And I didn’t want to hear what he had to say—unless, of course, he knew where Emily was. But since he was hog-tied, I was guessing he wouldn’t have any worthwhile information. This whole scene was all too grisly and weird.

Derek leaned over and grabbed hold of the tape, then warned Solomon, “This is going to hurt.”

Solomon nodded vigorously and Derek ripped it off.

Solomon screamed liked a banshee, although, to tell the truth, I’d never heard a banshee scream.

“Thank God you came for me,” he cried. “Oh, thank God. It was a nightmare. I couldn’t get away. I thought I was going to die. I—” He took a breath and held it. Silence.

Neither of us bothered to clue him in that we hadn’t come here for his sake.

I was thankful for the silence. Solomon in this grateful mood was jarring to me. I continued working with the rope. Someone had dampened it before tying, so it was even more difficult to get a grip on it. It was slow work and I was getting more and more anxious to leave before whoever tied up Solomon decided to return.

Solomon watched us both work to free him. I looked up and noticed he was frowning at me.

“What?” I said.

“I know you.”

I shook my head. “No, you don’t.”

“Yes, I do.” He peered at me; then one side of his mouth curved up. “I never forget a pretty face.”

I tried to mask my shock but I failed. “Seriously? You’re flirting with me? While you’re tied up like a turkey waiting to be roasted? You’re an idiot.” I started to walk out of the room.

“Wait! Come back!” he cried.

“Keep it down, old man,” Derek said sternly. “One more remark like that and I’ll gladly leave you here for your captor to deal with.”

“Oh, God, don’t!” he said, his voice raspy, his eyes wide and wheeling. “Don’t let her get me!”

Her?
I met Derek’s gaze.

“Who’s going to get you?” I asked warily.

He had to take a few deep breaths to brace himself before he could whisper, “Nobody.”

“Too late,” I said, moving back to the bedpost and the ropes. “You’ve just admitted a woman did this to you.”

He clamped his lips together and his jaw worked rapidly.

“A woman tied you up and left you to rot,” I taunted. “Isn’t that interesting.”

“She’ll be back. It was just a little game we were playing.”

“Some game,” I said. “You were scared to death when we walked in.”

“Shut up and undo the damn ropes before I—”

In that moment, he lost his ability to frighten me. Sort of. “Are you actually threatening me, Solomon?”

“I knew it,” he said in triumph. “You know who I am. We have met, haven’t we?”

I shook my head. “No, we haven’t.”

“But you look so familiar. Did we ever—”

I recoiled at his suggestive tone, but before I could speak, Derek said in a low, menacing voice, “Enough.”

I blinked at the force of Derek’s anger, and a rush of emotion flooded through me. Gratitude, love, excitement, fear. Derek was rarely moved to anger, but when it happened, look out.

He glared down at Solomon. “Tell us what happened here and who did this to you. Start talking, or we’ll walk out and leave you here to rot.”