Strangers in the Night (21 page)

Abbie told him.

“Great. So much for confidentiality.”

“None of that really matters, does it? He has a court order to take Emma.” By the time she finished telling him about Daniel's offer, she was in his arms sobbing. “What am I going to do, Jake? I can't lose Emma and I need her to be safe. Right now going with Daniel seems like my only option.”

Jake gathered her in his arms and held her until the sobbing stopped. “You can fight this. We'll fight it together. We'll talk to Leo in the morning. Just remember, no one is better able to take care of Emma than you are. You've provided a good home for her. Your parents and your sister don't factor into the equation.”

“You make it sound as though I have a chance.”

“You do.”

“What about the note? Skye thinks Daniel might have left it for me to convince me to leave.”

“Would he do that?”

“No. Daniel adores Emma.” She sighed. “But I do feel as though I'm being manipulated.”

“Maybe you are. Who else knows that Daniel is here?”

“Dawn, of course, and Keith. Keith asked him if he wanted to work. He said he'd talked to Travis about having Daniel help. They don't know why he's here though.” She frowned. “Perkins. He was at dinner last night.”

“That's strange—Keith asking Daniel to work with them. Did Daniel give any indication that he planned to stay more than a day or two?”

“He's leaving tomorrow—I have to decide by then.”

“I don't want to lose you.” His voice cracked.

“Jake.” His head lowered until his lips met hers. She melted into him, matching him need for need. When they finally drew apart, Abbie thought her heart would break. How could she ever consider leaving him?

“Abbie, I love you.”

“I love you too.”

He kissed her again as though to seal the bond that had grown so strong between them. She did love Jake, but love might not be enough. She should walk away now. But as she had ignored the warnings all those weeks ago in that dimly lit ballroom when he'd asked her to dance, she also ignored the voices telling her to run now. She closed her eyes and her mind to what lay ahead and immersed herself in the here and now. Tomorrow would be soon enough to worry about tomorrow.

For Abbie the day of worries came too quickly. She awoke in a panic. Jake had gone home at midnight with the promise to call her attorney first thing in the morning. There had to be something they could do to stop the court order and keep Daniel from leaving with Emma.

Abbie prayed it would be so but didn't hold out much hope. “Have faith,” Jake had told her. She was trying.

Her father had the coffee percolating when she ventured downstairs. She'd told her parents everything the day before. “Jake called.”

“Already? It's only seven.”

“He wants you to meet him at the lawyer's office in an hour.”

“I'd better get dressed.”

“Sit. Have a cup of coffee with your old man.”

Abbie settled into a chair at the table. “All right, but just for a minute.”

“I've been thinking about your situation here.”

“And?”

He sighed heavily as he placed two cups of coffee on the table. “Your mother and I feel badly about what's happened. We had no idea buying Cold Creek would cause so much trouble for you.”

“You couldn't have known. And turning Cold Creek into an artists' colony was a brilliant idea. Unfortunately, someone doesn't think so.”

“And then there's this crazy custody thing.” He rubbed the lines in his forehead. “That woman has a few screws loose.”

“Dad.”

“I know. I shouldn't be badmouthing her, but she's got no business taking Emma away from you.”

“She thinks she does, and she may be right. We've inadvertently gotten ourselves into a dangerous mess. If we can't keep Emma here, I'll have to go with Daniel.”

“You and I both know that's not the answer.”

Abbie sighed. “What would you suggest?”

“Maybe going back to Grand Forks for a few weeks until this thing blows over.”

“It's tempting, but running away isn't an option anymore. Jake is right. I'll talk to the attorney this morning and hopefully send Daniel on his way without Emma. If I have no choice in the matter, I'll go to Iowa with Daniel and fight Leah from there.

“I need to get dressed.” She drained her cup and took it to the sink.

Before leaving the house, Abbie went back to Emma's room to check on her.

Emma, looking like a princess, lay in a cloud of pink sheets and ruffled comforter. Abbie kissed her forehead and brushed back her silky hair. Her stomach recoiled at the thought of someone cutting her baby's hair. Who would be so evil, so desperate to threaten a child?

“God, please keep her safe. Please don't let Leah take her away from me.” Abbie tiptoed out of the bedroom and made her way out of the house and to the car. Jake had written the directions to the attorney's office on one of his business cards the night before. A few minutes later, she pulled in front of an older building on the wharf that looked as though it had been recently remodeled. The building housed a bookstore, a boutique, a café, and several offices.

Jake must have seen her park, because he stepped out of the office to escort her in. He introduced her to Leo, and after a few brief pleasantries, they sat down. “I have some great news for you, Abbie. I pulled in a couple of favors. We've secured a date for a custody hearing for two months down the road. It will give Child Protective Services here in Lincoln County a chance to assess your situation and determine whether or not you should maintain custody. The injunction from Iowa has been lifted.”

If Abbie hadn't been sitting, she might have collapsed in a puddle on his floor. “How did you… I mean, thank you.”

“I've been working on your case since Jake first told me about it,” Leo said. “I'm sorry about stirring up the waters in Iowa and giving away your whereabouts, but we eventually would have had to contact Mrs. Campbell anyway.”

With the necessary paperwork in hand, Jake and Abbie left Leo's office and headed to Cold Creek to give Daniel the news.

He was working with Travis on the hotel when they caught up with them. Hands gray with dust, he took the form from Jake and began to read.

A smile worked its way into his lips as his eyes met hers. “You may not believe me, Abbie, but I'm glad for you.”

Abbie stretched up to kiss his cheek. “I know.”

“Mom will fight this, you know.”

“I'm sure she will. I know how much she must miss Emma. Why don't you tell them to come here to see us? We can have a nice visit and—”

“I'll tell her, but I doubt she'll come.” He frowned. “What about that threat? It seems to me you'd want to get as far away from here as possible. My offer still stands.”

Jake stirred. “There's no way I'd let—”

Abbie hushed him. “Hopefully the police can figure out what's going on. I've decided to keep moving forward with my plans for Cold Creek. Emma and I should be safe staying with my parents.” She told Daniel about Tim being with the state police.

Daniel grinned and seemed to have lost some of the moodiness he'd exhibited before. “I'd like to see him. In fact, maybe I could stay here awhile longer. I want Emma to know me better. I could help out around here.”

“I'd love to see you stay. In fact, why don't you plan on coming to dinner at the house tonight?”

“So you're not mad at me?”

“I knew from the beginning you didn't want me to lose Emma. You didn't have to offer to take me with you. I have no animosity toward you. You are and always will be my brother.”

He hugged her and accepted the dinner invitation. “I guess I'd better call Mom. Let her know I won't be bringing Emma home.”

“Daniel.” Abbie touched his arm. “Emma
is
home.”

After a week, Daniel had become part of the family. He seemed happy and in no hurry to leave. He worked with Travis on remodeling the hotel and spent a fair amount of time at the Grant house playing with Emma and talking with Skye.

There had been no further threats, but Abbie wasn't about to let down her guard. Perkins was still staying at the B&B and Abbie had yet to understand why.

Brent had been released from the hospital and with the help of crutches went back to work on the Victorian. It was later that they made a startling discovery at the old house. While he'd been in the hospital, Brent had looked over the floor plans again and determined that Abbie's suspicions were correct. There seemed to be a secret panel behind the cupboards in the pantry that had been built between the kitchen and living room. Abbie insisted on being there when they tore down the wall.

Samantha speculated that the secret wall space might be where Gunnar had buried Jeb's money. Dismantling the cupboards to get to the inside space proved quite a task. Travis had taken over the task for Brent and began knocking out the plaster and brick of the façade. When the opening was large enough, he poked in a flashlight and began to examine the inside. “It's narrow—only about a foot wide.” He moved the flashlight beam around the walls and down. “Uh-oh.”

What started out to be a curious adventure ended in a grisly discovery.

“What?” Abbie moved forward, but he stopped her.

“Trust me, Abbie. You don't want to see this.” He backed away and added, “There's a skeleton in there. We need to call the police.”

By the end of the day, they had discovered a critical and gruesome part of Cold Creek's past. When removing the bones they discovered the skeleton of a fetus along with a rusted knife. The bones were very old and thought to be those of old Doc Carlson's missing wife and unborn child.

Samantha shared the journal and other writings with the police. There was but one conclusion they could make. The doctor had killed his lovely wife. He'd put up a fake wall to hide her remains and told everyone she'd run off. Perhaps he'd thought her unfaithful, or perhaps she'd tried to leave. No one could say for sure. Isabelle suggested that there might have been something going on between her uncle and Doc's wife.

No wonder the doc had moved out of the house. What they didn't know and might never know was why Doc had gone back to the house to hang himself. It was a find that brought forth stories of ghost sightings and eerie sounds. Dawn shuddered when she heard the news and asked Abbie how she could possibly want to live there now, but Abbie wasn't about to change her mind. The history only added to the mystique. One morning a few days later, when the flurry of activity over finding the bones dissipated, Abbie went back to the house to see how Brent was progressing.

She examined the lovely staircase Brent had restored. The house still needed electrical updating, but Brent thought she'd be able to move in within a couple of weeks.

As evening settled in around Cold Creek the next Saturday, the townspeople got together for their weekly campfire near the B&B. They gathered at the edge of the lake where a fire pit had been established a century ago. Rustic wooden benches circled the stone pit. Though she'd heard about it and thought it was a wonderful way to bring the community together, Abbie hadn't yet been able to experience the event and was pleased when Jake suggested they go. She had struggled with whether or not to bring Emma with her and in the end decided to do so. Her parents had come along with Skye. Emma was standing between her nana and papa at the moment, talking with Cassie.

Keith and Travis started the fire.

She'd gotten to know both men and couldn't imagine either of them participating in any criminal activity. Yet they both fit the description of the man in the bank robbery article. They were both around five-ten and slender. Travis had dark hair and eyes. Keith's hair was lighter and he had brown eyes as well. They were around the same age.

Abbie shook off the idea. She was beginning to see the robber in everyone she saw.

And yet… Barbara had come to this area for a reason, and her mother believed it was because she thought the man who had robbed the bank and taken her friend hostage had escaped Portland and settled here. Suppose Barbara had suspected Travis? Why would she take the chance of dating him? To get close enough? To search his home? Again she thought about the article she'd found in his kitchen. Had it been there the entire time, or had someone placed it there? If so, who? Barbara had taken a terrible chance even looking for the man. She suddenly realized that if Barbara recognized the robber, he might have recognized her as well.

In her journal Barbara had written about going to the police a number of times, thinking she'd found the robber. Her leads had never panned out. Eventually, after over a dozen false tips, the authorities had stopped listening.

What or whom had Barbara discovered here, and was it that discovery that had gotten her killed?

Jake nudged her, bringing her back to reality. “Ready for a roasted marshmallow?”

“What?” Abbie veered from the crazy path her thoughts had taken. “Oh, sure.”

“What were you thinking about?” Jake grinned at her and lifted a perfectly browned marshmallow from the coals.

“Nothing important.” She pulled the soft gooey treat from the end of the stick. “Thank you,” she said before popping it into her mouth. She really needed to stop speculating about Barbara's murder. There was no reason to think the robbery was connected with the notes she'd received. And why she kept slipping Travis into the bad guy role, she had no idea. She savored the warm, sweet taste of the marshmallow and then had another—this time with chocolate and a graham cracker.

“You were pretty deep in thought.”

She sighed. “I can't stop thinking about Barbara.”

“Hmm. I think about her too, but there really isn't much point, is there?”

“I suppose not.” Abbie needed to stop obsessing over possible suspects.

For the next few days Abbie worked on plans for the artists' colony. Having been through all the buildings, she worked with Brent to determine which of them needed the least amount of work. She hoped to be able to bring artists in by October and put on the first artist show by the first of December, in time for Christmas.

She visited art galleries up and down the coast and placed ads in newspapers in Oregon and Washington to let artists know what she planned to offer. Travis had provided a few names as well. By the week's end, she had ten artists willing to participate, five of whom volunteered to serve as board members.

She had also spent some time sprucing up her wardrobe. She found a great shop in Oceanside where she bought a variety of outfits to wear when she interviewed the artists. Today she wore a long tan skirt and vest with a cream ruffled blouse and a loosely woven shawl of orange, red, cream, and tan yarns.

Pulling the community together had filled her days and her mind, but her thoughts were never far from Barbara. After breakfast, she'd gone to the Victorian to see how the remodel was progressing and spotted Travis examining something under the porch steps.

He jumped back when she called his name. “Whoa. You shouldn't sneak up on people like that.”

“Sorry. What were you looking at?”

He stepped away from the porch. “Nothing. I thought I saw something is all. Probably just a rabbit.”

“Hey, Abbie.” Keith came out of the house. “I thought I heard you out here.”

“I just came over to see how things are going. I'm anxious to get moved in.” She let her gaze wander over both of them. Once again, the picture of the fugitive drifted into her mind.

Could Travis be the bank robber and/or Barbara's killer? Or Keith? No, no, no.

She had to stop this nonsense. Both men had been working for her for weeks and she had no reason to believe they had anything to do with Barbara's death. They were nice guys who happened to live in Cold Creek and who knew Barbara.

“Shouldn't be too long now,” Keith said. “We'll need to shore up the porch and repair some of the rotting wood. Brent wanted us to finish up the interior before we tackled the outside.”

Abbie nodded. “I really appreciate all the work you've been doing.”

Travis grinned. “It's been fun restoring this place. Feels like a page out of history. I really hope this idea of yours takes off.”

“Thanks, Travis. I do too.” She again chided herself for considering him a suspect.

“That reminds me,” Travis said. “I have a couple of friends who show at Newman's Art Gallery in town. Genna is a potter and Lindsay is a watercolorist. They're both exceptional, and when I told them about the artists' colony, they said they'd be interested in teaching as well as showing their work. I thought of my friend Eric too. He's a potter, but he specializes in Raku.”

“Raku.” Abbie said the word almost meditatively. “I love that stuff.”

Keith frowned. “What's Raku?”

“Raku is a special kind of firing where the artist takes a very hot piece from the kiln, tosses it into a barrel of combustibles, and quickly places a lid on it,” Abbie offered. “The combustibles catch fire and leave brilliant coppery colors and indentations on the pottery piece. The results are spectacular.”

Keith nodded. “Sounds nice.” He walked off, scratching his head.

“Anyways,” Travis said, “I thought I'd invite them out to my place for dinner in the next day or two so you could meet them.”

“I'd love that.” Travis had been even more helpful than Jake had when it came to meeting the artists in the community. Of course, being an artist himself, he knew most of them.

“Good. Bring Jake. I'll do one of my famous barbeques.”

“Perfect. Let me know if I can bring anything.”

“Just yourselves.”

Abbie waved good-bye as she headed for the hotel, where she found Brent sitting on a stool, his casted leg stretched out in front of him, sanding the front of the bar. A large work light formed a cone around him. Though the boards had been taken off the windows, the daylight coming in wasn't enough to provide the light he needed. He looked up when she came in. “Abbie, what a nice surprise.”

“Hey, Brent. How goes it?”

“Great. I gotta tell you, the more I work on this place, the more I'm loving it.”

“Me too. How's the leg?”

“A pain in the you-know-what, but the cast'll be off soon. Fortunately, there's plenty I can do that doesn't require walking or standing.” He hesitated. “Did you need something?”

“I just stopped to see how you're progressing.”

He gestured toward the bar. “Sanding is almost done on the bar. This is one amazing place.” He chuckled. “I'll have to show you what I did yesterday.” He picked up his crutches and hobbled around to the back of the bar. “I cleaned the glass, replaced the mirror, updated the wiring, and replaced the old burned-out bulbs with the new fluorescent type. Come here and I'll let you do the honors.”

She walked around beside him. He pointed to a light switch that had yet to be mounted. “Go ahead and turn it on.”

She did. The light flickered for a moment and then lit up the stained glass that framed the large mirror. “It's beautiful. I knew it would be, but—look how bright the colors are.” Her gaze took in the intricate design—the red hues of the roses, the greens of the leaves.

“Yeah.” Brent grinned. “Just think, a hundred years ago customers sat here at this bar, looking at this—this masterpiece.”

Abbie walked around the room, her gaze never leaving the glass. “I didn't expect it to be so elegant. It makes me feel like I paid too little for the place.”

Brent chuckled. “Trust me, Abbie. You may have gotten a good deal, but the remodel isn't going to come cheap. We're really lucky the glass was in such good shape. As it was, I had to hire a stained glass artist to secure some of the lead.”

“I didn't realize that.” She asked for the artist's name and added it to her collection.

She wandered around the town for a while, making notes. At around noon she decided to head back to Oceanside for lunch and a nap with Emma.

As she approached the Victorian, she realized that she'd forgotten to talk with Travis about finding someone to run the program with her. Perhaps one of the artists he had mentioned, although she planned to offer Travis the position first.

Neither Keith nor Travis was inside, and Abbie suspected they'd gone somewhere to eat. She stopped by the B&B and found Dawn and Keith standing out by his truck, talking.

“Don't worry about it, okay?” Keith was saying. “I'll take care of it.”

“When?” Dawn sounded none too happy. “You should have moved it before now… .”

Keith must have seen Abbie, because he stopped his wife before she could say more. “We'll talk about it later. Abbie's here.”

“I'm sorry.” Abbie took a step closer. “I didn't mean to interrupt. I was looking for Travis.”

“No problem.” Dawn's annoyance disappeared behind a smile. “I imagine he's at home.”

“Thanks. I'll see if I can catch him there.”

She walked back to the Victorian where she had parked her car, and a few minutes later she pulled into Travis's driveway beside his pickup. She was halfway to the house when she heard a gunshot. The bullet zinged into a nearby tree, ripping the bark. She froze for a moment before adrenaline took charge and propelled her forward and into the woods.