The Emerald Key (16 page)

Cass shrugged. “Aunt Minerva would have my head if I couldn’t take down an idiot like this.”

Nic stripped the belts from their assailants and bound them securely. Cass’ thug swore at them as he struggled to get away. Nic leaned him against the wheel of the Jeep and handed Cass one gun. He had no clue if she knew how to handle one until he saw her check the load and safety and hold it in a steady grip.

“Who hired you?” Nic asked the man.

The goon glared at him. Nic picked up the knife and flipped it from one hand to the other. The man’s eyes followed the blade. “Cass, why don’t you go somewhere quiet and call the police?”

“Are you sure you don’t need me?”

Nic knelt in front of the thug, the knife at the man’s groin, and shrugged. “No. I learned a few things while a guest of the Iraqis. They’re adept at making people talk.”

Cass blanched and turned from him and his heart sank. That she would think so little of him…

“Darling, just be careful. After all, they did find that last one you talked with—or at least most of him.”

Nic fought to keep his jaw from dropping as she strode away from them. Her words had the desired effect as her mugger’s face had gone from red to white.

Nic shook his head and sighed, a long-drawn-out breath that spoke of disgust. “Women. They simply have no stomach for things that must be done.”

White face went to green as Nic ran the blade up the man’s shirt, slicing off buttons as he went.

“So, who hired you?” The blade stopped just below the man’s throat.

“I…I don’t know, man. Just some guy. Told us to rough you up and bring him the woman.”

Nic could hear sirens in the distance getting closer. “Where did you plan to take her?”

“Back to our flop. He’s going to call us with instructions.”

“When?”

“No clue, man.”

“How did you get paid?”

“Envelope left under the door.”

“Where’s the money?” He knew the answer, but asked anyway. From the look in the man’s eyes, it had gone to pay for some sort of high.

“Gone, man.”

“You got anything else for me?” He nicked the man’s chest just enough to bring a drop of blood to the surface.

“Hey! No! I told you everything. Honest.”

Nic almost laughed. Honesty? From this idiot? Yeah, right. He and Cass needed to get out of here, but couldn’t use the Jeep. He grinned as Greg pulled up in Nic’s truck, right behind the local black-and-white. How Greg had known where he and Cass had gotten to would have to wait until later.

“Nic?” Greg and a cop approached him. “What the hell happened?”

“These two attacked Cass and me. Attempted kidnapping at least, assault with a deadly weapon, possibly even attempted murder.”

Greg glanced at the Jeep and their surroundings. “You stayed here?”

“Long story. Look, Cass and I have to get out of here. Can we take care of the formalities later?”

“Is Minerva with you? And what happened at Cass’ apartment? Dori said it looked like a bomb went off.”

Nic eyed Cass, then looked back at Greg. “Look, I can’t explain everything right now. Let’s just say that Cass’ stalker has upped the ante. And he’s seriously deranged. You find him, and you’ll solve all this mess. I’ve got to get Cass away to someplace safe.”

“Come to our place. We can protect her,” Greg said.

Nic shook his head. “Not this time. Not with Dori there. It’s too dangerous. Whoever this is, he’s too familiar with Cass’ places in town, where she goes. I’ve got to get her out of here.”

Greg handed Nic the keys to the truck. “Let me know when you’re safe. Don’t worry about the legalities. I’ll take care of everything. I know the local here. He’s good. He’ll give us some leeway if I say so.”

“Thanks. Sometime you’ll have to tell me how you knew we were here.”

“I didn’t. I was checking out reports of vandalism and got a call from Dori about this hotel. She said I needed to be here. When she talks like that, I listen. Besides, with everything else that’s been happening, I had a hunch either Cass or you would be mixed up in it.”

“Glad you did.” Nic looked around for Cass, seeing her sitting on the back bumper of the Jeep, cell phone to her ear. “Cass, give Greg your keys and let’s go.”

Cass nodded at him, then clicked her phone shut. They climbed into the truck and took off, this time, Nic driving. “I thought I told you not to use the phone.”

Cass blushed. “You did. But I just wanted to check on my aunt.”

He shook his head. “I can’t protect you if you won’t listen.”

“I can take care of myself.”

He blew out a heavy breath. “I know. But will you at least try to humor me? I promised your aunt I’d take care of you. I’d rather not let her down.”

“Okay. I get it. I’ll try. But no promises.”

“Fine. Is your aunt okay?”

“I didn’t get her. But I left a message to let her know we’re all right.”

“As long as you didn’t say where we are. So, now where to?” Nic asked.

“What about the police? Didn’t they need to talk to us?”

“Greg’s taking care of it.” He stopped the truck at the exit to the highway. “Which direction?”

“I have a question for you first. If I take you someplace, will you swear you’ll never tell another soul about it?”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

Cass chewed her lip. Would Aunt Minerva and the others understand her need? She hoped so. They never had anyone else there. Never. Not that she’d been told not to bring an outsider, but it just seemed wrong. “Please, I need your promise you’ll never tell anyone about this place. It’s very important.”

Nic shrugged. “Okay, I promise I’ll never tell anyone about your hideaway. Now, where do I go?”

“Take the main road through town north, ten miles. I’ll tell you the rest when we get closer.”

Nic crept through the morning traffic in Littleton. “This is the strangest place I’ve ever been in. I’ve never seen a small town with so much traffic.”

“Wait until the summer tourist season.” She leaned back against the seat, her hand wrapping around her pendant. “Why does this man want me, Nic? Who is he?”

“You know the answers. They’re inside you.”

“And this connection you and I have?”

“We have a history. I don’t understand it, but it seems we’ve been together before.”

Cass caught Nic eyeing the rearview mirrors more than normal for driving. “Nic, you watch the front, I’ll watch the rear.” She adjusted the side mirror so she could see their back.

Rather than drive a straight line, Nic took side streets and alleys heading in roughly the same direction. Occasionally, Cass corrected him when he ended up on a dead-end or facing a one-way going the wrong direction.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a town whose streets are laid out as badly as this one. There are more dead-ends—and don’t they believe in square blocks?”

Cass laughed. “It’s easier if you think of the streets as a series of triangles, not squares. Although there are some areas with square blocks.”

“Yeah, those are where all the dead-ends are.”

Once they reached the end of town, he had no choice but to take the main route. Traffic thinned considerably so they could keep a better watch.

“Nic, I think we may have a tail.”

Nic adjusted his rearview mirror. “Where?”

“The dark green sedan about four cars back.”

“The next crossroad. Where does it go?”

“Take the right. It will loop back to this one. It’s a farm road nobody would use unless they had to. There’s a hidden dirt road a mile in on the left that goes into a thick hemlock wood.”

Nic turned the truck onto the narrow road and stomped the gas, taking the twists and turns far faster than he normally would, but still within the limits of the truck. Even with her seat belt tight, Cass’ fingernails dug into the seat. “Damn. And you talked about my driving! Dirt road on your left coming up.”

Nic swung hard and they bounced into the woods. A few hundred yards in, Nic pulled the truck off the track and stopped. He hopped out and backtracked, keeping low. Cass mimicked his moves through the trees, joining him on the ground as they reached the road. He made certain the trees and ground showed no sign of their route. Unfortunately, the dirt and gravel had been heavily stirred up by their passage. He glanced at Cass.

“Can you fix the dirt and gravel?”

Cass held out one hand and the ground settled back to its original state. No sign of their course remained.

“That’s one hell of a gift you’ve got. Lucky for us.”

A minute later, the dark green sedan flew past them.

“I guess that settles that question,” Nic said.

“What do we do now?”

“How long is this loop and how straight?”

“Five miles with visibility less than a few hundred yards. It follows a stream and has some pretty good hills.”

“We can either follow our tail and hope they don’t stop to catch us, or we go back out the way we came in and hope they don’t have a partner waiting there.”

“Or we take another route. How off the beaten track can your truck handle?”

“She’s pretty rugged.”

“Then we’ll stay on this lane for two miles and pick up another one. We’ll have to ford a couple of narrow streams, but this time of year, they’ll be mostly dry and the beds are rocky rather than mud. That lane will connect to another road that will take us to where we need to go.”

Nic helped her up and they headed back to the truck. “You sound like you’ve done this a time or two.”

Cass grinned. “Part of my teenage rebellion. Aunt Minerva made me take those driving lessons when I wanted nothing to do with cars. I tested her patience by taking the absolute worst routes I could find to get places. Plus I liked to explore.”

“Bet she loved that.”

Cass laughed as she belted herself in. “She got even by making me pay for the extra gas. And the only way I earned money was by cleaning the store and doing every dirty job she could think of. I got pretty stingy with my coins. We started using better roads and shorter routes, but I never got tired of exploring.”

Nic pulled out onto the track and headed away from the road. They bounced over the rutted tracks and splashed through the streams, all the while hidden by tall hemlocks. At one point, he startled a pair of deer who took off with a flash of white tails.

After one particularly rough patch, Cass rubbed her shoulder where she had hit the window. “I don’t remember the lanes being this rough.”

“Might not have been. Doesn’t look like anyone’s used these roads for years.” He turned onto a narrow but paved road and both of them sighed in relief. Cass fed him directions as they both kept an eye to their rear.

“Last turn coming up. Right into that lane. I’ll get the gate.” Cass didn’t know if anyone would be at the cabin. They had a few days before the solstice, but sometimes the others came early. She jumped out to unlock a heavy gate blocking the lane. Once the truck went through, she relocked the gate and waved her hand. All trace of their passage vanished as the stones and ground shifted.

“Nice,” Nic said as she climbed back in. “What is this place you’re taking me to?”

“It belongs to my aunt and two of her friends.”

“Won’t our pursuers look for you here?”

“No. The deed is in a corporation name set up especially for this reason. And we never tell anyone about it. You’re the only outsider who’s ever been here. I am going to hold you to your oath not to reveal where we are.”

“To be honest, I couldn’t if I wanted to. We took so many back roads—some of which I’m not even sure could be called roads. I couldn’t find my way out if I tried. Your secret is safe with me.”

They hit a particularly rough patch that jarred their teeth. Nic patted the dashboard. “Just a little more, baby. Just a little more.” He glanced at Cass. “Is the road this bad on purpose?”

“We had new shale put in last summer, but the storms we had in October washed a lot of it out. Look at it this way, that low-slung sedan those thugs drove would never make it up this.”

“So why don’t you twitch your nose or whatever and fix it?”

Cass stared at him, then laughed. “Believe it or not, I never thought of that.”

A short time later, they pulled into an open space in front of a one-and-a-half-story log cabin. A deep porch ran across the entire front, edged with a split log railing. A wide set of steps led from the yard up to the porch.

“I’ve seen this place,” Nic said. “In the pictures on your wall.”

“Yes. Aunt Minerva gave me a set when I moved in. There’s a set here too. One of my aunt’s friends took them.”

“They’re very good. I almost feel like I could reach out and touch the trees in them.”

“Yes, well, he’s a very special artist.” Cass climbed out of the truck and stretched. “Welcome to our sanctuary.”

Her breath puffed white and she shivered in the chill air. Low clouds meant they’d probably have at least a dusting of snow by morning. She watched Nic’s face as he studied the cabin. She hoped he liked it here. The isolation didn’t work for everyone, but she loved the quiet.

“Looks like a nice place. Even a porch swing.”

They went inside and Cass turned on a small lamp. “You have your choice—build a fire or make us some food. I’m starving.”

“I’ll handle the food. I’m okay with a campfire, but wood stoves aren’t my strong point. No furnace?”

“Electric baseboard, but that takes forever to warm things up. I’ll handle the wood and fire. I’m partial to your cooking anyway.”

A few minutes later, she had a fire burning in the fireplace insert stove that stuck out of the hearth. Bookshelves and cabinets flanked the stone chimney. She opted to leave the door open, drawing the screen across, enjoying the warmth and ambience of the crackling flames.

“How are you coming with a snack?”

“Fifteen minutes.”

“That’s time enough for a shower.”

Cass turned on the baseboard heat in the bathroom and bedrooms, and dug some clothes from the footlocker at the foot of the bed. She always used it as hers when she came here. She and Minerva shared one of the two downstairs bedrooms, while the others in the group had other bedrooms both upstairs and down.