Wolf Island (23 page)

“Oh,
my God. He’s after Abby.”

·
        
* * * *

“Crazy
bastard’s been busy.” Sheriff Dutton examined the ripped painting and the doll
dangling from the frame.

He
glanced at Abby, then went back to his work. She stood next to Devlin on the
stairs, his face a mask of worry.

The
sheriff turned and looked at Abby with sharp hazel eyes. Cop’s eyes. “You don’t
have to watch, Ms. Chapel, while we do the preliminary investigation. I’ll need
to ask you both some questions, but we can do that in the kitchen.”

“No,
I’m okay.”

Devlin
put his arm around her. “Go ahead to the kitchen. I’m sure Otis could use some
help making sandwiches and coffee.”

Abby
smiled up at him, and her heart softened. He was always trying to protect her.
To keep her from any harm or even from witnessing the horrible threat. “Since
when does Otis need help in the kitchen? I’m fine.”

If
this had happened when she first arrived, she might be tempted to find a cozy
corner to hide in, but no way was she leaving now. It frightened her that
Victor Morgan had entered the castle while everyone lay sleeping. She shuddered
and silently sent up a prayer of thanks that no one had been injured. Or, God
forbid, killed.

“Dev.”
Sheriff Dutton brought her attention back to the ruined painting. “Who found
the doll?”

“Otis.”

“Did
anyone touch the painting or the doll before you called us?”

Devlin
slipped his hand under the back of Abby’s hair and massaged her neck. She
remembered how he had rubbed her shoulders the night before and what his
comforting touch had led to later.

She’d
like nothing better than to go upstairs, crawl into Devlin’s bed, and lose
herself in making love. But Victor Morgan was coming closer, and ignoring him
was asking for trouble.

“No,
Jake, we didn’t touch anything” Irritation tinged his voice. “Otis found the
doll; then he told Abby and me. Only the three of us have been near the
painting. Right after I saw it, I notified your office.”

“Good.
We’ll need every clue we can get to find this creep and lock him up for good
this time.”

Abby
looked at the sheriff. “How long do you think it will take to catch him or even
find him?”

The
sheriff jotted down a note, then glanced at her. “I thought we would have had
him by now, but considering what we just found, I have another idea. After I’m
done, we’ll talk.”

Abby
watched Jake Dutton take pictures of the painting, the doll, and the muddy
footprints on the carpet, as well as dust for prints. Then he carefully removed
the painting from the wall, wrapped it in brown paper, and marked the front for
identification. He bagged samples of the mud left on the carpet.

Otis
stepped up to them. “There’s food and coffee in the kitchen when you’re ready
for it.”

Jake
walked over to Devlin, his notepad in hand. “Did you hear anything unusual at
all last night, Dev?”

“When
I went to bed at three a.m., everything was normal. He must have come in after
that.”

Jake
looked at Otis. “What about you?”

“I
went to bed right after you left.”

The
sheriff looked at Devlin. “I’m trying to get a ballpark on when he gained
entrance to the castle. So, figure between three and eight this morning. Water
dripped on the carpet, along with the mud. The muddy prints lead from here to a
door off the kitchen. I went in there, but it seems to be just a pantry. Is
there an entrance we don’t know about?”

Abby
took Devlin’s hand. “Since I arrived at the castle, I’ve heard scraping noises
quite often, but when I investigated I found nothing.”

He
brushed the back of his hand over her cheek. “The castle has several secret
passages, including one in the back wall of the pantry.” He kissed Abby’s
knuckles. “Come, I’ll show you.”

The
sheriff followed them into the kitchen. Devlin opened the door to the pantry,
walked in, and switched on the overhead light. “Right here.” He ran his fingers
under the end of the middle shelf. Abby heard a soft click, and a hidden door
opened with a slight creak. They saw the footprints continue into the passage
and disappear in the darkness.

Jake
stepped forward to get a closer look. “That’s handy. When was this passageway
installed?”

“All
of the passages were installed when the castle was built. I understand that one
of my ancestors had a thing going with the cook’s assistant.” Devlin turned to
Abby and stroked a finger over her nose. “She used this passage to meet him for
their little trysts in the guestroom where you stayed originally.”

Abby
smiled. “There is so much history here, just in the castle. Maybe once
everything is settled, you’ll show me some of the old records.”

“Glad
to.”

“If
you don’t mind, leave this open so I can investigate.” The sheriff stepped out
of the pantry into the kitchen. “I want to see if he left anything behind that
might help us find him.”

“No
problem, Jake.” Devlin touched Abby’s elbow. “Let’s get some food, and you can fill
us in on how you plan to do just that.”

Abby
had no appetite and ignored the huge slab that Otis called a sandwich.

“Eat
up. All you’ve had today is coffee.” Otis set a bowl of homemade soup beside
the sandwich.

Abby
patted his hand. “I don’t seem to have much of an appetite.”

“At
least try and eat the soup.”

She
spooned in a mouthful and savored the rich flavor, but it hit her stomach like
a rock. Abby looked at the sheriff, who hadn’t said a word since he’d started
eating. Devlin sat across from her and had wolfed down half of his sandwich;
his soup was already gone.
Leave it to men. Even when there’s trouble, they
still have no problem eating
. “Sheriff, you said something about a plan.”

He
patted his mouth with his napkin and took a big sip of coffee. “Yeah.” He cut
his glance over to Dev. “But it’s risky.”

Devlin
slumped back in his chair. “What do you mean?”

“Well,
you know the Mid-Summer Festival is this weekend.”

Abby
swallowed another spoonful of soup. “What’s that?”

Devlin
looked at her. “I forgot to tell you. It’s to celebrate the founding of the
island. The village green is decorated in fairy lights, and the local merchants
set up booths. The Wolf Island quartet plays, and there’s dancing and prizes.
There’s even a masquerade. Everybody dresses up in costumes and tries to ID
each other. Otis makes jambalaya. It’s a lot of fun.” He turned back to Jake.
“So, what does the festival have to do with anything?”

The
sheriff swallowed another bite of his sandwich. “I think the masquerade is the
key. I wouldn’t put it past him to make a move on that night. You know how
noisy it is, everybody running around in disguise.”

Devlin
turned to Abby. “In that case, you’re not going anywhere near the festival.”

Abby
straightened in her chair and laid her napkin down on the table as patiently as
she could. “Of course I am. You don’t think I’m just going to stand by quietly
and not do anything? Victor meant those threats for both of us. I won’t allow
anything to happen to you.”

His
gaze softened and he smiled. “I’m a big boy. I can take care of myself.”

“Yes,
I know you can. And so can I.”

She
turned to the sheriff. “So what’s your plan?”

“I
think you should definitely go to the festival. We still have extra support
from the mainland. We’ll have some plainclothes officers and deputies in the
mix. I can deputize a few more people here in the village to help on the road
leading up to the castle, as well. If you’re willing, Ms. Chapel, I’d like to
use you as bait.” He laid a Taser on the table. “Wear a fanny pack and put this
inside. All you have to do is point and shoot.”

Chapter Thirteen

“Absolutely
not!” Devlin’s words snapped out like bullets.

The
sheriff walked out of the room to finish gathering evidence when they started
arguing. Devlin paced from one end of the kitchen to the other while Abby sat
at the kitchen table and watched him.

Otis
had stepped outside with the excuse that he needed some fresh air.

“Dev,
there is more happening here than just my safety.”

He
looked at her pretty face, her brown hair falling around her shoulders, and the
eager expression in her eyes. At this moment, she was completely safe. He could
reach out and touch her any damn time he wanted to. No bruises, no cuts marring
her skin, and he intended to keep it that way.

“What
about you?” She gestured with her hands. “And Otis? Not to mention the people
who live on this island. Victor Morgan has got to be stopped, and if I can help
make that happen, I’m willing to take the risk.”

“Well,
I’m not.” Devlin kept his tone harsh and didn’t try to temper his voice. “You
know firsthand what he’s capable of.”

Abby
folded her arms over her chest. “Yes, that’s right, I do. All the more reason
for me to do this. Don’t you understand?”

“No.
All I understand is that I’m not putting you in harm’s way.”

Abby
gazed at him and smiled. “Do you know how much I love you?”

He
narrowed his eyes at her. “Cut it out. Telling me you love me isn’t going to
change my mind. I know you pretty well by now.” A kaleidoscope of pictures of
how they had spent the night making love ran through his head. “Inside and
out.”

A
cute little blush brought bright color to her cheeks. “I’m a big girl, Dev.
I’ll be okay. Cops will be all over the place, and there will be a mad crush of
people on Saturday in costume. I promise I’ll stay on the village green and
won’t go anywhere alone.”

He
thought for a moment and tried to visualize her dressed up and milling about
with the crowd. He wanted to say something to the villagers to alert them to
Victor’s presence on the island, but the sheriff didn’t think that was a good
idea. He didn’t want to instigate widespread panic.

All
of the locals knew the history, and it might make it necessary to cancel the
festival. A lot of tourists visited the island on this one weekend. It was kind
of like retail sales at Christmas for the big department stores. Wolf Island’s
economy made more money this one weekend than they did the entire rest of the
year.

And
there would be his Abby in the middle of it, fair game for a cold-blooded
killer. His blood ran like ice in his veins just thinking about Victor putting
his hands on her.

Except
during war, he had never killed another human being in his life. He despised
his father and what he had become, but technically Victor was still his father,
and no matter how heinous his crimes, Devlin didn’t want him to die at his
son’s hands.

“That’s
just it. You won’t be able to tell who is who. He could easily slip into the
crowd and wait. He’s really good at waiting, Abby.”

He
walked to the table and sat down, taking her left hand and holding it in his
own. He stared into those gorgeous, sexy eyes of hers and never wanted them to
shine with fear. If she met up with Victor, the cold edge of terror might never
leave her.

“I
want to tell you something, and I need you to listen. The day my mother went
into the village, she was gone for over two hours. Victor huddled in the bushes
on the side of the road until she came along. Then he made his move.”

Abby
laid her other hand over his. “That’s a valid point. It proves beyond any doubt
that I’m correct in wanting to go ahead with it. I have the Taser to slow him
down.”

“No,
Abby. I want you to stay here in the castle.”

She
squeezed his hand. “He can get at me here just as easily as he can during the
festival. Dev, he was here last night! If he was in the passageway, he may have
even come up to your room. He may have watched us sleeping or making love.”

The
thought of Victor watching him love Abby, of him seeing her sweet body, turned
his stomach and angered him deep in his soul. He hoped to God she was wrong and
that Victor hadn’t attempted to go that far.

“Abby,
I know what you’re saying is true, but what kind of man would I be if I let the
woman I love lure a killer? I couldn’t live with myself.”

“I
couldn’t live with myself if he hurt you while I stood by and did nothing.”
Exasperation filled her voice.

His
heart filled with warmth. Devlin wanted to grab her up in his arms, to hold on
to her for dear life and never let her go. “You don’t need to protect me,
Abby.”

“Yes,
I do, and I intend to do it despite your stubbornness. I’ll be dressed up,
too.” She tapped a finger against her lower lip as a serious expression covered
her face. “I’ll need to wear a costume that won’t conceal my identity from him.
We’ll make sure the deputies and police officers are close by at all times and
that we’re familiar with their disguises.” Abby touched Devlin’s arm and gazed
up at him. “Besides, what are the chances that Victor won’t recognize you, his
only son? Do you really believe he won’t be able to tell we’re in love? That
alone will give us away.”