The Cursed

by Heather Graham

  Hannah laughed. “I would be delighted to go on a date with you, Agent Samson. Even a double date.”

  After all, the house would be well watched, given that there were currently five ghosts in residence, though with all the agents away and the Wolf down so many men here in Key West, it was likely to be a quiet night.

  * * *

  That night they headed first to the western waterfront, where one of Hannah’s friends was performing, for a round of predinner drinks. After that, they dined at Turtle Crawls. It was an amazing evening. Hannah realized that she’d forgotten how to have fun, and suddenly it felt so good simply to be alive and out on the town.

  Better yet, to be out on the town with Dallas. She couldn’t help smiling every time she looked at him. He was...

  Thoughtful, intense—sometimes too much so—more than a little bit autocratic, capable of apology, always ready to explain and, she thought, perfect. For her.

  He caught her looking at him at one point and tilted his head at an angle, slowly arching a brow.

  “Spinach in my teeth?” he asked her.

  “We didn’t have spinach,” she told him.

  “Ketchup on my chin?”

  She smiled and shook her head. “I just...I was just thinking that it was nice to talk about movies. And music. And that...”

  “I could sound normal?” he asked her.

  She flushed. “And even nice.”

  “Hey!” he protested, and then grinned. “And may I return the compliment?”

  “I haven’t been normal?” she asked him.

  “No—I mean that you can be nice, too. You know—friendly, without attitude.”

  “Hey, I wasn’t the one who came in like a thunderstorm.”

  “No, but...” He slipped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. “Let’s face it, we didn’t meet under normal circumstances. And yet I wouldn’t trade having met you for anything,” he finished softly.

  She smiled and touched his cheek, and she wasn’t even worried that she was certain he had to have seen the wonder in her eyes.

  Back at the house, they retired early, made love—and talked. He liked black coffee, rare steaks and really hated wearing a tie. They were both into history.

  “Will you stay down here?” she asked him.

  “I don’t know, but...I’ve spoken with Logan. Apparently I’ve been on his boss’s radar for a while. I suspect I’m going to be asked to join the unit.”

  “And that means...D.C.?” she asked.

  “Just outside. In Virginia,” he told her.

  Hannah kept silent. She didn’t want to think about him leaving.

  It would be the right thing for him to do.

  “Have you ever thought of leaving?” he asked her.

  “I could never sell this house.”

  “But other people could run it.”

  That was as far as they got. He’d been running his fingers lightly down her back. Now, eager to avoid a difficult topic, she slid closer to him and moved provocatively. That stirred something in him.

  In seconds they were making love again and for a little while the real world fell away.

  * * *

  The backhoe and a small crew of workers arrived by the time Hannah had the coffee brewed in the morning. Kelsey was in the kitchen with her, and they went together to look out back, where Logan was standing with the foreman and a copy of the original plans for the pool.

  There was also a reporter in the yard. Hannah had seen her before, the morning she’d found Jose Rodriguez’s body.

  Today Dallas was talking to her.

  He really did want everyone to know about the dig.

  “Do you think this will ever really be over?” Hannah asked.

  Kelsey slipped an arm around her shoulders. “Do you know why the Krewes are so well respected even though they like to joke and call us the ghost-hunter division?”

  “Why?”

  “Because we haven’t failed yet.”

  “That’s good. So...I hear Dallas might join you guys.”

  “He and Logan work well together,” Kelsey said. She smiled at Kelsey. “But then, so do he and you.”

  “I, uh...I’m sorry. I should have said something to you.”

  “Why?” Kelsey asked, laughing. “It was obvious from the beginning!”

  “You mean you knew when we...?”

  “Of course. The house isn’t that big,” Kelsey told her.

  Embarrassed, Hannah fell silent as Dallas came in.

  And he was all business. “All right. Liam will be here with a few officers to keep an eye on things. Logan and I are going to take a boat out of Marathon. We’ll have our phones and try to stay in touch.” He smiled at her. Finally. “Can you talk to Maria and Jose? See if they’ll come with us?”

  She nodded. “Yes, of course. Follow me.”

  They were still in the back room and readily agreed to help. Yerby insisted on going, too, having developed something of an attraction to Jose.

  Dallas looked at Melody and Hagen. “Okay, officially we’re leaving Liam in charge, but—”

  “Don’t worry about a thing,” Hagen said. “We’ll keep an eye on everyone. We won’t fail you again.”

  “Can Kelsey and I come, too?” Hannah asked.

  Dallas smiled. “What the hell. I don’t like leaving you, so yes, come on.”

  * * *

  The water wasn’t quite as blue on the Gulf side of the Keys compared to the Atlantic side. As they hugged the coast of one island after another, they saw an incredible array of bird life.

  Dallas was glad that Hannah and Kelsey were there, because they remembered more than he did about the area.

  They knew which ones were the private islands, who lived where, what movie star was rumored to own which massive house, and where there had been trouble with wild parties and reported drug deals.

  They’d been out for hours when suddenly Maria Lopez, who had been sitting in the bow, leaped to her feet. “There! There...where the trees are growing in the water. I know that place. I saw it when I tried to get away. If you go that way...” She pointed.

  Dallas was piloting the boat; Logan had told him that he was the Florida boy, so he should take the helm.

  He followed Maria’s instructions, and there it was.

  Close to the edge of Grassy Key, it was hard to see, even from the water, and almost completely hidden by the mangroves surrounding it.

  There were no boats in sight, but he couldn’t see whether there was a car out back because of the trees.

  “I’ll bring her in as close as I can,” he told Logan, “but we’ll have to anchor and hop out.”

  They were prepared, with everyone wearing swim gear and shorts. Dallas drew the boat in as close as he dared and droped the anchor.

  “You must be ready,” Maria said. “Tio, the man who watches us, may be old, but he loves guns and knives. He has them everywhere.”

  They hopped out of the boat. Dallas was carrying his second weapon, having decided that Hannah shouldn’t go in unarmed. Hell, she’d shot Bentley, so he had to trust that she wouldn’t shoot any of them.

  It was slow going, maneuvering over and between the roots. Little crabs scurried out of the way as they drew closer to the shore.

  Eventually they made it through the trees. And there, ahead of them, was a roughly hewn fisherman’s cabin. It stood on crude pilings and was surrounded by sea grape trees, blending in completely.

  There was no indication that anyone was at home.

  “Kelsey, Hannah, stay back,” Dallas said, looking at Logan.

  “Front or back?” Logan asked him.

  “Your call,” Dallas said.

  And he and Logan began moving care
fully toward the little cabin.

  * * *

  Hannah hung back with Kelsey and watched the men sneak toward the cabin. It was hot, and she was sticky with salt and sweat after struggling through the trees. Something moved a foot away, and Hannah started, but it was only a crane walking curiously past them.

  Above them, a giant cormorant moved across the sky.

  She jumped again when her phone vibrated in the pocket of her shorts. She glanced at the caller ID.

  It was Liam.

  She answered it quickly. “Hey.”

  Just as he started to speak, the phone went dead. Damn it!” she muttered.

  “Someone is coming,” Kelsey said, instinctively stepping around her, ready to face whoever was approaching.

  “Hello, there!”

  The voice was male, but the speaker was still hidden in the mangroves. It was familiar, but Hannah couldn’t place it, even though the man swore and went on speaking.

  “This is ridiculous. Why in God’s name send a man like me out here on my own? You’d think they’d have sent the damned Coast Guard with me or something.”

  The speaker came into view at last, and she was relieved to see it was the M.E., Dirk Mendini. His white lab coat was already dirtied and wet. He had his black bag of crime scene supplies in his hand.

  Kelsey lowered her weapon and asked tensely, “They? What’s going on?”

  “I got a call from the cops. They told me to come out here. Gave me some GPS coordinates. Said there are bodies out here somewhere. But damn it, I can’t get my cell to work. I’m trying to get back to Liam.”

  “Liam? He just tried to reach me,” Hannah said. “He sent you out here looking for bodies?”

  “I was ordered to come here,” he said. “Ordered to get out here, on my own, thank you very much. They said there was some kind of shoot-out.”

  Kelsey turned to look back to the house. “The guys haven’t come out yet, and we haven’t heard any shooting.” She turned to Dirk. “Who did you say called you?”

  “I just told you. Detective Liam Beckett.”

  “I’m going in,” Kelsey said.

  “You’re the only Fed here—you’re not leaving us alone,” Mendini protested.

  “Follow me, then, but stay down and keep quiet,” she said.

  Kelsey started to move, and they followed, Dirk went first, holding tight to his black bag. Hannah crept along behind him. When they reached the raised porch on its moldy pilings, Hannah’s phone started to vibrate again. She cursed, reaching for it. As she pulled it out and noticed that it was Liam calling, Mendini suddenly lifted his bag and slammed it against Kelsey’s head.

  She fell face-first onto the marshy ground.

  For a moment Hannah was so stunned she couldn’t move, then she remembered the gun. But first she had to get to Kelsey, who was lying with her face in a pool of water and possibly drowning. Fumbling for the gun tucked against the small of her back, wondering whether Liam was calling to warn her about Dirk, she rushed to her cousin and dragged her to one side, relieved to see that Kelsey was still breathing.

  She straightened as she pulled the gun free, turning to face Dirk, only to see him standing firmly, steadying a gun on her.

  “Give me your gun,” he said in a tone that sent chills up her spine. “Never thought I’d be worrying about you shooting me, but then, you brought down Machete, didn’t you? Who would have thought?”

  “What are you doing?” she demanded. “After everything you’ve seen, why would you work for the Wolf? He doesn’t care anything about the people who work for him. He uses them up like tissues and throws them away to die. You’ll die, too, as soon as he’s got no more use for you,” she told him furiously.

  Mendini laughed at her. “For God’s sake, how stupid can you be? Don’t you get it? I am the Wolf.”

  * * *

  The cabin was empty, though there were signs that people had been there recently. There were two rooms, a living room that had apparently been lit by candles and a bedroom with mattresses on the floor.

  “No blood anywhere,” Logan announced.

  “Going to check the front,” Dallas told him.

  He stepped out the front door and, as soon as he saw that the area was clear, jumped down to the marshy ground from the porch. He rounded the corner of the house, using what trees he could find for cover. When he reached the back he searched the trees for the women, even though he knew he wouldn’t be able to see them in the thick mangrove growth.

  A flash of movement caught his eye, and he realized there was a small beach to one side of the mangroves. They’d missed it on the way in. Two women huddled together on the small patch of ground, their backs to him, and an old man was pacing in front of them—the movement that had caught his attention—and wielding a knife.

  The man began to speak, and Dallas strained to hear.

  “You hear? They found...body...wretched Maria. You think you...run like Maria?” The old man’s voice grew louder, his movements more agitated. “No, no. You will stay here. You will be ready when the Wolf wants you. Maybe you’ll go live in Colombia, huh? They like pretty girls there. And at least you will get to live.”

  Dallas shifted carefully to get a better view of the two women. Yes, one was Jose’s sister, Alicia, and the other must be Alma. He wished Tio would turn his back, giving Dallas a chance to rush him and take him down without shooting him. He needed to take Tio alive, so he could find out what the old man knew about the Wolf.

  “I can try to distract him.”

  Dallas heard the whisper at this back and turned to see Jose looking grim and determined.

  The ghost strode toward the water, moving toward Tio—and then through him.

  The old man swatted at his back, as if he thought there was a bug on him.

  Jose began punching the man over and over, wafting through him to attack first from behind, then from the front, then from behind again.

  Baffled, Tio spun around, trying to see what was happening.

  Dallas took advantage of the split-second distraction and rushed forward, tackling Tio to the ground. The man was old, but he was a fighter. They struggled in the sand, and Dallas managed to break his grip on the knife. Then, when the old man looked up at him, he couldn’t resist.

  He slammed him with a right hook to the jaw.

  Tio was out.

  Dallas slipped the plastic cuffs from his pocket, rolled the man over and secured his hands.

  Tio wasn’t going anywhere.

  The two women jumped to their feet and ran over to him, sobbing, talking at the same time, nearly knocking him over.

  “I’m Agent Dallas Samson, and we’re going to get you out of here. Alicia Rodriguez?” he asked.

  He didn’t need to. Jose was standing by her, trying to touch her, and he was sobbing, as well. His tears looked real.

  The pretty brunette nodded. “And this is Alma White. Where did you come from? How? Do you know my brother, Jose? They told me he was dead, but—”

  “I’m so sorry. Jose is dead. But he helped us find you,” Dallas said. “Now—”

  He broke off when he heard the sound of a shot being fired.

  And then a scream.

  * * *

  Hannah put down the gun and was desperately trying to figure out what to do next when Dirk grabbed her hair and twisted so hard she nearly cried out in pain. He dragged her in front of him as a human shield.

  “Now, I want you to talk to the boys in there, Miss O’Brien. Tell them that you’re coming in. Do it and do it right, and maybe I’ll let you and your cousin live. You can take Maria’s place. Defy me and your cousin dies, right here and right now.”

  She didn’t know what to do! If she she didn’t do as he said, he would shoot Kelsey. If she lunged at him, h
e would undoubtedly shoot her, but Dallas and Logan would be out in a flash and at least have a chance to kill him.

  Suddenly she heard a creak and the cabin door swung open, though no one was visible. “Come in, Mendini,” she heard Logan call from the cabin.

  How had he known? she wondered. Had one of the ghosts seen what was going on and given him the info?

  “Do you think I’m stupid? You come out here. Now,” Mendini said.

  “Don’t be ridiculous. So long as I stay in here, I just might get the chance to kill you.”

  “How about I forget about you and just shoot your woman?”

  “Kelsey is an officer of the law. She knows the risks that come with that life,” Logan said smoothly.

  “Come out. My patience isn’t going to last long.”

  “I have a few questions first. How the hell did the Wolf get you, of all people, into his orbit?” Logan demanded.

  “Lord, you people. Who do you think you’re looking for? A street thug? A dumb down-and-outer? I’m the Wolf, you moron. Did you think some stupid punk would know what to go after? If you thought about it for a single second, you would have known the Wolf is a man of intelligence and education. One with access to police information. It was so easy to keep tabs on you. Who in the hell would suspect a respected member of the team?”

  “You did have it covered,” Logan said.

  “I did—and I do. Now put your gun down and come out here.” As if to emphasize his words, he shot toward the cabin, and a chunk of wood came flying off the doorframe.

  Hannah couldn’t help herself. She screamed.

  To her surprise, Logan’s Glock came sliding out to the little porch.

  And then Logan himself walked out calmly.

  “Get your friend out here,” Mendini ordered.

  “My friend?” Logan asked. He looked at Hannah, and something in his eyes warned her to keep quiet, because he knew what he was doing.

  “Samson—Dallas Samson. Tell him to get his sorry ass out here, too.”

  “Oh, my friend isn’t in here,” Logan said. He indicated the scraggly beach in the distance. “You can tell him yourself what you want him to do with his sorry ass.”