Her Winter of Darkness

by Melinda Woodhall

  “Frankie, this is Ruby. I know where Diablo is, and I need you to come now, before he leaves.”

  The long pause on the other end of the line caused Ruby to panic. For a moment she thought he’d hung up. Then he was back.

  “Okay, I got a pen. Give me an address and I’ll be right there.”

  Chapter Forty-One

  Frankie pushed on the gas pedal, irritated that the Prius didn’t seem to go over fifty miles an hour. He’d have to tell Barker to get a new car. But Frankie decided that could wait until he’d first told his partner that he’d borrowed the car without permission.

  The fact that Frankie didn’t have a license, and that he hadn’t driven in more than ten years, probably meant that Barker wouldn’t be happy to hear it. But Frankie had convinced himself he’d be fine.

  It’s just like riding a bicycle. Once you learn, you never forget.

  Unfortunately, Frankie hadn’t ridden a bicycle since he’d been a boy growing up in Memphis, so he wasn’t sure how true that saying was. But his reason for not driving was, at least temporarily, not in effect. He hadn’t had a drink for months, and he was feeling in control of his urges.

  Besides, Ruby needed him, and he wasn’t about to let her down. And he didn’t think an Uber driver would agree to chase down a criminal kingpin. So, Barker’s electric blue Prius would have to do.

  Ruby was waiting outside the convenience store when Frankie pulled into the lot. She jumped into the passenger’s seat without hesitation.

  “What took you so long?”

  Clicking on her seat belt, she pointed toward a little two-lane road that appeared to lead only to pastureland and citrus groves.

  “Take that street back to Townsend Road and then take a right,” she ordered. “Diablo’s base camp is down a little dirt road.”

  Frankie got the Prius up to fifty-five when Ruby turned around in her seat with a frown.

  “I think we just passed it back there. Make a U-turn.”

  Looking for a spot to pull over, Frankie saw a black SUV appear in his rearview mirror. The vehicle immediately began to speed closer, coming up fast behind him.

  Before Frankie could panic, the big vehicle roared past him without slowing down.

  “That’s him!” Ruby shouted, making Frankie jump.

  The sudden movement sent the Prius careening toward the ditch beside the road, and Frankie jerked the wheel back just in time to avoid an embarrassing explanation to Barker.

  “Follow him,” Ruby said, using a calmer voice. “Let’s see where he’s going. He may have the baby with him.”

  Frankie stared at her in confusion.

  “Baby? What baby?”

  “Just follow him,” Ruby said, as the black SUV turned a corner and accelerated onto the highway.

  Not sure the Prius would keep up with the speeding SUV, Frankie pushed his foot toward the ground, ignoring the rattling sound that started once the car had reached sixty miles per hour.

  “I think we need to call the cops,” Frankie said, keeping the SUV in sight. “I can call Peyton and have her meet up with us. She’ll know what to do if these guys have guns.”

  Ruby shook her head.

  “She might tell Detective Ingram, and I don’t trust him.”

  Glancing over at Ruby’s stubborn frown, Frankie sighed.

  “If there’s a baby in that car, we can’t risk screwing this up.”

  The SUV suddenly veered onto an offramp without warning, and Frankie had to swerve into the right lane to follow it off the highway.

  “Okay,” Ruby said in a sulky voice that reminded him of Franny. “Call Detective Bell. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

  Picking up his phone, Frankie tapped on Peyton’s name and waited. His stomach tightened when he heard her voice on the other end of the connection.

  “I’m sharing my location with you now,” he said, tapping on the share location option. “Ruby and I have Diablo in sight and we’re following him on the interstate. We need you to meet us in case this turns ugly. Please hurry.”

  “Frankie, I don’t think-”

  But he’d already hung up, keeping his eyes on the black SUV as it turned into a subdivision. The big vehicle rolled slowly past a quiet house set back from the road, then came to a halt under a sprawling oak tree which hid the vehicle from view.

  Frankie drove slowly past the neighborhood before making a wide U-turn and circling back. As the Prius turned into the subdivision, Frankie spotted a man in a black leather jacket and ski mask scale the fence and scurry around to the back of the house.

  Driving past the SUV, Frankie strained his neck to look through the front windshield. The vehicle appeared to be empty. Bringing the Prius to a halt a few houses down, he and Ruby looked at each other.

  “Should we wait here for Peyton?” he asked.

  Ruby shook her head and opened the door.

  “I want to find out who lives in that house.”

  She stepped out and walked casually toward the house, stopping at the mailbox facing the road. Frankie came up behind her, his heart pumping with adrenaline as she opened the box and pulled out a letter. She studied the name and address, then showed it to Frankie.

  “Jack Carson,” he whispered. “Isn’t that the guy on Channel Ten News? The one that works with Veronica?”

  Ruby shrugged and walked toward the gate.

  “See, we can’t get in,” he said. “We’ll have to wait for Peyton.”

  Rolling her eyes, Ruby jumped up and grabbed the top of the fence, then used her legs to propel her up and over. She turned back to Frankie and waved for him to join her, then began to hurry around the house in the same direction that the man in the mask had gone.

  “Shit,” he muttered, reaching for the top of the wall. “How did I get myself into this? I must have a death wish.”

  Dropping over on the other side of the fence, he followed Ruby around to the back of the house. He stopped short when he saw her crouching beside a sliding glass door, her eyes wide as an angry voice spilled out into the patio.

  “I know she’s here,” a man snarled. “Turn her over and I’ll let you live.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Frankie recognized Jack Carson’s voice as he crept up next to Ruby. The videographer stood with his hands raised in front of the man in the ski mask, who held a big gun.

  Suddenly a muffled buzz sounded, and the man in the mask used his free hand to dig in the pocket of his jacket and pull out his phone.

  “What do you want?” he barked into the phone.

  He was quiet for a long beat.

  “Okay, I’ll be ready for them,” he said, then stuck the phone back in his pocket.

  “Looks like we might get some company,” the masked man said. “My contact at the WBPD says we got some cops on the way, so I’m gonna need you to turn over Ling Lee now, or else I’m gonna have to use this.”

  He shoved the gun toward Jack, as Frankie tried to register what the masked man was saying.

  Did he just get a tip off that we called the cops? Could Peyton have hung up with me and called him?

  The idea that Peyton could be working with Diablo and his men resurfaced in Frankie’s mind, and he had to force his mind back on the situation unfolding in front of him. If he didn’t act fast, he and Ruby may be about to witness a murder.

  “I’m going in there,” Frankie whispered to Ruby. “I’ll wait until he looks away, and then I’ll tackle him.”

  “No,” Ruby hissed, but Frankie was already moving forward.

  He stopped at the edge of the door and peered inside, his chest tightening as he saw the gun trained on Jack and noted the fear on the older man’s face.

  Preparing himself to charge into the room, Frankie froze in place as he heard the shrill ring of his phone echo across the quiet porch.

  Frankie jammed his hand in his pocket to silence the phone, but it was too late. The man in the mask rushed to the door, and Frankie looked
up to see the big gun pointed in his direction.

  “I thought the real cops were coming,” the man snapped, using the gun to wave Frankie into the room. “Go on, get inside.”

  The masked man backed up to make room for Frankie to pass, and Jack took the opportunity to spring forward, aiming a punch at the man, who stepped back out of range, then brought the gun down over Jack’s head with a hard whack.

  As the older man crumpled to the ground, Frankie felt a rough hand push him to the side, and a loud voice sounded in his ear.

  “Police, put your weapon down!”

  Falling to the ground, Frankie rolled to the side, then looked up to see Nessa Ainsley standing in the room holding a gun in front of her with both hands.

  “I said put your weapon down.”

  The man aimed the gun at Jack’s head and grinned.

  “I’ve been expecting you,” he said, moving behind Jack’s cowering figure. “And I suggest you put your weapon down, or I’m going to blow this man’s head off.”

  “Okay,” Nessa said, her voice tight. “We can work this out.”

  The man shoved the gun closer to Jack and snarled.

  “I said drop your fucking gun or I’ll kill him.”

  Nessa bent to lay her gun on the ground, and the mask man shifted the gun in his hand toward Nessa.

  A shot echoed through the room, and the man spun around and fell to the floor, his gun clattering to the ground next to him.

  Staring over at the sliding glass door, Frankie saw Peyton step inside, her gun still at the ready.

  “Is there anyone else in here?” she barked at Jack. “Is there anyone else in the house?”

  Jack shook his head, but a small voice spoke up from beside Frankie. Ling Lee stood in a doorway Frankie hadn’t even noticed. It looked like some kind of hidden entrance.

  “I’m here,” Ling said, swallowing hard. “Jack was trying to protect me. He let me stay in his safe room while they search for Locke.”

  Frankie’s head was spinning as he sat up and looked around the room. He watched as Peyton walked over to the masked man sprawled on the floor. Peeling back his ski mask, she revealed a handsome face surrounded by thick dark hair.

  “Nick Sargent,” Nessa whispered, as if she didn’t believe her own words. “We’ve killed Nick Sargent.”

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  Frankie stood on the patio and pulled a stick of gum out of his pocket. His hands were shaky as he peeled off the silver foil wrapper and stuck the gum in his mouth.

  “You did good calling Peyton and sharing your location with her,” Nessa said, coming up behind him. “Although why you tried to go inside…well, that’s another story.”

  Hurried footsteps announced the arrival of Jankowski and Vanzinger. Nessa waved to the detectives as they came around the corner, her face pale but her voice steady.

  “We have a suspect down. I’ve put in a call to Alma. Her team should be on the way,” she said, pointing toward the house where Nick Sargent’s body was sprawled on the floor.

  “Chief Ainsley?” Ruby appeared beside Frankie. “I just wanted to…to see who was behind the mask. To make sure it was…him.”

  Nessa nodded and led Ruby into the room with Frankie following behind. Jack and Ling were talking quietly to Peyton, but they fell silent as the teenager approached the body on the floor.

  She stared down at the dead man as voices sounded on the patio, and two figures appeared in the doorway. Special Agent Clint Marlowe’s impressive frame stood next to Marc Ingram’s scrawny figure. Nessa held up a hand to stop the men, then looked to Ruby.

  “That’s…him,” Ruby said, her voice shaking as badly as Frankie’s hands. “That’s Diablo. He’s the man in charge. His men…held me.”

  “She called me to pick her up when she went to find their base of operations,” Frankie said, giving Ruby a smile. “We followed him back here. He was trying to find Ling Lee I guess.”

  Frankie suddenly remembered the call Nick had gotten when he’d been holding Jack at gunpoint. He turned to Nessa.

  “Someone told Nick you were coming,” Frankie said. “He got a call while we were listening in. He said it was a cop.”

  Vanzinger frowned, then crouched beside Nick’s body and stuck his hand in the dead man’s pocket. He pulled out a phone and looked at the display.

  “It’s locked.”

  He tapped on the display and shook his head, but Jankowski bent to pick up Nick’s hand. He pulled off the glove Nick had been wearing and motioned for Vanzinger to hand him the phone.

  Placing Nick’s finger on the phone, he glanced at the display again and produced a grim smile.

  “Now it’s unlocked,” he said. “Let’s see who called him.”

  Pulling up the list of recent calls, he tapped on the last number, and held the phone to his ear.

  Frankie’s eyes widened as a phone began to buzz in the room. Everyone turned to see where the noise was coming from. Agent Marlowe stepped to the side and stared at Ingram.

  “Detective Ingram, I think your phone is ringing,” he said, his voice cold. “Aren’t you going to answer it?”

  Nessa grabbed Nick’s phone from Jankowski’s hand and stared down at the number.

  “It’s his number all right,” she said, looking up at Ingram’s scowling face. “It seems you have some explaining to do, Detective.”

  Ingram’s phone fell silent as he glared at Nessa.

  “This is a set-up,” he muttered between clenched teeth. “And I’m not saying anything else until I speak to my lawyer.”

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  Frankie watched as Jankowski and Vanzinger shoved Ingram into the back of the cruiser. He looked over to see how Peyton was handling her partner’s betrayal, but she was standing next to Agent Marlowe, looking down at the man they’d been searching for.

  Frankie swallowed back the resentment that rose in his chest as he watched Peyton. The memory of her rejection still stung.

  Although it looks like the task force needed my help after all.

  He felt Ruby come up beside him, and they watched together as Ingram was driven away. Once the cruiser had disappeared, Ruby turned to Nessa.

  “So, what are you going to do about the baby?” she asked.

  Nessa and Frankie both stared at her and frowned.

  “What baby?” they said at the same time.

  “Diablo had a little baby with him at his camp. I guess he must have kidnapped her, but he called her his princess.”

  First excitement, then panic crossed Nessa’s face.

  “Avery Lynn,” she murmured, then turned and called to Peyton.

  “I think they’re holding Tenley’s daughter at Diablo’s hideout,” she said in a rush. “And Ruby knows where it is.”

  Nessa and Peyton started for the Charger, but Ruby didn’t move. They looked back and motioned for her to join them, but she looked at Frankie and shook her head.

  “I’m not going back there without Frankie,” she said. “He’s the only one I can trust.”

  With Nessa and Peyton following in their Charger, Frankie drove Barker’s Prius back to Townsend Road. Ruby sat in the passenger seat navigating. They waited at the end of the dusty road while Nessa and Peyton scouted out the area.

  “Looks like this place is deserted,” Nessa said, coming back to lean into the window of the Prius. “We don’t see any cars or activity. You sure this was the place?”

  Ruby nodded, and then pointed down the road toward the gate.

  The gate was open, and a big man stood with one hand in the air, and the other hand around a small girl wrapped in a pink blanket.

  “I’m unarmed,” the man called, stepping forward. “My name is Ivan Sokolov, and I believe you’ve been looking for this little girl.”

  Nessa rushed forward to take the baby from his arms while Peyton put the man in handcuffs and called for back-up.

  Smiling down at the little girl, Frankie was surprised to see tears in Nessa’s eyes.

&
nbsp; “You caught the bad guy and you saved this little princess,” he said. “So why the sad face?”

  “There’s another bad guy out there,” Nessa said, her voice thick with emotion. “He’s even worse than the one we just took down. He’s taken Veronica Lee, and he’s taken this little girl’s mother, and I don’t know if he’ll ever let them go.”

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Skylar had just swallowed the last bite of a protein bar when she saw the headlights coming along the winding road leading to the ranch. She’d been living off the bars for the last few days, wanting to keep her energy up for the Professor’s return. The fear and dread had kept her stomach in knots, and the dry bars were the only thing she could keep down.

  Moving to the kitchen table where she had the handgun laid out at the ready, she pulled on a warm jacket and slipped on a sturdy pair of snow boots. Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm the erratic beating of her heart as she ran a trembling finger over the barrel of the gun.

  So, he’s finally come back, and now I can end this once and for all.

  By dawn it would be finished. His reign of terror over her would end one way or another. She would either be free of him forever, or she would be dead.

  Skylar knew she had no choice. Once she’d escaped the safe room and broken into the house, she’d known her options were to kill or be killed. The Professor had made it clear that he considered running away a betrayal, and that traitors received no mercy.

  The death penalty is his only punishment for a woman who betrays him.

  He’d taught her that lesson many times over the years, and now it was time for her to shown him what she’d learned.

  Listening to the rumbled of the big rig’s engine, and the crunch of the heavy wheels over icy snow and broken branches, she picked up the weapon, holding it out in front of her just as she’d seen the Professor do so many times before.

  He kept his guns locked and loaded, ready to use at a moment’s notice, and she’d chosen the sleek handgun in his desk drawer over one of the heavy rifles on the rack. Rehearsing the scene in her mind many times, she’d convinced herself that she’d be ready when the time came.