by Debra Webb
She just didn’t know anymore.
The stop at the Yoder home proved futile as well. The children were there, tucked in for the night, but Sarah Sauder wasn’t at her father’s house. Aaron insisted he had not seen her since she left to return home when her house was released.
“Where to now?” Audrey asked Colt once they were back in her car.
“Let’s call it a night. I need to think on this some more and regroup in the morning.”
“You’re the boss.”
“I’m sorry about asking you to dinner tonight and then dragging you into all this instead.”
She flashed him a smile. “It’s okay. We can have dinner another time.”
An entire minute passed with him staring at her profile. She didn’t have to turn toward him and it didn’t matter that it was dark in the vehicle save for the dash lights. She could feel him watching her.
“What?” she finally demanded.
“Do you mean that?”
She started to ask what he was talking about and then she realized what she had said. “Of course I meant it. We all have to eat sometime. No reason friends can’t have dinner.”
“Okay.”
That one word—four letters—whispered through the darkness like a caress. How could she feel all these confusing emotions at a time like this? Or maybe they were just her mind’s way of trying to escape what was happening. But there was no escaping. This case was about to explode and the big secret she and her mother had been keeping all these years was going to be amid the rubble.
Audrey drove through the darkness, her mind drifting back to the things she did not want to think about but had no choice. She had lived with this secret for twenty-three years, eleven months and about two weeks—why couldn’t she just let it go? Hope and pray that this investigation would somehow skirt right on past her family and the newspaper?
She would never be that lucky.
“Rey?”
She turned to Colt, blinked. “Yeah?”
“We’ve been sitting at this stop sign for two whole minutes.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.” She shook her head, checked both directions, then prepared to pull across the intersection. “I was a million miles away.”
“I figured.”
More of that silence settled around them as she drove to her house. She’d pulled into the driveway and parked next to Colt’s truck before he spoke again. “Thanks for chauffeuring me around and helping with Jenny Hoover.”
“I wish we’d found him.” She climbed out of the car. When he’d done the same she locked it with her key fob. “Maybe tomorrow.”
The porch light was on but it didn’t quite reach this part of the driveway. She walked beside him to his truck. The moon was bright enough for her to see his face and the weariness there. This was his county and he was worried about the safety of all the residents. As worried about her own problems as she was, she could only imagine the burden he carried.
“Maybe tomorrow,” he agreed.
“Good night, Colt.”
When she would have turned away, he touched her arm. “I’m glad we’ve spent some time together the past couple of days, despite the circumstances. It’s been nice.”
As much as she wanted to make some flippant remark and walk away, she couldn’t do it. Not now. He needed her support and he was right. “It has been nice. I don’t want to go back to avoiding each other. I want to be friends.” There, she’d said it. What was more, she meant it.
He smiled and her heart swelled so big she couldn’t breathe.
“I will take being friends, Rey, but I have to be completely honest with you. I will always dream of more.”
Maybe if he’d said he wanted more or needed more she might have been able to simply turn around and go into the house. But he said dream...he would always dream of more.
She went up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the jaw. “Night.”
His arms went around her waist before she could move away and he pulled her to him. His lips landed on hers and he kissed her so softly, so sweetly that she thought she might cry. Instead, she melted against him and he deepened the kiss.
When she could endure the tenderness no longer without dragging him inside and to her bed, she drew back. “Drive safely.”
“I will. G’night.”
She hurried up the steps and to the door. He watched until she’d unlocked it and gone inside, then he drove away. She observed from the window until his taillights disappeared into the darkness.
That was the moment when she understood she could never again pretend there was nothing left between them. There would always be something wonderful, something special between them. All they had to do was find a way to work it into who they were today.
Her cell rang, drawing her back to the here and now. She dragged it from her bag and tapped the screen without even checking to see who had called. “Anderson.”
“Rey, you have to come to the office.”
Brian. “What’s wrong?” He sounded frantic, upset...worried.
“The basement has flooded. The water is knee-deep and rising. I was able to get a contractor over here and he’s trying to get the water stopped. But he has to dig up...”
Audrey didn’t hear the rest of what he said. She was running back to her car. She had to get to the newspaper. Now.
She had to stop the digging...
Before it was too late.
Chapter Fourteen
Colt had no sooner left Rey’s place than his cell vibrated against his belt. He tugged it from its holder. Didn’t recognize the number.
“Colt Tanner.”
“Sheriff, this is Wesley Sauder.”
Colt slowed for the turn onto his street. He tempered his tone and chose his words carefully. “Mr. Sauder, I’m glad you called. I want to help you, but we need to talk as soon as possible.”
“I don’t have time for talking right now, Sheriff. They’ve got Sarah.”
Worry twisted in Colt’s gut. “Tell me where you are and I’ll come right now.”
“I’m at our home. Hurry, Sheriff. I can only talk to you. I can’t trust anyone else. Especially not any of the Feds. Just you, please.”
“On my way, Sauder.” Doing a one-eighty, Colt punched the accelerator and headed for Buncombe Road. “Is it safe for you to stay in the house?”
“I’m in a hidden safe room. I’ll stay in here until you get here.”
No wonder they hadn’t been able to find the man. Colt should have thought of that sooner. A man like that, who never knew when his past was going to catch up to him, would take certain precautions. There was likely a hidden space between closets or rooms. Rey had been right. Sauder was likely at home all along. Considering that revelation, Colt wondered if Wesley was the one who shot Marcello instead of Sarah?
“Damn it, Sauder,” he muttered. Hopefully the kids would be safe at the Yoder place, but Sarah could end up dead.
Colt gunned the engine for all it was worth. The sooner he was there, the sooner he could properly assess the situation. His first instinct was to call Branch, but he hesitated. Sauder wanted him to come alone. Could be a setup, but he didn’t see the point. If the mob thugs had Sauder, they would take him out or take him back to Chicago; the end result would be the same either way. They wouldn’t waste time on Colt—some small-town sheriff who knew nothing about them or their organization was no threat.
The promise he’d made to Rey would have to wait. Whatever was happening with Sauder right now, it was too dangerous to involve her. There was already one too many potential victims for his liking. He sure as hell wasn’t bringing anyone else into this dangerous situation. His best bet was to get the lay of the land and go from there.
Before he could stop himself he thought of the way Rey had kissed him and then the way he had kissed her back. As much
as he wanted to he couldn’t analyze that kiss right now or the fact that she’d kissed him first. How very much he wanted to do more than kiss her would have to wait. He’d hurt her badly. It would take time to regain her trust all the way. He had waited a very long time already to have a second chance, but patience was required if they were going to continue moving forward. He refused to allow anything outside a life-and-death situation—like this one—to get in the way.
When this was over, he and Rey would see where this first step took them.
The drive to the Sauder home took a full ten minutes despite his best efforts. Colt pulled into the drive and skidded to a stop. He walked straight over to Deputy Avans, who was tonight’s surveillance detail.
“You can take a break, Deputy. I’ll be here for a half hour or so.”
“You sure, Sheriff?” He looked from Colt to the house and back.
Colt slapped the roof of the car. “I’m sure. Go. Come back in half an hour.”
“Yes, sir.”
Avans was concerned. He didn’t want to go, but he did as he was ordered. When he was out of sight, Colt crossed the road and walked straight to the front door of the house. The door opened and Sauder stayed behind it in the darkness. As soon as Colt was across the threshold, the door closed, leaving the room in total darkness.
“This way, Sheriff.”
Colt blinked as his eyes adjusted to the darkness. He followed Sauder into the center hallway, away from rooms with windows. A lit candle sat on a narrow table. He turned to Colt, his face pinched in fear.
“They told me if I turned myself over to them, they would release Sarah. I’ll do whatever I have to do, no question about that, but I don’t trust them to stick to their word.”
“Are the kids safe where they are?”
“Yes. Benjamin and Aaron are watching for trouble. I’ve warned them not to allow anyone to get close to the house. I’ve also alerted several neighbors who are keeping an eye out around the Yoder farm.”
“I have most of the story, Wesley,” Colt said, keeping the conversation friendly, just two neighbors talking. “You were friends with Louis Cicero’s son. You went to college together and later you were hired by his father. But it was your friend’s sister that changed everything.”
He nodded. “I was in love with Sophia. We wanted to get married but her father had decided she would marry the son of someone who would provide good business alliances. It’s the way of things in that world. Alliances are often made with marriages. Sophia went behind his back—mine, too—and started talking to the FBI. She told me she was going to find a way out for us. I had no idea what she had in mind or I would have stopped her. Not that I wanted to protect her father—certainly not—but I understood the move was suicide. By the time she told me what she’d done it was too late. I could join her or end up on the wrong side of the sting. Of course I joined her.”
“You believe Louis Cicero killed her.”
“I know he killed her. Her brother told me. He was devastated. But what could he do? The man is his father and he knew his future depended on which side he chose. He chose his father’s. Family is everything and she betrayed them. I pretended to go along with their thinking. No one knew Sophia and I were in love or that we had gone to the FBI together. First chance I got, I took a little insurance and I disappeared.”
“You assumed someone else’s identity and burrowed into a community where you would be protected as long as you were accepted.” This was the one part that bugged the hell out of Colt. He remembered Melvin Yoder’s accident. The possibility that this guy could have somehow masterminded the accident wasn’t lost on him considering all that he knew now. “You took advantage of an awfully convenient situation to get your foot in the door.”
Sauder frowned. “Are you talking about what happened to Melvin all those years ago?”
“It was a mighty big coincidence.”
“You should ask Ezra,” Sauder offered. “He was supposed to be there with Melvin that day but he forgot. When Melvin got into trouble with that bull, he didn’t have the help he needed. It was sheer luck I came along when I did.” He gave a somber nod. “Melvin and I never told anyone Ezra let him down. He made a mistake. It was best to let it go.”
Colt was glad to hear it. He hadn’t wanted to believe Sauder had fooled everyone so thoroughly.
“I’m a criminal, that’s true,” Sauder went on. “I worked for a man operating one of the largest organized crime families in the country. I did what he told me to do. But it was all on paper. The tools of my trade were a calculator and a computer. I’m not a killer, Sheriff. I’m just a man who was a fool when he was younger and I’ve spent the past ten-plus years doing everything within my power to make up for it.”
Colt’s father had often spoken of the good work Wesley Sauder had done for the community, and not just the Mennonite community.
“Why didn’t you take the evidence to the Feds and ruin Cicero?” Colt countered. “He murdered the woman you loved. How could you disappear and start over without avenging her death?” The question had to be asked. Sauder might be a good man now but he’d obviously been a coward then.
Sauder dropped his gaze for a moment before meeting Colt’s. “How do you think the old man found out what Sophia had done?”
The question stunned Colt for a moment. “Are you suggesting someone in the FBI’s Chicago office told him?”
“I’m not suggesting anything,” he argued. “I’m telling you that’s what happened.”
“Do you know who it was?”
“I do. He’s a big shot in the DC office now.”
“Can you prove that allegation?”
“I can and I will. Just help me get my wife back.”
Colt nodded. “Do you know how many we’re up against?”
“Doesn’t matter. I’m ready to turn myself over to them and take whatever they have planned for me. If I’d thought for a second they would stick by their word, I would have done it already. All I need you to do is make sure Sarah gets away safely. Nothing else matters to me.”
“You know they’ll kill you.”
“I’m sure they’ll torture me first. They’ll want to make an example of me before they’re done. As long as Sarah and the children are okay, they can do whatever they like to me.”
He was either telling the truth or he was the best damn liar Colt had ever encountered. “Well, all right then. There’s just one problem. As much as I’d like to play the hero, I know my limitations, Wesley, and I think you know your own. We’re going to need the right kind of backup.”
He nodded reluctantly. “I guess you’re right.” He covered his face with his hands. “I just don’t want them to hurt her.”
“We’re going to do everything possible to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Colt called Deputy Avans and had him come into the house. He used the excuse that the back door lock was broken. He met him in the living area. No need for the deputy to see Sauder and get excited. He was fairly new in the department.
“I’m concerned about who may have come into the house without our knowledge,” he told the young man. “I want you to track down Branch Holloway and tell him to meet me here. Tell him to hurry. He and I need to talk.”
“Yes, sir.”
When Avans was gone, Colt locked the door and returned to the hall where Sauder was pacing.
“Now, let’s go over exactly what happened. Sarah wasn’t at her father’s house when I went by there tonight. The kids were there but Aaron claimed he hadn’t seen her since she came back home after we released this house.”
Sauder nodded. “We didn’t want to risk the kids getting pulled into this, so she left them with her father and brothers. She was going to see them and then come straight back. I didn’t want her to go, but she said she had to see her babies. She never made it to Melvin’s house.”
>
“I’ve had this house under surveillance. Sarah hasn’t been here, either.”
He shrugged. “We have an underground tunnel from the barn into the safe room between the two bedroom closets. We’ve been staying in the tunnel most of the time except when Sarah went to the bakery or to visit the kids. We wanted anyone who was watching to believe that I was gone. Tonight we decided to get the evidence I’ve had hidden for all these years. We were going to offer it to them if they would just leave us alone. But our plan was too late.”
“So the man or men who have Sarah know you’re close.”
Sauder nodded. “He wants me to bring the evidence to him. He’ll let Sarah go and I go back to Chicago with him. That’s the deal he offered and I accepted. I just need you to ensure he holds up his end of the bargain.”
“Are you certain it’s just one man?”
He nodded. “There were three when they first showed up on Monday evening. This one is Saul the Saw. He’s one of the most experienced and most ruthless hit men in the family, but he hasn’t done the dirty work himself in a long time. I’m sure the old man sent him just to be sure the job got done. With the other two out, Saul has no choice but to finish this personally. He never fails, Sheriff. Never. There’s no way he’s going back to Chicago without me. He would kill himself first.”
Suited Colt just fine. He would be more than happy for Saul the Saw to end up in the county morgue or for him to spend the rest of his days in Nashville’s federal prison.
“Well then, let’s go rescue your wife, Sauder.”
Chapter Fifteen
Audrey was ready to scream by the time the officer finally strolled up to her window and handed her the speeding ticket. How was she supposed to get to the newspaper and stop the travesty playing out there parked at the curb waiting for this officer to do his duty?
When he leaned down once more she clamped her jaw shut to keep from spewing those very words at him.
“The court date is at the bottom,” he informed her. “You be sure to pay your ticket before that date or make the scheduled appearance.”
