“Nick?” She whispered his name frantically, but he didn’t respond. “Nick?”
She started to go after him, but a soft whisper of a sound made her heart stop. Someone was in the room with her. She could feel him behind her, but before she could turn, he grabbed her and pulled her against him.
Shoving a rag against her nose and mouth, he said in a raspy voice, “Told you I’d come back. I always did like saving the best for last.”
Chapter Thirteen
When Carrie came to, someone was peering down at her in the darkness. “Nick?”
“No, it’s me. Tia.”
“Tia?” Carrie thought she was dreaming at first, but when she blinked, the image didn’t go away. “It is you! You’re alive….”
She tried to sit up again, but her head spun from the ether and she fell back against the hard floor.
She whispered Tia’s name again.
“I’m here, Carrie.”
“Oh, God, I was so afraid….”
“I knew you’d come,” Tia whispered. “I knew you wouldn’t leave me here.”
Fighting off the nausea, Carrie sat up and looked around. “Where are we?”
“I think we’re in the cellar,” Tia said. “He drugged me, too. When I woke up, he’d locked me in here.” Her voice trailed off a tremor of fear.
Carrie grabbed her hand. “It’s him, isn’t it?”
Tia nodded. Carrie could see her tear-streaked face in a sliver of moonlight that streamed in from a high window. She glanced around again. “How long have you been in here?”
“I don’t know. Days…”
That day she’d followed Alma into the cellar—she must have come so close to finding Tia, Carrie thought. “How did he know where to find you?”
Tia closed her eyes. “He’s had someone keeping track of us for years. When he got out of prison, he came to find us. I saw him on the street one day, but I thought the stress of the wedding was making me imagine things. And then I saw him again on my way to the church. He was standing on the street and when he saw me, he started laughing. I was terrified of what he would do to Trey. So I ran away.”
“He followed you here?”
“Not at first. He came later.”
The break-in, Carrie thought. He’d gotten inside her apartment and found the letter Tia had written. That’s how he’d traced her.
“He knew you’d come, too, Carrie. That’s why he’s kept me alive.”
Carrie put her hands on her friend’s shoulder. “We’ll find a way out of here. I won’t let him hurt you again.”
Tia nodded. “I know. And I think there is a way out. I found it just before he brought you here.” She scrambled across the room to what looked like a vent. Carrie followed more slowly, still under the influence of the drug. “What is it?”
“I’ve done a lot of research on this island,” Tia said excitedly. “I don’t know why I didn’t see it before. I’ve been over this room a hundred times since he put me in here….” She placed her fingers through the wires of the metal grid and tugged. The covering came off, and Carrie peered into a yawning black hole.
“It’s a tunnel,” Tia said in triumph. “Andres Santiago had it dug when he built the place so that he could slip in and out of the house without being seen. The police found it when they came out here to investigate the family’s disappearance.”
“Do you know where it comes out?” Carrie asked, her tone anxious.
“No, but does it matter? It’s our only way out.”
Carrie wished that her head would clear. She wasn’t certain this was such a good idea. The tunnel could be blocked on the other end. Or it could be a trap. It seemed too easy somehow.
“Tia, I’m not sure about this. Something doesn’t seem right. He could be leading us into a trap.”
“I know. I thought about that, too. It does seem too easy. But what choice do we have?”
She crawled into the tunnel and Carrie followed her. It was narrow and pitch-black. Carrie had never suffered from claustrophobia but she had a terrible vision of those walls caving in on them. No one would ever find their bodies. Even Nick wouldn’t know where to look….
Nick!
Oh, God, Nick. Where was he? Was he all right? Or was he lying hurt somewhere, maybe even dead….
Carrie wouldn’t think about that now. She couldn’t think about that now.
Tia was still alive, and Carrie had to make sure she stayed that way. This time, they would both get away.
They finally emerged from the tunnel and Tia reached down to offer Carrie a hand. When they were both out in the open, Carrie gazed around, looking for a familiar landmark.
Tia grabbed her hand. “This way!”
Carrie had no idea where they were or where they were headed as she rushed headlong through the mangrove forest behind Tia. And then suddenly she knew exactly where they were and she came to an abrupt halt.
“Tia, wait!”
Her friend slowed and glanced over her shoulder. “Come on! We don’t have much time….”
“You’re going toward the swamp,” Carrie said. Veer right and it’ll take you to the harbor. It was almost as if Nick were behind her, telling her which way to go.
“Tia, this way!”
But her friend had stopped and was looking in horror over Carrie’s shoulder. “He’s coming!”
And then Carrie heard it, too. Someone crashing through the trees behind them. Tia grabbed her hand. “Hurry!”
Mud and vines sucked at Carrie’s feet as they plunged deeper into the swamp. After a while, she was lost. When Tia stopped to catch her breath, Carrie said, “There’s a boat patrolling around the island. We have to make it down to the water and somehow flag him down.”
“A boat patrolling the water?” Tia asked in surprise. “Why?” When Carrie hesitated, Tia said softly, “It’s Trey, isn’t it? They found his body.”
“You know about him?” Carrie said in shock.
“Yeah, I know. But he shouldn’t have followed me down here, Carrie. He was going to ruin everything. I had to get rid of him.”
Carrie gasped. “What are you talking about?”
“I killed Trey,” she said, her tone calm. “I was never going to marry him anyway, you know. The wedding was merely an excuse to bring you back into my life.”
Carrie’s heart was pounding so hard now she could barely breathe. “Why?”
“You know why. You left me there. Do you know what he did to me, Carrie? You can’t possibly know. You can’t even imagine….” She stopped and drew a breath. “And now it’s my turn. Now I’m leaving you behind.”
Carrie tried to take a step back from her, but she couldn’t move and now she could feel the mud sucking at her feet. And then Nick’s warning came back to her.
“…you may not know you’re in it until you feel the mud sucking at your feet. By then it’s too late. You’re already stuck and the harder you struggle, the quicker you sink.”
She glanced up and only then did Carrie realize that Tia was standing on a root. She was in no danger of sinking because she’d planned the route carefully.
“Don’t do this, Tia.”
“I have to. It’s what he wants me to do.”
“He?”
Balancing on the root, Tia unbuttoned her blouse and pulled it down on her shoulders. Then she turned so that Carrie could see her back in the moonlight. The tattooed horns on her shoulders sent a terrible fear spiraling through Carrie.
She put a trembling hand to her mouth. “No.”
“It was the only way I could get away from him,” Tia whispered.
And so she’d become him.
The thing she feared most.
Someone came rushing out of the woods and stopped short at the edge of the bog. Carrie’s heart leaped to her throat. She thought at first it was Nick….
Then a voice growled from the darkness, “What the hell are you doing? You said you just wanted to scare her.”
“She is scared,�
� Tia said. “Can’t you tell?”
“You can’t leave her here like this.” The man came out of the shadows then, and Carrie recognized him. It was Pete Trawick. “I didn’t sign on for murder.”
“Well, then it’s lucky that your job is finished.” Tia’s hand reached into her pocket and slowly drew out a weapon. “I took this from your friend, Nick,” she said and fired.
Trawick pitched forward without a sound.
Calmly, Tia lowered the gun. “He wouldn’t give me the time of day,” she continued, as if she hadn’t just shot a man in cold blood. “But naturally, he fell for you. They always do, don’t they, Carrie? And you like to lead them on, too. That’s how we ended up in that cabin,” she said. “And that’s why I am what I am.”
Carrie had said nothing for several long minutes. She knew better than to show her fear. That’s what he wanted….
The mud was past her knees now. It was all she could do not to struggle.
Tia moved out of the bog and sat down on a limb. “I think I’ll just sit here and watch for a while. There’s still plenty of time.”
“You won’t be able to get off the island,” Carrie said. “The police will see you.”
“So what? I’m an innocent victim, remember?”
“No, you’re not. The police already suspect you killed Trey.”
“I suppose you made sure of that.” She got to her feet and dusted off her pants. “Don’t worry about me, Carrie. I have a way off the island. And the police will never find me. I’ve been coming down here for years. It’s the perfect place to disappear.”
With one last look at Carrie, she turned and walked off into the darkness.
THE MUD WAS PAST her thighs now, and Carrie’s panic had taken over. She strained toward the tree root to pull herself out, but the action only made her sink faster and deeper.
She screamed, but she knew there was no one around to hear her.
“I’m sorry, Nick,” she whispered. “I’m sorry I got you involved in this….”
“Carrie!”
She must be hallucinating, Carrie thought, because she could have sworn she heard him calling out to her.
“Carrie!”
It was him!
“I’m over here! I’m in the bog….”
He came out of the woods and stopped dead when he saw her. Carrie had never been so glad to see anyone in her life.
“I’m stuck,” she whispered.
“Stop moving. Stay as still as you can.”
The mud was up to her waist now. “I can’t breathe….”
“I’ll get you out. Just don’t move, okay.”
Lying on his stomach, Nick inched toward her until she could reach his hand. He grabbed her arm and started pulling.
It wasn’t working. He couldn’t get her free.
Behind Nick, Pete Trawick had staggered to his feet. He was bleeding profusely from the wound in his chest, but somehow he’d managed to draw his gun.
“Nick! Behind you!”
He whirled just as Trawick fired, and the bullet buried itself in the mud where Nick had been lying moments before.
Trawick fired again, this time just missing Carrie, and Nick lunged toward him. He plowed into Trawick and the two men went crashing to the ground. Trawick was wounded and he must have been weakened from the loss of blood. But he was bigger than Nick and he was fighting for his life. The weapon was between them and they struggled for what seemed an eternity.
And all the while, Carrie continued to sink. The mud was up to her chest now. She could barely hold her arms up.
The gun went off and she screamed. For a split second, neither man moved, and then Nick disengaged himself from the dead man, and staggered to his feet.
Falling to the ground at the edge of the bog, he slid toward her again. When he grabbed her this time, Carrie could tell he would never let go. They would either both make it out…or sink together.
He pulled with what seemed like superhuman strength, and finally Carrie could feel the mud give away. She had to fight the impulse to try and kick her way out. Instead, she remained perfectly still and let Nick do all the work.
When he had her free, he wrapped his arms around her and held on tight.
Carrie clung to him. “It was Tia,” she whispered. “She left me here.”
She felt him stiffen. “I was afraid of something like that.”
She drew back and stared up at him. “You knew?”
“I was starting to have some suspicions,” he said.
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Because I knew you wouldn’t believe me.”
“Trey—”
Nick’s arms tightened around her. “Don’t even say it. This isn’t your fault, Carrie.”
“But she became him.” She squeezed her eyes closed. “What’ll happen to her now?”
“The police will pick her up. She’ll have to undergo extensive psychiatric evaluation, and eventually stand trial for Hollinger’s murder.”
“What if the police never find her. She said she’s been coming here for years. She has a boat—”
“I wouldn’t worry about that. I found her boat days ago, and I told the cops about it last night. They may have already picked her up.”
“I don’t think I can face her again. Not yet.”
“Just take it one step at a time,” Nick said as he pulled her to her feet. “That’s all you can do.”
“You saved my life,” she whispered. “If you hadn’t found me, I would have just disappeared. But you came looking for me.”
“And lucky for us both, I found you.” He bent his head and kissed her.
THE NEXT DAY, CARRIE stood on the pier and waited for the boat that would take her back to the mainland. Tia had been apprehended the night before and taken into custody. Carrie and Nick had both given their statements and now there was nothing more to do but say goodbye.
She could hear the sound of an engine in the distance and she turned to Nick. “The boat’s coming. I guess this is it then.”
He nodded. “It’s all over, Carrie. You’ll be fine now. You’re a pretty amazing woman. You know that, don’t you?”
Her heart thudded at the way he looked down at her. “I’m not special.”
“Yes, you are. You’re a survivor. That’s how I know you’ll get through this.”
She swallowed past a sudden lump in her throat. “What are you going to do now?”
“Go back to headquarters,” he said with a shrug. “Not much left to do here.”
“Sorry about your assignment.”
He smiled. “There’ll be other assignments. What about you?”
“I’m going home, going back to work. It’s time to get on with my life. I’m tired of living in the past.”
“This may not be the best time to ask you this,” Nick said slowly. “But could I call you sometime?” He sounded endearingly unsure of himself. “We could have dinner or catch a movie….”
“You mean date?” Carrie asked in surprise.
He shrugged. “Sure, why not? Key West is only a two-hour drive from Miami. Less by air, and I get up there pretty often….” He trailed off. “Things got pretty intense pretty fast here on the island. Back in the real world, you may decide you don’t want any reminders of what happened. If you change your mind—”
“I won’t.” She fished in her bag for a pen. Turning his hand over, she scribbled her home and cell phone numbers on his palm. “So you won’t lose it,” she whispered.
He lifted his hand and touched her hair. “I’m going to miss you.”
“I’ll miss you, too.”
They both fell silent then as they watched the boat slowly approach the island. Nick helped her in, and as the driver turned and headed back toward the mainland, she turned to wave.
Nick didn’t return her wave, but he watched her until the boat was out of sight.
ISBN: 978-1-4592-2549-7
SECRETS OF HIS OWN
Copyright: ©2006 b
y Marilyn Medlock Amann
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.
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Secrets of His Own Page 15
