A Dark and Twisting Path

by Julia Buckley

  “Sam?”

  “His hatred was like a book written on his face.”

  “So is yours. Except there’s no reason for you to hate Sam, or me. What did either of us ever do to your family?”

  Her smile vanished. “You defended that man from the start.”

  “Because he is innocent. You backed the wrong horse, Agatha. Nikon is a murderer. He killed Eddie Stack, or had him killed.”

  She moved closer to me. “My brother is not a murderer. He is a sweet soul, and loyal. I am the youngest, but I have always been his protector. The mailman was unfortunate. He—learned something, and in that instant I knew that he knew. I couldn’t have my brother threatened again. He is a free spirit. I will not let them put him in a cage.”

  Now the fear I should have felt earlier kicked in. “You killed him.”

  I heard a tentative knocking, and Allison’s voice. “Agatha? Lena? This door is stuck.”

  Agatha shrugged, her expression blank. “He did not feel it. He did not even know he was about to die. He had been about to start his mail delivery. We were talking in a friendly way; I asked him to help me find something I had dropped on the forest path. He was very accommodating. The gun was hidden. It was a painless death.”

  “God,” I said.

  “Yes, blame me if you will. But you killed, as well.”

  “I’m sorry?”

  “Everything my brother loved, everything he worked and slaved for. You worked and worked until you ruined it. And then you freed the man who would ruin my brother’s reputation.”

  Poor Allison tried again. “Agatha? Lena?”

  My eyes moved to the door, which shook slightly as Allison tried to open it with more force.

  “You’re all turned around. Your brother tried to frame Sam for murder! That’s evil, Agatha. And so are you. You killed an innocent man.”

  She nodded. “I am a guardian. I cannot always think of the feelings of others. He knew things, and he was going to expose us.”

  A burst of fury blotted out my fear. “I’m letting Allison out,” I said, walking boldly toward the room where my friend was imprisoned. I yelled, “Allison, she locked the door. Call for help—”

  “I took the liberty of hiding her phone at her house. She was looking for it; calling herself absentminded.” Agatha laughed. “Meanwhile, don’t you want to talk with your lover?”

  I turned back. “Sam? Where is he? You have him here? How? You were with us! How did—?”

  A shadow loomed on the white wall of the foyer, and then a man stood in the entranceway. “He happened to meet up with me,” said a charming voice, slightly accented and full of what almost seemed like humor. “I am pleased to meet you at last.”

  I started to scream, but he held up a hand.

  “We have soundproofed the house in our recent renovations. Please save your voice,” said Nikon Lazos with a gentlemanly bow of his head.

  * * *

  * * *

  I WASN’T ABLE to say anything more to Allison, who had gone silent. I couldn’t try to text her, so all communication was effectively blocked. Doug was here, I told myself. Doug would let her out soon. Nikon and Agatha led me down some stairs to a lower level with several doors on both sides of a long, carpeted hallway. Nikon opened the first door and we entered what looked like a small apartment, with a couch, some chairs, a television and stereo, even a small refrigerator in one corner. Sam had been sitting on the couch, but he rose when we walked in.

  “Lena,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

  I shook my head. I wasn’t going to discuss anything in front of the Lazos family. Where was Doug? My hand was itching to take my phone and attempt to send a text. Wouldn’t I have to tell Doug we were in danger in order for him to break in?

  “She’s plotting,” said Agatha, pointing at me.

  Nikon smiled at me. I remembered what his first wife, Grace, and then Victoria, had told us about his charisma. I could sense it, even now, but his endless smiling made him seem sociopathic. He was as handsome as his pictures, with tanned, healthy skin and a white-toothed smile like his sister’s. His famous silver hair was gone, however—dyed to its original black, and the mustache and beard he had grown were dyed black, as well. It was a fairly good disguise. He studied me with compelling gray eyes.

  “Miss London, I will need to check for cell phones. Mr. West has already kindly given me his.” In front of Sam’s pale and furious face, Nikon Lazos patted me down. At one point his eyes were only two inches away from mine, and I feared my phone would buzz and give me away.

  He nodded, satisfied, and said, “And now if you could have a seat on the couch? Right next to your Mr. West. That is where you’ve chosen to be, yes? So you have both selected your paths. We all do.”

  “I would like to leave, actually. So kindly get out of my way.” I tried to push past him and was immediately restrained by an arm like iron. “The couch, Miss London. We will have a nice talk. Would you care for something to drink?”

  Would this get them both out of the room? “Perhaps some tea.”

  He waved a hand and said something to Agatha in Greek. She glided out of the room without another word. He stayed.

  He pulled a chair across from Sam and me. “My friends. We are intimately connected, are we not? For so long, we thought of each other.”

  “You thought of sending Sam to jail. Of ruining the life of an innocent man,” I said.

  Nikon smiled at Sam. “Your woman is spirited. My Victoria was, as well. Alas, she chose to leave me. And now she lives here, in your town. To be closer to you.”

  “Because a cruel man stole her child,” I said.

  Sam put a calming hand on mine. With a slight movement, he shook his head. Perhaps he knew something I did not?

  Nikon sighed. “The child is happy. I would never allow otherwise. Victoria—well, she chose her unhappiness.”

  I wriggled in my seat. “I would like to use the bathroom.”

  He nodded. “In a moment, perhaps. Agatha tells me that the two of you will soon be leaving. Making your own escape, yes?”

  Sam and I stared at him, uncomprehending.

  “To Rome, I believe? Perhaps you were finding life here too difficult.” He smiled, pleased at the thought, and I recalled what we had told Darla at the library—our fictional vacation to Rome or the Caribbean. “Agatha was alarmed when she learned you would be leaving town. She feared you would not return. She has spent a year of her life investing in you, keeping you in her sights.” He sighed with some theatricality. “My sister—she is spontaneous. I like to plan, plan. Even if it takes years. I had time, here in our snug house. But Agatha has taken steps, and now I must adapt.”

  “She killed someone, you mean,” I said.

  He shrugged. “She feared he knew the truth. For a year no one looked twice at this quiet little house. We could not risk this exposure—I understand her actions. But she also made an imprudent connection with this other local man, this fool, and he has also put us in some danger. Even now he sits in the police station, on the verge of implicating us.”

  “What did she want him to do?” Sam asked in spite of himself.

  “Agatha is imaginative. She liked to keep apprised of Victoria’s actions, and both of yours, and the man supplied her with photographs, information. She shared this with me. It helped us pass the time and focus our thoughts.”

  Sam and Nikon studied each other across the small space: gray eyes and blue eyes locked in a battle of wills. Then Nikon broke the stare and slapped his knees. “In any case, Agatha was hasty, and she has forced my hand. We will have to leave our little home in Blue Lake. We have enjoyed our time here. It is a pretty town. We were a happy little family.”

  “Where is the baby?” I asked.

  Nikon’s face was like stone. “You will not speak of my child.”

 
Sam looked impatient. “Lena and I would like to leave now.”

  Nikon laughed. “Of course you would. That is natural. However, here is the situation. I was taking my time in deciding what to do with you, and your clever Lena who found my ship and my family. With my dear Victoria, who once so passionately loved me.”

  “Until she found out what you were,” Sam said. I feared that he would antagonize Nikon into a temper, but the older man continued to smile.

  “In the end, all of my plans involved taking Victoria away with me. I wanted it to look natural, as though she simply tired of Blue Lake and her giant, that bodyguard. She just packed her bags and left. Now, though, I must leave quickly, so I cannot use finesse. You will call her for me and ask her to come here. I can subdue her quickly and prepare her for travel. This is the quickest way for this to happen.”

  “You’ll never get her across a border,” I said. “You need a passport for her, for the baby.”

  Nikon smiled. “There are many places to cross borders, and many people who want money. I have enough money to buy my future. And to destroy yours, if I wish. Or if Agatha wishes.” His smile vanished. “Enough talk now. My friend Sam will make a phone call, and we will begin.”

  Sam’s face was grim. “I’m not your friend.”

  “It is in your best interest to do what I ask. Call her, be friendly, tell her you need to talk to her about her lost child. Tell her she should meet you here for reasons you will explain. I will handle the rest.”

  Sam shook his head. “I won’t do it. I won’t put her in danger.”

  “You’re putting Lena in danger if you refuse.”

  “I have to go to the bathroom,” I yelled. “Right now. Or I’ll make a mess in your nice little apartment.”

  Nikon’s gray eyes studied me, suspicious yet concerned. Ultimately he was too much of a gentleman to refuse my request. He shrugged. “Across the hall. I will accompany you. We will leave Sam in here.” He escorted me out the door and locked Sam in the room. He pointed out a small bathroom a few feet down the hall, and I went in. When I shut the door I realized that he intended to stand right outside. I turned and saw a little modern bathroom. It was beautifully decorated; I found it absurd that the whole house was so up-to-date, so attractive, as the backdrop to such primitive minds.

  I took out my phone with trembling hands. At first I couldn’t get a signal, but then, in one corner, I did. Desperate, I texted Doug. “Nikon here. Threatening Sam and me in soundproof basement. Wants to lure Victoria, probably kill us. Can’t write anymore after this.”

  I slipped the phone back into my bosom, flushed the toilet, and turned on the faucet, making some splashing sounds. Then I went back out into the hall, where Nikon Lazos stood waiting for me like some medieval knight.

  “Better?” he asked.

  “Much,” I said.

  We went back into the room where Sam sat. Before Nikon shut the door, I heard the tinkle of breaking glass. Perhaps Agatha was not as calm as she seemed? Dropping the tea things suggested that she was nervous. Would we be able to use that to our advantage?

  I joined Sam on the couch, and he took my hand. Nikon took something out of his pocket; it was Sam’s phone. “Time to make the call. Remember to sound friendly. Think of a plausible reason to bring her here.”

  Sam took the phone, but shook his head. “I won’t do it. Find her yourself.”

  Nikon Lazos went back to the table, opened a drawer, and pulled out a gun. “You’ll do as I ask,” he said, pointing it at Sam.

  I stifled a scream. Sam was about to refuse, I saw that, and I said, “Do it, Sam.” I tried to convey, with my tone alone, that help was on the way, and he didn’t need to battle with Lazos. He looked at me and I nodded ever so slightly.

  Sam studied his phone. “Her bodyguard will look up the address. He’ll want to know who Agatha is before he comes here.”

  “Then tell her to come to your friend Allison’s house. I can easily intercept them there, and—” Suddenly the door banged open, and Doug Heller stood there, one side of his face covered in blood, his gun pointed at Lazos.

  I screamed without thinking, and Lazos turned in surprise.

  “Drop it,” Doug said, wiping at his face with his free hand.

  Lazos said nothing, but lunged suddenly at Doug and began grappling with him like a gladiator. Both men still held their guns, and I felt terrified that one of the weapons would go off.

  “Get out, you two,” Doug managed. “Lazos, drop your weapon—and—surrender.” He pushed out the words with great difficulty as he wrestled the Greek man.

  With a sudden burst of inhuman energy, Lazos reared back like a lion and fired his gun. A moment of shock followed, in which Doug dropped his weapon and Lazos kicked it into a corner.

  A bloom of red appeared in the upper left corner of Doug’s shirt, and he crumpled, his face white. “Lazos, you’re a dead man,” Sam said. He stood up, furious, and Lazos turned with an almost triumphant expression.

  “No, not me. And I will not wrestle this time.” He aimed his gun at Sam. “You should have stayed in jail,” he said, his expression half angry and half regretful.

  In a moment of pure insanity that was the product of fury, Sam curled his lips. “Take your best shot,” he yelled, poised to jump on Lazos.

  “Sam, no!” cried a voice, and Cliff barreled into the room, hurling himself between the two men just as the gun went off. I screamed as Cliff fell, and in that short moment that Lazos stared down, disoriented by the new arrival, Sam lunged forward and punched him so hard in the face that he staggered and fell, dropping his gun. Sam was on it in an instant, and I was on the floor, trying to remember a long-ago first aid class as I contemplated two bleeding men.

  Doug caught my gaze and shook his head at me. “It’s under my shoulder; I won’t die. Look at Cliff.”

  Cliff was not conscious. I ripped open his shirt and saw that the bullet had pierced his chest; I prayed that it had not gone through his heart. He was breathing, but in a ragged way. I tore at his shirt so that I could use a strip of the fabric to put pressure on his wound. Instinctively I stroked his hair. “It’s okay, Cliff. It will be okay.” I had the same déjà vu that I had experienced when I saw Cliff climbing the stairs in Camilla’s house. I stared at a gray stripe in Cliff’s brown hair and saw, in an instant of clarity, why that feeling kept returning.

  Why Cliff had been watching us at Sam’s house, even though Doug had known nothing about it.

  Why Cliff had been nearby when I was attacked.

  Why Cliff had looked so gratified when Sam had paused to shake his hand.

  Why Doug had said that Cliff took the job in Blue Lake because he had “family in Indiana.”

  And why Cliff, like Sam, had one single silver stripe growing in the bangs of his thick brown hair.

  I looked up at Sam, who wore a murderous expression as he stood over Nikon Lazos, pinning him down on the ground with the threat of his own gun.

  Sam had no idea, in that chaotic moment, that he was guarding the brother who had been guarding him.

  The brother who might now die.

  Doug had been speaking quietly into his cell phone, and moments later the tiny room was filled with police and emergency people. They took Cliff first. Despite my efforts, he had grown deathly pale, and the carpet beneath him was soaked with blood. Doug was still conscious and giving directions to a deputy when they put him on a stretcher. I touched his good shoulder. “Thanks for being there,” I said.

  He squeezed my hand briefly and said, “You bet.” He was pale but conscious when they carried him out.

  Sam pointed out both guns to the police, and they took them away in evidence bags right after they cuffed Nikon Lazos, who watched Sam and me with a calm expression. His eyes were chilling, though. They were full of hate and something else—something smug, as though he knew a secret.r />
  I felt months of stress building up inside me, and suddenly I was yelling. “You could have stayed away forever, I’ll bet, if you had just left Sam alone. You and your insane sister. Now look what you’ve done to yourself!”

  Lazos smiled at me. “I’ll be back,” he said. “I’ll finish this.”

  Before I knew it I had slapped him hard across the face, leaving a red mark. “How dare you threaten the people I love? How dare you hurt them? I hope they put you away for a thousand years! I hope you realize the pain you’ve caused so many other people! If Cliff dies, I think I’ll find you and kill you myself!”

  Nikon Lazos smiled at me; he seemed weirdly pleased by my agitation. Before Sam or I knew what he was doing, he had leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek. “Sleep tight, Lena,” he said.

  That’s when Sam punched him again, and a harried police officer, sending Sam a disapproving glance, pulled Nikon away from us.

  Then we were left alone in the strange space, now silent as the void.

  “That felt good,” I said. “I’ve wanted to scream in his face for a long time. I’m glad I got to do it.”

  “It did feel good,” said Sam. “But I couldn’t stand that look on his face. Like he has a million secrets.”

  “He has nothing,” I said. “He’s just crazy. His money makes him feel invulnerable.”

  “Cliff saved my life,” Sam said blankly. “He just jumped right in front of me. Where was his gun? Why would he do something like that?”

  I took his hand. “Let’s go. I hate it here.”

  We moved into the silent hall, and as we walked toward the stairs I heard a tiny sound, almost like the mewing of a cat.

  I stared at Sam and he looked back for a full five seconds. Then we heard it again.

  “I heard something I wasn’t supposed to hear.”

  “Oh God! How could we forget?” I cried. We ran, following the sound to the second door on the right, which was slightly ajar. I pushed it open, desperate, fearful, and saw the most beautiful sight of my life.