She only stumbled once, tripping over a pair of running shoes, before she made it back to the bath. Then she was in the kitchen, and Eldridge was still unaware of her presence. She could hear him yelling at Angie to stand up and show herself, but at least he was not shooting at her.
Was it too much to hope that he might be out of ammunition?
There was enough light from the living area to reveal the countertop between the sink and the refrigerator. Liss looked around for a weapon. A knife. A cast-iron frying pan. Anything. But in contrast to the bedroom Angie had been using, the kitchen was as neat as a pin. There was not a single useful object in sight.
Liss didn’t waste time searching through cabinets and drawers. Taking a deep breath, she headed into the living room. If she was going to get the jump on Eldridge, she had to do it now.
A half dozen steps brought her level with the door to the deck. Just as she passed it, she heard it slide open. She gasped as two people rushed inside.
One headed straight for Martin Eldridge.
The other grabbed her and hauled her back into the relative safety of the kitchen.
The gun went off for the second time just as Liss realized it was Dan who held her and stopped struggling.
“Stay here,” he ordered, and ran toward the sound.
Ignoring the command, she followed close at his heels. As she rounded the corner into the living area, the gun skidded past her to slide beneath an end table. Liss had to go up on her toes to avoid being hit by it. Perched like that, she gaped at the scene before her eyes.
Eldridge lay sprawled on his back on the floor. The sharp blade that had been concealed in his cane was pressed against his throat, poised to slice into him if he so much as twitched.
“I ought to gut you like a fish,” Dolores Mayfield said. “Do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve caused me?”
Dolores?
Liss had barely grasped the fact of the librarian’s presence when the sliding glass door opened again. This time Sherri Campbell and Jake Murch came through the opening.
Sherri’s shock at seeing Dolores appeared to be as great as Liss’s had been, but that didn’t prevent her from holstering her service revolver and taking out her handcuffs. While she read her prisoner his rights, Murch relieved Dolores of her weapon. Dan retrieved the gun. Liss came down off her toes and went to help Angie untie the hostages.
All three young people were unharmed, although Boxer was mad as a wet hen that he hadn’t been able to do a better job of protecting Beth and her little brother. As soon as they’d been freed, Liss returned to Dan’s side. When he took her into his arms once more, she could feel how badly his hands were shaking. He buried his face in her neck, squeezing her so tightly that she had to push gently at his shoulders to give herself room to breathe.
“How did you get here?” she whispered when he loosened his hold. “And with Dolores, of all people?”
He had to clear his throat before he could answer. “I was just pulling into our driveway after giving Sam a hand when Dolores came barreling across the street from the municipal building. She climbed right into the passenger seat of my truck and told me to get a move on. She said we had to get out to Ledge Lake pronto because my wife was headed for disaster.”
“So you went? I thought you were the sensible one in the family.” With the danger safely avoided, Liss suddenly felt euphoric enough to tease him about his actions.
A wry smile tugged at the corner of Dan’s mouth. “I hoped she was exaggerating. Besides, Dolores said Sherri was already on her way. Then she repeated everything she’d heard in the parking lot. To tell you the truth, I wasn’t sure how much of it to believe, but I wasn’t about to take any chances, not where your safety was concerned.”
“I don’t get it,” Murch interrupted. “Why was Ms. Mayfield so ticked off at Eldridge?”
“I can answer for myself, thank you very much,” Dolores said, coming up beside them and snatching the sword stick back from Murch.
“Well?”
“It’s his fault Roger and I were suspected of murder.”
“That’s it?” Murch’s face wore an incredulous look.
“Isn’t that enough? I wonder if the police will let me have this for my collection.” With a twist of the wrist she engaged the mechanism that exposed the blade hidden in Eldridge’s cane, once again turning it into the deadly weapon that had been used to kill Jason Graye and wound Kent Humphrey.
Murch took a prudent step away from her.
“He shot at you, Dolores,” Liss said, struggling to reconstruct what had taken place during those few seconds when Dan had prevented her from seeing what was happening. “You could have been killed.”
The complacent smile on Dolores’s face was very nearly a smirk. “On the contrary. It only took me a moment to spot this cane for what it really is and grab it from under his arm. When he swung around to face me, I used it to smack his wrist. The gun went off as it flew out of his hand.” She shrugged. “No big deal. The bullet didn’t come close to hitting me. By the time I kicked the gun out of reach, he was already off balance. All it took was a good shove to send him to the floor. Then I popped the blade out to convince him to stay down. Easy peasy.”
Liss couldn’t help herself. She started to laugh.
* * *
On Monday morning, even though she had been up late the night before to answer questions for the state police, Liss opened Moosetookalook Scottish Emporium at the usual time. If their little town was going to be subjected to reporters, curiosity seekers, and other vultures, she reasoned that she might as well make a few bucks out of the deal. That would go a long way toward making up for the inconvenience of answering their rude and intrusive questions.
All in all, Liss was in a very good mood. Angie had already announced that she planned to rebuild the bookstore when the insurance cleared. The library was on track to stay open, thanks to all the new fund-raising ideas people had come up with and Dolores’s decision to run for the empty seat on the board of selectmen. Most important of all, both Martin Eldridge and his shady PI were behind bars and destined to stay there.
When the bell over the door jangled, Liss looked up with a welcoming smile on her face. It took a concentrated effort to keep it there when she recognized Angus Grant and his wife.
Grant was his usual unpleasant self. This time his complaint had to do with how many sasunnach had attended the Highland Games. The Gaelic word, meaning anyone who was not Scottish, was traditionally applied in a derogatory way to those of English descent. Liss wasn’t quite certain what Grant meant by it and did not feel inclined to ask.
His wife, however, had come to the Emporium with her own agenda. She purchased several pieces of Grant clan crest jewelry, a shawl in the Grant tartan, and a pewter figurine of a piper.
“Why don’t you wait for me outside, dear,” she suggested as Liss began to ring up the sale. “Turn the air on in the car so it won’t be so stuffy.”
As soon as the door closed behind him, she leaned across the sales counter and said, in a sympathetic voice, “I hope you haven’t let Angus’s carping bother you.”
“Everyone has a right to his or her opinions.”
“How diplomatic.” Mrs. Grant smiled, making a dimple pop out in her cheek. “Shall I let you in on a little secret?”
“If you like.” Liss returned her credit card and tucked her receipt into the bright red bag that contained her purchases.
“Angus doesn’t know this, you understand. It would hurt him terribly if he ever found out.”
It took a moment for Liss to realize what Mrs. Grant was waiting for. “I swear I won’t repeat anything you tell me,” she promised.
Grant’s wife nodded. Her expression was serene, her voice amused. “I have done considerable research on every branch of my husband’s family tree. Because of his surname, he believes with all his heart that his people came to this country from Scotland. The truth is somewhat different.”
She picked up the red bag and moved toward the exit. At the door, her hand on the knob, she stopped and looked back over her shoulder.
“Not a single one of his ancestors ever traveled north of Yorkshire. Yes, my dear, you heard me correctly. Angus Grant is pure sasunnach.”
Kilt at the Highland Games Page 24
