Six feet of water opened between the rock and the boat, and he stared into the blackness. He flailed his arms in an attempt to regain his balance, and felt a wave of relief as he pulled himself back. He’d made it.
Then Kent’s hand struck him between the shoulders, sending him into the trough between the boat and the rock. As Bowden plummeted into the frigid water, he felt himself being sucked down and out, as the water rushed away from the cliff. Then the water pushed him back towards the rocks.
He looked up. The salt stung his eyes, but he needed to know where the boat was. He was afraid of being crushed or chewed up by the propeller.
He couldn’t see the surface. Panic struck him like a blow, and he started kicking and pulling for the surface. He looked up, hoping to see light. He was slammed against the rock and his right arm took most of the impact. He slid up the rock face. Suddenly, he saw the hull of the boat only inches from his head. He ducked and threw up his left arm in a reflexive action. His hand hit a metal bar and he grasped it. Then the boat fell away from the rocks, and he went with it.
Riley saw the box crash onto the deck and Bowden fight to maintain his balance. Then Kent pushed Bowden, so that he fell between the rocks and the boat.
Tara screamed, “No,” with a shrill, high-pitched voice that sliced through the storm. She rushed to the side and looked down as the boat was pushed towards the rocks again. It came up with the wave and dropped, landing only a foot from the rocky ledge.
Riley saw Kent prepare to leap. He threw himself from the sun-bridge to the deck below, his long gray coat billowing out behind him as he screamed. He landed in the spot Kent was aiming for, just as Kent threw himself forward.
Startled, the killer tried to stop his momentum. It was too late. He fell forward, diving out in a frantic effort to reach the side. He caught the side of the boat with his hands, letting his gun fall into the water. The boat slid out with the wave, and Kent was pulled along with it. His feet came off the rock and he dropped into the water, but he clung to the side and pulled himself up, so that he clamped the side of the boat against his chest.
He grinned, showing all his teeth as he smiled at Tara. “You almost got rid of me.”
The boat dropped into the bottom of the trough and started to rise on the next wave.
Kent looked over at Riley. “Out of my way, whatever you are! I’m coming on board.”
The boat slid up the wave, was pushed towards the rocks and crashed down. The shattering blow of the collision with the rock knocked Tara off her feet. She fell forward, catching hold of the side as spray cascaded from the rocks over her.
The unstable deck had no effect on Riley. He stood solidly, his feet apart and his hands on his hips. He stared into the wild eyes of the man clinging to the side of the boat. Kent’s eyes widened in shock as blood trickled from his mouth. Then the boat slid away from the rock and the waves swept away his legs and most of his torso.
Kent’s face turned white as the blood left his upper body. Riley looked at the face of the dead killer and felt no remorse. The arms slid up and over the side as the weight of the head and shoulders carried the rest of the dead man into the sea. The severed portion of the torso rolled over once and then sank out of sight.
Walt forced the throttle down and the boat jumped forward, turning into the oncoming waves and away from the cliff.
Riley looked for Tara. She held onto the railing of the ladder that led to the sundeck. Her clothes clung to her body, and she shivered as the wind and rain assaulted her. She shook her head and cried.
“Get inside,” Riley yelled.
Tara wiped her eyes with a wet arm, and blinked.
“Get inside.”
Tara opened the door and Riley stepped back so that she could enter. The darkness of the night settled in quickly, and almost hid the cliffs from view even though they were less than fifty yards away. He heard a long, drawn out scream coming from the engines, but it sounded like a human voice. He spun around with his left hand coming up and out, taking a defensive position as he dropped into a crouch.
No one was there, but the call persisted. He ran to the back of the boat and looked down. Bowden had his left arm wrapped around the swimming platform and was yelling for help.
“Stop the boat,” Riley shouted.
Tara still stood by the door. She looked at him.
“Stop the boat,” he yelled again.
Tara turned and shouted at Walt, who threw the boat into neutral. Then Tara ran to join Riley. She leaned over the side of the boat and grabbed Bowden’s coat and pulled on it as Walt came to help. They pulled the coat up around Chase’s neck before it caught under his arms, and they managed to drag him onto the swimming platform. His right arm hung limply in the water but by using his left arm, he pulled himself up to a sitting position on the platform.
Tara clutched his jacket and braced her knees against the side and heaved, as Bowden got his feet underneath him. He pushed as she pulled, and he toppled over the back and fell to the deck. Walt grabbed Bowden’s right arm, to pull him into the cabin.
“No,” Bowden screamed.
Walt let go and the arm fell to the deck. It was twisted around, and Riley knew that the humerus was shattered.
Bowden looked up at Riley, his face distorted from the pain and the cold. “Glad you made it.”
“Me, too.” He pointed at the box. “That’s a World War One ammunition case.”
Bowden glanced over at it. “Never seen one before.”
“Probably because it’s German.”
Lightning struck the island with a blinding flash of light and deafening crash of thunder.
Bowden was looking at Riley, when the ghost was saturated by the light. When Bowden could see again, Riley never took form.
“Riley!” he shouted and struggled to sit up. “Riley!”
The only answer was the howl of the wind.
20
Bowden opened his eyes and tried to figure out what had happened. He looked at the ceiling of the small room and then at the machines by his side. One towered over him and held an IV bag, with a tube running to his left arm. He rolled his head on the pillow and looked at his right arm. A white cast held it motionless, encompassing his wrist and wrapping around his shoulder. A steel bar attached somewhere near his waist held his arm away from him. A movement caught his eye, and he lifted his gaze past his arm, and saw Tara rising out of a chair.
“Hi,” Bowden croaked, and then grimaced at the awful sound of his voice.
Tara smiled. “Hi.”
He tried to turn so that he could see her better. The cast got in his way, but he noticed that she was wearing black jeans and a tan suede coat.
“I see you had a chance to change.”
Tara grinned. “Yeah, yesterday.”
“Really?” Bowden looked around for a clock.
“You’ve been asleep for thirty-two hours. The doctors told me not to worry about it, that it was mostly due to exhaustion.”
“Good. How’s your mom?”
“She’s made it. She came out of it yesterday. They’re still trying to get up the white blood cell count before they release her, but she’s out of the ICU.”
Bowden shifted on the bed and the sheet bunched up under him. He reached down and tried to straighten it out, but his weight held the sheet in place. He leaned over in an attempt to get off the fold and only managed to make it bigger.
“Are you okay?” Tara asked.
Bowden looked up and nodded. “Yeah. Did you go back to the house?”
Tara nodded and looked towards the door. It hung open a crack, and she leaned over and whispered. “I put the diamonds in the cellar.”
Bowden’s brows furrowed as he thought about the weight of the box. “How’d you get it inside?”
“How much do you remember? Getting off the boat, I mean.”
“Medics met us at the dock. I remember wondering where you were, and then I remember you being at the Medic Unit. Then they took me o
ut of there.”
“You don’t recall giving me any instructions?”
Bowden shook his head and tried hard to remember, but only recalled the things he had seen.
“Well, I did what you said. I had Walt help haul that case over to your car and put it in the trunk. Then I drove back to the house and unloaded the diamonds. I put them into shoeboxes and carried them in. Once the box was empty, I was able to lug it down into the cellar.”
“Did Walt want to know what was in the box?”
Tara’s smile showed her white teeth. “I told him it was old junk that had been in the family for several generations.”
“Do you think he bought it?”
Someone knocked on the door and Tara stepped away from the bed. Bowden glanced over and saw Cooper poke his head in.
“You’re awake.” He stepped inside and shut the door behind him. “Hope you haven’t been comparing stories.”
Bowden closed his eyes and let out a long sigh. His head fell back and hit the pillow. It wasn’t very soft, but at the moment it was comfortable.
The detective looked around for a chair and ended up standing. He pushed the table away from Bowden’s bed and stepped up to the side of it.
“I understand that you found what you were looking for.”
Bowden opened one eye. “What’s that?”
Cooper shook his head. “I don’t know.” He reached over and tapped the cast on Bowden’s arm. “They told me that you almost lost that.”
“Haven’t heard. I just woke up.”
Cooper glanced over at Tara, and Bowden wondered how much he had heard before coming in.
The detective scratched the back of his neck. “You know, I had a long talk with Walt Keller.” He looked at Bowden and then at Tara. Neither one of them spoke, so he continued.
“He’s an interesting man. It seems that he started a one-day cruise with two people and ended up with four on his boat. So he goes to a place designated on his map. Two of the men go ashore, and bring back a heavy chest. They get the chest on board, but both fall into the water. The third man gets hit by lightning. One of the men that fell into the ocean is pulled out. So Walt returns to the dock with the same two people he left with.”
“And?”
Cooper glared at Bowden. “And what?”
“There must be a punch line.”
“There is. I want you to tell me who the other two men were.”
Bowden looked over at Tara and wondered if she’d already had this conversation with Cooper.
Cooper seemed to read his mind. “Tara said she wouldn’t speak without a lawyer. I’m still trying to figure out if there really were two other men on the boat.” He pointed at Bowden. “I have, however, concluded that you fell into the ocean.”
Bowden rubbed his face with his left hand. It was a gimmick to buy some time. “I can’t help you much,” he said. “One man was Kent Fonck. He jumped onto the boat as it was leaving the dock, and is the one who killed Adam. You may find Kent’s body some day.”
“And the other man? The one hit by lightning?”
Bowden looked Cooper straight in the eyes. “No one was hit by lightning.”
“Would you agree to a lie detector test?”
“Come on. You know you’re as good as one of those machines.”
Cooper chuckled. “Actually, I’ve never used one.”
Bowden nodded.
“But I still wonder what Keller saw.”
“Maybe the mist or a low cloud.”
“Not a man?”
“No. You’ve got no body. You never will.”
Cooper stared at Bowden for several seconds. “If I get a missing person report on a guy wearing a gray fedora and a gray duster…”
“Yeah, I know.”
“It was the same description of the man out by the Miller house, that the deputies chased.”
“I know.”
Cooper hesitated.
“What?” Bowden asked.
Cooper glanced up at Tara, and then back at Bowden. “SID didn’t get any evidence on a second man for the uh, rape on uh, Michelle,” he said.
“You let Doug Sanderson walk?”
“Had to. No proof.”
“He used his credit card to hold the room,” Bowden countered.
“He claims that Kent stole the card.”
“What does Bill say?”
“He didn’t know anything about it. He just said that Kent took care of it.”
Cooper walked to the door and opened it. He stood there for a second and looked back over his shoulder. “I’ve got this case with three dead bodies, and I’ve got to do the paper work. The only thing I don’t have is a motive. I can’t believe all this was for a worthless painting.”
“It wasn’t.”
Cooper nodded. “The box?”
Bowden shook his head. “The inheritance.”
There was a moment of silence, and then Cooper stepped into the hall and shut the door.
Tara put her hand on Bowden’s leg, and he looked over at her. She smiled and her lips parted.
“I’m glad you didn’t tell him about Sam,” she said.
“He wouldn’t have believed me. Have you seen him?”
“No.” Tara’s smile vanished, and she glanced down at her hand.
Bowden closed his eyes again. The drugs made him tired and he wanted to sleep.
“What are you going to tell Uncle Vinny?”
The name sounded odd to Bowden and it took him a second to realize that Tara was asking about Vincent Fonck. “Oh. I guess I’ll tell him that Kent killed Adam, and that Bill’s in jail, and that I killed Barry, and Kay tried to kill herself. And Kent’s dead.”
“What about the diamonds?”
“He hired me to get the painting. I’ll take it to him.”
Tara smiled and squeezed his leg. With all the medication in him, he hardly felt it.
The tires on the tow truck beat out a rhythm on the concrete spacers as it cruised down the old road. A full moon cast its white light through the trees to dimly illuminate the cliff that the road paralleled. There were no streetlights this far from town.
Riley slid silently into the passenger seat and glanced over at the driver.
Doug Sanderson rubbed his eyes and yawned.
“Tired?” Riley asked, his voice cold and uncaring.
Sanderson jumped and snapped his head around. “What the…”
The truck swerved and Sanderson wrenched the wheel back to correct the motion.
“Just wondered if you were tired. I think you’d get more rest now, knowing that the police don’t have enough evidence to charge you with repeatedly raping your niece.”
“I…. How’d you get in my truck?”
“That’s not what you should be worrying about.”
“Oh, yeah?” Sanderson gripped the wheel with both hands and glared over at his uninvited passenger. “What should I be worrying about?”
“How hot it is in hell.”
Sanderson screamed and swung his fist at Riley. The fist connected with the window and Riley smiled. As Sanderson stared at him, he pointed at the road. The truck had crossed the centerline and was well into the oncoming lane of traffic.
The road took a sharp turn to the right and Sanderson grabbed the wheel and cranked it sharply. Riley could hear the tires squeal as they lost traction, then the truck hit the metal barrier and sheared the wood posts off at the ground.
Sanderson yelled and leaned into the turn, but the truck was already over the edge, the front wheels in the air. The tires turned, but the truck plummeted out into space.
Riley watched as Sanderson pushed on both the wheel and the brakes. His hands and legs were straight. The back end of the truck came up and forced the front down. It fell past the rock wall, and Sanderson screamed again.
The front bumper hit the ground first and was forced into the engine, which was shoved back into the firewall. The man was thrown against the steering wheel just before the w
eight from the rear of the truck collapsed the driver’s compartment.
Riley stepped out of the truck and looked back in. He could see Sanderson’s white face through the shattered windshield but the tangled metal hid the rest of the body. Riley touched his fedora and saluted the wreckage before turning away.
Now that he’d finally learned to travel, maybe he could get a better look at those “closed files.”
THE END
Thank you for reading “KILL TO INHERIT” If you enjoyed this book, I would appreciate it if you'd help other readers enjoy it too by recommending it to friends, readers' groups, and discussion boards, or by writing a short review on Amazon. Thank you.
The further adventures of Sam Riley are in the planning stages, as he continues to try to solve his own murder.
Other Books by Nolan Radke
LOGAN’S LEAD
Not a ghost story, this coming-of-age thriller takes you on a life and death struggle deep into the Arizona desert. Set in the months after 9-11, it is a modern-day “Stagecoach” story, told by the young college student who follows Logan into the desert.
Buy this at the Amazon’s Kindle store.
BOOKS BY OTHER AUTHORS
SAMPLE: SONGS FOR PERRI
PROLOGUE
Tragedy gave no warning.
Slamming the door on her mother’s new Range Rover, twenty-six year old Perri Linn started to pull on her much-traveled suitcase, then paused to watch the swiftly approaching car.
Her stepfather's home was perched on the edge of the mesa near Phoenix, and was the last house on the road. If the car passed the next driveway...which it did...it must be coming here, to his place.
Squinting to see better through the heat waves, Perri recognized Walt's silver gray Mercedes. She knew they weren't expecting her yet, so why would he and her mom be coming home in the middle of the day? Could it be an emergency—they were traveling awfully fast?
They must slow down to turn into the driveway!
As if in defiance, the car roared on past and smashed into the large rocks set as a barricade on the mesa's edge. Red dust swirled upward towards the hot Arizona sun, cloaking the twisted metal.
The Ultimate Mystery Thriller Horror Box Set (7 Mystery Thriller Horror Bestsellers) Page 73
