Crystalline Crypt

by Mary Coley

  She closed her eyes and stroked the velvety muzzle, felt the horse’s lips searching for something sweet. “Sorry, no treats tonight, but if this all works out, you’ll have lots tomorrow.”

  Voices carried into the barn. She slipped into the horse’s stall and crouched in the dark. Truck doors slammed. Surprised, she exited the stall and peered out one of the barn’s few windows. The blue truck’s headlights came on. The vehicle backed up and headed toward town.

  It was time. They hadn’t come to find her. Maybe Dale hadn’t told them she was there. Jenna hustled back to the stall. “Okay now, boy. Let’s see if I can remember how to do this.” She left his halter on and slipped the bridle over the animal’s head, easing the bit between his teeth. “That’s the way.”

  She debated about the saddle. She would be more comfortable with it, but she had often ridden without. She had loved the feel of the horse’s muscles moving beneath her. But she needed to ride fast. She opened the gate to the stall and led the horse out into the barn to throw on the saddle.

  The barn light flashed on. Dale Hardesty stood in the doorway.

  ~ Chapter 56 ~

  Mandy

  Mandy became slowly aware of the floor beneath her. Gradually, with her eyes open, she noticed light filtering from above, falling in a straight line, coming in around a door or window.

  She tried to move, but her wrists were bound together, and so were her ankles. A sour smell of sweat and something else hung in the air.

  “Sean?”

  Someone moaned off to her left.

  Mandy moved like a caterpillar across the floor. “Sean?” Whoever it was she rolled into was warm and alive.

  “Mandy?”

  “Yeah. What happened?”

  “I don’t know. My head feels like I’ve been slammed in a door.”

  “You took a beating. He kicked you.”

  “Yeah. I feel like I’ve been stomped. Everywhere. Where are we?”

  Something rustled. Sean was trying to move.

  “There’s light coming from above. Maybe we’re in a basement. Did the line shack look like it had a basement?” he rasped.

  “No. Any chance you can get your hands apart or undo your feet? My cell phone is in my pocket, but I can’t reach it.” Mandy pulled at the plastic ties that bound her wrists. There was no give at all.

  There was more rustling. Sean’s breathing quickened, he groaned with his efforts, and let out a long breath. “Too tight.” They lay back on the cold floor, side by side. Sean’s body was warm.

  How long would they be here?

  Had Max gone after Jenna?

  ~ Chapter 57 ~

  Jenna

  Jenna’s heart pounded in her ears, pushing adrenaline through her body along with her blood.

  She glanced at the woman beside her, still not believing.

  Together, they rode down into a gully and up the other side, moving across country toward the line shack. The horses huffed air from their noses and sweat glistened on their withers. At the top of another rise, the ground leveled out. Tall grass reached to the horses’ flanks.

  The two women kicked their horses into a gallop. The animals pounded past a copse of persimmon trees, and then the oak forest thinned. When they reached a wide meadow and a rustic split rail fence, Jenna and Dale turned their horses and followed the fence, keeping to the right and moving along the line of trees. Finally, when all that remained between them and the line shack was cleared land, the women stopped. Jenna and Dale slipped off their horses and tied their mounts to trees a few yards into the forest.

  “Ready?” Jenna whispered.

  Dale lifted her hand. “More ready than you know.”

  Now.

  Jenna ran as fast as she had back in high school on the track team, dashed across the grass towards the shadowy side of the shack, Dale right behind her. Slowly, she rounded the corner of the building. Jenna stepped onto the porch and stopped to catch her breath. Adrenaline had kicked in, and it wouldn’t fade until this was finished.

  “Are you ready?” she whispered over her shoulder.

  Beside her, Dale lifted her hand. “Of course.”

  The wind picked up, swooshed through the trees, and whispered remember. Her hand was on the doorknob, but for another instant, Jenna was frozen in time.

  The fresh scent of the meadow grass, and the cicadas, droning louder, softer, louder. The memories were strong, but not as strong as the heartache and the pain. The air had crushed out of her and her spirit had broken as he lay on top of her, grinding and thrusting, tearing her apart.

  “Your turn, Chad. You’ve wanted this all week. Come and get it.”

  The voice seeped through her brain as if it was happening now.

  “It’s okay, Sharon. We’ll take care of this together.” Her sister Molly spoke into her ear.

  ~ Chapter 58 ~

  Mandy

  Mandy and Sean lay on the cold floor, shivering, hearts pounding. Their shallow breaths quickened as minutes stretched on. They jumped at every little sound. Something rustled in the corner, something else scratched at the wall. Mandy’s throat dried out. She struggled to keep panic at bay in the dark.

  Then, above them, hurried footsteps crossed the wood floor. A latch clicked. The trapdoor lifted and light poured into their prison.

  Mandy stared up, terrified. They were sitting targets. She had no doubt Max meant to kill them, but doubted he’d do it without first raping her and torturing Sean.

  “Mandy, Sean, are you down there?” Jenna’s voice called.

  “Jenna? We’re here. Max tied us up.”

  “I’m coming down.” The trapdoor ladder screeched against the hard floor. A flashlight beam cut through the darkness.

  “We don’t have much time,” Jenna said. “They could be back any minute.”

  Light filled the room. For the first time, Mandy was able to look around their dark prison. Windows high on the walls had been painted black to minimize daylight. Two upholstered chairs with sagging seats had been placed side by side against one wall, a small wooden table between them.

  She and Sean lay on the floor, next to a platform.

  Jenna’s flashlight beam reflected off the crystalline crypt that filled the center of the basement platform. Prisms danced on the dark walls of the room.

  Dale cut the ropes binding Sean’s hands and feet while Jenna turned to Mandy to do the same.

  Mandy studied the two women’s faces as they worked side by side. She found similarities that time had not eroded. “Jenna? Is this...?”

  “No time to explain. We need to get out of here. Let’s go.” Jenna helped her stand, then motioned to Sean to climb the ladder. Mandy followed. Soon after, Dale climbed into the cabin, and last, Jenna. They pulled up the ladder and dropped the trapdoor. Outside, a truck engine roared.

  “Hide. They’ll head for the trapdoor, and maybe we can get them down there before they realize what’s happened,” Jenna instructed.

  They scattered. The room was hardly big enough for any of them to feel hidden, but the men wouldn’t expect them to be in this room; they would be focused on the prisoners trapped below.

  The door flew open. Max stormed in, carrying a flashlight, and didn’t bother to turn on a lamp as he crossed the room to the trapdoor.

  Max lifted the trapdoor, and his flashlight beamed down. “Where are you? Tell me where you are, damn it!”

  Mandy felt sure Max could hear her breathing. She squatted scarcely six feet away in a dark corner and beneath a table, partially covered by a floor rug.

  “Damn!” Max cursed as he descended the ladder. “Where are you?” he bellowed.

  Heart pounding, Mandy dialed 911 as Jenna left her hiding place and dashed to the trapdoor. Sean and Dale joined her to stare down at Max.

  “How do you like it down there?” Jenna called.

  Dale glared down at her husband. “You thought my memory would never come back, didn’t you? Were you drugging me? The headaches and confusio
n... How could you?”

  Mandy joined the trio at the trapdoor, her anger building. This man had raped Jenna, and he was responsible for the family tragedy. Never before had she wanted to kill someone, but she did now.

  “Oh, come on, Dale. You wanted me more than you wanted a sister. You always have.” Max sneered up at them.

  Dale grabbed an empty beer bottle and pitched it down on her husband.

  Max cursed as he ducked. He pulled a gun from his waistband.

  “Get back,” Sean pulled Dale away from the trapdoor as the gun blasted.

  Mandy and Jenna darted away from the trapdoor, and then began pitching everything they could down into the basement room. The man below scrambled away from the ladder when a lamp, pots, and pans rained down, followed by glassware and dishes. Another shot rang out and pinged off a light fixture in the upstairs room. After more dishes were pitched down the ladder, Sean grabbed the trapdoor and shut it. He scooted the sofa over the door and piled the rest of the furniture on top of it.

  Below, Max shouted obscenities. He had climbed the ladder and was now pounding on the closed trapdoor.

  Dale’s face was pale, her eyes dark. She sank to the floor.

  “I shouldn’t have left you. I’m so sorry.”

  “Shh. It’s going to be all right now,” Jenna soothed.

  Headlights flashed into the cabin.

  “Finally.” Mandy rushed to open the door to the police. “In here,” she yelled.

  Doors slammed. The sheriff and three men hurried into the cabin. “What’s going on? You said it was life or death.” The sheriff looked from Mandy to where Dale sat on the floor.

  Mandy explained what had happened as quickly as she could. Dale stayed on the floor, her face pale, her eyes looked dazed.

  “Dale, we’ll get you in the truck and down to the ranch in no time,” the sheriff said. “We’ll call an ambulance to meet us back at your place. Think you can handle the trip?”

  “I don’t need an ambulance. I’m not sick. And I’m not injured. Just get me back to the ranch. Can you take care of the horses?” Dale asked Jenna.

  “Yes. We’ll ride them back down. I’ll take care of them.” Jenna’s eyes glittered with tears.

  The sheriff glanced around the room. “Where’s Max?”

  “In the cellar.” Sean gestured at the trapdoor.

  Mandy grabbed Sean’s arm. “What happened to Lamar? And to Chad?”

  ~ Chapter 59 ~

  Jenna

  Jenna led the way across the pasture to the horses, then helped Mandy into the saddle. “Sean and I can ride together.” Her head was spinning. Her sister Molly was alive, and she’d been married to Max Hardesty for twenty years. Questions fired into her brain, as guilt waves passed through her. If only she hadn’t run. If only she had stayed and found Molly that night. Twenty years.

  She swung up into the saddle of the second horse and reached down to give Sean a hand up. He groaned as he swung himself up and settled in behind her on the horse’s rump.

  “Are you okay?” Jenna asked.

  “Chad kicked me, knocked me out. Otherwise they never would have got us down in that basement.”

  “Don’t be so sure. Max is very strong, and very smart.” Jenna turned her horse toward the road. “This road won’t be as fast as going cross country, but it’ll be easier on you. Are you okay, Mandy? Can you handle the horse?”

  “Sure.” Mandy’s voice was soft.

  The horses picked their way through the grass to the road in silence. Jenna knew she owed them an apology for her deceit. What would happen next? Would the sheriff arrest her?

  Jenna cleared her throat. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell either of you what happened to me, and to my family. A lot of my memory is fuzzy. Dale doesn’t remember everything either. Maybe, eventually, we’ll work through what happened.”

  The horses shook their manes and snorted as they stepped up on the road.

  “How did you and Dale wind up coming to the line shack? Didn’t Max and Chad go back to have dinner with the guests?”

  “After you left, I waited in the cabin. The truck came back, but you didn’t. I knew something had happened. Then, Max and Chad drove away from the ranch, toward town. In the stable, I saddled a horse, hoping I could get up to the shack before they returned and find you. I was about to leave when Dale showed up at the barn.”

  “How long did it take you both to realize the truth?” Sean rubbed Jenna’s arm and hung on as the horse stumbled and then righted itself.

  “She asked if I was going up to the shack and said you probably needed help, that Max might have done something bad. We looked at each other, and I knew she was Molly.” Jenna’s voice broke. “I recognized her voice, and her eyes. But she looks so different. She’s filled out, and her hair color ages her. I look different, too. Once, we were both blondes.”

  Jenna peered at Mandy, but her friend’s face was hidden in shadow. The horses walked on. Her heart heaved in her chest. Even now, she couldn’t believe she’d found her sister. She couldn’t believe that her running was over. She closed her eyes for a minute. This time tomorrow, would she be in jail?

  “So, she decided to go to the line shack with you?” Sean asked.

  “Yes. We knew we had to hurry to get to you before Max and Chad went back there. We talked as we saddled the horses.”

  “Has she had amnesia?” Mandy asked. “I know she has lots of headaches.”

  “Yes. Migraines probably caused by the head injury the night of the fire. Your questions about the fire triggered memories. Nightmares. But she couldn’t make sense of what was in her head, and when she asked Max, he told her she was hallucinating.”

  Jenna’s voice broke. Her poor sister. “She’s been married to Max for twenty years. She loves him. And he’d been giving her pills, supposedly for her headaches, but I think they were something else. Something to keep her in a fog.” Jenna tried unsuccessfully to swallow a lump in her throat. She choked.

  “I’m not sure I get it. You said Max assaulted you and killed your parents. How did he end up with Molly?” Mandy asked.

  “I hope our parents were dead before the fire consumed them. My parents had challenged Max, and he couldn’t tolerate it.”

  Crickets chirped and an owl hooted. Seconds passed.

  “What did Molly say happened after the fire?” Sean asked.

  “She is still sorting it all out, but apparently, after I escaped, Max took my sister. Chad had pulled her out of the cabin and taken her to the bunkhouse. Max picked her up there and left for Texas. Days later, they were in Midland and he got a job at a feed lot. He convinced Molly she’d been in a car accident and he’d rescued her. He made up a story about her past and told her that her name was Dale.” She paused. Anger seethed inside her. “What little she remembered seemed more like a nightmare than reality. Max was so loving, so kind to her, she never imagined he was lying to her. He got on at a ranch, bought a little house and they got married. She didn’t have any idea what Max had done.

  “I guess that after Max took Molly away, Chad got it into his head that Max had killed us both. He didn’t talk to Max again until his parents died ten years later. Max and Dale came back here, but Chad rarely saw them. Dale doesn’t think he ever realized who she was. I’m guessing Max began to think the only way to convince Chad we were alive so he would return to normal was to bring me here. Reunite the sisters and shake Chad up.”

  Sean tightened his grip around her waist. “There’s more to the story of those brothers. Now’s not the time to go into it, but Max is a criminal in many ways.” Sean kissed the back of Jenna’s neck.

  “I was so ashamed of the person I was,” Jenna blurted. “I caused my parent’s deaths and left my sister behind. I knew she was probably dead. I changed who I was, for her. Can you both forgive me for not telling you?”

  “Don’t apologize. You were young and scared. I probably would have done the same thing,” Mandy said, quietly. “Max is evil.”
r />   Sean nodded in agreement. “Yes, he is evil. I’m here with you, and I’m not going anywhere without you.”

  They rode on in silence for a few minutes. An owl called in the distance.

  “Tell us about the painting, Jenna,” Mandy asked. “Why did it frighten you so much?”

  “I knew Chad had painted it. But it wasn’t me. The forehead and eyebrows were my sister’s, not mine. I wondered why he painted her imprisoned in the glass crypt. Now, I think Chad must have finally realized Dale was Molly and his brother was keeping her a prisoner.”

  “Chad created that crypt and painted the picture?” Mandy asked.

  “Yes, he did,” Sean said. “It’s another way he makes a living besides painting depressing pictures no one wants to buy, like that one in the gallery. He also creates forgeries of master painters, and his brother Max set up an entire network of places that offer them for sale to the highest bidder, as originals.”

  “So, Chad had nothing to do with that painting being in Tulsa?” Mandy asked. “Was Chad there earlier this week? You thought he sent you a note, didn’t you? You were going to meet him.”

  Jenna wished that they were sitting some place with a glass of wine while she explained this to Sean and Mandy. As it was, she couldn’t see Sean’s face, she couldn’t gauge her husband’s reactions. She didn’t want to hurt him anymore than she already had.

  “I did get a note, and I initially thought Chad had sent it. It had been twenty years. I’m tired of running. I thought he might explain things, might tell me what had happened to my sister. Then I saw the painting in the gallery. I didn’t want to believe he’d painted it to scare me. Truthfully, I don’t think he meant for it to ever be on display.”

  “Here’s my take on what happened,” Sean began. “We’ll have to hear from Chad and Max before we know for sure. I think Max included it in a shipment of paintings to be sold at the gallery and hoped you would see it. His spy, Mike McNally, had located you and determined you were Sharon Bergen. And you’re probably right that he wanted to bring you back here to shock Chad back to reality and prove he hadn’t killed you.”