Catch the Girl

by Melinda Woodhall

  Barker tried to speak, but his head was spinning, and his legs had gone all wobbly. He grabbed onto Frankie’s arm, wanting to beg him to go after Taylor, but unable to speak. Suddenly, even the tiniest specks of moonlight had disappeared; everything went dark.

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  “How long has he been unconscious?”

  Nessa’s voice sounded close by. Barker smiled, liking the dream.

  If only the dream were true.

  In the dream he was safe; Nessa had come to save him, and everything would be all right.

  “Not long.” Frankie sounded worried. “Some jackass with that rifle over there was chasing a girl. Barker thought it was Taylor.”

  Feeling the glare of a bright light on his face, Barker forced his eyes open, squinting up at the faces peering down at him. For one surreal moment he felt as if he were in his coffin, and the three people above him were paying their respects.

  Did I die? Is this what it feels like to be dead?

  Nessa smiled at him, moving the flashlight away from his eyes.

  “You awake, partner?”

  Barker nodded, his mouth dry, but his head was no longer spinning. The image of Taylor’s silhouette in the moonlight flashed into his mind. Panic filled his eyes as he struggled to sit up.

  “Taylor,” he croaked out. “She was here…I saw her.”

  “Hold on, Barker.” Leo reached out to put a restraining hand on his shoulder. “You’re in no shape to be running around this swamp chasing anyone.”

  “Not if you’ve had another heart attack,” Nessa agreed, her eyes bright with tears. “When I saw you laying here, I thought…well, I thought we’d lost you.”

  Shaking his head, Barker tried to speak, but his throat was too dry, and he began to cough.

  “Don’t try to talk, Barker,” Nessa insisted. “We’ve got the ambulance crew on their way over. Just rest for now.”

  Frustrated, Barker cleared his throat, determined to force out the words he needed to say. He grabbed Nessa hand and squeezed.

  “Stop wasting time here with me, Nessa. Go find Taylor.”

  He looked at his ex-partner with pleading, puppy dog eyes.

  “Please, just save my girl.”

  Nessa nodded, then looked up at Leo and Frankie.

  “I’m gonna go look for Taylor. You guys stay here with Barker until the paramedics get here.”

  Raising a hand in protest, Leo shook his head.

  “No way I’m letting you go on your own. We use the buddy system out here.” Leo smiled down at Barker, then looked up at Nessa. “Frankie can be Barker’s buddy, and I’ll be yours.”

  “Just get going,” Barker said, moving his eyes toward the clearing where Taylor had been. “Who’s that?”

  An old woman with long white hair stood on the path. She wore a stained dress and carried a wicker basket over her arm. Frankie gave a low whistle under his breath as Nessa and Leo turned to the woman in surprise.

  “Ms. Albright? Did you want to tell us something? Did you see the girl that ran that way?”

  The woman nodded, offering a small smile, as if she had a secret.

  “Will you show us where she is?” Nessa asked, stepping closer.

  Barker didn’t like the glassy look in the old woman’s eyes, and he didn’t like the idea of getting help from anyone related to Jacob Albright.

  “How do you know she’s telling the truth, Nessa?” Barker called.

  Leo looked between Barker and Nessa, then studied the woman.

  “And didn’t you say one of the killers might be a woman, Nessa?” Leo asked, keeping his voice quiet.

  “Oh, I always tell the truth.” The woman’s smile grew sad. “Just like my dear Jed always told me: the truth will set you free.”

  Holding back further words of caution, Barker watched Nessa and Leo follow the woman down the path. He stared after them with sunken, worried eyes until they’d disappeared into the shadows.

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Angel waited in the potting shed for Eli’s return. He’d been away too long. Something must have gone wrong at the diner. Maybe Marie had escaped, or perhaps the girl had used her wiles on the smitten boy and persuaded him to have mercy. Anger brewed in Angel’s chest at the possibility.

  After everything I’ve done for that boy, would Eli really betray me?

  She hadn’t thought the simple young man would have the nerve to turn against her, but as the minutes ticked past, and he still hadn’t returned, she began to have doubts.

  Drawing the cover back from the tray of devil’s weed, she surveyed the delicate flowers, transfixed as always by the power the pretty plants bestowed on those who knew their secret.

  Who wouldn’t want to wield the power of life or death? Only sanctimonious old fools, like Father Jed.

  Irritated by the thought of the old man, she paced to the window. If Eli didn’t come soon, she’d have to go find Marie on her own. Shaking her head, she wondered why she’d let herself count on Eli for something so important in the first place, when she’d known all along he couldn’t stay around forever.

  He’s been helpful all these years, but he does have his limits.

  A noise outside the shed made Angel stand still and listen. She made out the scrabbling of hands and feet on the old maple tree beside the wall. Someone was coming over, and they were coming fast. The door to the shed rattled, then opened.

  Marie’s tall, slim figure filled the open doorway, before slipping inside. The door swung closed behind her, and Angel heard her moving to the far wall. A match flickered in the dark, and the lantern on the wall flamed to life, lighting up the little room.

  “So, he betrayed me after all.”

  Angel’s cold words startled Marie. She jumped and spun around in fright, knocking against a watering can, sending it clattering against the wall.

  “Sister Judith, you scared the life out of me.”

  Marie’s bright blue eyes shone like sapphires in the lantern light. She glanced down self-consciously at her clothes.

  “I guess you’re wondering what I’m doing in here and…and why I’m wearing these clothes.”

  “I know exactly what you’re doing, and why,” Angel sneered, no longer bothering to hide her contempt. “You’re a liar, and a whore.”

  She raised her hand slowly, displaying the knife, gratified to see the terror that filled the young woman’s eyes.

  “Are you scared?” Angel taunted, waving the knife slowly back and forth. “Your friends were scared, too. Before I killed them.”

  “You? You killed Candace and Ruth? But…why?”

  Shrugging her wide shoulders dismissively, Angel stepped closer.

  “Because they got in my way. They tried to take what I wanted. So, they had to die.”

  Marie took a step back, her eyes moving around the room, searching for an escape from the ruthless woman in front of her.

  “They never did anything to you, Sister Judith,” Marie said, her voice quavering. “They…they trusted you.”

  “They never even knew me,” Angel spit out. “They had no idea who they were messing with.”

  She took another threatening step forward, brandishing the knife.

  “I did the congregation a favor by getting rid of them both.”

  Angel was enjoying the rare chance to brag about everything she’d accomplished. It felt good to finally get the recognition she deserved.

  “Candace was nothing but a whore. She seduced Jacob. She tried to destroy him. And then Ruth betrayed us all by helping her run away. Imagine the damage they could have done to Jacob’s reputation if I’d let them.”

  Marie grabbed the lantern off the wall and thrust it toward Angel in a defensive gesture. The firelight danced over her stricken face.

  “Is this about Jacob? Did you kill Candy and Ruth for him?”

  “I did it for me, actually,’ Angel admitted, “But Jacob is part of my plan, so I couldn’t let your friends ruin everything, now could I?”
<
br />   Marie’s obvious confusion amused Angel, and she laughed as she leaned toward the lantern, blowing out the flame with one big puff of air. Darkness settled over the room, the only light coming from the moon shining through the little window.

  “You really don’t get it, do you, little girl?”

  Shaking her head in panic, Marie moved back as far as she could, stopping only when she reached the wooden wall. Angel watched her fade into the shadows with disdain.

  This is going to be too easy. Just like all the others.

  She held the knife up in the moon’s soft glow, admiring its shine.

  "This knife is the perfect weapon when there isn’t much time. I have to say it dispatched of your little friends quite nicely.”

  Angel looked back at the tray of devil’s weed and waved one arm in an exaggerated flourish over the deadly plants, enjoying the pungent scent that hung in the air.

  “But my sweet devil’s weed, well, it offers a more subtle end when there’s enough time to linger.”

  She stalked closer to Marie, trembling with the need to feel the power of the knife again, but first wanting the girl to understand how brilliantly her plan had succeeded.

  “You see, I've taken care of the last bitch standing in my way. By now Naomi is floating dead in the tub, her tea sweetened with a fatal dose of my lovely devil’s weed. Young Jacob is free to marry again."

  Even in the dim light Angel could see Marie’s eyes widen in shock. Something about the look irritated her.

  “You thought you were going to have him, didn't you?” Angel waved the sharp blade next to Marie’s throat. “But he needs someone to help him. Someone strong and merciless. Someone like me.”

  Shadows seemed to move beyond the window, and Angel paced over, looking out into the night, before turning back.

  “With all the distractions out of the way, Jacob and I can run CSL together, and under my control the free labor…I mean, the congregation…will make us a lot of money. It’ll be nothing like the pathetic refuge for losers that old Jed built."

  “But Father Jed saved you and Eli,” Marie cried out. “He let you come live here when you had nowhere else to go. How could you betray him?”

  Thrusting her face within inches of Marie, Angel grinned.

  “It was easy. The old man was too trusting. All it took was an extra strong cup of my angel tea, and…well…as simple as a heart attack.”

  As Angel let her head fall back in a full-throated laugh, Marie raised the gardening shears she’d detached from the hook on the wall and swung them in a wild arc.

  Ducking just in time, Angel felt the shears swoosh over her head and crash into a support post behind her. Before she could regain her balance, the door to the potting shed burst open, revealing a tall man with thick black hair and angry eyes. A small woman with red curls and a big black gun pushed past him.

  “Police! Get your hands up, now!”

  The woman flicked on a high beam flashlight, illuminating the little room and the young woman standing against the wall.

  “Taylor? Oh, my goodness, honey, is that really you?”

  Angel swung her head toward the girl, her eyes narrowed.

  “I knew you were a liar, Sister Marie. Unlike everyone else, I never bought your innocent poor little me routine for a minute.”

  “I’d shut up right now if I were you,” the tall man barked at her, his face hard. “I’ve recorded enough of what you’ve said to put you away for a very long time.”

  Holding up his cell phone, he tapped the screen. Angel heard her own voice coming from the little speaker.

  “This knife is the perfect weapon when there isn’t much time. I have to say it dispatched of your little friends…”

  “Shut it off, Leo,” the policewoman snapped, glaring at Angel. “It makes me sick to my stomach to hear that.”

  Leo tapped the screen again as a shadow stepped into the doorway. Ma Verity stood just outside, staring at Angel with red, watery eyes. She stopped and picked up the gardening shears laying by the door and held them up with trembling hands.

  “That’s the angel I told you about. The one that talks to me.”

  Angel stared toward the door, holding back a satisfied smile.

  Looks like my savior has arrived.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Eli stood behind Ma Verity, his eyes moving past her, meeting his mother’s gaze. He gripped the rifle he’d found by the front gate with trembling hands. He’d known since he was a little boy that it was his duty to obey his mother in all things. She was an angel, as she had often told him. An angel that had given him a new life when his real parents had abandoned him; an angel that gave only death to those she saw in her visions.

  A bright light shone in his eyes, intensifying the throbbing in his head as he squinted into the little shed, trying to see who was inside. A man and woman stood by his mother. The woman had a big gun in her hand, but it she held it pointing down. Their unfamiliar faces turned to him with angry expressions.

  “Nobody move or I’ll shoot.”

  He raised the rifle toward the strangers, but they seemed far away and blurry. Lights flashed before his eyes, and he heard the voice shouting in his head, over and over.

  His will be done, Elijah. His will must be done.

  Keeping the rifle in front of him, Eli moved past Ma Verity, ignoring the old woman. She wasn’t a part of the task set before him.

  “You’ve arrived right on time, Elijah, just as I saw in my vision.”

  The victorious smile on Angel’s lips made Eli’s stomach hurt. It meant blood would soon follow.

  “Now, you can finish the work that He has given to you.”

  Eli moved forward into the room. Marie stood by the wall, her blue eyes wet with tears, her whole body shaking with cold and fear.

  This is His will, not mine. His will must be done.

  The words in his head were growing unbearably loud. He swung the rifle toward Marie. Movement out of the corner of his eye told him the stranger’s gun was now trained on him, but he didn’t let himself think about that. He just needed to finish the job. Then it would all be over.

  Marie’s words penetrated the fog that had descended over him.

  “Your mother killed Father Jed, Eli. Did you know that?”

  He squinted at her, trying to make sense of her words.

  “Don’t listen to her, son,” Angel hissed. “She’s a liar. She’s lying about this just as she lied about everything else, even her name.”

  Shaking her head, Marie held Eli’s gaze.

  “I’m not a liar, Eli. I haven’t been honest about my name, but that’s because I needed to get away from my old life for a while. I wasn’t trying to trick anyone or hurt anyone.”

  Ma Verity’s voice sounded behind him.

  “The girl’s speaking the truth, Brother Eli. She came seeking refuge, and Jed took her in. Just like he took you in, boy.”

  Angel scowled at Ma Verity, narrowing her eyes in a way that frightened Eli. He didn’t want to have to hurt the old woman, too.

  “Ignore the old fool, Eli. She’s been touched by evil.”

  The pain in Eli’s head was getting stronger. He felt like it was going to explode. He tried to focus on Marie, but her face was fading in and out. A voice echoed through the little shed. At first Eli thought it was only in his head, but then he realized it was coming from the big man’s phone. It was his mother’s voice.

  “…the old man was too trusting. All it took was an extra strong cup of my angel tea, and…well…as simple as a heart attack…”

  The image of Father Jed’s worn face hovered in Eli’s mind. Could his mother really have killed the old preacher? Had he been named in one of her visions? But if he had, why had Angel lied about it?

  If she lied to me about Father Jed’s death, what else has she lied about?

  The rifle trembled in his hands as the confusion and pain in his head swelled. Something was definitely wrong with him.

 
; Has she done something to me, too? Am I next on Angel’s list?

  The big man stepped closer to Eli, hands raised beside his head.

  “You don’t have to do this, Eli. It’s obvious you’re sick. You haven’t been thinking straight. Put the gun down. Let us help you.”

  Eli turned to Angel, his red-rimmed eyes searching for a sign that she understood why he couldn’t do it. That she wouldn’t be mad at him if he let the man help him.

  Without warning Angel lunged at him, grabbing the rifle with strong hands, seizing it from his grasp.

  “If you don’t have the guts to do it, then I will.”

  She swung the rifle toward Marie, her face contorted with hate. The man’s arm flew out, knocking the barrel of the rifle toward the ceiling just as Angel pulled the trigger, producing a harmless click.

  “The gun…wasn’t loaded,” the man said in disbelief, as the woman next to him tackled Angel, knocking her to the ground.

  “Stop them, Elijah! Don’t let them do this to your mother.”

  But Eli’s head was spinning with sickening speed, all sights and sounds around him obliterated by the excruciating pain, as he fell onto the tray of devil’s weed with a heavy crash.

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  The flashing lights of an ambulance lit up the sky as Eli opened his eyes. He felt as if he’d been hit over the head with a hammer, but the spinning had receded, and he could see more clearly. Trying to sit up, he realized an I.V. had been inserted in his arm. He raised a weak hand to pull it out and found that both arms had been cuffed to the sides of the stretcher.

  “Just lay back and relax. You’re not going anywhere right now.”

  The woman standing beside him was petite with red curls. She wore a jacket with the letters WBPD on the back.

  “I’m Detective Nessa Ainsley, and I’m placing you under arrest.”

  Nessa called out to a man standing by the ambulance, which was parked in front of the main house.

  “Leo! I’m gonna read him his Miranda right. I’d like a witness.”

  Eli recognized the dark eyes of the man that had spoken to him in the shed. Had he meant what he’d said about helping him?

  Jogging over to stand by Nessa, the man looked down at the I.V. and frowned, before crossing his arms over his chest.