A Broth of Betrayal (16 page)

Chapter 25

L
UCKY AWOKE TO
a vibration at her hip. Her phone was buzzing in her skirt pocket. For a moment she
couldn’t remember where she was, and then the events of the previous night came rushing
back. She was in her parents’ home. She hadn’t wanted to leave Horace alone in the
house, afraid that whoever had attacked him might come back. She had slept in her
clothes, wrapping herself in a blanket and falling heavily asleep on the sofa. She
was exhausted to begin with, and the glass of wine had helped put her to sleep. Horace’s
snores could be heard even now through the closed door of the bedroom, while outside
noisy birds were making a cacophony in a nearby maple tree.

She reached down and fished her phone out of her pocket. Sophie. She had overslept.

“Where are you?”

“Sophie! Sorry. I meant to set my alarm. I’m at my Mom’s house—Horace’s. I’ll explain
when I see you. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”

“Hurry up then. I brought coffee today.”

Lucky clicked off and rubbed sleep from her eyes. She folded the blanket and laid
it neatly on the sofa, then used the bathroom, splashing water on her face to help
her wake up. She found a pad of paper in the office and quickly wrote Horace a note.
Leaving it on the kitchen table, she slung her purse over her shoulder and slipped
out the back door, making sure it locked behind her.

The night before, Nate had arrived within minutes of Horace discovering the loss of
the lead ball. Nate was of the opinion that if someone had rummaged through the desk
and found the box, they might have opened it, thinking it could be a valuable piece
of jewelry. It was possible the lead ball could have fallen out and rolled away into
a corner. They had all searched the room, but found nothing. Nate theorized that perhaps
someone had been in the house and Lucky’s arrival frightened them off. She recalled
hearing a car engine start when she had pulled into the driveway. Had that been someone
escaping the scene? Perhaps this was nothing more than a simple robbery. If someone
had wanted to steal the lead ball, then why hadn’t they taken the powder horn and
shoe buckles found with the remains? Lucky couldn’t argue with Nate’s logic. He might
be right. But who would choose this house when it was so obviously occupied? And who
lured Horace into the woods in order to enter the house? That didn’t sound like a
simple robbery. Whoever broke in must have known what they were after.

She climbed into her car and drove as fast as possible back to town and her apartment.
Sophie was waiting in her car outside Lucky’s apartment building, leaning against
the headrest with her eyes closed. Lucky tapped on the window. Sophie’s eyes flew
open. She glanced over and hit the door lock. Lucky climbed into the passenger seat.

“Here.” Sophie passed her a warm thermos.

“Thanks.” Lucky poured coffee into the small plastic top of the thermos and sipped.

“Why were you at Horace’s?” Lucky filled Sophie in on the events of the night before.

“Whoa. That’s weird.” Sophie shuddered.

“I think someone wanted to lure him out of the house. It could even have been more
than one person. One to call to him and another to get into the house.”

“And the only thing missing was the bullet?”

“Seems that way. Nate thinks it might have just rolled away, it was so small. The
office was a real mess when we got there.”

“Too many strange things are going on.”

“I agree. That’s why I felt better staying there with him last night.”

“Oh, great protection you’d be in an attack. What do you weigh? One hundred and fifteen
pounds?”

“What do you mean? I could call the police, I could grab a fireplace poker. It’d be
a lot safer than leaving Horace alone after hitting his head like that. Besides, I
can be tough when I want to be,” Lucky retorted.

“Oh, speaking of tough, I ran into Elias the other day and we stopped to chat. Don’t
know how he managed it, but he brought the conversation around to your name—your nickname,
I should say.”

“Oh?” Lucky cringed.

“What’s that about?”

“You didn’t tell him did you?” Lucky squinted her eyes, glaring at Sophie. “Did you?”

“Noooo.” Sophie drew out the word. “He knows your real name is Letitia, but I figured
if he didn’t know about your nickname, it wasn’t me who should tell him.”

“I appreciate that. I’m trying to be feminine, remember?”

Sophie burst out in a belly laugh. “Give me a swig of that coffee.” She held out her
hand and Lucky passed her the plastic cup. “You didn’t want to tell him about Jimmy
Pratt?” She laughed again. “Why not?”

Elias had been nagging her for months to know the secret of her nickname. All Lucky
would tell him was that Jack had named her. What she didn’t want him to know was that
Jack had named her after Virgil Luckorski, a middleweight champion and one of Jack’s
wartime shipmates. When Lucky lost her temper and broke the nose of an elementary
school bully, her parents were horrified. But Jack was extremely proud of her. “
You gave him what for, my girl
,” was all he said. And from that day on, he called her Lucky, after his favorite
fighter. She basked in the compliment and insisted that everyone call her just that—Lucky.
She did sometimes feel rather bad that Jimmy Pratt’s nose had never healed right.
Once in a great while, their paths would cross in the town, but Jimmy always walked
to the other side of the street and pretended he didn’t see her. Obviously he hadn’t
forgiven her.

“Did you bring the maps?” she asked.

“Yes. And I’ll ignore the fact that you’re changing the subject.” Sophie reached behind
her seat and spread a map of the town and surrounding roads out on her lap. “I thought
maybe we should work the roads west of town today. All the way up to the Resort.”

“Okay. I’ll take this area here.” Lucky pointed to a two-lane road that angled just
south of the Resort. “You should maybe take this part up here, and all around the
Resort, since you know that area better than I do.”

“Sounds good. We’ll check in with each other every half hour by phone.”

Lucky took a last swallow of coffee. “We could lose reception in this area, so don’t
panic if we can’t reach each other.”

“If that happens, I’ll keep going as long as I can and I’ll see you at the Spoonful
later this morning.”

“I’ll keep driving till eight thirty and then I’ve got to get cleaned up and off to
work. Can you give Sage a call and let him know I might be a little late? Jack’s volunteering
for a ground search this morning.”

“Catch you later.” Sophie turned the key and her engine came to life.

Lucky clambered out. “Thanks for the coffee. I could use another bucket of it.” Sophie
smiled and, waving, made a U-turn and drove away.

There were only so many roads into and out of town, but they were winding, separated
by acres of woodland, and many dirt tracks and fire roads led into the woods. Lucky
couldn’t imagine why Elizabeth would take a detour off a main road, but if she had
stopped to help someone, she could have been attacked. It was possible her car was
many miles or even many states away—perhaps even over the border in Canada. Although
that would be difficult with a stolen car. Passports were required for U.S. citizens
to enter Canada. She was sure the Canada Border Services Agency would also require
proof of vehicle registration and insurance. But if her car was still anywhere in
this area, near Snowflake, then hopefully Elizabeth was too.

She started her engine and, following in Sophie’s general direction, took the road
that angled south of the Resort. She drove slowly, scanning the sides of the two-lane
highway, searching for any path that would allow a car through. It was very early
and there was only the occasional car that passed in the opposite direction. For that
she was grateful. There were few spots where she could pull over if cars came up fast
behind her.

She had driven about three miles when she spotted a dirt road. It led off the road
at a very sharp angle. She had almost missed it. If she hadn’t been looking very carefully,
she might never have seen it. She hit the brakes and backed up slowly, checking her
rearview mirror. She turned the wheel sharply, making a turn onto the dirt path. She
drove several more feet and stopped, turning off the engine. It made clicking sounds
as it cooled. She climbed out of the car and examined the path in front of her. Tire
tracks were clear in the dust, wider than a car’s tires. Someone had driven here recently.
It hadn’t rained in a while but the dirt was soft and the tires had made a good impression.

She climbed back in and turned the key, continuing on very slowly up the dirt road.
It rose slightly and widened. Through the trees she caught a glint of something bright.
Could it possibly be a car hidden in the woods? Elizabeth’s car? She stopped and stared.
The early sunlight was shining on a metallic object. She’d need to move closer to
see. Quickly, she dialed Sophie’s phone, but a steady beep-beep-beep warned her there
was no cell service.

She turned the engine off once again. She climbed out and followed the track through
the trees for another twenty yards or so. At the top of the rise, the path dropped
down to a large clearing with a small cabin in the center. A black flatbed truck was
parked nearby. Disappointed, she heaved a sigh. She hadn’t realized she was holding
her breath. It wasn’t Elizabeth’s car. Fishing rods were propped against the roof
of the cab. The door to the cabin creaked as it slowly opened. Ducking behind a tree,
she watched from her hideout. A man stepped out. He carried a large bundle wrapped
in a tarp. He wore a T-shirt and a baseball cap. Struggling with the awkward bundle,
he placed it on the bed of the truck. He pulled off his cap and wiped his brow. The
red hair was unmistakable. It was Rod Thibeault.

What was Rod doing in the woods with fishing gear on a day when he said he had a court
appearance? And more importantly, what was inside that large bundle? He was obviously
packing up the truck to leave. Lucky knew she had no choice. Her stomach lurched at
the thought of what could be under that tarp. She had to confront him before he drove
away. There didn’t appear to be another exit. He’d see her parked car blocking the
exit. Rod wouldn’t be able to drive away unless she backed out. She waited until Rod
closed the door behind him for the last time and locked it. He leaned down and slipped
something under a rock, then returned to the truck and slammed the back panel shut.

She stepped out of the trees and walked slowly down the rise, her heart thumping heavily
in her chest.

“What have you got there, Rod?”

“Huh?” Startled, Rod turned in her direction. Lucky moved closer. “Lucky? What are
you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same question.”

“It’s my place. Or rather my Dad’s. We use it when we go fishing.”

“I thought you had a court appearance today.”

“I do. But it’s this afternoon.” Rod’s face darkened. “Why all the questions, Lucky?
And you didn’t answer mine. What are you doing here?”

“Sophie and I are checking all the side roads around the town.”

“Oh yeah? Where’s Sophie now?”

Lucky felt a jolt of fear. She was all alone and had nothing to protect herself with.
Who knew that Rod had a cabin in the woods? Probably no one. “She’s right behind me.
She’s just parking her car on the road.”

“Okay. Well, if there isn’t anything else . . .” He jiggled his keys in his pocket.
“I’ll be on my way.”

“What’s under that tarp, Rod?” Lucky could feel her legs start to shake. Could Rod
have been responsible for abducting Elizabeth? Elizabeth had correspondence about
the complaints against him. Had she reported him to the State Bar? Or was she just
being copied on the investigation? Did he have a motive to abduct or harm her?

“What? Why, my camping gear. My Dad and I are heading up north at the end of the month—fishing.”

Lucky kept a safe distance. “Would you mind pulling the tarp off? I’d like to see.”
The color had drained from her face. She had to know. If Rod was guilty of something
and tried to attack, she knew she could run faster than he could. She’d fly to her
car and lock herself in.

Rod looked confused, then the meaning of her request hit him. His face paled under
his freckles. “You can’t think . . .” Then he blushed furiously. Obviously angry,
he turned back to the flatbed and opened the back panel. He pulled the tarp away in
a violent gesture. Underneath was an assortment of tents, cooking gear and two lanterns.
Lucky breathed a sigh of relief.

“Satisfied?” Rod replied sarcastically. “Jeez, Lucky, how could you even think anything
like that?”

“Sorry, Rod. I had to be sure.”

Rod closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “So you know, don’t you?” Lucky remained
silent, watching him carefully. “You know that Elizabeth was a witness to what happened.”
It was a statement, not a question.