As Love Blooms (42 page)

Reese had waited long enough to speak with Tessa.

After pulling his Model T to the curb, Reese climbed out and began the trek to Tessa’s aunt’s mansion. The walk had never seemed so long.

He knocked on the door, and the butler greeted him. “Would you please tell Tessa I’d like to speak with her?”

The butler frowned. “Mr. King, please come inside.”

Reese complied.

“Please, wait here.”

How odd. Geoffrey had never seemed so abrupt. If even the servants hated him, he was in trouble.

But instead of Geoffrey returning, Tessa’s aunt, Hannah, and Charlotte hurried in to meet him. Great. This was not getting any better.

“Tessa isn’t with you?” Hannah pressed her knuckle to her lips.

“With me?” Icy fear jetted up his spine. “No, I haven’t seen her. Mrs. Phillips, what’s going on?”

“She left here this morning and was to return to meet with us at one o’clock.” Worry creased the elderly woman’s brow. “But she never came.”

Reese glanced at the grandfather clock. She was two and a half hours late. “Maybe she lost track of time.”

“She’d done some serious soul searching, and she was coming to talk to you.” Mrs. Phillips spoke with such earnestness that her words chilled him further.

“Mrs. Phillips, I had no idea.”

“Under the circumstances, I believe you should call me Aunt Sam. Until we find her, we’re all going to be seeing a great deal of one another.”

Reese nodded mutely. His mind raced and his breath came hard. He had to stay calm. If she was in trouble, she needed him. Had she changed her mind? If so, where would she go? If not, where was she?

“Have you asked the neighbors if they saw anything? Contacted the police?”

“Lincoln is doing that now.” Hannah rubbed her forehead and swayed.

Charlotte took her elbow. “You need to sit down and relax as much as you can. Reese will find her.” She glanced at him. “Won’t you?”

He nodded. He’d find her or die trying.

A haloed pinprick of light appeared and then expanded in Tessa’s vision. Her stomach churned, and her head felt as if it had been stuffed with cotton batting. She pressed her palm to her forehead and moaned. Where was she?

“Well, you finally decided to join the living.” Her captor held a lantern above her prone body, but the light blinded her and she couldn’t see his face. “I was beginning to think we gave you too much ether. You’ve been sleeping for hours.”

Hours? Her family would be frantic.

She struggled to sit up but, still too foggy, fell back onto the sand. Sand? She felt the ground around her. It was definitely sand, but the lantern cast a reflection on a stone ceiling of some kind.
A cave? She drew in a deep breath. The dank air had a familiar musty staleness to it.

Wait a minute. She recognized this place. Turning her head, she caught sight of the underground lake only a few yards away. She was in Carver’s Cave in Indian Mounds Park.

Her second attempt at sitting up worked. When she finally saw who held her against her will, she sucked in her breath. “Albert, why did you bring me here?”

“Money, of course.” Her captor lit a cigarette. “You’re going to write a nice note to that rich aunt of yours, telling her where to leave the ransom money.”

“I’m not writing any note.”

“Oh, I think you will.” He came closer to her and ran a filthy finger down her cheek.

Tessa shivered and glanced at the doorway. If she timed things right, could she make a run for it?

“Don’t even think about it. Clem’s outside standing guard.” He pulled a piece of paper, an envelope, and a pencil from the pocket of his shirt—his yellow shirt—and thrust the items toward her.

“You write it.” She glared at him. “Or maybe you don’t know how.”

“I know how to write,” he sneered. “But I want it in your handwriting to prove I have you.”

Tessa’s mind whirled. What would the famed detective Allan Pinkerton advise her to do in this situation? If she couldn’t escape, he’d tell her to find a way to signal her family. Could she somehow get a message to them inside the ransom note?

“Well, I can’t very well write in here.” She grabbed the paper and pencil from his hand. “It’s too dark. At least let me write on a rock by the entrance.” When he hesitated to agree, she pressed on. “You said yourself Clem was standing guard. What trouble could I possibly be to the two of you?”

He motioned with his head toward the entrance. “Go on.”

With her shoes sinking into the sand, walking was difficult. There’d be no way to make a run for it. If only she had her work boots. She paused at the cave entrance and took a deep breath. The sun was sitting low in the sky. It would be dark soon, and she’d be forced to spend the night in this cave with Albert and Clem.

Albert pointed to a flat rock. “Now, write the letter and put it in the envelope.”

Tessa took her time. There had to be something that would let them know where she was.
Lord, help me see it.

“Hurry up.” Albert shoved her to her knees.

She spread the paper on the rock. “What do you want me to say?”

“‘Dear rich aunt—’”

“I am not saying that.”

“Then write whatever you call her.” He held his hand up to shield his eyes from the setting sun. “Tell her we want five thousand dollars. She should leave it at Como Park, in the rose garden. Tell her to put it in a flour sack. You rich folks have those, don’t you?”

“Yes, we have flour sacks.” She began to draft the letter, pausing every few words to stall for more time to think.

“You done?”

“Almost.”

“Let me see it.” He yanked the paper out of her hand, sending the pencil rolling from the stone desk. Tessa watched it roll right onto a tubercled rein-orchid.

She gasped. That was it!

The tubercled rein-orchid was rare. Maybe, just maybe, if she could get it into the envelope without being seen, her family would show it to Reese. Then, if she were truly blessed, Reese would recall seeing it. It was a lot of ifs, but it was her best chance.

She inched toward the plant.

“What are you doing?”

“Getting the pencil. It rolled off.”

“Be quick about it.” He went back to reading the note.

Tessa ripped a tiny orchid from its stem and closed her fist around it. Thank goodness this plant had such tiny flowers. Any larger and Albert might figure out her plan from the thickness of the envelope.

Her back itched, and when she scratched it, sand fell. She must have sand in every fold of her clothes. What if she added a few grains with the flower?

“Sign it.” Albert thrust the letter at her. “And put it in the envelope.”

She folded the paper and skillfully slipped the letter and the flower into the envelope. Reaching into the waistband of her skirt, she pinched a bit of sand and then dropped it inside the pre-gummed envelope. She licked it and scrunched her nose at the bitter taste of the glue.

A shrill whistle made Albert look up at Clem. Tessa caught a glimpse of someone coming down the hill. A woman? If she could get her attention—

“Get back inside.” Albert yanked her to her feet. “Now.”

Tessa deliberately stumbled. She fell to the ground and grabbed her ankle. She’d seen enough girls play the role of damsel in distress to know exactly how it was done. “Oh, my ankle! I think I’ve twisted it.”

Albert’s eyes fired daggers in her direction. “Do you really want me to carry you?”

Her ankle made a miraculous recovery. She added a limp, though, to give her story some credibility. Once inside, she found a rock on which to sit.

Albert picked up a piece of rope and walked behind her. “Put your hands back here.”

She crossed them over her chest, and he yanked her wrist, twisting her arm behind her until she surrendered the other hand as well. “That’s better.”

Once her wrists were bound, she watched Albert use the flame
of the lantern to light up another cigarette. Odd. He should have been concerned about the newcomer.

“Are you in there, Albert?” a lady called in a high-pitched voice.

“Yep. Got our rich girl right here.” He leered at Tessa.

The woman, who was clearly in cahoots with these two, stepped into the glow of the lantern.

Tessa gasped.

“You look surprised, Miss Gregory.” Marjorie Walker removed her straw hat. “And before you ask, no, Edward is not part of this, and neither is my husband Joe. If you had simply helped Edward when he asked for it, then I wouldn’t have had to resort to this.” She sighed. “But I refuse to be poor again, and my Joe is dead set on this motorcycle company. I met these two enterprising young men at my husband’s shop shortly after he hired them and decided their skills could be put to good use. My husband needs five thousand dollars for his company, and these young men would like to become investors. See, the plan is perfect.” She turned to Albert. “Did you have her write the note like I told you to?”

He patted his pocket.

“Good.” She smiled at him. “Take the Ford and leave me your motorcycle. Leave the ransom note on Edward’s front seat. He’s at the Motordrome now. You know his car, right?”

“The silver American Underslung.”

She nodded. “He’ll see the envelope as soon as he gets in, and once he reads it, he’ll deliver it to her family.”

“What will you do when you get the money?” Tessa heard a note of panic in her voice and willed herself to calm it. “I know who you all are. You can’t simply let me go.”

Marjorie gave Albert a knowing look, then her eyes flicked to the lake.

Tessa swallowed. Fear cinched around her chest and squeezed the breath from her lungs.

“After you deliver the envelope, go watch for the ransom money to be delivered. I told Joe I was staying with a sick friend tonight.” She smiled at Tessa and pulled a derringer from her purse. “I’m sure you’re feeling quite ill right now, aren’t you, dear?”

Between the ether and this unsettling news, Tessa thought she might indeed be sick, but she wouldn’t let this woman have the pleasure of seeing that happen.

“It will never work. Samantha Phillips isn’t really my aunt.”

“What do you mean?” Albert’s brows knit together.

“She’s my brother-in-law’s aunt, and she was kind enough to let me live with her. That’s all.” Tessa crossed her arms. “She won’t pay a thing for me. I’m not even a blood relative.”

“Maybe we should deal with her now and get it over with.” Albert tipped his head toward the water. “I’ve got the rope.”

“No, not yet.” Marjorie squatted in front of her and stared into Tessa’s eyes. “I want her to see she’s wrong. These rich folks think they know everything, and I want her to die knowing we bested her.”

All her life, Tessa could figure out a way around, over, or through any situation.

Until now.

Helpless. Alone. Totally undone.

Lord, my faith is as small as a
mustard seed, but I’m putting it all in you.

Not one clue.

Reese crumpled the piece of paper in his hand and heaved it into the fireplace at Tessa’s aunt’s home. Aunt Sam and Charlotte had taken Hannah up to lie down, leaving him alone with Joel and Lincoln.

“You checked all of the places she likes to go?” Lincoln pressed.

“I checked the vacant lot garden, her favorite store to shop at, and every crevice of Como Park. I even checked the theater that
was showing a moving picture she said she wanted to see. She’s not anywhere.”

“People don’t just vanish.” On the davenport, Joel leaned forward and clasped his hands.

Lincoln nodded. “I think it’s time to consider someone might have taken her.”

“Kidnapped her?” Reese rubbed the back of his neck. “Why?”

“My aunt has money.” Lincoln squeezed Reese’s shoulder. “If that’s what’s happened, there will be a ransom demand soon.”

“And?”

“And I’ll pay.” Aunt Sam breezed into the room. “No matter what the cost. Her safety is what matters.”

“I’m not so sure about that,” Lincoln said.

Reese glared at him. “How can you say that?”

Lincoln sighed. “Paying money still doesn’t guarantee her safety. Most kidnappings don’t end with the return of—”

“Stop right there.” Aunt Sam held up her hand. “We are not going down that road. We are not going to give up hope. Tessa will be back with her family, and that’s that.”