Corpse in the Crystal Ball (31 page)

His face looked pinched. “And where exactly is the key?”

“Why, in a safe place, of course.” Granny beamed. “I’m not stupid, you know.”

“I’m beginning to figure that out,” Kevin grumbled, then took a deep breath and asked in a calm but strained voice, “And just where is this safe place?”

“Someplace no one would ever think to look.” Granny just kept blathering on and on, and I suddenly realized she was stalling to give me time to escape.

Granny Gert rocked! I kept scanning the room, trying to form a plan while biding my time for the perfect chance to bolt.

“So I gathered,” Kevin said through his teeth. “And where is that exactly?”

“Oh, you want to know where the key is?” She chuckled. “Silly me. Why, it’s in my cookie jar, of course.”

“Of course.” He blew out an exhausted breath and pointed his knife at us both. “Stay put.”

“Well, that’s a given,” I pointed out dryly. “Where exactly did you expect us to go strapped to a chair?” I asked.

He just smirked at me, and then headed across the room to the kitchen counter. He rummaged through the cookie jar with his back to us. Once he found the key, he shot one quick look at us and then left the room. I could hear him take the stairs two at a time.

I wasted no time in peeling the duct tape off my wrists, noting that Morty’s slice was as clean and precise as my father’s surgical skills. Those were some teeth he had, I thought, wishing he had sliced through the duct tape on my ankles as well. Scooting my chair over to the counter, I snatched a pair of scissors and had to work hard to cut the
rest of the tape off of my ankles. Finally finishing, I turned to Granny when Kevin returned, carrying a large trash bag full of money.

“Well, ladies, thanks. You made my job easy,” he said as he set the money down, still not noticing I had freed myself from my bindings. Granny would have to wait. When he looked away for a minute, I slid off the chair and started inching toward the front door. He pulled out a fiber wire just like the one he’d planted on Ted, and just like the one that he’d strangled Isabel and Roz with. “I’m sorry to say I won’t be needing …hey, what the hell?” he sputtered as he looked up and noticed I was standing and halfway to the door of freedom.

I glanced at Granny, sent her a meaningful look, and prayed she knew enough to get Morty to free her as well so she could call for help from my cell phone. Then I turned toward the door and fled, knowing Kevin would have no choice except to follow. I knew too much. At least Granny would be safe, and the cops would know the truth about who the real killer was.

As far as my safety …well, I didn’t want to think about that right now.

I heard the door slam behind me, and the chase was on. Kevin was closing in. I could feel it in my bones. I darted out back and into the woods. The sun was setting and the sky was darkening quickly. These weren’t the woods by the park, but they were woods nonetheless.

It was like déjà vu all over again.

The last time I’d become Isabel, feeling what she felt and experiencing all she had, except death. Only this time it was real. I was me, and this could very well end in my death.

I kept zigging right and zagging left, hoping to keep Kevin off my trail. But he was good. He kept gaining on me. I could hear it by the sound of his footsteps. I took comfort in the fact that I knew these woods and he didn’t. I just had to stay ahead of him.

As hard as I tried, I didn’t succeed. Kevin’s arms wrapped around my middle and squeezed tight. All I could think of was Oprah saying, “Never let them take you to the other location.” In this case, the ground was the other location. If I let him pull me down, I’d never get up.

He started to tug, but we were next to a tree. I didn’t think; I just reacted. The adrenaline from my fear kicked into overdrive. I lifted my legs and started running up the tree until I was high enough to throw my legs over Kevin’s head. The movement broke his hold and he dropped the fiber wire, stumbling forward.

I didn’t waste any time. I ran in the other direction as fast as I could. Darting off the path, I ducked under a fallen tree trunk and then slid beneath some low-hanging bushes.

Kevin had only wasted mere seconds before recovering and following me once more. I heard him walk right by me, then double back. Finally, he stopped right beside me. I could hear him breathing hard, and I held my own breath.

“You can’t hide from me, Sunny. I will find you. When I do, I will take great pleasure in killing you. Pity, because your grandmother was right. I did like you. If the circumstances had been different, we might have stood a chance.”

He paused, but I still held my breath. I could feel my pulse thundering in my ears now. He had to be the most patient man on the planet. He waited around, searching the area for what felt like forever. Finally, he ran off, and I let
out an explosion of air. I scrambled out from beneath my perch and ran toward my backyard. I hadn’t realized how far we’d gone into the woods. It took a while to get back to my house. When I broke through the clearing, I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Granny Gert stood with her apron on, wielding her wooden spoon like a machete. Morty stood beside her with his bow tie askew and hackles raised. Mitch balanced on crutches, sporting an enormous cast, wrinkled clothes, and hair that looked as though it hadn’t had a shampoo in days. Even Fuller stood next to Mitch, looking ready to catch him when—not if—he fell. The detective had just gotten out of the hospital, for Pete’s sake.

Captain Walker stood beside him with a walkie-talkie in his hand. Chief Spencer held a megaphone in his hand, close to his mouth and ready for action. And Mayor Cromwell clutched his cell phone in his hand, standing firmly beside Chief Spencer.

Half the town had shown up—including Gretta with her baseball bat, Sean with his killer dimples and clenched fists, and even Jo and Cole as a strong, united front. People were spreading around maps and supplies that indicated a search party was just starting to form. That had to be the fastest response time on record.

Go, Granny Gert!

I swallowed hard, pushing down the lump in my throat. For the first time I really felt like a part of this town. Like the citizens of Divinity truly cared about me and thought of me as one of their own.

Mitch saw me first and came hobbling over, looking woozy if I were honest. “Sunny! Oh my God, Sunny, you’re
okay. Jesus, you scared the crap out of me,” he shouted, and then he wrapped his hand around the back of my neck and pulled me in for a mind-blowing kiss.

My eyelids fluttered closed and stars danced behind my lids as his firm lips softened against mine, turning unbelievably tender. He kept kissing me, then kissing my eyelids, my forehead, my cheeks, my chin, my entire face.

I threw my arms around him and buried my face in the crook of his neck as I finally let go and sobbed out my fears. He dropped his crutches, balanced on his good leg, and wrapped his arm around me as he whispered softly, uttering words of comfort.

Then, just as quickly, he hopped back and thrust his finger in my face. “Don’t ever do that to me again.”

And with those booming words, everyone there finally noticed I had emerged from the woods. They descended upon me with tons of questions, but I had a few of my own. Breaking free from the mob, I handed Mitch his crutches and then cornered Granny.

“How did you escape?” I asked.

“Simple. Morty listened to his GG.”

“GG?”

“Great-grandmother, but I like GG better. It doesn’t make me sound nearly as old.” Her eyes fluttered as she looked in Captain Walker’s direction and sighed dreamily.

I cleared my throat. “Anyway,” she continued. “I told Morty to unbind me, and he did. Then I used your cell to call Detective Stone. I swear that boy showed up in minutes and called the entire cavalry on his way. He’s a good one, he is. I sure had your fellers pegged wrong. This one’s the
real
keeper.”

“Well, thank you, Granny.”

“Don’t thank me. Thank Mitch. This was all his doing. Oh wait. From what I saw, you already did.” She snickered.

I blushed.

Before I could say anything further, Kevin burst out of the woods, the fiber wire hanging from his hands. Guns were drawn and cocked at an amazingly fast speed, and the calm arrogance finally left Kevin’s face. Or should I say Nicholas Bruno’s. Only now that I was safe could I think of him as the monster he really was.

“Drop your weapon and surrender,” Mitch said since he was closest to him.

Nicholas just laughed, the arrogance back in place. “It won’t matter if I go to prison, Detective Stone. It’s not like I’ve never been before. Do you really think something as simple as steel bars can hold me? This isn’t over. This is only the beginning. The Bruno family has connections everywhere.”

Mitch’s face flinched at his mention of the Bruno family, and I knew he was remembering his sister. The drug lords he’d taken down had been run by the mob. “What do you know about the Bruno family?” Mitch finally got out.

“Everything.” Nicholas leaned forward and enunciated each word as though they were meant for Mitch and Mitch alone. “You can no more stop me from escaping prison than you could keep me from killing your sister.”

“You son of a—” Mitch lunged forward, looking ready to tear Nicholas apart with his bare hands.

Fuller latched onto Mitch, but Mitch broke free as pure rage gave him strength. Captain Walker and Chief Spencer both had to jump to help hold him back, while other
deputies tackled Nicholas and handcuffed him. As they hauled him away to the back of squad car, he just kept laughing like an insane person.

“He’s not worth it, buddy,” Walker said.

“At least now you know who the hit man was. He’s going to pay in prison. It’s time to let it go, son.” Spencer squeezed his shoulder. “Walk away.”

“I don’t know if I can,” Mitch sobbed. “He killed her. The bastard killed them all.”

“Yes, you can,” I said, and stepped in to hug him hard, and Fuller finally let go of him. “I’ll help you,” I whispered in Mitch’s ear.

Walker and Spencer stepped back, and the rest of the scene faded away. Mitch hugged me back for a long time, and then finally let go. I could feel the moisture against my neck for the sister he couldn’t bring back and the justice that had been a long time in coming. He’d finally let me in.

It was a start.

Hours later, the police were gone, and all that remained was Granny, Morty, and myself. Mitch had even gone, saying there was something he had to take care of. He’d given me an odd look, like maybe it was the last time I would ever see him again.

I tried to stop him, but he held up his hand:
Not now
. His heart was breaking as much as his body had been broken, but I’d forgotten that he had Selena to take care of him.

So much for a start.

I’d picked myself up and pretended not to care. We had
just retired to the kitchen for some tea and cookies when Mom and Dad showed up, as I’d expected they would.

“That’s it, Sylvia! You are coming back with us. I won’t take no for an answer,” Dad thundered as I opened the door.

“Come in, Dad. Take a load off. You look upset.”

“Upset?” he sputtered. “That doesn’t begin to describe what you’ve put me through.”

“I’m sure it doesn’t.” I sighed.

“Wait for me,” Mom chimed in before I could close the door. “I’m upset, too, you know. Can’t you tell?”

“Um, yeah, sure,” I said, closing the door behind her. In truth, you could never tell how my mother felt with all the Botox she used.

“Go pack, but the rat stays. We’re leaving this hole in the wall soon,” Mom added.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I stated once again, feeling like this conversation would always be ongoing between us. “This time they caught the bad guy for real.”

“I still can’t believe I could have been so blind in judging him,” Granny said. “He certainly was a charmer. He had me fooled from the start.”

“You’re not the only one, Granny,” I replied. “Even Morty liked him, although now I see he’d been trying to tell me something about Kevin or Nicholas or whoever he was as well. Morty kept scratching his cast, but I never caught on. I was the biggest fool of all.”

“All the more reason to come home with us and let us take care of you,” Dad pointed out.

“Sunny is a big girl,” Granny said. “I think she’s more than capable of taking care of herself. Besides, she’s not alone.”

“Mother. Do you hear what you’re saying?” Mom sput-tered.

“I do, but I’m not sure you do, dear.” She smiled pleasantly enough, but there was an edge of steel I’d never noticed before, and for the first time ever I could finally see the resemblance to my mother.

“What are you trying to say, Mother?”

“That I’m not going anywhere, either,” Granny Gert said in a firm, no-nonsense voice. “I’ve made up my mind. I like Divinity. I’ve made friends here. And then there’s Morty.”

“This is unacceptable. Ridiculous, even. You can’t just—”

“I can, dear. I am your mother, after all.”

“But—”

“Really, dear. Close your mouth. It’s rather unbecoming,” Granny admonished.

Mom snapped her jaw shut and flushed crimson like a little schoolgirl.

I couldn’t help it. I shamelessly grinned from ear to ear.

“I don’t need your permission, nor do I remember asking for it,” Granny continued, and then turned to me. “That is, if Sunny will have me.”

I had to shake myself out of my stupor. “Y-Yes. God, yes!” I beamed. “Mom and Dad are right,” I went on, throwing them a consolation bone. “This house is way too big to take care of on my own. Morty and I would love to have you live with us, Granny Gert.”

“Good, then it shall be.” She nodded once.

“But what about your own house?” Dad asked Granny.

Granny laughed. “Keep it. Sell it. I don’t really care. I’ve got enough freezer bags to last me a lifetime.”

“Pardon me?” Dad asked, looking flustered and ready to explode.

“It’s code for money. It’s all good, Dad. I’m sure there’s a cookie for that.” I patted his shoulder. “Everything is going to be okay,” I added, and meant it. I didn’t need a man in my life. I had Morty. And Granny. And friends. I was going to be just fine. I smiled.