Deadly Prospects (19 page)

Mandy nodded. “I’ll tell him.”

Myron poked Ally in the side. “We have to be going.”

Ally nodded, meeting Mandy’s gaze one more time. “I’ll see you soon.”

“What are you doing?” Sophie hissed, her eyes flashing as she watched Mandy rock back and forth on the dining room chair.

Mandy’s face was screwed up in concentration. “I’m going to break Jake’s chair.”

“Why?”

“Because I need to get out of these ropes,” she said. “That dude may be batshit crazy, but he knows how to tie a knot.”

“You’ll hurt yourself,” Emma said. “What if you hit your head when you fall over and knock yourself out?”

“Then one of you will have to try,” Mandy said. “Nothing I do to myself here is as bad as what Myron – or whatever his name is – has in store for Ally.”

“He said he wouldn’t hurt her,” Emma protested.

“He beat Michael Sawyer to death,” Mandy shot back. “I don’t trust him. Oh, here I go.”

Mandy’s chair finally tilted back, slamming to the ground. Mandy put all of her weight into the downward descent, yelling in pain when she finally hit. Luckily, the back of the chair cracked in the fall. Mandy tugged on the ropes, working them through the fissure. Her back screamed in protest from her odd angle, but she finally managed to pull her hands free.

She rubbed her wrists, the circulation returning, and got to her feet.

“Hey, aren’t you going to untie us?” Emma asked.

Mandy grabbed Ally’s cellphone from the counter, searching through the contacts until she found Jake’s number. “I’ll be with you in a second.” She pressed the phone to her ear.

“WHO
is it?” James asked.

Jake glanced at his phone screen. “It’s Ally.”

“What does she want?”

Jake shrugged, sliding his finger across the phone screen and pressing it to his ear. “Hey, angel.”

James watched Jake’s face, not liking the confusion etched on it. “Mandy?”

James walked over to Jake’s side. “Mandy? Why is she calling you?”

Jake shushed him. “Wait, what’s wrong?”

James grabbed Jake’s arm. “Put it on speaker phone.”

Jake shot him a look, but he acquiesced. “Say it again.”

“Some guy showed up,” Mandy said. “Emma let him in. He said he was your neighbor. Ally figured out that what he was saying didn’t make any sense. Apparently she knew you weren’t the type of guy who does yard work and chats with his neighbor.”

Grady and Finn appeared in the door, listening and waiting.

“He had a gun.”

“Are you okay?” James asked.

“I’m fine. He told Ally he would leave us alive if she told him where his money was,” Mandy said. “I told him she didn’t know, but he didn’t believe me. He admitted beating Sawyer to death.”

“Get to the point, baby,” James growled.

“Ally told him she knew where the money was,” Mandy said. “He … he tied us to the chairs in the dining room and left us there. He took Ally.”

Jake’s heart clenched. “Where did he take her?”

“I don’t know,” Mandy said.

“If he tied you to the chair, how are you calling?” James asked.

“I rocked Jake’s chair back and smashed it against the floor so I could break it and undo my bindings,” Mandy said.

“Good girl,” James said, exhaling heavily.

“Are Sophie and Emma all right?” Grady asked.

“They’re fine,” Mandy said. “They’re still tied up, but I’ll get to them in a second. I knew I had to call you.”

“Baby, think hard, do you have any idea where Ally could have been taking him?”

“Ally left me a hint,” Mandy said. “At least, well, I think she was leaving me a hint.”

“What was it?”

“She said to tell Jake that the picnic was the best day of her life,” Mandy said. “She said that the picnic was her salvation. I think, wherever Jake took Ally for the picnic, that’s where she’s taking Myron.”

“Who’s Myron?” Finn asked.

“It’s Thredson,” James said. “He made up a name.”

“Thredson?” Mandy’s voice was incredulous. “I thought he was dead.”

“It’s a long story,” James said. “We’re coming for you. We have to go after Ally first. Can you get Sophie and Emma loose?”

“Yes.”

“Stay there,” James said. “We’re coming.”

“James?”

James waited.

“Don’t worry about us. We’re fine. You need to go and get Ally.”

“We’re on it, baby.”

James took the phone from Jake, disconnecting. “Where did you take Ally on the picnic?”

Jake’s face was a mask of rage and fear. “It’s a place out by Lake St. Clair.” Jake was already striding toward the door of the boathouse.

“Wait,” James ordered.

Jake ignored him.

“Jake,” James exploded, chasing him. “You can’t go alone.”

Jake was already out the door. James paused, glancing at Finn and Grady. “Go and get the girls. Watch them. Call the police and tell them what we found here. They’re going to be pissed, but we don’t have a lot of options.”

“What are you going to do?” Finn asked.

“I’m going with Jake,” James said. He paused before moving through the door. “Tell Mandy she did good. Tell her she did everything right. Tell her I love her, and I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Grady nodded.

James walked through the door, jumping into the passenger seat of Jake’s truck before he could speed away. It was up to the two of them now, and nothing in the world was going to keep them from getting to Ally.

“WHAT
did Mike tell you?” Thredson asked, glancing at Ally as they sped down the freeway.

“He just mentioned a location,” Ally said. “I thought he was speaking nonsense. I never put it together until you showed up at the house. Get off at the next exit.”

“But what did he tell you?” Thredson pressed.

“You’re not Donald Lawson, are you?” Ally asked, trying to change the subject.

“No, Donnie is gone,” Thredson said. “He’s been gone for a long time.”

Ally bit her lip, staring out the window. “Are you Raymond Thredson?”

“What makes you ask that?”

It wasn’t a denial. Ally knew she’d hit the nail on the head. “Because anyone who managed to hide for such a long time had to be smart,” she said. “I don’t think anyone who married a woman like Bertha could be considered smart.”

Thredson snorted. “I do love my sister, but she can be a real pill.”

Ally stilled. “Sister?”

“Oh, you didn’t know that?” Thredson asked. “Whoops. Yeah, Bertha is my half-sister. We have different last names. We had them even before she married Donnie.”

“So, wait, Donnie married your sister and then the two of you did a robbery together? How does that work? Turn left on the second street past the light.”

Thredson changed lanes. “Donnie and I were friends before he married Bertha. She wasn’t always so terrible. You should know that. Life was unkind to her. Donnie was unkind to her. She was mean to him, but he shouldn’t have treated her that way.”

“Why did you kill Donnie?” Ally asked.

“I thought he took the money,” Thredson said. “It had to be one of them. He was my best guest.”

“But you faked your death,” Ally said. “You drove the car over the cliff. How did you survive?”

“I’d had that place staked out forever,” Thredson said. “I needed a place that was public, but that also had a spot where I could bail out of the car without getting noticed. I made sure that there were at least three families at the park watching me before I started the car. Once I hit the tree line, though, they couldn’t see. I bailed out of the car and hid in the woods until after the police left. It was cold, but I planned ahead. It was perfect.

“Bertha and I already had it worked out,” he continued. “She picked me up down the road and took me to the boathouse. It was a hole then, and the first few years I was living there it was terrible. When we decided to kill Donnie, that’s when the idea of upgrading came to me. It wasn’t perfect, but I figured I would be able to figure out who stole the money if they all thought I was dead.”

“Why did you wait so long to go after Sawyer?”

“I was watching them,” Thredson explained. “I really didn’t want to kill them. I’m not the one who killed Donnie, if that helps. That was Bertha. She found out he was running around. He’d knocked up some little whore from two streets over. She couldn’t tolerate that. She hacked him to death in his sleep, and then we put the body in a drum. It wasn’t pretty, but it was too late to change it. I needed Bertha, and she knew it.”

“So, what, you just watched them for fifteen years?”

Thredson shrugged. “I figured one of them would screw up eventually.”

“So, what changed?”

“I got tired of waiting,” Thredson said. “When I found out Bernie was dying, I realized that he never had the money. He wouldn’t have sat in that house and watched his last remaining months fade away if he had the money. That just left Michael.

“You should have seen his face when he saw me walk into that restaurant,” Thredson cackled. “It was like he was seeing a ghost. I didn’t mean to hit him, but once I started I couldn’t stop. He never told me, though. I knew I was running out of time. Finally, I had to flee. That’s when I saw you go into the restaurant. I was in the parking lot. When the cops showed up, I knew I couldn’t question you. I also knew Mike wasn’t the type of guy to take that sort of secret to the grave. I knew you had my answers.”

“If you thought I had your answers, why did you put a bomb under my car?”

Thredson’s face contorted. “I did no such thing.”

“Well, someone did,” Ally replied, not believing him. “Who else would it be?”

“Killing you was never in my best interests,” Thredson said. “I don’t know who planted the bomb, but it certainly wasn’t me. You don’t do me any good dead.”

Ally nodded, keeping her face impassive. “Do you see that dirt road up there? Turn right.”

Thredson frowned, fixing Ally with an odd look. “Did you come out here?”

“I did,” Ally said. “After he told me, I thought there must be something out here. The problem is, the area is just too big. I have no idea where he might have buried it. He must have left a marker. Maybe you’ll be able to recognize it.”

Thredson nodded. “I don’t blame you for looking,” he said. “Don’t think I’m mad about that. It’s human nature. I would have done the same thing.”

“Thank you.”

“What would you have done if you found the money?” Thredson asked.

Ally shrugged. “I don’t know. Probably bought a house.” She was just making stuff up now. She wanted him to like her, and if she told him the truth, that was out of the question. “Right there. Pull in there.”

Thredson did as he was told. “Right here?”

“You can’t get your car back there,” Ally explained. “We’re going to have to walk.”

Thredson killed the engine, glancing over at Ally. He’d made the entire drive with the gun resting on his lap, pointing at her. “Okay. Let’s go.”

Ally forced a smile onto her face. “I’m actually curious to see where it’s buried. I love a good mystery.”

“Of course you are,” Thredson said. “You’re a curious girl. I like that.”

JAKE
parked next to a faded Ford Cavalier, turning off the engine of his truck and pocketing the keys.

“This has to be his car,” he said. “I’ve been out here a hundred times, and never once have I ever seen another car.”

James reached over, grabbing Jake’s arm to still him. The ride out had been silent, both men basking in their anger. Now, James had to find the words to center Jake.

“What?” Jake asked, raising an eyebrow. “Your sister is out there.”

“We’re going to get my sister,” James said. “I just want to make sure we’re on the same page.”

“And what page is that?”

“Shoot first,” James said, a nerve ticking in his jaw. “Don’t ask questions. Don’t give him a chance. That man went into your home and took my sister. He threatened my fiancée. He threatened Sophie and Emma. He’s killed people. Don’t trust him. Don’t give him a chance.”

“I have no intention of giving him a chance,” Jake growled.

“Don’t shoot him if he’s close to my sister,” James said. “Not unless we don’t have another choice.”

“You think I’d hurt Ally?” Jake was incensed.

“No,” James said. “I think you’d die for her.”

Jake remained silent; sucking in a deep breath and keeping his face impassive as he listened to James talk.

“We’re all walking away from this,” James said. “The three of us. I don’t care about Thredson, but Ally can’t lose you, and you and I can’t lose Ally. So, get control, and let’s go. We only have one shot at this.”

Jake nodded, determination on his face. “Let’s go and get my angel.”

ALLY
glanced around the clearing, pretending she was searching for hidden markings, and all the while hoping she could find a chance to slip away. She knew Jake would come for her, but she wasn’t going to ignore a chance to escape if one arose.