The Secret of Stavewood (Stavewood Saga Book 4) (22 page)

 
Fifty

     
W
hen the train pulled into the station in Billington, Louisa stood at the door of the car and saw big Luc Almquist there, his hands on his hips waiting for her in the bright sunlight. For a moment she considered staying on the train and pretending she had not seen him. She could get off at Elgerson Mills and return for Romeo afterwards. But she knew that sooner or later she would have to face him. She felt for the Old Maid in her waistband under her sweater, took a deep breath and stepped from the train.

      As soon as he saw her he approached her. “Louisa,” he said.

      She looked up at him with disdain. Luc knew she had found out about him.

      “Louisa, I need you to listen.” He followed her as she stepped quickly across the platform and into the street. “Please,” he said. “Let me explain.”

      Louisa turned to face him. “Who are you?”

      “You know who I am,” he said.

      “No, I don’t think I do.” She turned and walked away.

      “Yes, you do,” he said insistently, keeping close behind her.

      “I know you’re a liar.”

      “Louisa,” he tried again.

      She stopped walking and looked straight ahead. “I don’t want to hear anything you have to say. Leave me alone.”

      “No, I will not. Not until you’ve heard me out.”

      Louisa spun around. “There cannot possibly be anything you can say to me that I care to hear right now.”

      “There are a lot of things I could say.”

      She turned away and stomped towards the stables. She saw Avalanche and her heart sank as she realized he would try to follow her home. He was stubborn and determined and she reminded herself that he was likely dangerous. “Go away,” she said.

      Louisa paid at the livery stable, all the while watching Luc as he sat upon Avalanche waiting for her. She knew Romeo could never outrun the big stallion and suddenly Louisa was terrified. She kicked the bay to a gallop and rode past Luc and Avalanche, fighting her fear. When he pulled up beside her on the deserted road out of town she felt for the derringer in her waistband.

      “You have to listen to me,” he said. “Louisa, please.”

      She stopped Romeo in the road.

      “Why?” Louisa’s voice faltered. “So you can lie to me again? No! There is nothing you can say to me. I know the truth now and you are not the man I thought you were. You lied to me!”

      He dismounted and firmly took hold of Romeo’s reins. “Listen to me.”

      “Let go,” Louisa said, her voice threatening.

      “Not until you listen!” Luc reached up, lifted her from the bay and set her on her feet in the road.

      Louisa began to shake and looked up at him. “Let me go, please,” she pleaded.

      Luc looked down into her eyes. He could see she was frightened and the look on her face was heartbreaking. “Louisa,” he said softly. “I would never hurt you.”

      “Then why are you here? Why are you watching my house and my family? What do you want from me? I trusted you, Luc. I trusted you more than you could possibly know. I can’t do this. Please, let me go.”

      Luc tried to imagine how he could possibly explain himself. It was exactly what he had feared would happen the moment he had first seen her.

      “Why? Why me? You let me fall in…” Louisa could not say the words out loud. How could she tell him that she waited her entire lifetime to feel what she felt when she was in his arms and at his side? She had trusted him with the one thing she had always withheld from any man. She’d been a fool and he did not deserve to know that.

      “I can explain,” he said. “Please.”

      Louisa brought her knee up into his groin as hard as she could and he staggered back in pain and surprise. She pulled the derringer from her waistband and pointed it directly at his chest.

      “Leave me alone!” she demanded.

      Luc took a deep breath and tried to steady himself. “Fine. Go.”

      “Do not follow me!” Louisa leapt onto Romeo’s back and kicked him hard towards home. 

      In the kitchen at Stavewood she locked the door behind her and called out, “Hello?” An eerie silence hung in the household. Louisa called out again and again there was no reply. Her heart pounded in her chest and she listened for Avalanche’s hooves in the yard. He hadn’t followed her. The look on her face when she had pulled out the Old Maid had told him she meant business.

      Louisa walked into the foyer and listened. The house was empty. She went back to the kitchen. On the table was a sheet of paper, folded once neatly, with her name written on it in her father’s clear hand. She opened the letter and read it silently. Louisa buried her face in her hands and began to sob.

Fifty-One

     
L
uc kicked Avalanche to a trot and headed back to town. He wasn’t sure how he would deal with the situation, but he figured it wouldn’t hurt to let Louisa have some time to calm down. In town he headed up the alley and tapped on the metal door. A good, stiff drink wouldn’t hurt either.

      At the bar Luc threw back a shot of whiskey and ordered another. A rather rumpled fellow sitting to his left stumbled off his stool and struggled for a moment to right himself. He smiled at Luc and staggered out the door. The bartender winked at Luc and set another whiskey down in front of him. Luc sipped at the shot and pointed at a newspaper the old drunk had left behind.

      “Mind if I see that?” he asked.

      “Not at all,” the bartender replied and handed him the paper.

      Luc shook it out with a sharp snap. The bold print headline on the Wisconsin Gazette told of a tornado that had destroyed six farmhouses out on the prairie. Another, related article described how the storm cellar at the local school was packed to capacity and warned that some expansion was needed.

      “Makes you glad you don’t live in Wisconsin,” he remarked to the bartender.

    On the second page a small article caught his eye and he folded the paper to better read the piece. Under a photo of a sporty automobile was the caption
Prized Roadster Stolen.
Luc read the print.

      The 1920 red ReVere was a rare and unusual vehicle. Only a few had been made and the one in the picture had been missing for several days, stolen from a wealthy collector. Luc had seen the car before.

      “Talbot,” he said and got to his feet.

       Luc ran out into the alleyway. Instinctively he knew Louisa was in danger. As much as she didn’t want to see him right now he had to go to her. Her life might depend on it.

Fifty-Two

     
L
ouisa’s stomach grumbled and her head pounded. She had eaten practically nothing in days. She felt filthy and ragged and heartbroken. Birget was gone and she had not even been there. The note didn’t say what had happened and Louisa was too exhausted to think clearly or cry another tear.

      She found a hunk of sharp cheese in the ice box and took an apple from the big bowl on the table and sat down to eat. She wondered where Talbot had gone.

      Despite her hunger Louisa had no appetite and had to force herself to eat. She climbed the stairs to her room after checking all the locks. If anyone tried to come in from outside they would at least have to break in one of the massive oak doors. She ran a bath and tried to compose herself.

      The water was hot and soothing and she willed herself to relax as she soaked in the steaming tub. She lay back in the water, imagining the house unfurling like the dragon in Luc’s carving. It raised its scaly head and roared angrily. Her imaginary beast unfolded its mighty tail and stretched to its full length, spreading its massive wings. It blew a wall of fire across the yard, swinging its head to torch everything evil around the estate. The man on the black horse was engulfed instantly and his ashes collapsed in a smoking heap. The man named Clayton ran for his life, his hard footwear clomping along the road. Luc stood there stubbornly and she wanted to call out and warn him, to tell him to leave and never return.

      Louisa groaned. She did not want to accept the fact that he had lied to her. More than ever she wanted to be in love and she couldn’t imagine it without him. She choked back her tears and pulled herself up in the tub.

      “Damn you, Luc Almquist.”

      She dried herself quickly, toweled off her hair and put on her light cotton gown and robe. She picked up the Old Maid from beside the tub and dropped it into her pocket. She was exhausted but she wasn’t sure she could sleep. Louisa stepped out of the bathroom rubbing her temples.

      “Talbot?” Louisa looked up to see him standing in the middle of the sewing room with a loving smile upon his face, his startling blue eyes looking at her warmly. She ran across the room to him.

      “Oh, Talbot!” Louisa fell into his arms and clung to him. “I thought you had left. I didn’t know you were here.” Her voice cracked with emotion.

      “Of course I’m here,” he said softly, patting her back soothingly.

Fifty-Three

   
L
ouisa held him tightly, her cheek against his chest.

      “My word, Louisa! You’re shaking! What’s happened?” he asked.

      She leaned back and looked into his face. “Were you here, in the house?” she asked, puzzled.

      “Yes, right here. I’m sorry, Louisa. No one was here when I arrived this afternoon and I fell completely asleep.” He kissed her forehead lightly. “I know I was a fool, Louisa, and you deserve better. I have decided that I will wait a lifetime, if I must, for you.”

      Louisa stepped back and shook her head. “Oh, Talbot. It’s all my fault. I’m so distracted. There are things going on here that make it impossible for me to think about marrying you right now. Terrible things and I’m not sure what to do about them.”

      “Let me help you then. What kind of things?” He looked at her with concern on his face.

      “Luc, for one thing. He told me he was surveying for the government but that is a complete lie. I don’t know what he’s doing around Stavewood but it is clearly not government work.”

      “That big fellow?” Talbot asked, his tone serious.

      “He’s lied to me.” Her words came out in a rush.

      “I’m sorry, Louisa.” Talbot stood perfectly still. “Where is he now?”

      “It doesn’t matter. I told him to stay away. I think he will now that I’ve found him out.”

      “Good,” Talbot said seriously. “The best thing we can do is finish our work and get back to New York as quickly as possible.”

      “Oh, I’ve found out so many things since we last talked, Talbot,” Louisa said. “There’s a secret passage and Jude Thomas used it to make his getaways after the train robberies.”

      Talbot listened silently, waiting to hear the one thing he wanted from Louisa Elgerson.

      “While the posse was out combing the woods for him he was bringing the loot right here to the house. That’s why they never were able to catch him. He was using Corissa, filling her head with lies and empty promises. She was letting him into the house. My father will be devastated when he finds out.”

      Talbot watched her going back and forth across the room, wringing her hands and looking up at him frequently. He kept his expression as concerned as possible, waiting and never looking away, meeting her eyes kindly every time. He knew he was good at it. He was the best.

      “I overheard two men talking,” she continued. “They were threatening everyone. They’re looking for some diamonds that are hidden somewhere in the house. I think they are trying to find the secret passage so they can sneak into Stavewood.

      “I don’t know what to do and I don’t know how long my family will be gone. And through all of this I’ve treated you horribly. I’m so sorry, Talbot.”     

      She threw herself into his arms and he held her close. “It’s alright, Louisa. I understand. Really. And I won’t allow anything to happen to you. I promise you that.” He calmed her and for several moments they stood, pressed against each other in silence. Louisa composed herself and stepped back from him.

      “Did you get a good look at those two men out at the gazebo?” he asked.

      Louisa froze. The word hit her like a lightning bolt. She turned her back to him and reached into her pocket, taking the Old Maid into her hand.

     
      “Why, no,” she said. “It was dark and I couldn’t see their faces.” She turned back to him.

      “A shame,” he said. “We could have turned them in to the sheriff.”

     Louisa pulled the derringer out of her robe and pointed it at Talbot. “Who are you?” Her tone was hard and her hand trembled, holding the tiny weapon tightly.

      “You know who I am,” he smiled innocently.

      “Who the hell are you?” Her voice pierced the quiet in the big room. “Tell me!” she screamed.