Finally, Susan drove over the tip of the tree trunk, and she felt the underside of the car scrape against it. She headed into the clearing and started to turn the car around. Past the rattling noise, she thought she heard another car’s engine. Switching off her headlights, Susan glanced around for another vehicle along the dark, hidden trail. All around her, shrubs and tree branches swayed in the breeze. A leaf danced across her windshield.
She could still hear another car nearby. It seemed to be coming up behind her. Susan glanced over her shoulder but didn’t see any headlights. She heard footsteps, someone—or something—running. Maybe the forest was playing tricks with sound. Maybe it was the echo of her own engine she heard.
Susan switched on her lights again. Looking up, she saw something that made her heart stop. She let out a startled, little cry.
Bathed in the headlights, Allen stood in front of her car. He glared at her. Wearing the tight white T-shirt and painter pants—and with that haggard, cold expression—he looked like a total stranger. He put a hand on the hood of her Toyota.
She heard the other car. All at once, a bright light went on in back of her. Glancing over her shoulder, Susan was blinded for a moment by the patrol car’s high beams. The squad car crawled to a stop a few feet behind her. Susan realized the deputy must have seen her turn. Obviously he knew about another artery to this hidden dirt road.
The cop’s high beams illuminated the interior of her car. No doubt, Allen saw how terrified she was. He probably noticed her trembling, too. He approached her window.
Susan took a deep breath and opened her door. “Oh, Allen, thank God!” she cried, jumping out of the car. “Are you okay? I’ve been worried sick!”
She figured if she played dumb, they were less likely to restrain her. It would buy her time, and maybe she’d live a little longer. Though it sickened her, she forced herself to hug him and even kissed his cheek.
He seemed slightly taken aback.
“I kept thinking those teenagers down the road from us had abducted you as part of some kind of—twisted game or something.” She pressed her head against his shoulder. “I was going out of my mind with worry. I thought they might have killed you.” Susan pulled back for a moment to glance at him.
He was looking toward the patrol car—a furtive, slightly dubious look on his face.
“I drove over to their cabin,” Susan explained breathlessly. “I got halfway down the driveway and heard gunshots. Then I got out of there. I could see a car behind me. I thought it was those awful kids. I had no idea it was you. Thank God you’re okay….”
She waved at the deputy in the front seat. “I can’t believe you found him! Thank you!”
Allen kissed her cheek. “Wait in the car, okay?” he said. “I want to talk with this guy and find out how soon we can go home.”
She nodded obediently.
He started toward the police car, but hesitated and turned toward her. “Where’s Mattie?”
“He’s okay,” Susan said, forcing a smile. Then she climbed back behind the wheel. She grabbed her purse and frantically searched for something she could use to defend herself. The closest thing to a weapon she had was a Bic pen.
She glanced in the rearview mirror. Past the patrol car’s high beams, she could just make out Allen, hovering by the driver’s window. He and the deputy were talking.
She thought about stepping on the gas and making a run for it. But the deputy knew these roads too well, and her dinged-up, old Toyota was no match for his patrol car. He’d catch up with her in a matter of minutes.
Susan sat frozen behind the wheel. Staring at her side mirror, she watched Allen in conference with his cohort, his fellow murderer. She knew what they were talking about back there.
They were discussing how they should kill her.
His head was splitting, and he felt nauseous. His arm—pinned against the floor of the backseat—was dead asleep. But Leo didn’t dare move a muscle.
He didn’t want them to know he’d regained consciousness.
He remembered the deputy clubbing him with the nightstick. The next thing he knew, he’d found himself lying on the filthy floor in the backseat of a car. His head was behind the driver. Allen Meeker’s voice had come from outside the vehicle. “Hold it, hold it!” he’d called. “There’s something back here by your tire….”
Leo had heard the clatter of a metal object hitting the driveway. The two men had muttered to each other, and then the car doors had opened. “Is he dead back there?” Allen had asked.
“Might as well be,” the deputy had replied.
“Why didn’t you stash him in the trunk?”
“I got a shitload of stuff in the trunk. He’s fine back there. He can’t get out. The door and window controls are up here. C’mon, move your ass. She’s getting away….”
Leo hadn’t any idea where he was. He’d opened his eyes briefly and noticed a crisscrossed thin steel grid separating the front seat from the back. The car smelled like sour milk and stale coffee. He’d heard the doors shut, and the engine starting up. He’d felt every little bump and divot on the driveway, but he’d remained still.
Up front, they’d started talking about how Allen would take Susan Blanchette and her son out on a boat in the morning. Leo hadn’t really been able to follow the conversation. In fact, he’d blacked out for a spell.
The next thing he knew, he’d been jostled awake by the rough, stomach-churning ride. The windows had been totally black on either side of the car, and Leo hadn’t been able to see a thing outside. After a few grueling minutes, they’d finally stopped and Meeker had gotten out of the car. The cop switched on his high beams, and Leo glanced up again. It looked like they were in the middle of the woods someplace. He felt a cool breeze wafting through the driver’s open window.
He heard someone approaching that same window. “I don’t think she knows anything,” Meeker whispered.
“Bullshit,” the deputy grumbled. “She knows about Prewitt’s mother. She knows someone lured you here to Cullen. And then the kid abducted you. She’s a gnat’s eyelash away from figuring out you’re Mama’s Boy. She’s got to go, Allen.”
Leo kept his eyes closed and remained perfectly still. The cop had just confirmed what Jordan had been saying for most of the day. Allen Meeker was Mama’s Boy.
“We can kill her together,” the deputy said eagerly. “There are plenty of closets over at the old Chemerica plant. We can stick her down the hall from that sweet little bitch I’ve saved for you. We’ll do them both tonight—and take our sweet-ass time about it. But first, a few chores. I’ll need your help changing the tire on Jordan’s Civic, and then you can drive it back to the Prewitts’ cabin. I have a stash of cocaine on me. Wouldn’t it be a nice touch if I planted some blow in Jordan’s glove compartment? When we finish with the girl, we’ll dump her body in the woods behind the house. I’ll torch the place in the early morning and then call the fire department. They’ll find what’s left of the two dead guys inside the burnt-out cabin. They’ll think they were freebasing when things got out of hand. And whatever you and I do to that tasty teenage morsel, they’ll blame on the dead boys.”
“You think of everything, don’t you?” Meeker grumbled.
“Well, I had time to ponder it after I dumped Sleeping Beauty in the back there,” the cop said. “Now, you can take Susan to the Chemerica plant and lock her up until later tonight, or we’ll finish her off right now and dump her body at the plant for safekeeping. Either way, we have less than an hour to get to Rosie’s and pick up the kid. Tell Rosie that Susan’s at home, and I’ll back you up on it. First thing in the morning—while I’m calling the fire department—you go sailing with the little brat. You’ll have a little accident out there on the bay. We’ll go over the details later. But the result is this: Susan’s lost at sea, the dead kid washes up on shore, and you survive. Then you and I can become a team….”
“There’s no reason why Mattie has to be killed,” Meeker whispered. “He’s a toddler, for Christ’s sake. He doesn’t know anything….”
“Okay, okay, fine, we’ll let the kid live,” the cop grumbled. “That’s your thing, isn’t it?”
“What do you mean?”
“You spare the boy. With every job you pulled, you always left behind a motherless son.”
There was a pause—and neither one of them spoke. Leo held his breath. For a second, he thought Meeker might have been staring at him and somehow noticed that he was awake. Leo’s eyes fluttered open just a sliver, and he could make out Meeker’s silhouette as he leaned close to the driver’s window.
The man heaved a weary sigh. “Okay, let me take care of Susan—alone. I’ll drive with her out to the old plant and kill her there. We’ll come back for the body later tonight.”
“All right then,” the deputy said. “But I get first crack at the girl. Like I told you, I have some cocaine—and condoms, too. We’ll have ourselves a regular party.”
Leo realized the girl he’d referred to—that “tasty morsel,” the “sweet little bitch”—was Moira. He tried to remain perfectly still.
“You know how to get to the plant?” the cop asked.
“Yeah,” Meeker answered. “I remember from when I was here in ninety-eight. Afterward, I’ll swing by Rosie’s and pick up the boy. Then I’ll meet you at the cabin.”
“It’s going to be a long night working and partying,” the deputy said. “How exactly do you plan to keep the kid out of our hair?”
“I’m sure Jordan’s pal didn’t use up all the sleeping pills.” Meeker answered. “We’ll find them.”
The deputy chuckled. “You’re getting into this now, I can tell.”
“See you in an hour,” Meeker said.
Leo opened his eyes. Meeker had walked away from the window.
“Sorry to take so long, honey….” he heard him say in the distance. Then a car door opened and shut. Something was rattling on the other vehicle as it took off down the road.
Leo listened as the rattling noise grew fainter. He carefully reached behind his head and felt for the door handle. He gave it a gentle tug. Nothing. The cop had said he controlled the locks, but Leo had figured it was still worth a try.
“You awake back there, asshole?”
Leo didn’t answer him. He didn’t move.
“Hmmm,” the cop grunted.
After a moment, Leo felt the car moving again—over the bumpy road.
As Susan steered down the crude, narrow trail, she glanced in her rearview mirror at the idling patrol car. She kept waiting for the deputy to start following them. Or had they decided that Allen would kill her by himself?
He said he’d taken so long with the deputy because they’d gotten into an argument. “This cop insists you and I go to the Skagit County Police precinct in Anacortes to answer questions while he files a report,” he explained. “Christ, all I want to do is go home with you and Mattie. Where is he, by the way?”
“He’s all right,” Susan said, watching for rocks and other obstacles in the road ahead. “We were in town earlier today. One of the hotels has a babysitting service. I left him there while I went looking for you.”
She’d be damned if she’d make it easy for him to find Mattie. But then, it really wouldn’t be too difficult. Rosie at the store was probably wondering why she hadn’t returned yet. Susan prayed the nice lady would hold off calling the local police about it.
“Well, you were right,” Allen said, tipping his head back. “It was like you said. What a goddamn nightmare! These two teenagers ambushed me on the road. They were holding me prisoner in the basement of that cabin. I don’t know why—maybe for some kind of sick, cheap thrill. Jesus, it was horrible….”
“You poor man,” Susan murmured.
She wondered if he saw through her lies as clearly as she saw through his. She probably should have asked for some details, but she didn’t want to hear any more fabrications. She didn’t have it in her to feign gullibility and concern.
“The deputy shot one of the kids in self-defense, and the other got away,” Allen said. “Those were the gunshots you heard.”
Susan just nodded. She came to a stop as the dirt trail merged into Carroll Creek Road. She nervously fiddled with the loose indicator handle. “So I take a left here?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Allen answered, cracking his window a little. “The deputy told me about a shortcut. We have to look for Coupland Ridge Trail. It’s another one of these pain-in-the-ass, little dirt trails, but it’ll cut our travel time in half—which is okay with me. I just want to get this over with.”
Susan turned onto Carroll Creek Road. She figured this remote route he talked about was where he planned to kill her.
“Jesus, I need a shower,” he said, sniffing himself. “I also need about four aspirin and a very tall drink. Would you look at the clothes I scraped up? Sons of bitches stripped me. I was gagged and tied up, practically naked….”
All Susan could do was click her tongue against her teeth and shake her head. She figured whatever he’d suffered at Jordan Prewitt’s hands hadn’t been nearly enough to make up for what he’d done to that boy. It was all she could do to keep from spitting in Allen’s face.
She checked the rearview mirror and noticed the cop car emerging from the darkened forest. But the deputy turned in the other direction—toward the Prewitts’ cabin, or perhaps to wherever he’d hidden that poor girl.
“There it is,” Allen said, pointing to a dirt path coming up on their right. “The cop said to ignore the sign….”
The small wooden placard read:
COUPLAND RIDGE TRAIL
–
NO MOTORIZED VEHICLES
.
Nodding, Susan veered onto the narrow pathway. She felt as if she were driving to her own execution. She thought of those people who were forced at gunpoint to dig their own graves. She felt like one of them, compliant, doing whatever she could to buy a little more time.
As she maneuvered the Toyota over the rugged, winding trail, Susan knew she didn’t have much time left. From the way the deputy had talked, he’d already killed Jordan’s friend or had him locked up someplace so they could do away with him later. That girl shared the same fate. Susan wondered if they planned to stop there. Would they spare Mattie?
“You aren’t saying much,” Allen observed. “I guess you’ve had a pretty rough day, too, huh?” He put a hand on the back of her neck.
Susan cringed inside. She stared at the dirt road ahead and pushed harder on the accelerator. “Yes, I was very worried,” she said tonelessly. She thought about picking up speed, switching to cruise control and jumping out of the car. But she could break her neck in the jump, and Allen might walk away with just a scratch. She considered bracing herself and smashing into a tree—aiming on the passenger side. No, with the car wrecked, she’d be stranded, unable to help Mattie or any of the others.
“Susan, slow down,” Allen whispered. He braced his hand on the dashboard. “Goddamn it, I said,
slow down
.”
She glanced at Allen and found him glaring back at her. She realized so many women had taken their last breath staring into those same cold green eyes.
Susan eased off the accelerator. Up ahead, she noticed a high chain-link fence with a large gap in it. “Is this our shortcut?” she asked.
“Past the break in the fence you’ll see a driveway,” he said. “Take a right.”
She followed his instructions—and the wheezing, rattling Toyota made it over a big bump just before the gap in the fence. Merging onto the pavement, she turned right and started down what must have been a private driveway at one time. Rocks, tree branches, and trash littered the long strip of cracked, potholed pavement. In the distance, she noticed a little shack that looked like a guard house. Beyond that stood a squat, decaying, two-story beige brick building. It must have been the old Chemerica plant, where the deputy had that girl “tucked away” in one of the closets.
Susan started to slow down. “Is this our shortcut, Allen?” she repeated.
“No, I lied about that,” he murmured. “There’s a girl who’s in trouble here….”
Susan stopped the car just past the decrepit little guard house. She glanced at Allen again. Those eyes that had been so cold moments ago were now brimming with tears. He looked so tortured. He kept shaking his head. “Oh, God, Susan…”
She wondered if he was actually going against the deputy’s plan to murder this helpless teenage girl. Was it possible Allen had a decent streak and he wanted to rescue her? He put his hands over his face, and he let out an agonized cry. She’d never seen him cry before.
“You mean you really want to save her?” Susan heard herself ask. She switched off the car’s ignition. She started to fidget with the indicator handle again. “You’re not going to kill her—or me?”
He wiped his tears away and then gazed at her. “Then you know….”
She nodded. “I was outside the Prewitts’ cabin while you were talking with Deputy Shaffer. I heard everything. It made me sick….”
“I never wanted to hurt you, Susan,” he said. “I thought for you and Mattie, I could change.”
Susan slowly shook her head at him. “Then it’s true. You killed all those women. You snatched them away—right in front of their little boys. Then you beat them and strangled them.” She shuddered. “The night I first met you, I was with Mattie outside that restaurant. I had car trouble. You did something to my car, didn’t you?”
He glanced down at the floor of the car and then nodded.
“You were going to kill me—like the others,” she said. “Why did you change your mind?”
“You were different….”
Susan shook her head. “That’s not why,” she whispered. “I remember now. The lawyer’s paperwork was on the front seat of my car—where you’re sitting now. You asked me, and I told you about the lawsuit—one and a half million dollars. Then you invited me to join you for Thai food. Up until that point, no one had seen us. You were going to take me away from Mattie and kill me….”
She glared at him, but he wouldn’t look at her. Slouching in the passenger seat, he rubbed his forehead.
“You faked that call to Triple A in the restaurant’s parking lot, didn’t you?”