Whirlwind (20 page)

The rain pelted the roof, sounding as sharp
as hail. The wind battered the end doors, which strained at their latches. The electricity had gone out, so the closed-up barn was dark, except for two emergency lights. Yet, beneath the furious sounds of the storm, Jas heard something else: snorts, snuffles, whinnies. The horses were talking to each other.

Lacing her fingers behind her head, she listened. She remembered reading how prisoners of war, held in isolation, had communicated by knocking on the walls. It seemed as if the horses had created their own system despite all Gerald’s work to keep them separated. She wondered what they were saying. Were they afraid of the storm? Did they hate being trapped alone behind barred walls? Were they sending calming and encouraging messages?

Sitting up, she aimed a flashlight into Whirlwind’s stall. Instantly, the mare’s ears pricked. “You’re wide awake, too,” Jas said when she came over. “I was too excited to sleep. Plus, I never want to take my eyes off you.” Whirlwind nibbled Jas’s hair, making her laugh. “Maybe a walk would help us both. We could visit the other horses. Reassure them that it will be okay.”

Standing, Jas pushed the cot to the side.
Then she hooked a lead line to Whirlwind’s leather halter.
EARLY STAR
was written on the metal name plate. Jas wished she could get rid of the halter, but she hadn’t thought to bring one to replace it.

Whirlwind eagerly strode into the aisle. They walked up and down, stretching their legs. Lightning flashed through a row of skylights overhead, illuminating a path. Jas tried to tune out the sounds of the hurricane. She hummed a country song, realizing it was one of Chase’s favorites.

Since arriving at the farm, Jas had forgotten all about him. Now she longed for him to be here. Not only did she want to share her happiness with him, but he’d also change the storm from terrifying to an adventure. Plus, now that she’d found Whirlwind, Jas knew for sure there was room in her heart for a cute goof of a guy like Chase. She hoped that when she got back to Virginia, he would still care enough to try again. And this time, she’d put everything into their relationship.

“I can’t wait to get you back to Second Chance Farm. I want to introduce you to Miss Hahn, Dr. Danvers, and
Chase
. You’ll like him
as much as I do. Then there’s Shadow. I don’t know if you’ll like him. He’s kind of pushy—”

A sudden bang made her jump. The wind was shaking the left side of the double door so hard, the latch had broken. With a shriek of metal, the door ripped from its track and began flapping like a bird’s wing. Rain streamed into the opening.

Jas shuddered. There was no way she could close it. She’d better check to make sure the horses nearest the door were safe.

“Let’s visit some of your friends.” She led Whirlwind toward the end, stopping in front of the end stall. The wind whistled ominously through the broken door, and rain splattered the aisle floor, but the horse, aside from nerves, appeared okay.

A crash came from the office, then the tinkle of glass, startling Jas. Marietta, belted into her raincoat, flew out the tack room door and down the aisle, punching numbers into her cell phone. “The shutter blew right off the office window,” she told Jas. “Rain’s pouring in. I’m calling Gerald to report it.”

“Tell him the barn door’s broken, too. So much for ‘hurricane proof.’”

Marietta nodded, her attention on the phone.

“I’ll help you get the shutter back up.”

“Or at least move furniture and files out of the way so they don’t get too soaked.” Marietta snapped her phone shut. “No signal. I’m going to drive down the lane to the road and see if I can pick up service.”

“In this weather?”

“It’s ten feet to the car. Don’t worry, if it’s too wild, I won’t try it.” She patted her hair, still smooth after sleeping on the sofa. “After all, I don’t want to wreck my makeup
and
my hairdo.” She took off again for the tack room.

“Let’s make sure the horses are all right and then put you back in the stall,” Jas said to Whirlwind. Slowly, she led her down the long aisle, pausing to peer in at each horse. Since the door had blown open, the sounds of the storm had increased in intensity. Some of the horses were weaving, pawing, or bobbing their heads. Jas wished she could go in each stall to calm them with massage. Instead, she stood outside each door, soothing them with words.

“Maybe I can find some hay. Chewing might distract you guys,” Jas said when she reached Whirlwind’s stall. She turned to lead
her into the stall the same time a shadowy figure stepped from it. Jas froze. Lightning crackled overhead.
Hugh
.

A scream of horror rose in her throat. Hugh grabbed the lead line with one hand and Jas’s wrist with the other. Before she could react, he hurled her into the stall so hard she slammed into the far wall. Dazed, she gulped air before leaping to her feet. She flew toward the door, but he slammed it shut and bolted it.

“Let me out!” She threw her shoulder against it, but it was built to withstand a thousand pounds of horse, and she bounced off. Falling backward, she landed hard on her side.

Hugh leered at her through the bars. He wore a yellow ascot and tweed jacket as if off to a foxhunting breakfast. “Thank you for being so easy to subdue, Jas,” he said, purring the words in his gentleman’s voice. His hair and the shoulders of his jacket were wet, as if he’d just run in from the storm.

For a moment, Jas stared at him in disbelief. How had he snuck inside without her seeing him? Then she jumped to her feet. “You horse-murdering—” she spat as she flung herself again at the door. Grabbing the bars, she shook them, repeating,
“Let me out!”

Hugh made a tsking noise. “All this fuss won’t do you any good. I already tested the stall. You’re as secure as if you were in a jail cell.”

“Where you should be!”

“Oh? And who’s going to put me there? You?” His laugh was so smug Jas wanted to spit at him through the bars.

“How did you know I was here?” she spat out instead.

“I always knew where Whirlwind was. It was just a matter of keeping her whereabouts a secret from you—and the insurance company.”

“How’d you know we’d found her?” she demanded. “Lucy?”

“Oh, no. Your demise is due to my sweet aunt.”

Jas stared at him, not understanding.

“You know, the ever-so-helpful, slightly dotty Mrs. Quincey?”

Jas’s stomach dropped. “She spied on me for you?”

“Nothing that dramatic. Aunt Beatrice has a heart of gold, but she also has a tongue easily loosened by a glass of sherry. When she mentioned you were flying to Florida to see your mother, I knew what was really happening.”

Jas growled deep in her throat, furious for being so easily duped. Even when she’d told Chase her suspicions about Mrs. Quincey, it had sounded ludicrous.

“It was so sweet when dear Auntie moved to Stanford to live closer to her darling nephew,” he went on. “And when she
conveniently
broke her hip, I made sure she recouped in the same nursing home as your grandfather. Then all it took was a little bribe to make sure the two were introduced, and a match was made in heaven.” He chuckled nastily. “For me at least.”

Jas wanted to strangle Hugh. Instead, she squeezed the bars so hard her fingers hurt. Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced toward the tack room door. If she could keep stalling, Marietta would be …

“Don’t expect the fearless Detective Baylor to rescue you,” Hugh said.

Jas froze. “What did you do to her?”

“I’m afraid she’s just had a slight accident.”

“Nooo!”

“Hush, Jas. Give it up. There’s nothing you can do to save yourself or Whirlwind.” Hugh’s tone was so condescending and arrogant that goose bumps prickled her arms. She stared unblinkingly at his face, which was shadowed
in the dim emergency lights. Yet the evil shone clearly in his eyes.

There was no remorse. No guilt. No glint of sadness at the thought of destroying lives. He’d even used his own aunt to get his way.

I am truly staring into the face of a killer
. Jas stumbled away from the door. Whirlwind stood quietly next to Hugh, unaware of what a monster he was. Jas had promised to save her. She’d promised they’d never be apart.
I’ve failed
.

“Ah, I see from your expression that you realize it’s futile to struggle any longer.” Hugh’s voice was silky smooth. “My plan couldn’t have gone better. I have you and Whirlwind right where I want you, Jas. Together, where I can get rid of you both and no one will be the wiser.”

JAS’S GAZE FLEW TO WHIRLWIND. “WHAT ARE
you going to do with her?” she whispered.

“I don’t have to do anything. The storm will do it for me. The hurricane has changed to a category four. How long do you think a pampered show horse can survive in this weather?” His lip curled in a grin. “Ironic, don’t you think? Whirlwind will be destroyed by a whirlwind!”

“Don’t, Hugh. Please. Don’t hurt her.”

Hugh sighed. “Too late, Jas. If only you’d heeded my earlier advice to leave well enough alone. Didn’t I warn you at the courthouse? None of this would have happened if you’d kept quiet. Whirlwind would have continued to be Early Star, winning ribbons throughout Florida. You’d continue to be a hack rider living at a run-down farm.” He adjusted his ascot.
“Unfortunately, you can’t seem to comprehend that I will never be prosecuted.” With a self-satisfied smile, he turned to lead Whirlwind away. “So be patient, Jas. I’ll be back for you in a minute.”

“Stop!” Jas hurtled herself at the door. “Don’t put her out in the storm, Hugh. Don’t you get it? Scott Black is testifying against you. The police know you killed Tommy Looney. So no matter what you do, you won’t get away with it!”

“Only, I will, Jas,” he said over his shoulder, his words echoing through the barn. “Because people like me
always
win.”

Grasping the bars, Jas pressed her cheek against them, trying to see where Hugh was taking the mare. She heard the clank of the sliding barn doors. She heard the whine of the wind and the beating of the rain on the outside of the barn. She heard the slap of the lead line, Hugh’s angry voice, and the rattle of the door shutting.

Then Whirlwind was gone.

Frantic, Jas looked around the stall. She had to find a way out. But Hugh was right. The stall was built like a fortress, and it was accident proof, so there was no loose bucket or
feed tub to use as a weapon when he came for her. Tilting back her head, she examined the ceiling, hoping to find a hole into the loft. But the ceiling was solid. Like most new barns, the hay was stored separately in case of fire, so there was no hayloft.

Jas was as trapped as the horses. She sank into the shavings, unable to hold back her despair. She couldn’t save herself, much less Whirlwind and Marietta.

“Jas?” As if on cue, Marietta appeared at the stall door. Her forehead oozed with blood. Her blond hair was soaked dark red. One eye was swollen shut and the other bruised. Her raincoat was wet with rain or blood or both.

Jas sprang to her feet. “What happened? Are you all right?”

“Car accident,” she mumbled, a split in her lip. Her eyes were glazed, and she fumbled at the door latch. Finally she got it open. Jas ran out, catching the investigator before she fell. She helped her to the cot.

“Sit down. You’re hurt.” Jas glanced fearfully toward the barn door where Hugh had taken Whirlwind. Why hadn’t he come back for her? “Hugh’s here.”

Marietta nodded woozily. “I know. He ran
into my car with his. Felt like I was hit with a tank.”

“You need help. There’s a first-aid kit in the supply room.”

“No.” Marietta grabbed Jas to keep her from running off. “I look worse than I am. Really. No broken bones. Just a knocked-in head and bruised vanity. Tell me what happened.”

Jas explained in a torrent of words. “He has Whirlwind. We have to go after him.”

Marietta stood on shaky legs. She slid her gun from the pocket of her raincoat. Jas grabbed the flashlight off the cot, then zipped her Windbreaker. With Marietta holding on to her arm, the two hurried down the aisle.

When they reached the barn door at the end of the aisle, it took all Jas’s strength to open it against the buffeting wind. Clutching each other, they stepped into the pounding rain. Jas was instantly soaked. She shielded her eyes with one hand, trying to see. But as if in a blizzard, the whipping wind and rain created whiteout conditions.

Then a bolt of lightning illuminated a dark mound sprawled about ten feet in front of them. Letting go of Marietta, Jas ran over, struggling
against the gusts. She beamed her light on the mound. It was Hugh.

Marietta came up beside her. Kneeling, she felt Hugh’s pulse. “He’s alive.”

Jas crouched beside her. The rain washed blood from an ugly gash on his forehead. “What do you think happened?” she hollered above the noise of the storm.

“Don’t know. My guess is Whirlwind panicked. Maybe she reared and struck him with her hoof.” Pulling handcuffs from her pocket, she snapped them on his wrists. “Just in case.”

Jas shined her light into the dark night. It bounced off a parallel row of white board fence. There was no sign of Whirlwind. Alarm filled her, and she felt feverish despite the chilling rain. “I’m going after her.”